Choices
Companies change all the time.
Some companies change because the market is not doing what it did before and cuts are needed or a dramatic change in focus is required.
Some change because of growth and the things that may have worked so well to get you to a certain point may need to be modified, updated, upgraded or enhanced greatly to get you to that next major growth milestone.
Some change because of people and when new people are added to the team then new and different behaviors may be adopted or new paths may be destined for the journey.
And some change because the things that were acceptable and within the risk tolerance of the company during a heavy growth phase may not be acceptable from a risk perspective anymore.
As things change, that “perfect V” that defined the team all flying together and drafting off each other begins to change. Some of those who flew in such perfect formation to get to a specific point begin falling off or lagging behind. Sometimes the changes in formation are not because of specific decisions or choices made by the particular people that are part of the people at that time. For example, the organization may be much more complex with growth and an individual may be incapable of keeping up or ill prepared for what is needed to stay in the formation. In those times, the organization may have others drop back to build up or support those falling behind; or more likely, those dropping off may join another group flying just a little bit slower and demanding a little bit less than the high performance team of high growth individuals.
But at other times, those who were so powerful in one particular formation may pull out of their own choosing and look to join another team flying on a different path or flying at a different velocity.Â
When an organization loses one of the key members of its formation, the remaining team will typically continue on for awhile, sometimes not even realizing who has dropped out and what has been lost depending on where they were in the formation and how important they were to the “V”. If the departure is abrupt, the “V” will immediately reform and the hole will be filled to keep the integrity of the formation and to ensure continued movement towards the desired destination. But eventually, if those dropping out are key to the strength and the integrity of the formation, the “V” will slowly fall apart as others are asked to tighten up and perform roles that they otherwise may not have the ability or the desire to perform.
As the team that got an organization to a certain point begins to change and the integrity of the formation is threatened, the organization has some very tough decisions to make. Do they drop back and try to work with the one that has left the formation and try to build them back up or encourage them to rejoin the formation? Do they quickly pick up someone else from outside the formation and lure them into the formation to fill the very critical hole in the “V”? Or do they tighten up the formation and fly forward with fewer participants in the main “V” and work hard to keep those that are left flying fast and hard to the desired destination?
Regardless of the path or the plan, it’s critical that organizations carefully think through what they will do in response to the inevitable holes in their formation or structure. The bigger the formation or the longer the flight, the greater the chance of the departures and the more urgent the need for formation planning. The longer the formation has been together, the more certain there will be departures.
Maybe the right answer is that the bigger an organization gets and the larger the “V” becomes, the more important it is to have a “V” of “V” formations, and then have multiple flyers throughout the various “V” formations that could come together and ensure the integrity and speed of the main “V”. The wing “V” may be impacted for a short period of time if one of the key members of that “V” moves up to the main “V”, but it’s a lot easier to replace those on the wings than to replace those critical to the integrity of the main formation.
So much more to think about!