Creating Effective Alignment within Your Organization

The key to effective teamwork and lasting positive change within an organization lies in:

• making apparent the transparent (and potentially conflicting) cultures at work within an organization,
• identifying and/or reestablishing the preferred culture, and
• realigning everyone within the organization to that preferred culture.

Creating alignment within an organization is a crucial part of sustainable development.

The whole (business/organization)
is created by the sum of its parts (employees):

Organizations are a macrocosm of each individual within the organization. Each individual within the organization is a microcosm of that whole. We bring who we are to our workplace, and our workplace mirrors back the facets of every individual that comprises the organization. If something is happening in one arena, then it is happening in the other, even if it is not obvious. For example, a management team pursuing different goals creates conflict between members, stress for each individual, and undermines results. Working with the right consultant enables an organization to focus on where individuals and teams are out of alignment, and, utilizing the innate wisdom of the employees within an organization, create the space for realignment and transformation to occur.

The medium used to determine degrees of alignment is the organizational culture.

Organizational culture – a mode of operation based on core communications and basic agreements about how the organization functions and how each individual is expected to function within that organization.

More often than not the core communications and agreements are assumed and unarticulated. These assumptions result in lack of alignment. Often organizations have at least two cultures – the one that is articulated officially through its vision and mission, and the one that is unofficially practiced on a day-to-day basis. The unofficial culture could be one of many operating within the organization. Each department creates their own sub-sets of cultures. These cultures often have nothing to do with the mission or vision of that organization.

Truly extraordinary results are possible when the functioning organizational culture is also the articulated culture. Individuals in the organization are pursuing and accountable for clearly articulated goals that are known by everyone.

Realigning an Organization:

The following is an outline of how a consultant can work with an organization on cultural realignment:

I: Culture(s) Identification/Assessments

Individual meetings will be held to identify the various cultures operating within the organization, and to ascertain individual perceptions of the organization’s culture, group dynamics, and personal skill level. A written needs assessment will include current strengths of the organization, as well as skills the organization needs as a whole and/or that individuals within the organization need in order to participate most fully in visioning and aligning with the culture.

II: Culture Visioning/Re-Visioning

As a group, individuals within the organization will come together to vision and/or re-vision the desired culture with which to align. Depending on the size of the organization and how established it is, this could take from a half day to two days or more.

III: Supporting the Alignment

A series of trainings, formulated with the unique needs of the organization, will be proposed. These ongoing trainings will offer growth-oriented, fun ways to build necessary skills, and will be a time to adjust the process as necessary to ensure that all concerns and snags are being addressed. A minimum of quarterly half day or full day trainings is suggested to ensure optimal growth.

IV: Foundation Design

Agreements, understandings, and clearly articulated expectations that are in alignment with the culture and support each individual within the organization will be co-created. This can happen as part of the ongoing trainings or within a separate meeting at some point in the training process.

Assessments at the beginning and end of a process such as this are crucial for the organization’s success. The assessment beforehand enables the consultant to fine tune the content and delivery style of their approach to best suit the organization. A debrief afterwards enables those within the organization to see what has and hasn’t changed, and to obtain necessary follow-up support. Through the debrief process people’s attention shifts from what wasn’t working to what is working. This promotes a sense of accomplishment that solidifies the work already done while creating an excitement that deepens an interest in continuing to practice and employ the tools.

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