Since the incorporation of CalanaMurray (Pty) Ltd our focus has been on helping leaders and organisations navigate change, improve team dynamics, and develop leadership capabilities. In this post we share a glimpse into some of our reflections and insights.

It probably goes without saying that our world has changed (and constantly changes) in fundamental ways. There is a lot around us, coming at us, competing for and demanding our attention. It’s not a matter of just more or volume but also increasing complexity.  There is increasing talk of “poly-crisis”. The implication is that we need to approach the world differently.

What is working, and what isn’t? We have given this some thought and noted a few observations. We are sure there are more.

• “Suck it up” is no longer a useful or sustainable strategy to cope with the stress of overwhelm! In a world where our understanding of brain and mental health hasn’t caught up with the demands we face, simply piling on more work and responsibility only sets us up for failure. It is an inadequate response that can lead to burnout.
• Leaders who think they need to have all the answers, solve all the problems, and know better than anyone else, are not coping. The burden of being the authority and provider of all solutions can be overwhelming. At the very least, it reduces effectiveness of all parts of the organisation.
• Hiring “top talent” in the hope that they can solve the challenges of complexity also doesn’t work. The multiplier of talent is an environment that nurtures and values inclusion, safety and collaboration, and leverages the synergy of a diversity of perspectives.
• Leaders do well to focus on nurturing a culture that serves as the “connective tissue”, a “nutritive network” that holds the system together, so that it may achieve its purpose through its people. In our observation, the disruption of 2020, and the subsequent dramatic changes in work patterns, caused a reconfiguration of culture across organisations. This significantly impacted performance of individuals and teams.
• We have seen that the “bums in seats” approach is not a guarantee that work will get done. Insisting on physical presence of employees in the workplace does not automatically translate into better results. Teams are needing to co-create new rituals and norms to both hold and express their unique team cultures in a world of hybrid work.
• The quality of relationships is perhaps more important than ever before, for producing sustainable results. In the Core Theory of Success Model proposed by Daniel Kim, as the quality of relationships rises, the quality of thinking improves, leading to an increase in the quality of actions and results. Achieving high-quality results has a positive effect on the quality of relationships, creating a reinforcing engine of success.

We are curious to know what trends you are noticing.  How is your team adapting and adjusting to the challenges of today? If you had one bit of advice for leaders and teams, what would it be?

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