One of the things that I learned early on in my role as a leader was what we called the "no surprise" practice of management. Simply stated, it meant never surprise your boss, peers, or team members. The essence of it was simple: as soon as you knew that something bad "might" happen, you needed to tell somebody about it before it turned ugly - not after. In this way, you gave someone the opportunity to get in front of the issue and either fix it or mitigate the disruptive effect it could have on the organization, its employees, or its customers.

The foundation of the "no surprise" approach is based on common sense; nobody likes surprises that can have an adverse impact on the business. It is always better to hear the bad news early and have the benefit of additional time to plan contingencies.

So all of this sounds pretty simple and makes a lot of sense, right? Well, unfortunately, in most companies bad news travels slowly and the person in charge is usually the last to know.  They find themselves getting blindsided when things go bad. But, it doesn't - and shouldn't - have to be this way.

As a leader, you need to know what's going on so that you can make informed decisions. However, that knowledge is dependent on what others (maybe your direct reports) choose to tell you.

Everyone wants to make the boss happy. Nobody wants to be the bearer of bad news, so folks either ignore a potential problem and let someone else be the messenger, or they try to solve the problem on their own (well intentioned) but may not have all of the facts, skills, or resources to do so (bad judgment). The issue then gets worse and the person in charge finds out about after it's too late (you know, when the "you know what" hits the fan).

Sadly, one of the main reasons the boss is never told is because they are a lousy boss; they have not established trust with their team and in the past "shot the messenger" (figuratively) and blamed them for the problem. In other words, they have done nothing to give their team a reason to care.

Want to minimize and avoid the effect surprises have on your organization? If your answer is "yes" (and I cannot imagine that it would be anything other than yes), consider the following:

1. First, you have to earn the trust of your team. To earn this trust you must be trusting of them. It's a two way street. Without trust, dealing with surprises is the least of your problems.
2. Create a process and recognition system within your business that allows potential problems and surprises to be elevated for attention, review, and action on a timely basis. Make that process an integral part of your values and culture. Discuss it as often as you can in meetings, during projects, etc., so that it becomes part of how you do business.
3. Admit to your own mistakes. When your team sees you doing this, they know that it is not only acceptable but critical that everyone own up to their mistakes; accept responsibility for it and then fix it.
4. Communicate, communicate, and communicate at all levels within your organization about what is going on, the status of projects, and what is being done to address potential surprises in the making.
5. Recognize as a good and desired behavior whenever a team member brings you bad news or a surprise in the making before it becomes a problem. Never shoot the messenger.
6. Create an environment that encourages candid but constructive updates on potential problems before they become surprises.

If you effectively practice this "no surprise" practice of management, the level of trust and respect within your organization increases. This in turn allows for an open exchange of expectations, ideas, and solutions - and dramatic improvements in the business.

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