Where Have All of the Great Executive Sponsors Gone?

Do you happen to know someone who fits this job description?

Job Title: Executive Sponsor

Job Description:

Passionate leader who can provide executive level direction and commitment to help a project team execute the details of a key strategy or project.

Key Requirements:

The ideal candidate must:

Be willing and able to sponsor a project or initiative business case.
Be willing to listen to others and act as a project cheerleader.
Monitor high-level project details and deliverables.
Be able to gain ongoing commitment and the support of other key executives.
Provide insights and direction in the spirit of collaboration and team work.
Help mitigate risks and provide alternatives that are in alignment with organizational priorities.
Remove obstacles and roadblocks hindering the team from ultimate success.
Assist in the communication and socialization of the team’s progress throughout the organization.

The value of a great Executive Sponsor cannot be understated.

Great Executive Sponsors turn frustrated groups of people into highly effective teams that enable each individual team member to use their strengths to execute with laser precision. Without a great Executive Sponsor, most strategic projects are doomed to fail due to lack of organizational commitment and the team’s inability to overcome certain obstacles alone.

Given this apparent need for Executive Sponsors, why is there such a shortage of great Executive Sponsors in today’s business world?

The answer to this question is somewhat unclear. However, the typical reasons for lack of Executive Sponsorship include time challenges and conflicting priorities that prevent an executive from investing the time necessary to become a great sponsor. These are valid “symptoms,” but have you ever considered that a possible root cause for the shortage of great Executive Sponsors in most organizations is lack of focus and alignment among leaders?

If a leadership team is not focused and aligned around a shared vision or a compelling organizational purpose, all projects quickly become “top priority projects” that must be implemented congruently and with immediate urgency. Ultimately, this lack of focus limits the effectiveness of everyone, including executives.

For a leadership team (and ultimately the organization) to become high-performing, each member must be willing and able to work together to achieve the organization’s compelling purpose. A compelling purpose provides direction and helps leaders evaluate the ultimate priority of projects and initiatives, and as a result it enables executives to allocate the necessary time they need to serve in the ever-important role of Executive Sponsor.

What do you think? Use the comments section below to offer your ideas as to why there is a lack of great Executive Sponsors.

Tags: Executive Sponsor, Focused and Aligned Leaders, Strategy Execution

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 28th, 2009 at 5:10 pm and is filed under Blog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.