Welcome to the September edition of Sharpening the Axe.

Well it's September already and this month’s Sharpening the Axe has a definite back to school flavour. It takes its inspiration from my recent interview with Jon Chaloner, headteacher at Glyn Technology School in Epsom. And speaking to Jon was certainly inspiring. It was fascinating to look at the comparisons between the academic and business worlds. Many organisations could learn a great deal from Jon's approach to leadership.

He has achieved a great deal since he took over the headship in 2006. The school he arrived at was slipping down the Ofsted ratings. However, under Jon’s stewardship Glyn is only the third UK secondary school to have gone from satisfactory to outstanding within one Ofsted inspection.

"Learning and achievement is at the heart of what the school is about," Jon told me. "We approach that challenge with clarity and leadership, and by being open and honest with each other."

> To read the full interview click here.

Put your ladder against the right wall

Our tendency to get 'busy' doing lots of things makes us feel we are making great headway at first. But all too often, when we take stock of the situation, we realise our progress has been illusory. Just when we think we have climbed to the top of the ladder, we realise it's up against the wrong wall.

It's the busy fools syndrome I've talked about before.

This month's interviewee, headteacher Jon Chaloner, admits that, when he first joined Glyn Technology School, he was too involved in every little detail of running the school. "I was the head, deputy head, IT coordinator, and PA to myself," he told me. The more problems he uncovered (and he had accumulated 153 by the fourth week) the more he felt the need to get involved.

However Jon suffered a serious illness which paradoxically saved him from fruitlessly chasing around trying to put things right single-handedly. The enforced leave forced him to take time out and reflect. He returned with a far clearer strategy for how he was going to tackle the much needed change at Glyn.

Now obviously I'm not suggesting a serious illness is a good example of management best practice. I'm just pointing out that time away gave him a chance to plan. But imagine if a healthy Jon had suggested to the board of governors that he needed to take time out for planning. They would have been incredulous! They'd have told him he had too much on his plate to take leave and probably would have asked him not to be so unreasonable.

Yet it was largely down to his enforced break that he succeeded as effectively as he did. As Jon himself says, "It gave me time to sit and think, and all the plans came rushing through me." So can we learn from Jon’s story? What would it take to stop you in your tracks and force you to step back?

Take the path of most resistance

For a hiker making their way between two hills, taking the path of least resistance would make sense. But as a business leader, trying to make a difference and change things for the better, can you afford to take such a path?

Taking the path of least resistance in business means avoiding confrontation and facing up to issues. I do not see how such an approach can lead to any meaningful change.

Indeed, not confronting things head on, such as underperformance for example, is a major reason why organisations fail to deliver optimum performance.

Jon identifies this as one of the key differences between his approach at Glyn and a lot of other schools. I don't think it's a coincidence that he has adopted a straightforward approach to leadership and also has a school that has seriously outperformed the competition. The correlation is clearly apparent. You have to deal with issues like underperformance. You can't try to work around them.

Unfortunately, I often see people being accommodated in roles. Or a role is changed to suit the person rather than the boss forcing the person to come up to scratch. There are a host of reasons why businesses and leaders take the path of least resistance.

Perhaps the severance deal for the person in question is too rich for the business to contemplate. Maybe the company is heavily into employee support and nurture. Or perhaps the boss just wants to be popular and liked. Whatever the reason, too many managers shy away from taking tough decisions on individual performance. The result is compromised overall performance. As Jon states in the interview, it isn't just a question of dealing with the individuals. Positive action sends out a massive signal to everyone that the organisation is prepared to tackle underperformance head on.

If 'manager' is part of your job title, you are there to manage. You are charged with managing your resources, managing your people’s aspirations, and their performance. Get that bit right and your inputs and outputs, such as hitting targets, will look after themselves.

The path of least resistance might work in some circumstances, but truth be told it is often a euphemism for copping out.

There is no short-cut to greatness. Jon’s example of extraordinary achievement at Glyn School over such a short period is testament to this.

And remember this. If you are not dealing with the underperformance of others, then you’re under performing in your role. In which case, let’s hope your boss isn’t reading this article.

Over to you

Jon is very clear about dealing with underperformance. If the person in question still underperforms after they have been challenged, and given the necessary support and encouragement to improve, he wants them to move on.

What are your thoughts on this very direct approach? How do you deal with underperformance? Do you have a process in place?

As ever we'd love to hear your views. Please add your voice to the Comments linked to this interview

Jon Chaloner’s top tips

1. Communicate a clear sense of direction. People want to know where the organisation is going and what it is trying to achieve, so spell it out for them.
2. Make sure your leaders are thinking of how to deliver the future, not simply managing the day-to-day and keeping things ticking over.
3. Deal with underperformance directly. Ensure that people perform their roles in the way you want them to. Don't simply alter the role to accommodate people's failings.
4. Take a step back at precisely the time when you are under pressure to step into the detail. The more you focus on reframing the challenge, the better the chances of delivering a creative solution.
5. Ensure your people understand and truly own their job description. Adjust people’s roles from time to time as it renews their passion for the job.
6. Look for personal conviction in your reports. They must display a bit of spark and vision.
7. Make sure people have faith in their line manager. If you don't you'll end up involved in everything which will dissipate your energies.
8. Don't recruit someone unless they are absolutely the right person for the position. If you don't have the right candidate, find a way to work differently until you do.
9. You are only as strong as your weakest link. However this link will get stronger if you give it the time and effort.
10. Don't tackle people too harshly about their shortcomings. You are often harder with those you work closest to because you see their potential. Focus on their strengths and this tantalising potential will get realised so much quicker.
11. "Preserve the best, improve the rest."

We like this

Re-Imagine! – Business Excellence in a Disruptive Age

by Tom Peters (Publisher Dorling Kinderslay. ISBN 1405345098)

Guest book review by Graham Taylor, Business Process Manager, Nikon UK Limited

It's easy to become complacent. It can happen even when you think you are conscious of the risk and are actively trying to avoid it.

I read to get different ideas and perspectives on topics. I read a lot of business books and articles and I like to think I’m fairly catholic in my choices.

I recently picked up Re-imagine by Tom Peters. I knew nothing about it and initially I was put off by the style and design. I was a little worried by this. I studied art and I collect it. I pride myself on having some degree of visual sense. So why was I put off?

Well, because Tom is a business guru, and this is a business book. And there I had it. I realised I had meandered into my business book complacency. They are supposed to look a certain way. They are serious and important. Re-imagine defied that convention.

I bought the book, and I'm glad I did. Tom is angry. He tells you so immediately. And by sharing it with us, he really makes an impression.

This book is a real grab you by the scruff of the neck and shake you experience. I must admit that’s not something that I am at all used to in a business book.

The clever thing about the design is that it can grab you. It can shout. It can also whisper. It can lure you in and it can persuade you. It’s very clever, and I don’t mean in a manipulative, smart way. It works really hard to keep your attention.

The book uses every trick it can to hold on to you and get to you because it wants to engage you. It wants to get a dialogue going. This is a very different experience to the usual monologues I read.

I've never seen Mr Peters perform in the flesh. However I think Re-imagine gives a very good impression of a passionate man, who knows a lot of stuff, in full flow. I get the impression that meeting him would be a challenging experience. You may not agree with him, but you would get some very interesting views. And you would be made to work hard to hold on to your own.

This is exactly what the book did to me. It made me question a lot of things I thought I knew and was confident about. It made me think about topics that weren't even on my radar before. It left me feeling that my brain had been forced to shift up a gear and I had been challenged to keep it there or risk the wrath of Peters.

All in all Re-imagine is a book I never regret buying or reading. It’s a book I will pick up and read a few pages of (I honestly don't think it matters which ones) whenever I notice things getting too cosy in my intellectual world.

To have someone of the stature of Tom Peters shake you out of complacency and challenge you to think again about, well, just about everything, can't be a bad thing. If you come away holding your ground, you really must be on to something. If your foundations get a little shaken, there are rafts of good ideas to shore them up...

If you are up for a challenge, consider giving it a go.

Thanks to Graham for his review. Have you got a book you'd like to share with us?
Send your review to Simon and we'll include it in a future newsletter.

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