Everything is being agilized - and yet in many companies hierarchical management and the result is that hardly anything changes. In order to get a grip on and reduce silo thinking, coordination deficits, frustration, etc. in the long term, a new formulation of leadership is required that distances itself from traditional hierarchies and combines different competence profiles. The key to this lies in a new role for the heroes in leadership. In the following interview, Barbara Wietasch, Partner at TCI, explains exactly what this looks like in the Shared LeaderShift© model and what success-critical advantages it brings.

Who should really lead, what needs to be done and what the ideal management team looks like - Barbara Wietasch in an interview

Hello Ms. Wietasch, in your Shared LeaderShift© model you describe the introduction of a leading triumvirate. This sounds like a profound change to current corporate structures. What exactly does that mean?

From start-ups to large organizations: Everyone is looking for agility in order to be prepared for increasing complexity and disruption. Many work with agile methods. Scrum, Design Thinking, Kanban & Co. are therefore on everyone's lips, and the Spotify model is also being pursued by many. However, these methods mainly focus on customer centricity and product development and address the team level. Even if teams carry out tasks in a self-organized manner, leadership remains hierarchical, traditionally with a manager, silos persist and coordination deficits come to light. This leaves a fundamental dilemma: the team is frustrated, the individual is not seen and supported in his or her abilities.

We have learned that self-organization requires leadership in order to To quote Boris Gloger. We need a roadmap for lateral or collegial leadership. When we agilize leadership, this does not mean that hierarchy no longer exists. Leadership still means leading the way, paving the way, building bridges and reacting to changes in the environment and surroundings.

How can management then reposition itself and take all these points into account appropriately?

This works with a new management modelthat manages the upcoming change in organizations via a new management structure: we call it the Shared LeaderShift© model. "Shared" in this case means separating leadership into roles and distributing it across different shoulders. "Shift" means that, in addition to a mindshift, a change in attitude, i.e. a leader shift, is required. This is based on a positive image of people in leadership, a determination to trust and cooperation between all players on an equal footing.

At this point the aforementioned triumvirate comes into play as a new organizational structure. Leadership is practised by dividing responsibility between functions and people who each embody a clear role and act cooperatively - as individuals, teams and the organization as a whole. The first leadership role involved is the "Customer & Value Leader" and incorporates the idea of the product owner from Scrum. The second is that of the "Team and Performance Leaders", who goes beyond the role of Scrum Master and can also be described as an Agile Coach. It also forms the interface to the "Customer & Value Leader", who takes the customer perspective. Both are complemented by the role of the "Team & Performance Leaders", who spurs his team on to top performance time and time again. And last but not least, there is the "People & Culture Leaders". This role does not yet exist in the many other approaches and is based on the principle of the Servant Leadership. Their focus is on the interests, personal situation and development of each individual member of an organization.

To what extent does this division of leadership roles in the triumvirate actually make it possible to implement better leadership in companies?

This tripartite division allows the individual players to take the different aspects of leadership into account more precisely. Performance requirements and reviews are each represented by a function or a representative of the customer perspective, without this role having a direct influence on the team or the individual employee. It focuses on the needs of internal and external customers. This gives the customer a "voice of their own".

And also the individual employees will probably show a higher level of satisfaction, as the disruptions that currently occur due to the dual function of a manager and leader will be eliminated. This is because an employee's commitment is no longer dependent on just one person in management. In addition, the interaction of all three players on an equal footing prevents any abuse of power in this constellation. More fairness is on the way. So we have good reason to call this triumvirate a true dream team, our three heroes. And just like in ancient times, the heroes are venturing into previously unknown territory.

What are the new roles of the three individual players in the triumvirate?

The Sharing responsibility relieves the burden on individuals and creates space for the active involvement of the team. Particularly if the model is taken further and the roles of "Team & Performance Leader" and "Customer & Value Leader" are increasingly filled by members of cross-functional teams. The roles can also be filled with currently active managers to start with, allowing a smart transition to the "new job".

Another advantage is that the management of Experts with different strength profiles can be perceived in a much more differentiated way. It is to be expected that this will lead to greater satisfaction and a higher quality of management work.

In the Shared LeaderShift© model, however, these three are not completely on their own, but are extended by a fourth function, right? What is the remit here?

That's right: the Shared LeaderShift© model in the narrower sense, which we refer to as the triumvirate, is ideally supplemented by a further role, that of the "Purpose & Strategy Leaders". We call this the "fourth in the group". Its central tasks include the development and continuous reflection of governance and corporate culture. This fourth person is not to be understood as an individual, but rather as a role that can perhaps be compared to a staff position, which was more common in the past. This role is represented by an interdisciplinary team and its tasks are more of a strategic nature. In addition to the cultural work mentioned above, this role should already make a significant contribution to shaping the purpose of the organization and act as the guardian of this "culture". In addition, this role also has the task of operationalizing the organization's strategy. Accompanied by this role, the path from purpose to the North Star is shaped in ever new iterations - i.e. loops.

So what are the specific tasks of the four roles?

For a quick and clear overview, we have summarized the tasks in the following graphic:

It is important that the different roles see collaborative leadership as a role model, support each other, learn from each other and assign leadership roles to individual team members.

So what exactly are the advantages of this Shared LeaderShift© approach?

From our perspective, there are four main advantages that the implementation brings. Firstly: Through the "Customer & Value Leader" the customer is given a fixed place in the organizational structure. The omnipresent customer centricity prevents "bypassing" the growing customer requirements. Secondly, by working on an equal footing with the other roles and the People & Culture Leader, everyone in the organization has a fixed point of contact. The following are effective Employees happier and more committedThis avoids the confusion that currently arises from the dual function of promoting and demanding the leadership role of manager and promoter/leader. Thirdly, by having people with different strengths lead on an equal footing and together, the various tasks of the Leadership perceived much more differentiated become more effective. And fourthly, sharing responsibility noticeably eases the burden on individual managers and creates the space and opportunity to involve the team more actively. Of course, as already mentioned, the long-term goal is to take the model a step further and increasingly move towards assigning team members to roles. This facilitates the path to the "New Work" and towards self-organization. A true leader develops.

And now very briefly: What is the shift in this approach?

This can be summarized in a few short and snappy statements, because leadership...

• is designed from the perspective of the customer, the team, value creation and the individual employee or partner.
• rests on several shoulders and takes place cooperatively and at eye level.
• is mapped via roles and is thus de-PERSONIFIED and de-POWERED.
• and is therefore managed on a rotating basis.
• is lived by all people in the company together.
• is more powerful, as the roles are filled in a strength-oriented manner.
• becomes a lever for collaboration and self-organization.
• means a change in attitude, a positive view of humanity, a determination to trust.

Thank you very much, Ms. Wietasch, for these exciting comments, the overview of the division of tasks in the management model and exactly how the three heroes in the triumvirate deal with the challenges in the company. We look forward to part six of the interview!

The interview with Barbara Wietasch was conducted by the TCI editorial team.

Editor's note: Also read the previous parts of the interview series!

• Part one: How management models have developed: Quo vadis, employee leadership?
• Part two: Motivating employees to perform at their best: Is this necessary and possible?
• Part three: The approach behind the Shared-LeaderShift©: a new sow in the village?
• Part four: Leadership redefined: How Shared-LeaderShift works in the company and leadership tasks are properly distributed.

Part six can be found here: Sustainable transformation tool for companies: Experiences with Shared LeaderShift©.

About your authors

Barbara Wietasch is a Master of Advanced Studies (MAS) in personnel and organizational development and has been passionate about supporting people, teams and organizations in change for more than 20 years, as a coach, trainer and consultant. Her roots are in sales & marketing. This is why she always focuses on people - i.e. internal and external customers - in all organizational changes. In her work, she fundamentally assumes that systems carry the solution within themselves and are knowledgeable. On the journey to "New Work", she sees herself as a bridge builder on various levels.

Eva-Maria Danzer has been a specialist for people and organizations in transition for more than 25 years. She is the managing director of "The Company Journey Guides", a company for corporate development in Munich with over 20 employees. They see themselves as development companions for organizations on their own journey. They work internationally, particularly in four focus areas: Mindset first, Leader-Shift, Hero Customer, Zeitgeist Learning & Organizational Development.

(Cover image: © fotoinfot | shutterstock.com)