Schlagwort-Archive: Goal

Instructions are for newbies

There are occasions when our character appears. For instance, if you squeeze into a parking space, even though someone is already parking according to regulations. Or when you give vent to your lack of empathy and your disrespectful behavior at work. Or if you ignore any manual. We know people who have learned the assembly of a furniture item already in the cradle and who use their common sense to assemble a shelf or a chair – and sometimes parts remain, or something is missing.

This approach is also followed by many in their daily work because they know what to do;-) start where the problem is, try hard and adjust carefully. This approach provides in the short term a satisfying feeling for all tasks that results in endless Sisyphus work. There are solutions, like examples and recipes, which prevent misleading approaches. What does such manual need?

  • The goal
    The presentation of the desired future, with conditions as well as results and use cases, creates expectations in the mind of the user. Many activities can be derived from this picture.
    In today’s offices there are complex tasks that are made easier with such manuals. For example, the design of business processes and the building of data models help to coordinate the involved areas. At various levels, goals are developed, which help to adjust in one direction – change activities need a vision, strategic goals, and whatever stimulates the imagination of those involved (e.g., values, SWOT, common terminology).
  • The parts
    The manual mainly provides an overview of the required components. In the case of a furniture item, there is an overview of all parts and their quantity. If you get an outline, you can be sure that everything is complete. Additionally, it gives you an understanding of which parts you are using.
    To master the complex interaction between different areas and systems, you need an overview of the inventory, which aspects have to be considered. Corresponding models provide these structures – a process has start and end events, steps, persons/ job positions carrying out the process, input and output data, IT systems, and other components as required.
  • The process
    Nowadays, the results are small and nested. It is crucial to know in which order something has to be done to fulfill the result. Therefore, a manual provides steps and their sequence so that eventually, everything fits together, and nothing is left over.
    Changes do not happen immediately but take time. Especially the size of the affected areas and the distribution across the world increase the duration. Here, too, some parts have to be assembled into components before they make up the whole. A new IT system needs precise requirements so that the expectations of the users can be met. Any subsequent changes undermine the so far achieved interim results. Therefore, the components must be planned in a way that they can be assembled at the right time and with little effort – an IT system requires an infrastructure of hard- and net-ware, databases, procedures, formulas, and rules as well as the correct terms and appropriate languages.
  • The result
    The holistic look at the outcome and its application is extended in the manual by including illustrations and explanations of the parts, the components, and the final result. Eventually, you will have a good understanding of how the whole thing works together.
    Due to the complexity of the interests and solutions, many people forego a well-reasoned approach. It may also be explained with the wishful thinking that has led to the hype of agility that takes the burden of decision making away from those responsible. This kind of established muddling through is only possible by virtue of the commitment of the employees, who take over the tasks of the managers – which makes the leaders obsolete. There is a blueprint for almost every result – be it an existing solution that can be bought off the shelf (e.g., SAP), or a standard (e.g., ISO56002:2019 Innovation Management) that describes everything like a manual.

Bottom line: If you are in the water up to your neck, then you have no overview. With a corresponding manual, you could get it and make a solution more likely. Unfortunately, most people are already up to the lower edge of their upper lip. The adhocrats reveal themselves by their expressions: We already know what to do; We do not need a plan; Instructions are for newbies; This is all much too abstract. Tutorials are the exact opposite of abstract philosophies of which these people are afraid. These manuals consist of a clear goal, an overview of the components, a procedure, and a presentation of the result. And this without lengthy derivation and justification. The only remaining objection would be that not everything is explained – which nobody would want to read. It is now an excellent moment to readjust one’s mindset and understand that experts never work without such a recipe, because: Instructions are not only for newbies.

 

The lighthouse – the ideal metaphor for a reference point

The longest active lighthouse was the Pharos of Alexandria, the seventh of seven wonders of the ancient world, which was in operation from 300 BC to 1300 AD. Its estimated height was between 380 and 520 feet. He is said to have shown the way to the ships over a distance of 30 miles. In the flat terrain, ships could find their way to the safe harbor. On US coasts there are over 400 lighthouses. Although ships navigate worldwide with satellite navigation, the beacons are still burning. Just as these landmarks show the way for captains and helmsmen, a company needs reference points to which its employees orient themselves in their daily work.

Without the signals, ships run the risk of missing the port or even worse running aground. The corporate tanker also uses its “landmarks” – vision, strategy, and governance.

  • The widely visible signs
    The only things that penetrate the darkness are the lights shimmering on the shore. The beacon can be recognized by its clocking, i.e. the rhythm of the light signal. On this basis and in combination with other beacons, the navigators calculate the route into the harbor.
    Companies are also on a journey to specific destinations. In order for everyone to move in the same direction, top management publishes its mission and vision. This is not a concrete endpoint, but the direction of all efforts – to create something new; to move the world forward; to do something wonderful and issue it; to help the world to become better.
  • The goal
    If you are still in the open sea, the beacon leads into the port of destination. The lighthouse is only a means to an end to point the ship in the right direction. The way goes through a sufficient fairway around dangerous cliffs into the narrow opening of the harbor. The anchorage is the destination.
    In the company, the overarching goals are set by the management. Thus, they create a framework to which the further refinements are aligned until they have described the tasks of each individual employee as smartified specifications. Here are the tangible endpoints, whose fulfillments can be measured – time savings by 10%; 5% increase in quantities; ten new customers per month.
  • The nimbleness
    To reach the safe harbor, the bearings of the beacons are converted on board of the ship into the desired route. The navigators need certain formulas and values that determine the course and the ability to align the ship accordingly.
    Employees also benefit from fixed points to which they align their procedures. This includes, in addition to the path to the desired result, a certain behavior in dealing with customers and working with colleagues, and above all an appropriate leadership style. All levels, managers and employees, need the necessary skills to adapt to the circumstances.
  • The experience
    Seafarers know their landmarks. Each tower has its own signal, which results from the rotation time and the type of light. The necessary knowledge can be found in a special directory and in the head of the seamen. During the day, the towers can be recognized by their shape, the painting and the peculiarities of the location – the hills, trees, and beaches.
    Such orientation points are also helpful in the company, as the employees learn over time to orient themselves accordingly. On the bridge of the enterprise, in the management, the signals are developed and published accessible for all. The workforce must be able to acquire the knowledge autonomously. Just as in shipping, today there are modern navigation aids, above all the intranet and its search engine. Over time, employees learn to distinguish the signals and react accordingly.

Bottom line: Signs visible from afar offer a reference point that keeps a company on course, just like a ship. The purpose of a company offers that way a clear direction that creates the framework for all activities. Within this framework, the objectives are refined until they clearly communicate to each employee, what they have to achieve. With the necessary skills to adapt, the workforce develops the nimbleness to arrive. The longer the employees work with it, the more experienced they become in dealing with it. The lighthouse represents the required checkpoint particularly well and is therefore an ideal metaphor for a reference point in business.