Throughout my career, I have seen extraordinary achievements, “recovered initiatives,” and some things that didn’t realise their potential.
Conversations are critical, and successful initiatives generally have some key ingredients.
Last year I worked with a client to recover several failing initiatives. The reality of their situation was not what they chose to do, but how it was being done.
Here are four key steps.
CONTEXT
Leaders must provide the rationale for what is required.
This goes beyond a single conversation. Context and rationale need to be repeated often - in smaller groups and as part of individual conversations.
PARAMETERS
So many initiatives involve technology. Specialists must be involved early to help define the parameters of what technologies can achieve the desired objectives.
RESPONSE
Broader employee teams will be involved in the delivery of initiatives so the context and parameters must be shared with them.
Sometimes there will be a temptation to hurry things along; avoid doing this if you don’t have people’s buy-in.
Seek to front-foot conversations about items that may need to be dealt with.
REFINEMENT
Leaders set the context, but employee teams should ideally share how the objectives will be achieved.
Closing the loop and having two-way feedback brings everything together.
Without this conversation, things can remain ambiguous or loose and are likely to drift.
See the simple visual in the vlog and on my socials this week; it is a simple framework that can help avoid waste.
One of the many insights within Making Life Happen.