No one Solving that Problem? Here’s How to Step Up

Brief 

Organizations often struggle to fix obvious problems because no one has the time or is directly responsible, which provides the enterprising leader with “golden opportunities to step up and lead without the title,” writes Art Petty. He offers five ways to tackle “gray zone” problems while building a reputation as a helpful problem-solver deserving of bigger opportunities.

Insight

In a 2020 article here at SmartBrief on Leadership, I shared the idea of organizational “gray zones” — the areas between functions where process, communication, and coordination problems generate noise and friction.

These gray zone challenges fight efficiency, stifle collaboration and shut down innovation. The fascinating thing about these gray zone problems is that everyone sees them, but no one ever seems to own fixing them.

This odd reality of organizational life — that we deliberately ignore problems in plain sight — is your opportunity to lead, scale your impact and grow your career. Get this right, and you will cultivate your influence, strengthen your professional networks and find yourself involved in leading at a high level.

In this article, I share encouragement and suggestions to help you lead and succeed in your firm’s gray zones.

“Yep, that garbage can is on fire.”
I once observed an organization’s culture where talking but not acting on the firm’s problems was akin to a competitive sport. The level of inaction was so bad that the group inspired me to write a not-so-cleverly disguised short article about an imaginary (but plausible) group discussion around a watercooler. Here’s the short form of this discussion:

“I think that garbage can is smoking,” offered participant A.

“Are you sure? I see the smoke, but I doubt it will turn into a full-blown fire,” said participant B.

“This is just typical around here,” said C.

“It’s probably development looking for a reason to delay the release again,” said A.

“It’s probably something product got wrong in the requirements; this could be bad. Should we do something about it?” asked D.