You’ve identified a behaviour that needs to change. You’ve raised it with one of your leaders, explained the impact and made it clear that something needs to be different. Yet weeks or months later, you’re still seeing the same behaviour.
Perhaps they continue to dominate conversations, avoid difficult decisions, struggle to delegate or fail to take responsibility when things go wrong. You’ve explained what needs to improve, but the change isn’t happening in the way you expected.
As an owner or senior executive, this can be frustrating. You know what the organisation needs, and you can see where the problem is. But there’s an important question worth considering: Does the leader see the same problem you do?
This is often where the gap between feedback and meaningful behavioural change begins.
The gap between what you see and what they see
One of the challenges in leadership is that people don’t always see their own behaviour in the same way others experience it.
An owner might see a leader as controlling, while that leader believes they’re being thorough and maintaining high standards. An executive might see someone as avoiding accountability, while the individual believes they’re being careful not to overstep their authority. A communication issue might be obvious to the rest of the leadership team but completely unrecognised by the person involved.
Neither perspective necessarily reflects the whole picture. However, if the leader doesn’t understand the gap between their intentions and their actual impact, simply telling them to change is unlikely to be enough.
This is why feedback needs to go beyond describing what isn’t working. It needs to help the leader understand the behaviour, its impact on others and what a better approach would look like.
Why telling someone to change isn’t the same as helping them change
Most executives want to perform well. They want to be effective in their roles and contribute to the organisation’s success. However, wanting to improve doesn’t automatically translate into different behaviour.
There may be several reasons a leader struggles to make the change:
- Lack of awareness: They don’t recognise how their behaviour affects colleagues, decisions or results.
- Different expectations: They have a different understanding of what good leadership looks like or what their role requires.
- Established habits: Their current approach has worked for them in the past, making it difficult to recognise when it is no longer effective.
- Lack of practical support: They understand the feedback but aren’t sure how to apply it in everyday situations.
- Misalignment: They may be working towards a different set of priorities or expectations from those of the owner or organisation.
The issue isn’t always a lack of capability or commitment. Sometimes the leader needs help understanding what needs to change and developing a practical way to make that change happen.
Alignment starts with clear expectations
Creating alignment between an owner and a leader requires more than agreeing that performance needs to improve.
Both parties need a shared understanding of the behaviour in question, why it matters and what success will look like.
For example, telling a leader to become a better communicator is too broad. What specifically needs to change? Do they need to listen more effectively, communicate decisions clearly, provide more constructive feedback or involve others earlier?
The more specific the expectations, the easier it becomes to recognise progress.
This is where clarity matters. Leaders need to understand the organisation’s expectations, the responsibilities attached to their role and how their behaviour contributes to the wider business.
It also takes courage to have honest conversations about behaviour, particularly when the issue has been ongoing. And change requires cadence: regular opportunities to reflect, practise new approaches and review progress.
How Targeted Performance Executive Coaching helps
Targeted Performance Executive Coaching is designed for situations where a specific leadership behaviour has been identified as needing to change.
Rather than taking a broad approach to leadership development, coaching focuses on the particular behaviour and its impact.
An executive coach can help the leader explore how they see their own behaviour, understand how others experience it and identify what needs to be different. Through reflection, practical application and accountability, the leader can work towards making changes that are visible in their everyday leadership.
This is particularly valuable when the person providing the feedback is the CEO, Board Chair or another senior executive. The coaching creates a structured opportunity for the leader to work on the identified behaviour while maintaining a focus on the expectations of the organisation.
It is not about telling someone how to lead. It is about helping them recognise the difference between their current approach and the leadership behaviour required for the role.
From individual change to organisational alignment
When a leader changes their behaviour, the impact can extend well beyond the individual.
Better communication can improve collaboration. Greater accountability can strengthen trust. More effective decision-making can help the leadership team work with greater confidence.
However, this only happens when the change is connected to what the organisation is trying to achieve.
The owner, CEO or Board Chair needs to be clear about the leadership behaviours the organisation values and expects. The leader needs to understand those expectations and take responsibility for putting them into practice.
This is an important part of creating a future leaders culture. It means developing leaders who understand not only what they are responsible for, but also how their behaviour influences the people and organisation around them.
Is the change you’re asking for actually happening?
If you’ve given a leader feedback but aren’t seeing the improvement you expected, it may be worth looking more closely at the gap between what you see and what they understand.
Are expectations clear? Does the leader recognise the impact of their behaviour? Do they know what needs to change and have the support to make it happen?
Targeted Performance Executive Coaching can help turn feedback into meaningful behavioural change, strengthening alignment between the individual leader and the organisation.
If you’re working through a leadership performance challenge, talk to Charlie at Orchard Coaching about how executive coaching could support the change you’re looking for.