Opportunity Creation
Organizational Awareness
"A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots"
- Marcus Garvey -
In innovation and improvement, we place a great deal of attention to the idea or improvement itself. But sometimes, we forget that in order for an idea or solution to work, they will have to be embraced by people – all with different personalities, needs and wants – all with their own problems to solve. Solutions are built for people by people. Teams of people. Companies of people. And people’s behaviors or responses are not always predictable. As much as decision making is often irrational.
Organizational Awareness is the ability to sense the unwritten tone, tide, and climate of an organization. Others call this ability mastering social flow or political awareness.
Daniel Goleman: “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”.
Think about the person you go to in the organization if you want to understand why things happen a certain way. Or the person who is highly influential in getting things done. These are probably the people who have well-developed organizational awareness capabilities.
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.
HOW TO BUILD ORGANISATIONAL AWARENESS
- Put your empathy tools to work on your internal audiences
- Step away from your laptop. Put down the phone.
- Empathize with stakeholders
HOW TO DEVELOP IT
You can build organizational awareness with practice and commitment.
Put your empathy tools to work on your internal audiences
Observe a meeting for example. What’s the tone of the meeting? What facial expressions and other non-verbal behaviors are being exhibited? Is everyone yawning? Are eyes being rolled? Who’s doing most of the talking? Is there a decision maker? Who is really listening? Who holds the power? There’s so much we can learn by making a concerted effort to sit back, watch and listen. It’s not easy, but try it a few times and you’ll come away with a different understanding of the way your team and colleagues work, and how you can make a difference.
Step away from your laptop. Put down the phone.
In many ways our laptops and smartphones have become our best friends. They come with us to meetings, they’re our focus when walking between meetings, and in some cases, they’re even a constant companion during lunch.
To counteract the power of the digital device, commit to spending a few minutes a day walking around the office to get back in touch with what’s happening around you. Take a real look around. What’s the vibe of the office? When do people move around? What do people’s workspaces look like? How do people react when they see you walking around?
There’s a great, complex network of people, emotion, influence, and power all around us. And doing something as simple as lifting your head up and experiencing your office as a sort of “tourist” can give you a unique perspective and a great basis for building organizational awareness.
Empathize with stakeholders
As said before, in order for an idea or solution to work, they will have to be embraced by people, and people all respond differently as they have different roles, personalities and interests. By stepping into the shoes of the different stakeholders, you will be able to define the interest, impact and power of all stakeholders. You are then better prepared for their response and how to approach them.
Developing organizational awareness is not easy and it’s not fast. But, making progress by putting in the conscious effort into paying attention and understanding will help you to become more effective in the evolving, complex organizations of today.