Everyone is busy. So why does nothing seem to move?
You’re flat out. Your leadership team is flat out. Your managers are flat out.
The calendar is wall-to-wall meetings. The gaps between them are filled with Teams messages, WhatsApps, Slack notifications, emails and phone calls.
Everyone is working hard. The phrase “we’re so busy” has become part of the culture.
Getting ahead for the week means logging on on Sunday evening. Emails get done early in the morning or late at night. The day job happens during the day. The thinking gets squeezed into whatever time is left.
Actions are being chased. Dashboards are being updated. Reports are being written. Projects are supposedly progressing.
Yet somehow everything feels slow.
Decisions take longer than they should. Work gets stuck waiting for someone. Issues bounce around the organisation looking for an owner. People are active, but progress feels elusive.
And that’s the frustrating part. Nobody is slacking. Nobody is deliberately creating the problem. Everyone is genuinely working hard but the outcomes don’t seem to reflect the effort being invested.
When organisations reach this point, the issue is rarely effort.
It’s usually friction: too many hand-offs, too many dependencies, too many decisions being pushed upwards, too many processes that have gradually become harder than the work itself.
Anyone reading this who is a self-employed consultant knows the problem: you can do a lot of things. You can tackle lots of different problems. That is one of the reasons people go out on their own, they want the variety, they want to do different things.
However, that doesn’t make marketing easy! Answering “lots of things” to the question “What do you do?” isn’t a great way forward…
Felix and I have spent hours batting various slogans and missions around to get to the core of what we do. We have previously tried various things over the years, none of which felt right or particularly good for the problem that we actually solve – they were all particular symptoms of a bigger issue.
But May has been a big month for us: I did a LinkedIn Live which was all about the problem we actually solve: unblocking corporate constipation to improve effectiveness and profitability. Yes, there are politer ways of putting it, but that one works for me.
What does it mean though? It means that we fix human systems to increase productivity, remove ambiguity, improve clarity. We reduce friction in organisations.
So we finally have a great description of the problem we solve, now Felix and I just have to start telling people about it…!
31st January was my final day as a Trustee and co-chair of the Arnolfini Gallery and it really is bittersweet to step down at this precise moment. The curtain falls on 6 years as a Trustee.
On the upside, I have enjoyed working with a very committed, passionate team that have always done their best for the gallery: I have not seen any self-promotion antics or questionable decision making done by anybody on the Board and that has been really refreshing and hasn’t been true of other leadership teams I have been involved with. The staff team have had to deal with some really difficult circumstances and uncertainty over the years and their commitment to opening the doors every day to enable the public to engage with the great art in the gallery has been humbling to see. As has their willingness to engage with different communities in different parts of the city to spread the message and show what art can do and potentially what they could be involved in.
On the downside, Arnolfini is at a crossroads in terms of defining what it wants to be and for who for the next 10+ years. Starting the project off has been one of the most exciting things I have done as it will define how Arnolfini fits in the city and the region for a good number of years – it is a proper “define the future project”. So why am I not staying? The last 18 months have been properly bumpy and have taken a huge amount of effort, time, brain bandwidth and stress, to the detriment of my family and professional lives. This means that I don’t have the enthusiasm and drive needed to really make the project a success. I know that and I don’t want to be involved at only an 80% commitment level when the gallery needs 100% to do the transformation that it needs.
What lessons have I learned:
It is trite but diversity is really important for organisational success. An art-philistine like me really does have a place on a Board running a gallery because of the value that the difference in perspective brings. Likewise, someone from an arts background will add value to Boards of engineering companies, law firms etc etc. And I mean diversity in all its forms, including socio-economic.
Horizon scanning is a key role of a Board member: what is going on in the world that could impact on what you are doing in your organisation. We didn’t get this right and it cost us. Which also leads on to:
Small decisions can have outsized impacts, both financially and operationally.
Be brave – sometimes decisions aren’t easy, you don’t have the full data you would want, you might have to do something uncomfortable or unpalatable, there might be risk. But if it is the right thing to do, then do it.
Listen to everyone – really listen. I have spent a good few Board meetings where the discussions were about stuff that I have no clue about. So take the opportunity to learn and try to understand why they feel those issue are important.
Give people time and space to consider their responses to challenges. Some people need more time to process and consider the ramifications than others. Don’t exclude them from the conversation as you will be missing out on real value.
I have enjoyed my time being part of Arnolfini and I wish the team working there, my fellow Trustees and gallery well for the future as it is a really exciting time to be involved.
As Storm Eowyn batters the north of the UK, I was remembering the impacts that I have seen of massive natural events. The images of the devastation from the tsunami in Japan around the Fukushima from the relief convoy that I was part of will stay with me forever. Likewise the key lessons I learned about resilience and disaster recovery planning as I discussed with my wife how her organisation was dealing with watching offices being eradicated in real time on the network monitoring panel. After she listened to her colleagues crying in fear when they were crouched under their desks as Tokyo was shaken by a massive earthquake. And then the challenges posed by moving their operations 1000km south to avoid any potential radiation risk from the damaged nuclear power plant.
The one key lesson: no prewritten plan is perfect but having one is better than not having anything. Having a structure to your thinking helps make sense of the chaos, allowing you to make better decisions under pressure.
That is the scenario that is facing organisations in the UK – literally in the north but also across the country for other reasons. Organisations that employ people are facing uncertainty from the changing regulatory environment on top of the recent changes to the tax rates. If they operate internationally, then there are real uncertainties in the political space – and particularly if you trade with the US in any meaningful way. In the UK, consumer confidence appears to be falling, the ICAEW’s recent survey shows that business confidence certainly is. All these changes mean that organisations are reluctant to hire new employees or replace the ones that leave.
The questions then become: how good do you think your plans are? Do they exist at all? How resilient do you think your organisation is? Can you do more with what you have got? Potentially, how could you do more with less?
These questions are blindingly obvious but very few people put the effort in to thinking about the answers before the burning platform gets really hot – and the crisis is upon you.
If this resonates, contact me: I am always happy to give a bit of time for free.
Someone asked me “so you sort out the constipation in organisations?” After I had got my smirk under control, I realised that this was actually a really good metaphor for what we do.
Work never flows smoothly through an organisation for lots of reasons. As examples: there are peaks and troughs in demand, some teams have more capacity or capability than others; there are pinch points, handovers don’t go to plan, key people take time off, priorities change, commercial realities change.
And all of those before we start considering the people issues that can negatively impact throughput: arguments, lack of understanding of priorities, misconceptions and miscommunication, historic baggage from previous processes etc as well as old favourites like inter-team rivalries, personal animosities and “we don’t do it that way round here”.
All of these factors mean that the work doesn’t flow as smoothly or as quickly as it could through the organisation. The problem with that is effectiveness and profitability are directly related to throughput. These disruptions to the flow are directly costing your organisation. There are indirect costs too: the amount of leadership time it takes to keep things moving along as needed.
What can you do about it? Firstly, go through the process end to end because it is likely that things aren’t happening the way you thought they were. Where are the pinch points, the holes that work falls in to and doesn’t emerge from? Do you have any tools to help you monitor these specific areas? Have you recorded how things really happen? You never need that information until it really is too late! Have you talked to the teams or people involved to see what they think? Asked them how they think things could be improved? Everyone working in the process will be able to give you good feedback about where the hold ups are.
All of this takes time and focus but the effort is worthwhile: what would you do with an extra 5+% throughput? What difference would it make to your profitability? Even if you can’t find the time to do it yourself, engage someone who will deliver you the benefit – it will be an investment that repays many times over.
And, no, I am not going to use any of the obvious images for this post…!
It has been an odyssey to get here, starting with helping businesses reintegrate their workforces after the first lockdown, remember that.
Through the development of flexible working, sadly something that many organisations have yet to get a grip on because they have copied the pack rather than working out their own bespoke solution.
Next came our support to middle managers who are the undervalued heroes of the British workforce. They just need to be given some development to move them from “accidental managers“ to competent managers.
We have now arrived at our sweet spot which is helping business, particularly professional service SMEs, to become more effective. Improved quality drives revenue and we all want some of that. Do stuff better by focussing on planning, processes, practice and people.
So what?
We have been through a 2 year development process in a very difficult and uncertain time. Agility and a sense of the markets has helped us evolve while retaining the capacity for doing what has gone before. Are we ready to go firm? Probably not…we are just having too much fun.
If you want to know anymore about the above topics just contact us through our website springboardttf.com
I read this article from HR Grapevine with some frustration, and here is a quote from it:
“A survey has revealed that 77% of workers have said they’ve done ‘something they shouldn’t have’ during work hours, including one in ten respondents who said they have sex when they should be working.”
And? Providing the required outcomes are achieved for the employer when they are needed, what does it matter?
I fully take the point that in a lot of areas, time is critical: opening or service hours have to be maintained, there needs to be sufficient capacity available in certain hours, workflows with differing teams and locations need to be co-ordinated etc etc.
But there are lots and lots of jobs which aren’t time critical: an amount of output needs to be achieved in a particular period. If that is the case, who cares when the work is done, providing it gets done? If that gives flexibility for doing other things such as shopping, childcare, housework, errands or even having sex, then everyone is happier – and probably more loyal and productive as a result.
From a middle management and team’s point of view, this all should be agreed up front: what work needs to be done by when, what is acceptable behaviour, how much flexibility we are giving our teams and people, core hours, how processes can work in a flexible working environment etc etc.
If it hasn’t been and you are finding getting it implemented smoothly a challenge, then please contact me or take a look at www.springboardttf.com for more information.
Some big companies are forcing people back to the office
We are watching a battle for hearts and minds happening in real time. Some companies such as Meta (Facebook), Amazon, JP Morgan and Salesforce are mandating a return to the office for a fixed portion of the week – and incentivising their managers to achieve it. Others are taking a different path, promoting more flexibility. The jobs marketplace and the battle for talent is going to decide the best approach.
What hasn’t changed
As usual, the middle management bears the brunt in challenging times as they juggle the C suite directions and directives against the expectations of their team members to find workable solutions. Leadership and management has changed as a result of market forces and changes to work and middle management need more support than ever before. Please book a call or email us to find out how we can help you help them to be more successful.
What have we been up to?
We have taken our strapline out on the road and delivered a very well received presentation at UWE Business School – with a record attendance for a breakfast networking meeting – covering why traditional management is dead, what killed it and what organisation need to do now.
We got some great attendee feedback: “Thanks for today, I got real value out of the conversations.”
Can you help us?
Have you got anyone in your network that we could talk to who has good experience of taking teams remote and developing them after that transition? Particularly teams that struggled with the move to remote/hybrid working. Or building teams with hybrid/remote elements?
We would love to have a conversation with them to get lessons out of their experiences. Real-world information is gold dust for us. Obviously, we will be very happy to share relevant information and examples from our research with them in return.
Download your copy of our analysis of the current news about productivity and teams here.
I have a high tech Scandi log burner which is invaluable during the winter. I have raved about its economy and efficiency down in the pub for many years but this year something went wrong. It needed double the number of logs to generate the same amount of heat. It became difficult to manage, either roaring or fizzling out. In short it went from Scandi high performer to sloth like indifference that was costing me money.
I knew that something was wrong, underperformance is not hard to spot, so I poked and prodded it to no effect other than my own tedious monologue on the subject. Eventually, my wife acted and summoned the chimney sweep who arrived 2 days later and fixed the problem after 30 minutes knowledgeable tinkering. Now the stove is returned to its normal efficient glory.
So my question is, why didn’t I take action sooner? That I can’t answer except to say that I adopted a “head in the sand attitude” in the vain hope that it would fix itself or maybe the “pain” just wasn’t great enough to trigger action. Either way it cost me time and money.
The same can be said for many underperforming or inefficient organisations and businesses. You know there is something wrong but like me cant fix it so you do nothing. This costs you not only time and money but will have an effect on your reputation.
So what?
The moral of the story is that if something is slowing down your organisation, take action to sort it. Either deal with it yourself if you have the competence and capacity, or call in the “chimney sweep” to do it for you.
2023 has arrived with a bang and Felix and I are determined to do things differently this year.
More outreach, more marketing and a new-found clarity of purpose around what we actually DO. What problem do we actually solve for our customers.
We help leaders tune mis-firing teams.
The problems being experienced by the “squeezed middle” managers and leaders haven’t gone away. In fact, the challenges they face have got worse as the tug-of-war over where work gets done continues – different parts of the organisation are pulling in different directions.
Take a look at our analysis of the situation here and please feel free to share it.
We are always happy to have a conversation as relationships are key and they always add value.
