Five Ways Marketing Leaders Sabotage Change

“Even the best-intentioned leaders can inadvertently engage in self-sabotage,” says author Jenny Magic.

If you lead a marketing team, Magic will ring a wake-up call. You may be unknowingly undermining your efforts to generate leads that match your leadership style.

Magic brings almost 20 years of marketing transformation experience to change management and team performance, so to speak. A few years ago, one of her clients called her a "marketer" for her ability to get a dysfunctional team back on track, and the label stuck.

I met Magic when we worked together on marketing projects in San Diego about ten years ago. We recently spoke on the phone with her to talk about her new book, which is the #1 bestseller on Amazon in five categories.

The following is an excerpt from Magic and Melissa Brecker's new book Change Faigue: Flip Teams From Burnout to Buy-In, published with permission:

Here are five pitfalls leaders should watch out for:

Trap #1: You narrowly define the problem. “Executives are generally rewarded by achieving business goals and motivated by reducing friction in their work. However, when leaders focus on business goals or their own well-being rather than more important things, they sabotage their team by thinking too narrowly.

Trap #2: You force change. The "because I said so" style of change often comes from frustrated leaders who don't take the time to agree on goals (see above) and only want what they want. It can also come from the mandate of the senior manager. »

Trap #3: Silent resistance. “When this sabotage occurs, leaders seek feedback in situations where speaking up would be uncomfortable or would cost employees social capital. It's like, "We all agree, don't we?" Nodding or remaining silent at a staff meeting does not signify participation, but many leaders will take this hasty "agreement" as permission and even enthusiasm to continue."

Trap #4: They change their priorities and fail to develop their skills. “This sabotage is part of the 'as soon as possible' style of making changes. This reactive leadership style puts new work at the top of the list of priorities without taking anything off the list, creating a constant feeling of being overwhelmed and alone.” This can lead to employee burnout. Let's assume that most teams are already busy with work and don't have untapped space waiting for new initiatives. Employees take time to process changes. Not only is it inefficient to accelerate a process without developing the capacity for continuous and sustainable change, haste also slows down the implementation of change.

Trap #5: You neglect the norms of a healthy team and psychological safety. “People are ready to contemplate change only when they feel part of a collaborative community united by a compelling purpose. Conditions for innovations and new initiatives”.

The purpose of this book is to enable change.

“Change facilitation is a part of change management that focuses on communicating change and engaging team members to make sure they are ready for the change and get the support they need to make it happen,” Magic says. “They also help shape the change narrative in a way that is as compelling as possible for those involved.”

Change facilitators work closely with change leaders and project managers to refine the scope and schedule based on stakeholder feedback and best practices.

“On projects without a dedicated change management team, change organizers bridge the gap between change leaders and stakeholders,” Magic says.

3 Personalities Who Will Sabotage Your Business