We hear the phrase âthink outside the boxâ a lot. If âthe boxâ is something that is stifling creativity, it sounds like something to avoid. But when âthe boxâ is a framework that smart leaders use to get better results from their teams, it is something to embrace.
In our new book Lead Inside the Box â How Smart Leaders Guide Their Teams to Exceptional Results, my co-author Mike Figliuolo and I present the Leadership Matrix, or âthe boxâ for short. The premise is you need to evaluate the amount of output you get from a team member and compare that to the amount of time and energy you have to invest in them to get that output. We call that second piece âleadership capital.â The result of those comparisons is the Leadership Matrix.
Within that matrix, we define behavioral-performance patterns that team members demonstrate from Slackers to Rising Stars and everything in between. The real insight lies in practical advice on how to lead those folks to improve their performance. By understanding the behaviors your team members demonstrate and how you invest (or donât invest) your time and effort into them, youâll get a clearer picture of the 8 archetypical performance patterns that can show up in the box. With that understanding, you can begin leading your team members differently, which will improve your team performance.
Those archetypes are as follows:
Exemplars (High Output, Low Input) can be categorized based upon their career aspirations. Some Exemplars want their great performance to provide them a stepping stone to larger roles and responsibilities. These are the âRising Stars.â Other Exemplars are content remaining in their current roles. Theyâre experts and theyâre satisfied with delivering outstanding results without much interference from their boss. These individuals are the âDomain Masters.â
High Cost Producers (High Output, High Input) break into subtypes based on the kinds of costs they incur. Some get results but at the high cost of damaging team morale and destroying the goodwill you and your team have accrued with others. These individuals are the âSteamrollers.â High-Cost Producers who get results but require an inordinate amount of hand-holding from their leader to get them done are the âSqueaky Wheels.â
Detractors (Low Output, High Input) are defined by the root cause of their performance issues. Some donât have the skills they need to do their job. These individuals are the âSquare Pegs.â We call Detractors who have the skills to do the job but they lack the will to do it the âSlackers.
Passengers (Low Output, Low Input) subtypes are determined by the kind of output they produce. Some only work to get their paycheck. They expend the bare minimum amount of effort required to keep getting paid. These are the behaviors of your âStowaways.â Other Passengers exert a great deal of energy but they focus on tasks they want to do, not tasks you need them to do. We refer to Passengers behaving this way as âJoyriders.â
Once you have identified the behavioral-performance patterns present on your team, you will see your team in a new light. (You can use our simple online quiz to assess your team using this framework.) Armed with these new insights, you can figure out the specific type of leadership each team member needs from you to improve their performance. By seeing your team as a portfolio, you can also figure out where you should invest less of your time in some parts so you can shift it to invest more in other parts. In short, you will learn to get better results out of your team by working smarter, not harder, as a leader.
To learn more about leading people in all eight performance patterns in the Leadership Matrix, visit www.LeadInsideTheBox.com or read our book, Lead Inside the Box: How Smart Leaders Guide their Teams to Exceptional Results.
About the Author:
Victor Prince: As the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Victor Prince helped build a new federal agency and led a division of hundreds of people. As a consultant with Bain & Company, he helped clients across the United States and Europe develop successful business strategies. Today, Victor is a consultant and speaker who teaches strategy and leadership skills to clients around the world.
