Leveraging to manage large teams

“How do you scale to oversee a 2000-member team from a 200-member team?”

A brick-wall question that has had the most capable candidates crash during interviews. But then, the solution to this puzzle has been lying hidden in plain sight since 2nd century BC, scripted by none other than Archimedes.

We can borrow his leverage principles to decode one of the most significant managerial quandaries of team management using a Fulcrum & a Lever.

Let us try to codify what the essential elements of the lever and the fulcrum are:

Fulcrum:

The Core Team as Fulcrum: I refer to my core team as the fulcrum, the pivotal force that drives the entire team forward. Essentials for the leader to consider:

1.       Embrace Diversity: Avoid creating clones of yourself. Bring in individuals with distinct perspectives. Encourage constructive disagreement and forward-looking opinions. Managing large teams’ hinges on emotional intelligence, not just data.

2.       Split teams based on competencies: You do not want your core teams to overcrowd around a single task or issue. There has to a clear demarcation on who is the “boots on the ground” and who takes the battle to the problem’s doorsteps, i.e., people who execute and people who strategize/ manage.

3.       Varied leadership styles: Recognize that there's no one-size-fits-all leadership style. Ensure that you and your core team can adapt and offer diverse leadership approaches as needed.

4.       Avoid micromanagement: Foster independent operation within your core team, while you focus on your key result areas. Clearly draw lines between what is transactional and what is strategic. Resist the urge to pull work toward yourself when results do not meet your expectations.

5.       Empower the core team: The core team should possess confidence, a sense of empowerment, and assurance in your support. If they constantly seek confirmation, they might as well delegate the responsibility to you. Instead, trust in their expertise to make the necessary adjustments when required.

6.       Clear goal definitions and no distractions: The core team should have clear, well-defined tasks and should not be stretched thin or distracted. While they may need to handle unpredictability, your actions should not contribute to it.

7.       Initiative fatigue: Have your projects charted out and prioritized and based on analysis (stack ranking, cost of delay, relative weighting etc.) and focus on critical few instead of non-critical many. This increases the chance of greater success.

Levers.

Levers in Operations: Levers are essentially the controls that you put into the operations to monitor performance and to take actions, both corrective and preventive.

1.       Metrics & analysis: Create metrics around volumes, productivity, attrition, efficiencies, financials; anything that can be quantified, measured, analyzed and impacts project success.

2.       Quality & Continuous improvement: Create a centralized command center. Invest in your quality processes and team as they are profit generators and not a support function. Empower them to usher a climate of documentation, process improvements, automation, process reengineering, standardization, process optimization & analytics.

3.       Team pyramid: Create an optimized grade pyramid of people working on quantity, activity nuances, process gaps, team supervision, running projects, addressing escalations, and managing financials. Codify the competencies required at each level based on the job requirement at that level; this will help in right staffing.

4.       Trainings: Identify the training needs early, based on both job role needs and individual requirements. Blend classroom and online training, supported by emails, flyers, posters, floor discussions, and tests Trained staff result in more homogenous approach to service delivery and less interventions due to breakages and escalations. Train teams to do “first time right”.

5.       Pulse of the floor: Always know the pulse on the floor through skip level meetings, surveys, townhalls, focus group discussions and an open-door policy. Pay attention to unspoken cues.

6.       Become the HUMAN people want: The team needs to look up to you as an embodiment of a friend, coach, mentor, problem solver and someone who is a catalyst for success.

7.       Performance Management: Start with very clear statement of goals and follow-through with very regular follow-ups, status checks, appraisals, and re-calibration. Your goals should cascade down the last level of your pyramid.

8.       Create your back-up & successor: Your ability to oversee various aspects of service delivery depends on strong backups who can 'hold the fort' in your absence.

 Leverage a strong leadership team as your fulcrum and implement effective execution levers to navigate your team, regardless of its size.