Type 1 the Brick Wall

Types of RoadblocksForm B

Type 1—The Brick Wall

Some roadblocks are truly unalterable. In the real world, people face roadblocks that inhibit their performance and that they are not likely to change: the effectiveness of a foreign competitor’s product, a slumping national economy, the international exchange rate, the organizational structure at the organization, the funding and paperwork processes for new product development, etc. These are all factors that affect employee performance but are well beyond individual or collective control. Characterize these as brick walls: immovable and real.

Type 2—The Partition

The second category of roadblocks includes those that can be managed with effort, time, money, additional personnel, or other resources. If that is the case, the individual employee might make some degree of progress in overcoming

this particular inhibitor to performance. Often a small group of employees can make even more progress collectively. Most importantly, this type of roadblock can be managed, in large part or wholly, if supervision or management got involved. This type of roadblock is characterized as a partition. A partition, if pushed from the bottom, might move slightly; but if pushed from a higher level at the same time, it will often topple. These are real roadblocks that employees require assistance to remove.

Type 3—The Paper Wall

The third category of roadblocks is reminiscent of a football game in which the home team bursts through a paper barrier to the cheers of the crowd at the start. Until tested, this roadblock often looks impenetrable. Workplace examples are common, and include the belief that the boss will not approve; that it won’t be supported by another department; that a process is “policy” or the way things have always been done; and so on. People discover that these roadblocks disappear when they test these perceptions. Others have done things differently and are doing things differently. Unless tested, this roadblock is just as effective in preventing performance as the first two. These roadblocks are manageable, but also real.

Type 4—The Mind-Set

This type of roadblock is the most troubling to management. It represents untested beliefs and perceptions. When people believe they can’t do something, they are correct. These roadblocks are de-actualizing and restrictive, yet arbitrarily so because they really do not exist. Interestingly, these are the most common of all roadblocks and the ones that block below-average performers from improvement.