Process, not YOUR Process

I want to take a moment to recognize that you probably have gotten to where you are and have had the success you have had due to in part your ability to design and stick to efficient processes. If you think about everything that goes on at your company or with your team, I’m sure you can list all sorts of different processes you have created to help ensure the same outcome is reached every time. The time and energy spent building, designing, and getting buy-in from your team on these processes I’m sure was no small feat, and if you are like me, your team probably now works more efficiently then they ever have because of your ability to recognize where process was needed and build them out.

Now comes the hard part, if you truly want to empower your team, you need to stop building and creating processes, you need to let your direct reports own the process creation for their functional areas. I want to say that again, but in a different way. The only processes you should build going forward are ones that affect or touch all aspects and departments in your company. If a process is for one department or functional unit, that should be your cue to get out of someone else’s way.

This does not mean you cannot be involved in the process creation, but you should not be the one accountable and responsible to create it. This will take some serious restraint on your part, I know. However, instead of process, I want you to focus on the desired outcome, and if you have gone through the hard work of truly empowering your team, you will not be owning this either, but rather providing feedback on if you believe the process that was created is aligned with the desired outcome.

Even then, it will serve you best to not provide direct feedback, but instead, ask questions and allow others to deeply consider if the process they created will achieve a repeatable outcome that is aligned with the desired results. Put guideposts up to allow your team to better understand where and how they can traverse the path to reaching the results that have been agreed on, ensure these guideposts help your team’s actions remain aligned with your companies mission, vision, and core values, and then get out of the way.

Over time you will teach your team how to create processes that fit within your company’s culture and values while furthering their professional development and truly empowering them to be leaders.