When we try to run IDS® on underperforming departments, our leadership team gets defensive and argues about opinions instead of facts. How do we strip the emotion out of the room to find the real issue behind the issue?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When your leadership team gets defensive during IDS®, it is usually because they are defending their personal performance or their department rather than looking at the business objectively. To solve this, you must strip the emotion out of the room by shifting the focus from opinions to hard data and objective yardsticks. Start by enforcing the rule that the person raising the issue must state it in one clear, concise sentence. They must identify the gap between the actual performance and the expectation. Do not allow them to begin telling stories or assigning blame. Next, look at the conative profiles of the team members involved. If you have leaders with high Fact Finder scores on their Kolbe A Profile, they will naturally want to gather endless data before making a decision, which can stall the meeting. If you have high Quick Start profiles, they will jump to solutions before the real issue is even defined. The leader running the meeting must actively manage these dynamics. Force the team to ask why at least five times. For example, if the stated issue is that a client onboarding process is delayed, the underlying issue might be that your team is manually processing data because they have not integrated your CRM. By drilling down to the root cause, you can solve the systemic issue permanently instead of just putting a temporary bandage on a symptom.