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Accelerating PerformanceConsulting

How we diagnose organisation and team performance

Before we change anything, we diagnose. For the organisation, we measure how fast it can move. For the top team, we look at how it works together. Both show where performance is accelerating and where it is being held back.

The organisation

META: how fast can the organisation move?

META looks at four capabilities and thirteen factors, and shows where the organisation is accelerating and where it is dragging.

Four capabilities

M + E + T + A = Acceleration
M

Mobilise

Inspire aligned action, based on a compelling ambition and purpose and a simple set of strategic priorities.

E

Execute

Fully harness and streamline resources to deliver excellence in the core business, consistently.

T

Transform

Experiment and innovate to create new growth engines and reinvent existing businesses ahead of the market.

A

Agility

Spot opportunities and threats, adapt and pivot faster than competitors, to create competitive advantage.

Only agility delivers acceleration. An organisation can mobilise, execute and transform well and still not accelerate if it cannot adapt faster than its competitors.

Thirteen factors

Each capability rests on a small number of factors. Done well, a factor drives the organisation forward. Done poorly, it becomes a drag factor that slows change.

PartDrive factor, done wellDrag factor, done poorly
MobiliseClarityEveryone aligned and committed to purpose, ambition and clear priorities.ConfusionUnclear purpose and strategy, lack of focus, too many conflicting priorities.
Customer firstAlways responsive to changing customer demands; low customer attrition; consistent service excellence.Internal focusChronic service failures, high customer attrition, overtaken by market disruption.
Energising leadershipHigh energy, empowerment at every level, strong role modelling, bold decision making.FatigueKPIs on red, key projects delayed, disengagement.
ExecuteOwnershipMeritocracy, a delivery culture, processes driven by integrity.Unclear accountabilityOverlapping accountabilities, effort rewarded rather than impact, a victim mentality.
SimplicityLean processes, a streamlined structure, straightforward metrics.ComplexityToo many layers, unjustified process variation, complicated metrics.
Winning capabilitiesA talent magnet, strong talent development, the best talent in key roles.Skills gapsWeak talent pipelines, losing the best people, avoiding tough people decisions.
TransformChallengeFrank feedback and debate, readiness to tackle the difficult issues, the highest performance expectations.ComplacencyAvoiding straight talk and the tough issues, accepting mediocrity, taking too long to remove poor performers.
CollaborationWorking as one organisation, a high level of trust, joined-up processes and communication across teams.CompetitionSilos and politics, distrust, rivalry between teams.
InnovationA culture of disruptive thinking, idea generation and experimentation, with fast adoption.FearMissed value opportunities, stagnation, outdated products and services.
AgilityForesightThinking ahead to anticipate changing circumstances; scanning the outside world for opportunities.HindsightFirefighting, looking to the past for answers to current problems, stuck in the here and now.
LearningReviewing and learning quickly from mistakes to improve continuously; always looking for new learning.ImmunityUnable to learn from mistakes, risk averse, defensive.
AdaptabilityFlexible and quick to adapt to changing circumstances; embracing new technology.InflexibilityOutdated technology, slow to adapt, rigid and unresponsive.
ResilienceSupportive; embracing difficult situations; recovering quickly and emerging stronger from setbacks.FrailtyHigh stress, slow to recover, weakened by setbacks.

How it works

  1. Leaders give their view. Each places the organisation between the drag factor and the drive factor on all thirteen, and says why in their own words.
  2. We build the profile. The scores show the shape of the organisation across the thirteen factors; the comments show what lies behind each one, theme by theme.
  3. The top team reads it together. First individually, then in small groups: what pleases you, what surprises you, and where the team needs to focus.
  4. The team agrees its priorities. The drag factors to remove first, and who will do what.

Example META scores

The leadership team’s average score on each of the thirteen factors. Each line runs from the drag factor at the centre (−5) to the drive factor at the edge (+5). The dashed ring is zero: inside it, the drag factor is winning.

Confusion / Clarity: -1.0Internal focus / Customer first: +1.0Fatigue / Energising leadership: -1.1Unclear accountability / Ownership: +0.0Complexity / Simplicity: -1.2Skills gaps / Winning capabilities: -0.8Complacency / Challenge: +1.2Competition / Collaboration: +0.6Fear / Innovation: +1.6Hindsight / Foresight: +0.3Immunity / Learning: +1.4Inflexibility / Adaptability: +0.0Frailty / Resilience: +0.8Confusion –ClarityInternal focus –Customer firstFatigue –Energising leadershipUnclear accountability –OwnershipComplexity –SimplicitySkills gaps –Winning capabilitiesComplacency –ChallengeCompetition –CollaborationFear –InnovationHindsight –ForesightImmunity –LearningInflexibility –AdaptabilityFrailty –Resilience+50−5
Illustrative example, not real client data.

Read Speed Wins, on why speed is now the differentiator.

The top team

Ten characteristics that accelerate a team

A disagreement left unresolved at the top becomes a problem hundreds of people have to work around. Our study of 408 senior teams, set out in Challenging Teams, found ten characteristics that accelerate performance.

What we look at

1Robust challengeThe courage to take on the tough issues and question the assumptions behind how the team works.
2Cognitive diversityA range of perspectives and thinking styles, including views from outside, that keeps debate alive.
3Adaptive capabilityChanging structure, operating model and ways of deciding as the challenges change.
4Domain expertiseThe right people, brought up to speed quickly, with clear expectations of each member and of the team.
5Effective meetingsA steady rhythm, rigorous preparation and follow-through, so debates reach a conclusion.
6Rupture and repairNaming tensions openly and recovering quickly when disagreement causes damage.
7Enterprise mindsetJoining up the dots with other parts of the organisation rather than working in a silo.
8Meaning and purposeA shared purpose that engages every member, and clarity about the team's contribution.
9Strong governanceAgreed measures of success, commitments honoured and clear authority, not individual heroics.
10Work ethicHigh standards and energy, without the kind of stress that undermines productivity.

Challenge stands out. Of all the characteristics we studied, the ability to surface and productively address disagreement was the one most closely linked with success, and its absence with failure.

How it works

  1. Each member gives their view. For each of the ten characteristics, they rate statements about the team’s strengths and about the constraints holding it back, then say in their own words what the team is doing well and what is hindering it.
  2. We build the team’s profile. Strengths and constraints side by side for each characteristic, with the comments behind them.
  3. The team reads it together. Where it is strong, where it is held back, and which constraint matters most.
  4. The team agrees what to change. A small number of commitments, and how members will hold each other to them.

Example team force field

For each characteristic, the strengths pushing the team forward (left) against the constraints holding it back (right): how strongly members agree with each set of statements, averaged on a 1 to 5 scale. The longer the arrow, the stronger the force.

Strengths pushing forward →← Constraints holding back
Robust challenge3.51.8
Cognitive diversity4.21.0
Adaptive capability1.54.3
Domain expertise2.93.8
Effective meetings2.54.4
Rupture and repair3.02.0
Enterprise mindset4.32.4
Meaning and purpose4.61.2
Strong governance4.01.5
Work ethic4.52.8
Illustrative example, not real client data.

Read Challenging Teams, on the lever that matters most.

Where is your organisation, or your team, being held back?

Both diagnostics are the starting point for our work with leaders, top teams and boards.

Get in touch How we work with you