Make space for the case; manage for the results

I first heard that business idiom “Make space for the case; manage for the results” while working at a creative marketing agency a few decades ago. It came from a boss who had a business coach guiding him on how to get results out of his staff. At first glance, I thought it was simply a way to placate an employee while pushing a corporate agenda. Hence, I was slow to adopt the practice. It felt manipulative and insincere.

Fast-forward, and after taking a deeper dive into the philosophy and its nuances, I have embraced it. I see how it has the potential to generate a more informed and reasoned approach. It suggests a focus on understanding the context and evidence behind decisions, rather than just outcomes.

When we are strictly focused on outcomes and pushing our agenda, we fail to bring others along and we fail to see the validity of their concerns. On the other hand, when we become mired in all the reasons why something can’t be done, we can start believing them.

Making space for the case

What does this mean? And what does it look like in practice?

Creating space to truly listen to a team member’s perspective – their concerns, reasons, frustrations, and even resistance, is a valuable discovery process. They bring a unique viewpoint that might astutely inform your decision and its ultimate rollout. Let’s face it: whether you are officially in sales or not, you need to enroll others in decisions, changes and initiatives for them to bear fruit.

You want to create the kind of culture where people can respectfully contribute their opinion, especially if it is dissenting. They might just help you mitigate a risk you didn’t anticipate. If it fosters a robust dialogue, then you can have increased confidence in an idea being better vetted.

If your decision or approach shifts because of their willingness to chime in, then they will know their voice matters. Even if you do not change course, but acknowledge their position, you have demonstrated respect by hearing them out. Either way, you are creating space – and an expectation – for collaboration.

Being willing to invite the opinions of naysayers into a constructive conversation takes some skill. First, you want to genuinely hear what they have to say. Second, you want to notice what they are not saying. You likely will need to ask follow-up questions – preferably open-ended – to get to a shared and meaningful understanding of the situation. What discomfort or fear do they have? What obstacles do they name that you might be able to help them remove? By naming the true resistance we get to the heart of the matter, and we don’t need to get caught up in the swirl of drama – excuses, finger-pointing, blaming, and victimhood.

You can validate (make space for the case), without giving up on the desired results.

Validating is recognizing and affirming a person and their feelings and opinions as valid or worthy. Invalidating is when we deny, reject, or dismiss someone’s feelings, thereby sending the message that their subjective emotional experience is somehow inaccurate, insignificant or unacceptable.

Validating is NOT agreeing with someone. It is not placating, coddling, or manipulating. It is slowing the conversation enough to hold space for another’s reality, without judgment.

In a coaching session today, a client and I were navigating the issue of her direct report’s tendencies to slip into commiserating with his team instead of guiding them to a collaborative solution. In the direct report’s desire to be helpful, he is unintentionally sabotaging the change the organization is trying to implement. My client shared that her direct report “allows the conversation to sit in the negative for too long. He needs to learn how to shift it into a collaboration.”  He would benefit from the art of making space for the case, while managing for the results.

Managing for the results

What results are you seeking? And why do they matter? Clear goals and focused priorities can help align a team. They help people understand what is expected of them and then make the most of their limited resources.

Provide a big picture. If you can explain the desired results in the context of why it matters and how it will benefit the various stakeholders, you’ll likely have more impact. “Because I said so” might (sometimes) work with kids, but it is not an ideal approach with professionals!

Shepherd change. If the results you want, for example, involve creating more efficiencies in operations, or improving quality of work, people will be asked to do things differently. Behavioral change can take time to shift. It can feel awkward, even threatening. People can be concerned about their continued value and worth. One can acknowledge the discomfort of change without changing the action needed to be taken.

Create a road map. Any decision or initiative that you are committed to advancing will benefit from a clear plan of action. If that road map expresses what will change and how team members will be a part of that change, it will increase the organization’s capacity to drive the results it needs to thrive. It can also mitigate the fears because it anchors the conceptual into the tangible. Suddenly, what was impossible is happening.

A leader’s ability to make space for the case is an expression of care. And to manifest the vision, you may need to guide people past their self-limiting beliefs and their undeveloped skills in enrolling others in change.

Bringing others along takes patience and persistence, but the cultural shifts that come with it will bolster your organization’s capacity to navigate change and growth.

“Make space for the case; manage for the results” can change the entire conversation into one that is collaborative, constructive, and actionable.

Karen Natzel is a business therapist who helps leaders create healthy, vibrant and high-performing organizations.