Embracing Mistakes and Understanding the Talk | Nurturing a Culture of Execution

Nurturing a winning culture begins with setting expectations that mistakes are acceptable. After setting the expectations, every leader’s action must develop and reinforce an understanding in every team member that mistakes are acceptable.  

The first barrier preventing an understanding that mistakes are acceptable will be distrust. This was the most challenging and frustrating barrier for me until I recognized why it existed. Once I recognized why, then I was able to accept and move beyond the barrier.  

New team members will not initially trust a new supervisor when they say mistakes are expected and acceptable. This distrust has been created, earned and reinforced by previous supervisors.  

Mistakes are part of the human experience. Mistakes are the primary way humans learn. Supervisors know this fact so they must acknowledge mistakes will happen. The challenge and distrust develop from supervisors not embracing mistakes. When a manager blows a gasket when a team member makes a mistake, the manager’s actions do not match their words. When a leader’s actions and words are not aligned, then distrust develops. Supervisors must walk their talk.  

Blowing a gasket when a team member makes a mistake is a losing activity, because it blocks the supervisor’s opportunity to teach when a learning moment has been created. Without learning a mistake wastes a contractor’s labor, resources or both. It is critical to note, the waste was created by the supervisor’s response to the mistake, not the team member’s mistake. Again, the contractor’s resources were wasted by a supervisor’s response that prevented learning, not the actual mistake!!!  

The mistake created a learning moment. Learning moments create experience. Experience is needed for consistent execution. Consistent execution is needed to sustain consistent scaling. Sustaining consistent scaling is needed to achieve Full Economic Value.   

Learning moments create value from mistakes. Learning moments are the only way to extract value from mistakes. Learning moments turn a loss into a win.  

Before I lose my credibility, note that repeated or recurring mistakes are still unacceptable as fingernails scraping across a chalkboard. When a team leader or team member continues to make the same mistake over and over, no learning occurs. Without learning a mistake wastes labor, resources, or both. Consistently wasting labor and resources will create a barrier to scaling for a contractor. A contractor that consistently wastes large amounts of labor and resources will face extinction.  

Set expectations for every new hire with statements like the following statements. The only people that are not making mistakes are not doing anything or in the graveyard. If you are working, you are making mistakes. Then say new hires are expected to fix their mistakes, with help when needed, learn from their mistakes and move on. Moving on is key for both the team member and the team member’s supervisor. Close by saying repeating the same mistake over and over is not acceptable. It is not acceptable because no learning has occurred i.e., not learning is unacceptable.  

With these statements expectations and context have been set so work can begin. Supervisors must make sure their actions do not conflict with the established expectations and context, and supervisors must be patient while building enough trust to overcome the mistrust created by a team member’s earlier supervisors. The patience of Job.  

A large shop let a talented craftsman go because he was unable to work with technology in general, and a CNC machine specifically. The craftsman was referred to a smaller shop that had less technology. Initial impressions of the craftsman tracked with his reputation. But the quality of the work in the shop improved dramatically, so the owner was happy to have him run the shop with an understanding he may have to be replaced at some point in the future. 

With the improved quality, the shop was able to grow and afford a CNC machine. To the owner’s surprise and relief, the discarded craftsman stepped up to train the team how to use the CNC machine.  

As the owner relayed this story, I too was surprised. After thinking through the change, I began to believe that the craftsman, who was not highly educated, was afraid to make a mistake. After being in a shop where mistakes and learning were embraced, he no longer feared for his job if he made a mistake. Without fear, the craftsman was able to improve professionally and become a valued team leader. The owner believes that he has found a key team leader to manage his shop. Allowing the owner to focus on scaling the business in other areas. Win-win. 

As in the example above, it can take 9 months to a year before an employee begins to believe that mistakes are embraced. Expect 12 to 18 months if changes are being made from a pre-existing bad culture with the same leadership. Be patient with team members that take longer, they likely will become a future leader that will be a key leader for the long term.  

Critical Key - Trust is built with consistency over extended periods of more than a few days or weeks.  

Consistency is defined in construction by execution. Execution can be defined further by the Prime Directive. The Prime Directive is planning on having the correct people, material and tools in the correct place at the correct time working within plans, specs and written SOPs to meet client expectations. The Prime Directive creates a clear understanding and common context for building an execution centric culture. Once a clear understanding and common context has been established, nurturing an execution centric culture can begin.  

An execution centric culture requires experience. Experience requires consistent efficient training. Consistent efficient training is supported and nurtured by learning moments. Learning moments are created by violations to the Prime Directive. Meaning all learning is built from the same clear understanding and common context leading to the creation of a cohesive team with the same execution centric knowledge base.  

With the conceptional overview of how to implement an execution culture set up, let’s take a deeper dive into nurturing the desired culture within a construction company.  

Any action that does not achieve its aim within the parameters set by the Prime Directive creates a learning moment.  It is critical that leaders within a contractor be able to recognize actions that fall outside the Prime Directive, react correctly with patience, find the cause of the failure, and teach the correct activity that would have prevented the failure in execution.  

In a future post, we will take a deep dive into how Team Assessments and Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) can nurture and support the Prime Directive. 

Link to Teaching Your Dog to Hunt | Implementing Culture with the Prime Directive | Part 1 of 4