Ed Montgomery

Synchronous Solutions

Let me tell you about the best employee I have ever managed. He worked in the Reliability department in an iron mine in northern Minnesota. I knew very little about Reliability. What I did know was how to harness the best out of my team and lead improvement efforts across a company.

Tyler was one of my newly inherited technicians. He was a high school graduate who had worked his way through mine operations and maintenance to land in my department. He had no official schooling after high school, yet whenever anyone had a question, they went to Tyler. 

I wanted to reward this highly capable employee and keep him on my team for the foreseeable future. When I went to the Human Resources department to request a merit-based raise for Tyler, I was told that it would never happen. Tyler was on a ‘blacklist’ of no raises and no advancement. I found out that Tyler had been caught playing video games on the control room computers, as well as receiving calls and moonlighting on a side business on company time. 

A month later, I learned about a business theory called ‘Systems Leadership.’ The foundation of this theory was the idea of running your company like a meritocracy where great employees are rewarded. As part of the presentation, the speakers showed a chart with specific examples.

When an individual's current capability does not match the complexity of the current role, they are not IN FLOW

When leadership is able to match a person’s capability with the complexity of work tasks, employees are “in flow”. In flow, employees are happy, productive, and engaged. However, when leadership fails in their duty to hire the right people for the right role, employees cannot succeed. 

An employee who is out of flow is not at fault, but rather it is the failure of leadership to match roles and capability. When we fail as leaders to consider this simple concept, we should not be surprised by the negative consequences but should expect them. It is the work of managers to constantly balance these concepts, creating opportunities for success for all employees. 

The concept of “Systems Leadership” emphasizes that it is the responsibility of leaders to align job complexity with employee capability, fostering a productive and fulfilling work environment.


Ed Montgomery  
– Synchronous Solutions

Ed has been working as an operational manager and continuous improvement leader for over twenty years. He combines the tools of continuous improvement with organizational design, creating deep and sustainable improvements in multiple industries across the globe. For more information, and to book a free discovery call, visit www.synchronoussolutions.com .