What does in mean for a company to be in “total alignment”?
Riaz Khadem, author of Total Alignment, says it means everyone in the company is highly competent in actions that directly support the strategy of the organization; the strategy supports the shared vision; the shared vision delivers the organization’s purpose; and that purpose is aligned with the vital needs of people.
But first, a company must identify whether it is misaligned an organization. Leaders must red flag instances where their people are pursuing goals and agendas that are incongruent with each other and do not combine to effectively advance a single purpose. In this podcast, Khadem delves into the following symptoms that can reveal the extent to which your company is misaligned. Does your organization suffer from any of these factors?:
- Decision making takes too long.
- There are too many meetings.
- There’s an overload of email.
- Silos exist.
- There’s a lack of clarity of responsibility.
- There’s a lack of empowerment at lower levels.
- Communication is selective, protecting individual interests.
- There’s a lack of motivation in the organization.
- Confusion and rumors proliferate.
These symptoms are present to different degrees in companies of all sizes, but a strategic focus on alignment can help reduce or eliminate them—whether you have $1 million in sales or $4 billion. To learn more about Total Alignment, read Khadem's latest columns on MMN, or visit his website.