You have all the authority you need
I had a very interesting meeting today. Frustrating at times, but ultimately I had a huge learning in what it takes to be a leader. I work at Microsoft, as a product planner in the Windows Division. My job is all about making sure that future versions of our software exceed the expectations of our customers. This is a tall order, given the hundreds of millions of Windows PC’s out there, but it is one that I truly enjoy trying to meet.
I was working with a technical team, helping them hone in on the most impact-ful features they should focus on building in a future release. These folks are subject matter experts for their product area. They are living and breathing their product all day long. They should feel completely empowered to make big decisions so their teams can move forward.
Unfortunately, progress had stalled. People felt dis-empowered not empowered. As a very big company, sometimes people feel that they need to get an “ok” from on-high before moving past any big decision point. There was some logic to this, as there was a higher-level process in place that could impact the overall direction of the team. However, it was clear, that waiting for approval or executive direction was not going to help the matter.
The team was losing forward momentum. The reality was, even our executive team would ultimately respect their decisions, as long as they were well-thought out and based on solid customer data.
It took an extra long and open conversation with the team, but ultimately everyone came around to the realization that they were in charge of their team’s direction. The best thing to do was to move forward. Take a few more steps. Make informed decisions. After all, there was still time for minor adjustments to the plans later on.
Ultimately, the lesson was that even the lowest levels in an organization need to assume that they have full authority to shape their destiny. Don’t wait for someone else to tell you what to do! You have all the authority you need within yourself.
