In this segment of the four‑part masterclass “4 Strategies for Leader‑Managers to Protect Their Job Security,” Dr. W. Vernon Murray presents the third strategy: creating a compelling team agenda. He explains that an agenda is fundamentally the purpose (the “why”) behind a department’s work, distinct from its function (the “what”). Murray introduces three practical tools, focusing on the first – the “Agenda Question Tool.” This tool involves asking team members, “Why does our department do what we do?” to surface whether they understand the department’s purpose. He illustrates the tool with an HR example, emphasizing that leaders must clearly articulate the difference between function and purpose, educate their teams, and ensure the purpose is known. Murray links this approach to Simon Sinek’s “Start with Why,” arguing that great leaders who consistently communicate the why achieve higher job security because the agenda aligns team actions and drives measurable, consistently excellent performance. The segment closes with a call to enroll in the full masterclass.
Chapters
This short course is taken from the 4-part masterclass entitled 4 Strategies for Leader-Managers to Protect Their Job Security by Getting Their Teams to Consistently Perform Excellently. The presenter is Dr. W. Vernon Murray. He is the Managing Director of Leadership Solutions Training, LLC. He is also the author of 4 books on leadership and hundreds of white papers, reports, and leadership training curricula. Let's join Dr. Murray as he talks about the power of a compelling agenda and how leader managers can implement some tools to get their teams to consistently perform excellently. Now here is Dr. Murray.
So the third strategy to strengthen job security by getting your team to consistently perform excellently is creating a compelling agenda. A compelling team agenda. So if you remember from session 2, we discussed that agenda means purpose and that an effective agenda is an agenda that aligns action, that keeps your team on the same page, right? You remember that discussion? So here are 3 tools that you can use as a leader-manager to create an effective team agenda. One which aligns actions. An agenda that aligns actions is effective. It's compelling. So one is the first tool is to use the agenda question, the agenda question, and basically poll your team members with the agenda question. And the agenda question is simple: why does our department do what we do? Why does our department do what what we do. You want to be able to determine whether or not your team members know your team agenda, and that question will uncover whether or not they know the purpose or the agenda for the department. Why does our department do what we do? So if you, if you are the HR department and part of your job is managing the employee benefit program, and you go to Jane and you say, "Jane, why do we do what we do?" Again, that allows them to say, "Okay, well, I know we manage the employee benefit program. Why do we do that?" It really makes them think. And it's okay if they don't know the answer because that's your role as the leader-manager to make sure that that agenda, that why, is clearly articulated So next time you ask this question, they can readily give you an answer. So this, this tool is called the Agenda Question Tool. And the Agenda Question Tool, and the real power of the Agenda Question Tool lies in the fundamental difference between function and purpose. Function versus purpose. So in the example of the HR department, The function will be to manage employee benefit payroll, manage employee hiring process. That's function. That's what they do. Purpose is why do you do that, right? And so the agenda question is trying to get at that distinction and to make sure that your employees know that distinction between function and purpose. As a leader, when you clearly articulate this difference between function and purpose to your team, you can expect to see measurable improvements, measurable improvement in consistent excellent performance. But you must be sure to clearly articulate that, listen, agenda means purpose and it's bigger than function. You have to educate your team to understand that agenda is the why and the function is the what. Simon Sinek, one of the leading experts on leadership and management, wrote a bestseller entitled Start with Why. The subtitle, however, says, How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action. What he's saying in that subtitle is that great leaders get people to take action by clearly articulating the why. So taking action, driving performance by clearly articulating the why. Well, that's basically— he's expressing the same sentiment, same paradigm that I'm teaching in this course when I say leader managers with the greatest job security achieve that level of job security because they use the team agenda to align team action. Same concept, same concept. Just I'm using it a little bit more finessed, more nuanced than, than what Sinek is doing. But the concept is the same, that great leaders— leaders and great leaders have the highest level of job security, right? I mean, we would agree. So great leaders with the greatest job security achieve that job security because they use the team agenda to align team action. This is an absolute powerful strategy to drive consistently excellent team performance.
Be sure to enroll in the full masterclass. In 4 sessions, Dr. Murray will share 4 strategies and 10 tools that you can start using immediately to protect your job security. We hope to see you in the class soon.
