A few weeks ago, I participated in a panel discussion about using influence to deliver results. It was moderated with ease and distinction by Neerja Raman, a Valley exec, management speaker/author, and now research scholar and proponent of social entrepreneurship. It was a panel of impressive women, all with insightful stories and if you're interested, there's more information to be found at Neerja's blog and Peggy's (one of the panelists).
At the panel, the stories I shared were about managing up and/or out - either top bosses during my corporate stint, or VC investors and customers from entrepreneurial forays. But influencing your team is an ongoing, daily need, not a sporadic activity, and more so in an early stage startup when you have very little history and the culture is still being formed. Sure, when it's only you and a couple of co-founders and you've all worked together before, the influencing patterns are so ingrained in you that you probably don't even notice that you're following them. Whenever you're presenting anything of consequence to your tech co-founder, you will give it a game-changing, revolutionary tinge because that's what floats his boat and he's still got penguin stickers on his car. It's all automatic by now - just like in your family.
But that's not the case when you throw new people into the mix. First, you don't know what floats their boats, revs their engines, juices their hybrids, whatever. Though the beliefs, politics and fashion trends of millions have been driven by a few, influencing is often a a one-to-one game, requiring you to adjust your plan based on who you're trying to influence. That said, there are 'group think' opportunities, though rare in smaller teams, where you know if you can convince one key person, the rest woud follow. So yes, it takes getting to know the individual and his/her hot buttons.
Asking 'what are your hot buttons' is kin to a lame pickup line, and any answer you get is suspect. Most startup folks will say that they're driven by the idea, want to do something meaningful and interesting, and participate in building a company, yadiyadiya. But aside from money and security (usually not the strongpoints of an early stage startup), and the still valid Maslow's theory, people are not influenced by the same things, even in a startup. Some are drawn by appeals to their sense of adventure (we're going to try something new and get to invent it as we go!) while others are more partial to predictability (we're trying something new, but not really - see how it is similar to all this stuff you've done before, and here are 25 reasons why it is a good bet and the giant safety net in case it isn't). In a previous startup, I found the architect always responded to the 'big picture' pitch, while the development manager wanted everything presented in terms of timeline and resources, and didn't really care about anything outside of that. It may appear trivial, but it took some juggling, and quite a bit of time, to present to each one separately. It was a relief to get to the point that, at least for some things, I could present to one and give him the responsibility of convincing the other.
It sounds like calculating, manipulative behavior, but it isn't really - it is thoughtful and adaptive. It's being an effective leader and understanding that getting the support and buy-in of the team often takes pitching to each member's sweet spot. Which is why anything of significance, while it could be 'announced' in a meeting, pretty much requires individual discussion to get past 'reaction' to 'results'. It takes work though - especially the part about finding out what makes each person tick, and then remembering it every time you've got to make something happen. While there are many leaders who don't bother with these nuances, it is pretty much necessary for those entrepreneurs who are not aiming to be titled 'despot' - or failure.
What helps the entrepreneur is the the passion for the cause. You are so committed to your startup that you'll do whatever it takes to make it succeed, and right there you have more than half the influence you need.
Channeling the inner entrepreneur who views life as a startup. Musings about people, their spirit, the startup ethos and the entrepreneurial attitude, with an emphasis on education and social ventures. The 'how-to'? Not so much. But definitely the why, the what and the whatever.
When you wish upon a star(tup)
I should probably be paying more attention to using the right keywords in my post titles - those that would attract startup oriented readers (the one above would get the Disney fans). But where's the fun in that?
Moving on, last week I had conversations with three different people seriously considering the startup jump - that is, starting their own companies, not just joining one. I've written about this in previous posts (look here and here), but obviously this is an ever-engaging topic that bears revisiting. None of them wants to be mentioned by name and understandably don't want their ideas bruited about either, so this will all be cloaked in general terms.
The first is a senior level manager in a smallish company. Not a startup, but fairly small in size, with decent revenues and good growth. She really enjoys her job and is very good at it, but, she said, this is not what she wants to be doing - she doesn't feel satisfied. So she's been looking around, checking into various options, and has come across an idea that resonates with her deeply. It involves a passion of hers and she's figured out a way she can indulge it while making money. Now that she has the idea, she's dealing with is the uncertainty of entrepreneurship. Does she have to quit her job? What if it doesn't work? Will she be giving up moving into the corner office (or close) by doing this, and would she care?
The second is a mid-level manager of a Fortune 100 company. She, along with her coworker, built a nifty little application that's getting rave reviews internally. Her company is not into software so she sees no further outlet for what she believes would be an universally welcomed solution. She's trying to figure out if she can launch a company with this app - with her company's support and sponsorship - instead of letting it (and herself) languish with nothing more than a pat on the back and a bonus.
The last is a young man who's already experienced a big company as well as a startup while still in his twenties. He and his friend want to start their own company because (1) they believe that's the best way to work and (2) they believe they can make it work. And, not to mention, they want to take this walk on the wild side while they're still unencumbered by other obligations. Their startup idea? Well, they're working - and I mean, working - on it. Brainstorming, researching, analyzing dozens of tech ideas, hoping to find the one that brings their 'eureka!' moment. They've already got a game plan on how to do the startup in advance of picking the idea (stay small, stay close, be careful about funding etc.). They're driven by the how, not the what - at least not yet.
What all this means - to me at least - is that more and more people are leaning towards entrepreneurship, and for many different reasons. Strikingly, among the three people mentioned, not one was doing it just for the money, though they do expect some financial rewards. It looks like more people are willing to unleash their inner entrepreneur and maybe that would be the smart thing to do in this economic climate (check out this BusinessWeek piece for one opinion on why entrepreneurs are the answer to the purported perils of globalization). Any and all of would-be entrepreneurs above could be successful, though each has his/her own set of hurdles to cross before even starting the venture - it would be interesting to report back three years from now and see how they fared). But no matter what they end up doing, this entrepreneurial attitude is sure to have an impact - and if nothing else, they have more fun answering 'how's work?' these days.
Moving on, last week I had conversations with three different people seriously considering the startup jump - that is, starting their own companies, not just joining one. I've written about this in previous posts (look here and here), but obviously this is an ever-engaging topic that bears revisiting. None of them wants to be mentioned by name and understandably don't want their ideas bruited about either, so this will all be cloaked in general terms.
The first is a senior level manager in a smallish company. Not a startup, but fairly small in size, with decent revenues and good growth. She really enjoys her job and is very good at it, but, she said, this is not what she wants to be doing - she doesn't feel satisfied. So she's been looking around, checking into various options, and has come across an idea that resonates with her deeply. It involves a passion of hers and she's figured out a way she can indulge it while making money. Now that she has the idea, she's dealing with is the uncertainty of entrepreneurship. Does she have to quit her job? What if it doesn't work? Will she be giving up moving into the corner office (or close) by doing this, and would she care?
The second is a mid-level manager of a Fortune 100 company. She, along with her coworker, built a nifty little application that's getting rave reviews internally. Her company is not into software so she sees no further outlet for what she believes would be an universally welcomed solution. She's trying to figure out if she can launch a company with this app - with her company's support and sponsorship - instead of letting it (and herself) languish with nothing more than a pat on the back and a bonus.
The last is a young man who's already experienced a big company as well as a startup while still in his twenties. He and his friend want to start their own company because (1) they believe that's the best way to work and (2) they believe they can make it work. And, not to mention, they want to take this walk on the wild side while they're still unencumbered by other obligations. Their startup idea? Well, they're working - and I mean, working - on it. Brainstorming, researching, analyzing dozens of tech ideas, hoping to find the one that brings their 'eureka!' moment. They've already got a game plan on how to do the startup in advance of picking the idea (stay small, stay close, be careful about funding etc.). They're driven by the how, not the what - at least not yet.
What all this means - to me at least - is that more and more people are leaning towards entrepreneurship, and for many different reasons. Strikingly, among the three people mentioned, not one was doing it just for the money, though they do expect some financial rewards. It looks like more people are willing to unleash their inner entrepreneur and maybe that would be the smart thing to do in this economic climate (check out this BusinessWeek piece for one opinion on why entrepreneurs are the answer to the purported perils of globalization). Any and all of would-be entrepreneurs above could be successful, though each has his/her own set of hurdles to cross before even starting the venture - it would be interesting to report back three years from now and see how they fared). But no matter what they end up doing, this entrepreneurial attitude is sure to have an impact - and if nothing else, they have more fun answering 'how's work?' these days.
There's no team in virtual
There's the 'I' and 'U' but no 'team' in virtual. Startups that launch as entirely virtual may find that they're virtually successful - as in almost, but not quite there.
OK, aside from the cute word plays, there is a real reason why startups cannot be all virtual. It doesn't mean that everyone has to be together all day, 12 hours a day and commute for hours to make it happen. For one, that can be a real productivity drain, and for another, it is certainly not eco-friendly. Startups in college campuses or those consisting entirely of single folks sharing a communal apartment can skip this post in smug satisfaction - but the rest of us have to work at balancing the needs of people and planet with milestones and resources (or lack thereof).
Superior communication is how mankind evolved from grubbing for edible worms to savoring warm chocolate cake with truffle in the center (yum...). So it's not surprising that it helps the startup team to pull together instead of haring off in different directions. But communications don't get established by saying 'we need to communicate' and everyone nodding agreement. You need to seed a 'culture of communication' and help it get established so it can be sustained without much effort.
Technology (the output of many startups) has made it really easy to communicate across distances - Skype alone has probably caused a 1000-fold growth in virtual teams. But just because the tools are there doesn't mean that people know how to use them effectively. Ideally you'd want your team keeping in touch the way they would be if sitting across each other in a bull pen, but with the cranked up productivity of sitting in their PJs on a couch at home. Can it be done? Sure - but only if they've built a rapport and can ping a colleague (or the CEO) mid-way through coding with 'this is the short-cut I'm taking - what do you think?'. The team has to feel comfortable asking and telling, and not worry too much about interrupting or wasting time.
And how do you build this rapport? By meeting often, and in person, especially during the early stages. If you don't have an office (which is most likely, pre-funding) there's your living room, the legendary glamorous garage, and the #1 worldwide alternative to the home-office: the ubiquitous coffee shop. It doesn't matter where and it doesn't have to be all the time - but meet often, preferably on a schedule and spend time hashing things until you've not only got the communicating habit inculcated, but everyone's got the quirks figured out and doesn't get huffy at a co-worker's skepticism (she just likes everything spelled out) and remembers to touch base with the CEO on everything because he wants to be in the loop (startup management - that's another post).
The rest of the time, when you're not meeting face-to-face, set it up so that you're in touch every day with every one by chat, con calls, whatever it is, pick the medium and use it often so everyone gets into the rhythm and isn't wasting time decoding the message (a la teens and texting). And of course, there's always the getting together over lattes, dim sum, pizza and beers - more of the rapport building.
Sometimes it may seem that all the touch-feely stuff is taking away precious time from the serious work of building a product. But you aren't just building a product, you're building a company - and without adequate communication you may end up building something you don't want. Think about it - you have a vision for something new and innovative that you and your team are trying to build. You can't really expect that the vision can be documented in sufficient detail to provide a comprehensive blueprint - and if you're spending enough time to attempt to do so, maybe a startup's not the right thing for you. Communicating the vision requires constant refinement, from the big picture to the tiny pixels. And along with the product vision, there's also the myriad operational details of what to do or not, choices to make or not, that are not obvious and won't become standard operating procedure for a long time (until, let's face it, you're big enough to afford structure and bureaucracy). So keeping everyone on the same page (even as you keep turning it!) is essential and not fluff stuff. That's not to say you can't be efficient about keeping connected, but remember to provide a venue for questions, debate and casual what-iffing too. The creativity of the communications in the early days is a big part of the fun of launching a startup.
Virtual+frequent+communication. Yup, there's a team in there. And fun too (I'll stop now).
OK, aside from the cute word plays, there is a real reason why startups cannot be all virtual. It doesn't mean that everyone has to be together all day, 12 hours a day and commute for hours to make it happen. For one, that can be a real productivity drain, and for another, it is certainly not eco-friendly. Startups in college campuses or those consisting entirely of single folks sharing a communal apartment can skip this post in smug satisfaction - but the rest of us have to work at balancing the needs of people and planet with milestones and resources (or lack thereof).
Superior communication is how mankind evolved from grubbing for edible worms to savoring warm chocolate cake with truffle in the center (yum...). So it's not surprising that it helps the startup team to pull together instead of haring off in different directions. But communications don't get established by saying 'we need to communicate' and everyone nodding agreement. You need to seed a 'culture of communication' and help it get established so it can be sustained without much effort.
Technology (the output of many startups) has made it really easy to communicate across distances - Skype alone has probably caused a 1000-fold growth in virtual teams. But just because the tools are there doesn't mean that people know how to use them effectively. Ideally you'd want your team keeping in touch the way they would be if sitting across each other in a bull pen, but with the cranked up productivity of sitting in their PJs on a couch at home. Can it be done? Sure - but only if they've built a rapport and can ping a colleague (or the CEO) mid-way through coding with 'this is the short-cut I'm taking - what do you think?'. The team has to feel comfortable asking and telling, and not worry too much about interrupting or wasting time.
And how do you build this rapport? By meeting often, and in person, especially during the early stages. If you don't have an office (which is most likely, pre-funding) there's your living room, the legendary glamorous garage, and the #1 worldwide alternative to the home-office: the ubiquitous coffee shop. It doesn't matter where and it doesn't have to be all the time - but meet often, preferably on a schedule and spend time hashing things until you've not only got the communicating habit inculcated, but everyone's got the quirks figured out and doesn't get huffy at a co-worker's skepticism (she just likes everything spelled out) and remembers to touch base with the CEO on everything because he wants to be in the loop (startup management - that's another post).
The rest of the time, when you're not meeting face-to-face, set it up so that you're in touch every day with every one by chat, con calls, whatever it is, pick the medium and use it often so everyone gets into the rhythm and isn't wasting time decoding the message (a la teens and texting). And of course, there's always the getting together over lattes, dim sum, pizza and beers - more of the rapport building.
Sometimes it may seem that all the touch-feely stuff is taking away precious time from the serious work of building a product. But you aren't just building a product, you're building a company - and without adequate communication you may end up building something you don't want. Think about it - you have a vision for something new and innovative that you and your team are trying to build. You can't really expect that the vision can be documented in sufficient detail to provide a comprehensive blueprint - and if you're spending enough time to attempt to do so, maybe a startup's not the right thing for you. Communicating the vision requires constant refinement, from the big picture to the tiny pixels. And along with the product vision, there's also the myriad operational details of what to do or not, choices to make or not, that are not obvious and won't become standard operating procedure for a long time (until, let's face it, you're big enough to afford structure and bureaucracy). So keeping everyone on the same page (even as you keep turning it!) is essential and not fluff stuff. That's not to say you can't be efficient about keeping connected, but remember to provide a venue for questions, debate and casual what-iffing too. The creativity of the communications in the early days is a big part of the fun of launching a startup.
Virtual+frequent+communication. Yup, there's a team in there. And fun too (I'll stop now).
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