Products are built for people by people. Teams of people. Companies of people.
And to become a leader at any level in this product world, we need to be able to maneuver the complex human networks and patterns of influence, values, emotions and power that make up our organization’s operating system.
Someone who has the ability to do this can make things happen; they get things done, but perhaps not in the most traditional sense. Instead of making one-dimensional decisions based on what the data, KPI or OKR says, they have the ability to integrate intuitive knowledge of how the organization thinks and feels into the decision at hand. It doesn’t matter their role or place in a hierarchy – they could be an executive, they could be a mid-level manager or entry level teammate. It’s not the title that matters.
It’s their ability to sense the unwritten tone, tide, and climate of an organization. Some call this mastering “social flow”, others call it “political awareness.” In this post, I’m going to explore it as an Emotional Intelligence competency called Organizational Awareness.
Organizational Awareness means having the ability to read a group’s emotional currents and power relationships, and identify influencers, networks and dynamics within the organization. Daniel Goleman: Organizational Awareness, A Primer
Organizational Awareness in Action
Someone with high Organizational Awareness can:
Make more informed decisions based on tangible and intangible data. They know what the appetite for a decision is, who needs to be influenced, why, and how.
Develop a clear strategy to getting things done because they know the internal (and external) landscapes. They can identify the right person or team for the right job at the right time.
Communicate in a way that resonates. They know the unwritten language and tone of their organization.
Build a coalition to get things done. They have the ability to motivate others to work towards a shared goal.
If you’re in the midst of a transformation or change program you also want people with high organizational awareness on your team. According to a University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management study, the people who make the greatest contribution to change are those who can read and maneuver informal networks – a skill that isn’t necessarily correlated with position in a company’s hierarchy.
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