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| 2 ˇV Tactical Capacity | |
| Tactical Capacity is a team's ability to work under difficult, changing conditions and translate strategies into tactical actions decisively, rapidly and effectively. It is the essential bridge between strategy and execution. In contrast to other work groups that move slowly, with lots of direction and most decisionmaking coming from the leader, high performing teams empower each member to come up with and quickly implement critical solutions to the inevitable problems that arise on an ongoing basis. They build on strategy and plans with the right people and practices to implement everevolving actions that work. |
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| You have seen this yourself. You have been on teams with members that operate in loosely connected silos, incapable of acting without specific direction from above. They may know the strategy. They may have the resources they need. But any variation or change paralyzes them. |
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| In contrast, a great example of Tactical Capacity at work was how NASA team members came together during the Apollo 13 crisis. Right from ˇ§Houston, we've had a problemˇKˇ¨ the team reacted flexibly and fluidly to a dramatic and unwelcome new reality ˇV a crippling explosion en route, in space. They went beyond their standard operating procedures and what their equipment was ˇ§designed to doˇ¨ to exploring what it ˇ§could doˇ¨. Through tight, on-the-fly collaboration, the team did in minutes what normally took hours, in hours what normally took days, and in days what normally took months. This was critical to getting the crew home safely. |
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| If you're lucky, you've been on teams where actions and results flow with great ease, where team members know what is really required and support each other in making those things happen. Those teams have Tactical Capacity. |
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| Here's a mouthful of jargon, but it's important: Tactical Capacity is built on the alignment of People, Plans, and Practices around a shared purpose. As the new leader, it's your job to orchestrate this alignment. You must convince key people to turn a shared purpose into a burning imperative and get widespread buyin for it by communicating constantly with the team and broader organization. A burning imperative is the antidote to silos and departments that don't cooperate. Tactical Capacity is not only about the team being able to respond quickly to changes in external circumstances, it also is about team members working well with each other in support of the teamˇ¦s burning imperative. |
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| 3 ˇV Building Blocks of Tactical Capacity | |
| The good news is that a leader in a new role can build Tactical Capacity into their team quickly by implementing five building blocks: | |
| ˇE Get buy-in for the one BURNING IMPERATIVE | |
| ˇE Use key MILESTONES to drive team performance | |
| ˇE Invest in EARLY WINS to build team confidence | |
| ˇE Get the right people in the RIGHT ROLES | |
| ˇE Shape the team CULTURE with an on-going communication campaign | |