Leading outside the lines: How to Mobilize the (in)Formal Organization, Energize Your Team, and Get Better Results

MOTIVATING FROM THE SIDE

Ed Carolan’s success at StockPot was the result of his unrelenting insistence on performance—both individual and group—and his ability to employ metrics in different ways that were meaningful to his employees. But what if Carolan needed to turn around performance without the formal authority he had as an executive? Would that approach work?

In today’s flattening world, it is increasingly common that leaders need to drive performance without formal authority. This is particularly true in outsourcing situations, joint ventures, and loose business affiliations (like airline alliances)—anywhere that managers are responsible for departments or functions outside their official lines and boxes. Consider the following intriguing ...