Flat Army

1. The Engagement Crisis: Understanding the Need for Flat Army

"Success isn't about how much money you make; it's about the difference you make in people's lives."

The engagement problem. Organizations face a critical challenge: only 30% of employees are engaged, while 50% are not engaged and 20% are actively disengaged. This lack of engagement costs businesses billions in lost productivity and missed opportunities.

The Flat Army solution. To address this crisis, organizations need a new leadership model that fosters collaboration, connectivity, and engagement. The Flat Army philosophy proposes five key elements:

• Connected Leader Attributes (CLAs)
• Participative Leader Framework (PLF)
• Collaborative Leader Action Model (CLAM)
• Pervasive Learning
• Collaboration Technologies

By implementing these components, leaders can create a more engaged, productive, and innovative workforce.

2. From Rigid Hierarchies to Collaborative Leadership

"Hierarchy is a prosthesis for trust."

Historical context. Traditional organizational structures, rooted in military and monarchical models, have led to rigid, top-down leadership styles that stifle creativity and engagement. This approach is no longer effective in today's fast-paced, knowledge-driven economy.

The shift to collaboration. Flat Army advocates for a transition from "command and control" to "cultivate and coordinate" leadership. This involves:

• Breaking down silos and fostering cross-functional cooperation
• Empowering employees at all levels to contribute ideas and make decisions
• Embracing transparency and open communication
• Valuing diverse perspectives and collective intelligence

By adopting these principles, organizations can create a more agile, responsive, and innovative culture that drives both employee satisfaction and business results.

3. The Connected Leader: Attributes for Success

"Leadership is not about being an extraordinary person, but being open, accessible and transparent."

The Connected Leader Attributes (CLAs) form the foundation of Flat Army leadership. These 15 attributes are divided into three categories:

Becoming:

• Trusting
• Involving
• Empathizing
• Developing
• Communicating

Being:

• Analyzing
• Deciding
• Delivering
• Cooperating
• Clowning

Beyond:

• Coaching
• Measuring
• Exploring
• Adapting
• Bettering

Developing CLAs. Leaders should focus on cultivating these attributes through continuous self-reflection, feedback, and practice. By embodying these qualities, leaders can build stronger relationships with their teams, foster a culture of trust and collaboration, and drive better business outcomes.

4. Participative Leadership: Building Networks and Sharing Knowledge

"I store my knowledge in my network."

The Participative Leader Framework (PLF) emphasizes the importance of building and leveraging networks to share knowledge and drive innovation. Key components include:

• CARE principle: Continuous, Authentic, Reciprocal, and Educating
• Direct professional and personal networks
• Contributing and consuming knowledge

Implementing PLF. Leaders should:

• Actively build and maintain diverse networks within and outside the organization
• Regularly share insights, experiences, and knowledge with their networks
• Encourage team members to develop their own networks and participate in knowledge sharing
• Use collaboration technologies to facilitate network building and information exchange

By adopting the PLF, leaders can tap into collective intelligence, accelerate learning, and foster a culture of continuous improvement.

5. The Collaborative Leader Action Model (CLAM)

"Collaboration isn't easy; in fact, it's quite difficult. Through this chapter, please root yourself in the know-how that collaboration—as good as it is—always takes longer, but in the end, your leadership style, growth, team unity and organizational prosperity are better off."

The CLAM process provides a structured approach to collaborative decision-making and problem-solving:

1. Connect (with others)
2. Consider (all options)
3. Communicate (the decision and action plan)
4. Create (the result)
5. Confirm (the result met the target)
6. Congratulate (through feedback and recognition)

Implementing CLAM. Leaders should:

• Use CLAM for medium to high-scope projects and decisions
• Involve diverse stakeholders in the process
• Encourage open dialogue and consideration of multiple perspectives
• Ensure clear communication of decisions and action plans
• Follow through on implementation and provide recognition for contributions

By consistently applying CLAM, leaders can foster a more inclusive and effective decision-making process that drives better outcomes and higher engagement.

6. Pervasive Learning: Formal, Informal, and Social

"I learn at the speed of need."

The Pervasive Learning model proposes a balanced approach to organizational learning:

• 33% formal learning
• 33% informal learning
• 33% social learning

Implementing Pervasive Learning. Organizations should:

• Provide a mix of structured training programs, on-the-job learning opportunities, and social learning platforms
• Encourage continuous learning and knowledge sharing
• Leverage technology to facilitate learning across all three modes
• Recognize and reward learning and development efforts

By adopting the Pervasive Learning model, organizations can create a culture of continuous improvement and adaptability, enabling employees to develop new skills and knowledge as needed to meet evolving business challenges.

7. Implementing Flat Army: Tools and Technologies for Collaboration

"Collaboration technologies are not about features, functions and cool enhancements. Collaboration technologies—at least in the Flat Army structure—are about enabling your collaborative, connected and participative leadership habits to become fully operational."

Key collaboration technologies for implementing Flat Army include:

Conversation:

• Micro-blogging
• Instant messaging
• Comments
• Discussions
• Email

Content:

• Wikis
• Video sharing
• Blogs
• Webjams
• User-generated content

Context:

• Search
• Personal profiles
• Badging
• Ratings
• Tagging

Implementing collaboration technologies. Organizations should:

• Select tools that align with their specific needs and culture
• Provide training and support to encourage adoption
• Integrate tools into existing workflows and processes
• Monitor usage and gather feedback for continuous improvement

By effectively leveraging collaboration technologies, organizations can break down silos, facilitate knowledge sharing, and foster a more connected and engaged workforce.

8. Culture as the Competitive Advantage: Putting Flat Army into Action

"Culture is the single biggest contributor to the bottom line."

Defining organizational culture. In the Flat Army model, organizational culture is defined by one criterion: how employees are treated by their direct leaders. This perspective emphasizes the critical role of leadership in shaping culture and driving engagement.

Implementing Flat Army. To create a Flat Army culture, organizations should:

• Develop a common leadership lexicon based on the Connected Leader Attributes
• Embed the Collaborative Leader Action Model into strategy planning and project management processes
• Implement the Pervasive Learning model and collaboration technologies
• Align HR practices (recruitment, performance management, succession planning) with Flat Army principles
• Continuously measure and improve engagement and cultural health

By consistently applying Flat Army principles across all levels of the organization, companies can create a culture of engagement, innovation, and high performance that serves as a sustainable competitive advantage.

Last updated: November 23, 2024