- Show traction on your AI roadmap
- Scale service delivery
- Improve CSAT
- Drive profitable ARR growth
- All while expanding margin
Then, he discusses the patterns that he has seen over the years, which impact performance early on:
- Employees don’t understand the strategy
- The executive team spends less than an hour per month discussing it
- The budget doesn’t reflect the strategy
- Incentives work against the plan
Beyond Vele’s valuable insight, I would add a fifth pattern that I have seen impacting performance over the years: the absence of organizational discipline.
Why consider organizational discipline so important for effective leadership and successful organizations? Discipline ensures that processes are executed effectively and strategically, resulting in consistency, accountability and proper execution. Without discipline, we often have confusion, resistance, missed objectives and a lack of trust. Discipline brings us seamless transitions, engaged employees, budgetary and expense control, long-term sustainability, and trust, among other attributes.
As leaders, two things we seem to confront regularly in these turbulent and uncertain times are the continuing need for change management and the need for effective communication.
With change management, discipline is necessary for seamless transitions and minimizing employee resistance. With communications, discipline is critical to maintain transparency and consistency for all stakeholders. Both are essential to mitigating uncertainty and to gaining trust.
Let’s take a moment to look at some examples where discipline in leadership and philosophy, and the organization, lead to success:
- Amazon is known for its discipline when it comes to strategy and execution. As we know, they have a five-star focus on customer obsession and long-term thinking.
- Apple is known for design and product discipline. Their disciplined product strategy drives innovation.
- Walt Disney had visionary and leadership discipline. He was relentless in communicating a vivid, imaginative vision. He didn’t lead by command; he led by inspiration and trust. He treated employees as artists and created a culture of empowerment and open communication Operationally, Disney is a finely tuned machine with schedules, safety protocols, and high standards for their guests.
- The Ritz-Carlton uses discipline in many area. Their slogan, “We are Ladies and Gentlemen serving Ladies and Gentlemen,” is a behavioral compass; their employee empowerment of allowing any employee to spend up to $2,000 to address any guest issue; and their onboarding and training program, which is ranked among the best in the U.S.
Jim Collins, in his book “Framework: Discipline as a Pillar of Greatness,” identifies three interlocking concepts that drive disciplined success:
- Disciplined people: Hire and retain people who are self-motivated and aligned with the mission, then placing them in the right roles with the right tools.
- Disciplined thought: Face reality head-on, no matter how uncomfortable. Focus on what you can be the best at, what drives your economic engine and what you’re deeply passionate about.
- Disciplined action: Not rigid control, but freedom within a framework. People are empowered to act, but within clear boundaries.
In the context of the book "Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done," by Bossidy and Charan, discipline refers to the structured and consistent practice of execution as a critical component of strategy. It involves asking the right questions, remaining accountable, and ensuring that strategy, operations, and people are effectively linked.
Discipline is not just about tactics, but is fundamental to shaping and implementing strategy. It requires leaders to understand their purpose, their business environment, make realistic assumptions and align efforts across the organization to achieve desired results.
James Clear says, “We often think that what we want is an open road and the ability to choose any direction for ourselves. But sometimes, what we need is a tunnel that can reduce our choices and send us in a focused direction."
Discipline will not make you rigid. It makes you reliable, intentional and inspiring. Discipline will shape your approach to leadership, not as a constraint — but as a framework for freedom, clarity.
Here are some thoughts on how discipline can shape your leadership and organization:
- With discipline, you make choices based on principles, not pressure. You are less reactive and more reflective.
- With discipline, you will be consistent and build trust.
- With discipline, you will be resilient and have the strength to lead through. turbulence and change. You will be able to overcome barriers.
- With discipline, you will effectively prioritize what matters and makes impactful decisions.
- With discipline, you will inspire your teams.
The Vistage Group on Leadership says discipline is a key trait of peak performers and world-class leaders. It involves following a systematic approach to decision-making that incorporates instincts, judgment based on experience and data, and perspectives from peers, mentors and employees.
Dennis Gershowitz
DG Associates
[email protected]