No vision, so how can you lead?

It is a myth that a good manager can do his job with no vision.  I have recently seen two examples of under performing businesses where there is no vision for the senior managers to work towards and as a result the businesses are in danger of descending into chaos.

In the first which is owner managed the Managing Director cannot see further than the next year.  There are no plans in place for succession nor for the challenges that face their industry in the coming years.  Funding is taken out for the short term needs without considering what their longer term requirements are.

The second business is run by two executive directors who are both looking to retire within the next 4 years, the MD within 2! The shareholders (who are represented on the Board by 4 non-executive directors) have differing views on where the business should go and therefore have still to prepare their succession plan.

In the first business the MD doesn't acknowledge that there is a problem. He has an out dated approach to management and although he is fast approaching retirement age he doesn't see the need to plan to retire!  When he does realise that, it may be too late and the value of his business will have plummeted. 

In the second business both the executive directors and the non-executive directors see the potential problem and although it may be late they are doing something about it.  A visioning workshop is the start point. This will hopefully result in goal congruence and what was once a highly profitable business returning to that position.

In both cases though currently there is chaos within the business and it is causing uncertainty and under performance within their people.  By having clarity of vision and communicating it with their teams businesses begin to perform and to grow.  Indeed the succession that you have been looking for may be within those teams.