The burden of unclear role expectations

What if the reason leading your organization’s transformation feels heavy isn’t the work itself—but the role you’ve been playing as a change leader?

If you’re a change leader, continuous improvement professional, or internal consultant, this tension may feel familiar. You’re helping. You’re busy. You’re delivering results. And before you realize it, you’re wearing every hat—facilitator, teacher, problem-solver, checker—all at once.

That was my experience too as an internal change leader. And it’s a pattern I see again and again in my work with internal change leaders and continuous improvement practitioners: when we’re not clear on our role, we become the doers of transformation—when our real work is to enable others to lead it.

In this episode of Chain of Learning, I’m joined by Jill Forrester, Director of Continuous Improvement at 3sHealth, to explore the leadership shift that changed how she and her team show up—and the impact they’re having—by moving from helping to intentionally creating the conditions for learning and ownership.

If you’ve ever felt the weight of carrying organizational transformation on your shoulders, this conversation will help you see why—and how redefining your role and how you help can change everything.

You’ll Learn

• Why internal change leaders often become the default doers—and why that role isn’t sustainable

• How lack of role clarity creates confusion, overburden, and dependency for leaders and their internal clients

• What it really means to create the experience for learning, not just drive improvement outcomes

• Why clarifying and labeling your role and intention changes how others engage

• How shifting from doing to enabling builds capability, ownership, and sustainable transformation

ABOUT MY GUEST:

Jill Forrester has been a leader in health system transformation since 2012. She has collaboratively guided the development of a comprehensive management system at 3sHealth, encompassing patient and customer engagement, problem-solving and process redesign, strategic visioning and deployment, performance measurement, leadership coaching and development, and employee engagement. Jill is an active member of a strong provincial network of continuous quality improvement leaders dedicated to strengthening Saskatchewan’s health system through learning-centered, people-focused practices.

IMPORTANT LINKS:

• Full episode show notes with links to other podcast episodes and resources: ChainOfLearning.com/64 
• Check out my website for resources and ways to work with me KBJAnderson.com
• Connect with Jill Forrester: linkedin.com/in/jill-forrester 
• Follow me on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kbjanderson
• Download my free KATALYST™ Change Leader Self-Assessment: KBJAnderson.com/katalyst 
• Learn more about my Japan Leadership Experience: kbjanderson.com/japantrip
• Discover how to get out of the Doer Trap: kbjanderson.com/doertrap 

TIMESTAMPS FOR THIS EPISODE:

03:27 Jill’s new role director of continuous improvement and when she realized she needed to make a shift
05:00 The question, “Are we actually helping”?  that changed how Jill viewed her role
07:01 Why starting a training with questions makes a bigger impact
10:12 Why opening up space for others to learn and contribute can improve engagement
13:56 Two shifts Jill and her team made to clarify their roles for better continuous improvement outcomes and build confidence
16:07 Labeling your role (even when it feels awkward) to better guide others to transformation
22:47 What lead Jill to invest in the Japan Leadership Experience to take her leadership to the next level
25:14 Seeing quality as trust and quality as love to reshape how you think about improvement
25:44 What good 5S is as something you feel instead of a checklist

27:16 An example of 5S in the Japanese culture
29:20 The importance of long term thinking to sustain your company for decades
30:42 How giving with two hands can be applied to your organization to show respect and support others
33:08 The impact of creating space for others to ask questions and learn more quickly
35:05 Doing less doing and creating the conditions to increase results and coach more effectively
37:15 Reflections to shift from doers to catalysts of change 

38:29 Top recommendation for change leaders and continuous improvement practitioners who want to show up in that different space from doing to enabling
40:35 Your role as a change leader and creating an experience for others to learn and to lead change themselves
42:38 The impact of an intention pause before your next meeting or discussion to help you shift from doing to enabling