Episode Details

Highlights from my book, ForwardFast Branding

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1790592313

Overcoming Obstacles to Acceleration

      In the pharmaceutical industry, drug advertisements are required to show “fair balance” – this is the fine print section of an ad that lists side effects, warnings, precautions, etc. Given that I am in the business of marketing pharmaceuticals, I thought I would include a “fair balance” section to this branding model. Anyone can use ForwardFast as a “how-to” manual, but it is more than a checklist for you to tick off as you complete your branding. As I have stressed, this is as much an art as it is a science.

     As discussed in the last chapter, one of the keys to making ForwardFast work is a focused, cross-functional team. Because of that, there are some inherent risks involved, which are related to the difficulties in engaging a full team and the in-team dysfunctions that arise. Also involved is the notion that simultaneous execution/implementation is impossible. There are also some smaller speed bumps that arise that I will discuss. And finally, there is the notion of timing and luck. These elements must all be in balance for a successful execution of this model, which is a lot to juggle.

Of primary importance is a well-functioning team. Many books and resources exist for forging effective teams, including Lencioni’s Five Dysfunctions of a Team. He shares a series of pitfalls that teams typically run into. Each one builds on the next, and if you are not careful, the entire enterprise can fall apart or be so dysfunctional it might as well fall apart. I prefer to switch this around, and observe things from the opposite perspective – how each of these aspects can be applied to build a better team. Using Lencioni’s words, a team needs Trust, Conflict, Commitment, Accountability, and Attention to Results.

1.    Trust

     Trust is the ability to feel comfortable with vulnerability among team members. Innovation comes from openness, and I strive to make my people feel free to make mistakes, show weaknesses, admit to skill deficiencies and interpersonal shortcomings, and ask for help.

       What happens in a team that shares trust is that, instead of focusing on strategic defensiveness, they work together to get the job done. Time is better spent, meetings are more productive, and morale is higher. The key to making this work is a culture of trust in the workspace, and that begins with yours truly setting the tone and the example. I have to be willing to admit to mistakes in front of the team, and I cannot punish team members for exhibiting vulnerability.

2.    Conflict

   Productive conflict helps teams grow. For conflict to be productive, it must be centered around concepts and ideas rather than on personal issues. This kind of conflict helps a team work out ideas to the best result. In branding business, this should be easy – everyone on the team should know that brand tastes differ -- but often there is a tendency to focus on speaking for one’s self, instead of the customer (doctor, patient, payor, etc.). Passion and emotion play a huge role in conflict, and in the discussion of how best to proceed, I strive to make team members feel comfortable sharing their true opinions. However, just because there is emotion involved, there should not be a feeling of anger at the end of the debate. The benefit to productive conflict is that it gets the issues out on the table and solved, rather than letting them linger and crop up again and again throughout the life of a project. Again, I see it as my role to promote productive conflict – first I model the proper behavior by not avoiding conflict when it arises; then I also allow team members to work out their own conflicts among themselves. If I constantly act as peacekeeper, no one wins.

    One of the best examples of productive conflict is work with c