Why leaders get caught in complexity

As a leader, it’s easy to become trapped in the complexity of running your business. You can get caught in the daily grind, doing work you shouldn’t be doing. It is both exhausting, frustrating and costly. Below are some reasons why it happens.

Why it happens:

The reasons for getting stuck vary from business to business and leader to leader. But I’ve listed a few of the more common mistakes.

The strategy is unclear to staff:

When leaders use jargon or fancy terminology, they understand, but the rest do not; frustration sets in. As a result, your team will not own the strategy as they don’t get it.

Prioritising the wrong things:

Leaders tend to gravitate towards tasks they are good at. As a result, they get lost in the details of running a business. Unfortunately, when leading, you need to focus on vision, values and what sets you apart. Always be asking yourself what will keep the company focused on the strategy and improve growth.

Poor coordination across the business:

When a business gets to a specific size, it becomes difficult to coordinate your strategy across the different departments. Staff are focused on their performance, and it’s easy to get caught in this silo-based thinking.

Ineffective middle managers:

Sadly you can’t make racehorses from donkeys. If you hire the wrong person, you’ll end up doing your work and theirs. Leaders need to make sure they set the standard, train staff and measure performance.

Unclear roles and responsibilities:

Much like a soccer team, a business needs the right people in the right places to succeed. It’s essential to outline for yourself and your staff who’s doing what. That’s the best way to get synergy across your business.

Information overloaded staff:

With the advances in technology nowadays, we have a world of information at our fingertips. The challenge is staff are so overloaded with information they seldom get time to think. As a result, they can function in a reactive space.

Core issues not eliminated:

Your business can have the best plans to succeed, but remove stumbling blocks to success first, or you’ll take two steps forward and one step back. It could be a dominant personality, flawed process, a confusion value proposition or a strategy based on assumption rather than market research. Whatever it is, deal with it quickly.

Signs you need help:

If you have read any of the above points and are nodding your head, keep reading. Below are some signs of complexity trapping you in your business.

• Staff are confused about the strategy
• The value proposition is unclear
• Sales process isn’t defined
• Customer user journey is unclear
• Delegation of critical tasks is impossible
• Cross-selling is difficult or slow
• Customers retention is low
• There is no time to think strategically

How we help you:

At We Explain Stuff, we create space for leaders and their teams to have strategic conversations. We do this through our online strategy workshops, and they are dynamite. Below is a basic outline of what’s involved.

What’s involved

• It takes an hour to do. It’s a real power hour!
• We help you simplify your thinking for the team
• We explain your strategy on one page
• You get a game plan to remove complexity
• You choose the digital assets to make it happen

The benefits to you

• Clarity on challenges and threats
• Clearly defined value proposition
• A defined framework to move you forward
• More opportunities to cross- and up-sell
• A better customer experience
• Lower acquisition costs
• A motivated sales team
• Engaged staff