There’s nothing wrong with wanting to improve things. In fact, this process should never stop. However, sometimes we get overly ambitious, take on too much and try to fix EVERYTHING…at the same time.
The risk? Getting insufficient return on the time invested or, even worse, doing more damage than good, such as diluting our attention to a point where established processes are starting to slip.
Here are a few signs that your organisation may have too many improvements on the go:
Employees are feeling overwhelmed. With so many initiatives on the go, it’s become increasingly difficult to prioritise.
Progress is slow on multiple fronts.
Employees are starting to lose confidence. With so much focus on improvement, they are wondering if anything they’ve done in the past was right.
Employees don’t see the point in implementing anything new – it’ll just change again anyway.
A lot of time is spent in project meetings, working groups and steering committees.
So, what can we do about it?
Well, the solution often comes down to better communication, better sequencing and allowing more time for implementation…assuming, of course, that all of the planned improvements have been properly assessed and deemed absolutely necessary.
‘Improvement overload’ (not sure if this is an actual phrase but I’m running with it) is not a problem we can necessarily fix with additional resources. The specifics of your solution will likely depend on:
the nature of the planned improvements
the organisation’s current level of maturity
the amount of other things on the go.
Implementing minor process enhancements is easier and quicker than centralising or decentralising critical functions. In particular, anything that involves changing peoples’ behaviour will be more complex and will likely take longer.
Growth or the introduction of new services will likely be more difficult in an environment with low corporate sophistication (e.g. reactive rather than proactive decision making, weak governance practices, etc.).
Implementing a major growth strategy AND significantly improving organisational maturity at the same time (‘going all in’) will be more difficult than taking the time to increase your readiness for change before tackling it.
Now, all that is well and good, and in theory we all know that pacing ourselves is the smart thing to do. But what if we are not given that choice? What if something catastrophic happens and we have to act. If that’s the case, then communication is key. You will be asking your people to go through some rough times so you will need to bring them along for the journey with the respect they deserve. (And make sure that ‘powering through’ is a temporary thing and not your new MO, otherwise you will start losing your talent.)
If it’s a self-imposed agenda, such as taking advantage of a unique but sudden opportunity, again communication with your staff is key. (And note that this opportunity could also be the result of a catastrophic event that has created a sense of urgency for the thing you want to achieve.)
But regardless of whether the change is externally or internally imposed, you will also likely need to reprioritise and maybe even let some other things slip. In this sense, managing your board’s and your external stakeholders’ expectations will be critical. Support your decision with a risk assessment, to map out what must continue and what can be deferred – this will show your stakeholders that you’ve thought things through…and hopefully also buy you some extra time.
So, before you hire more people to address improvement overwhelm or (at the other extreme) quit altogether to avoid it:
increase communication and work with your stakeholders to see if there is a better way
frontload your implementation with things that build your readiness for a successful change, then continue with the rest of your plan
most importantly, take care of yourself and your team mates because change is not easy.
I hope this is helpful.