The Sixth Discipline of the Trusted Strategic Advisor: Advise Constructively

The following is an excerpt from Influencing Leaders: The Seven Disciplines of the Trusted Strategic Advisor by James E. Lukaszewski with Helio Fred Garcia.

Most staff advisors, early on, tend to give advice in the context of their staff function or personal area of expertise. The problem is staff thinking and decision-making are quite different from operational thinking and decision-making. Operational executives tend to be process thinkers. Successfully providing useable advice to operating executives requires a change in thinking and style on the part of the Trusted Strategic Advisor. The goal of this change is to align giving advice with the thinking patterns and decision-making habits of operating executives. As Fred preaches, you can’t move people if you don’t meet them where they are. And for the trusted advisor it is crucial that they think and communicate in a simpler structured and process-driven format. This ensures senior executives will “get it” faster.

When the solution proposed is bold, obvious common sense, absolutely applicable, or brilliant and creative, managers will absorb advice better if it fits into their processing approach, builds on their intuitive skills and experience, and allows them to decide faster.

The Three-Minute Drill

That’s the Three-Minute Drill in a nutshell. When Jim learned this approach, it was referred to as the “Concept of Completed Action,” which he learned as President of the ExecuCom Division of Brum and Anderson, a Minneapolis Public Relations firm. After some experimentation, Jim re-named the process “The Three-Minute Drill” as we’ll explain in a few minutes. The value of this structured thinking and presentation approach has been a crucial ingredient in Jim’s success. Fred adopted this approach early in his career and has taught it to many students and clients, and it too has been a crucial ingredient to his success.

Brevity is crucial to avoid the urge to overtalk. Brevity is important because concentrated, well-structured information presented verbally or in writing is powerful and more likely to be assimilated and owned by others. Most critical decisions are made based on experience, the leader’s intuition, plus facts and information recently harvested through verbal interaction with colleagues and advisors in very short spans of time. The challenge is always to provide essential information to enable executives to know what to do next. And to do it in a way that values the executive’s time.

The Six Active Elements of the Three-Minute Drill (450 Words)

The Three-Minute Drill is a time-driven approach to presenting recommendations. The three minutes refers to the amount of time you’re likely to have with a senior decision-maker before that decision-maker becomes distracted, bored, or lost. The drill is structured in six steps that impose a useful, sensible, management decision-making structure:

Step 1. Situation/Introduction (60 words): A brief description of the nature of the issue, problem, or situation that requires decision, action, or study. This is the factual basis, “Here’s where we are now, and here’s what we know.”

Step 2. Analysis/Assumptions (60 words): A brief description of the significance of the situation, what its implications are, and how it threatens or presents an opportunity to the organization, or individual leader. Include the one or two key assumptions that validate the analysis. “Here’s why it matters.” It includes a brief but clear description of the risks or opportunities involved. 

Managers always need to know the why, but briefly with essential details. They are also interested in the intelligence you have gathered or know about that supports your analysis and assumptions.

Step 3. The Goal (60 words): The desired outcome. A clear, concise statement of the task to be accomplished (sometimes the reason or purpose for accomplishing it) or the target to be reached and why. “This is where we are headed.” If the significance in Step 2 is a risk or threat, then the goal in Step 3 is the mitigation of that risk or threat. If the significance is an opportunity, then the goal is to realize that opportunity.

Goals keep everyone focused. Useful goals are understandable, achievable, brief, positive, and time/deadline sensitive. And more importantly, the boss will want the payoff previewed early.

Step 4. Options/Outcomes (150 words): Provide at least three response options to address the situation as presented and analyzed. For each option, be prepared to address the foreseeable intended and unintended outcomes.

Option one is to do nothing or nothing out of the ordinary (the 0% solution); list the foreseeable consequences, both intended and unintended.

Option two is to do something modest (the 100% solution); list the foreseeable consequences, both intended and unintended.

Option three is to do something more (the 125% solution); list the foreseeable consequences, both intended and unintended.

Step 5. Recommendation (60 words): This is calling out the choice you would make among the options you presented. The recommendation is usually selected on the basis of which option will cause the least number of unintended negative consequences. And here is where you can briefly describe how to operationalize that option.

This is where you earn your paycheck. The boss will always want to know what you would do if you were in his/her shoes. Be prepared to choose one of the options proposed, and to defend it.

Many times we have heard advisors offer reasonable options, but when the boss ultimately asks the question, “What is the first thing I should do,” or “What are the next steps,” or “Of the three recommendations, which would you choose and why,” far too often the response from the proposer, “Gee, boss, that’s a good question and I need to think about that.” This response puts an end to the advisor’s usefulness in the discussion, at least in this round, and may undercut later advice.

Be ready with a recommendation and supporting information every time.

Step 6. Justification (60 words): These are the reactions or circumstances that could arise resulting from the options you suggested. Every management decision or action has intended and unintended consequences that can be forecast. Consequences can sabotage an otherwise useful strategy.

When we think of consequences and strategy, we generally think of trying to identify the solution option with the least number of negative intended or unintended consequences.

One of the core disciplines here is to never justify the decision using the vocabulary of personal preference—“I prefer this one”—or of intuition—“I really feel we should do this one.” Rather, always use the vocabulary of the outcomes. “Of the three alternatives, this is the one with the best set of outcomes.”

Influencing Leaders: The Seven Disciplines of the Trusted Strategic Advisor provides the proven framework for becoming a trusted strategic influencer partner that leaders turn to when facing critical decisions. The book presents seven essential disciplines: establishing trustworthiness, mastering verbal influence, developing management perspective, thinking strategically, recognizing patterns, structuring constructive advice, and teaching leaders to apply counsel effectively.

Influencing Leaders is perfect for mid-career professionals, external consultants, and anyone aspiring to influence organizational leaders. Influencing Leaders demonstrates that true influence is about mastering the disciplines of foresight, strategic thinking, and trust that make trusted strategic advisors and influencers essential to leaders making their most challenging decisions.

Pre-order your copy of Influencing Leaders here.