“Strategic change doesn’t just start at the top. It starts with your calendar.” says Andrew Grove, former CEO of Intel, in his book ‘Only the Paranoid Survive‘.
In that he means that the change of focus from executives must immediately be reflected in the way they spend their time. The accustomed committees of the past might not make so much sense in the new picture. More time might need to be devoted to more pressing issues related to the new direction of the organization.
In addition, people will know immediately which are the meetings which are now removed from the calendar of the executive and which are the new activities that retain its focus, and this will induce change throughout the organization notwithstanding deeper change in processes, systems and products.
Changing one’s calendar or time usage requires tremendous discipline, will power and ability to change one’s ingrained habits. Not all leaders are capable of such feat.
If you have decided to transform the organization you lead, have you actually changed your calendar? Have you at least decided to stop going to half of your previous regular meetings?
