The 5 Stages of Change
Before you can start installing The 4 Disciplines of Execution in your organization you have to tackle the challenge of changing human behavior. This process has been broken down into 5 stages by the authors of the 4DX ensuring that the change that occurs within an organization is effective and long-lasting.
Stage 1: Getting Clear
The team, along with the leader, commit to a new level of performance. Each person becomes familiar with 4DX which leads to the development of the WIG, lead and lag measures, and the scoreboard.
Stage 2: Launch
Once the team has a clear understanding they begin working on the WIG. During this phase it is crucial that the team has intense involvement from the leader.
Stage 3: Adoption
With the adoption of the 4DX process comes some resistance but it soon fades and enthusiasm increases as the 4DX process begins to work. Team members are committed to the process despite the whirlwind.
Stage 4: Optimization
Team shifts to a 4DX mindset. They become more purposeful and engaged in their work because they can start to see what they are doing is producing a difference.
Stage 5: Habits
When 4DX becomes habitual you will not only reach your WIG but there will also be a permanent rise in the team’s performance. This rise in performance will allow you to execute other WIGs.
4 Disciplines of Execution
Discipline 1: Focus on the Wildly Important (Getting Clear)
In order to be successful you must focus your best efforts on one or two goals that will make all the difference (McChesney, Covey, & Huling, 2016). “Human beings are genetically hardwired to do one thing at a time with excellence” (McChesney, Covey, & Huling, 2016, pg.25). During this process our team must narrow our focus to one or two wildly important goals and consistently invest time and energy into them. When you narrow your focus it allows for the increase of engagement and accountability.
My WIG: By the end of the 2018-2019 school year, 65% of teachers will implement student-centered blended learning environments.
I will meet with the leadership team in order to develop or lag and lead measures. A lag measure is a measurement of a result you are trying to achieve. For the WIG the lag measure would be developing a lesson plan 100% of the time that incorporates some form of blended learning. Lag measures are usually easy to define unlike lead measures which will be explained in more detail in discipline 2.
Discipline 2: Act on Lead Measures (Launch and Adoption)
Unlike lag measures, lead measures are within your control. Lead measures are the “measures” of the activities most connected to achieving the goal (McChesney, Covey, & Huling, 2016). In simple terms it’s the “how” that needs to take place in order to reach the lag measure. When developing the lead measure there are a few questions that need to be addressed:
- Are they predictive?
- Are they influenceable?
- Are they an ongoing process or a “once and done”?
- Is it a leader’s game or a team game?
- Can they be measured?
- Are they worth measuring?
Potential lead measures are:
- 100% percent of teachers will create lesson plans that include at least two blended learning lessons per week.
- Teacher will observe classrooms that use blended learning at least once per week.
Discipline 3: Keep a Compelling Scoreboard (Optimization)
In order for a team to be engaged everyone must know the score at all times so they can tell if they are winning or losing. “If the lead and lag measures are not captured on a visual scoreboard and updated regularly, they will disappear into the distraction of the whirlwind (McChesney, Covey, & Huling, 2016, pg.66). The scoreboard allows for the quick review of whether or not we are on track to reach our WIG. For the scoreboard to be compelling it must be simple, visible, and display the lag and lead measures.
Scoreboard: The scoreboard will be a chart that will be used to keep track of the weekly lessons that each teacher incorporates into their lesson plan. It will have the lag and lead measures on it as well. This visualization will help show continued progress compared to other teachers.
Discipline 4: Create a Cadence of Accountability (Habits)
This is where execution actually happens. There must be consistent accountability. We will hold weekly WIG sessions. These meetings will be held on the same day every week and last no longer than 30 minutes. Each meeting will have the same agenda:
- Report on commitments
- Team members report on the commitments they made the previous week to move the lead measures
- Review the scoreboard
- Determine if the commitments are moving the lead measure and as a result moving the lag measure.
- Discuss what works and what does not and how to adjust
- Clear the path and make new commitments
- Based on what has been discussed each team member makes commitments for the upcoming week that moves the lead measure to the desired level of performance.
My initial thought was to have these meetings at the beginning of one of our two weekly schedule team meetings. Due to the fact that these meeting are always interrupted the better idea may be to hold this brief meeting after school when distractions are less likely.
Influencer Model and 4DX
The Influencer Model and The 4 Disciplines of Execution go hand in hand. The Influencer Model deals with the emotional aspect of initiating change whereas the 4DX deals with the actual implementation strategy/process. You need both systems to effectively create change within an organization. I will use both strategies in order to implement my innovation plan successfully. Using these two models together allows for the ability to create change from multiple directions. The Influencer Model sets the foundation for the 4DX. The desired results of the Influencer Model become the WIG in the 4DX. The vital behaviors become your lead measures. I will you these two models as a road map for the change I am trying to initiate.
References
McChesney, C., Covey, S., & Huling, J. (2016). The 4 disciplines of execution: Achieving your wildly important goals. New York: Free Press.
Grenny, J., Patterson, K., Maxfield, D., McMillan, R., & Switzler, A. (2015). Influencer: The new science of leading change. North Ryde, NSW: McGraw-Hill.
Educational Leadership 