We have department heads who are highly technical and stay completely silent during IDS® because they believe issues in other departments are none of their business, leading to siloed solutions. How do we get these specialized leaders to engage in cross-functional problem-solving?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When technical leaders stay silent during IDS® because they feel an issue is outside their department, they are failing to act as true leadership team members. In an EOS® company, every leader on the team must wear their leadership hat first and their departmental hat second.

Siloed thinking is a major threat to organizational growth. An issue in sales almost always impacts operations, and an issue in operations affects finance. If your specialized leaders remain silent, you are missing out on their unique analytical perspectives, and you are allowing them to remain disconnected from the wider business.

To break this behavior, the facilitator must actively draw them into the conversation. Do not wait for them to volunteer their thoughts. During the discussion phase of IDS®, ask them directly for their input. Use questions like, from a systems perspective, how does this affect your team, or what potential bottlenecks do you see here?

Additionally, remind the team of the Core Values and the company Charter. Trust and alignment require open, honest, and active participation from everyone in the room. If a leader lacks the GWC™ to engage in cross-departmental problem-solving, they may be in the wrong seat on the Accountability Chart.

Encourage a culture where asking clarifying questions is valued just as highly as providing solutions. This helps technical leaders ease into the debate without feeling like they need to have all the answers immediately.