Systems Down

 

We have all been there, sitting as I was with my son in a Doctor’s office, subservient to a system that books us in to a specific time, penalizes us if we miss it or are late for the appointment, but does not compensate us, or even talk to us as patients if the Dr. is inexcusably late.

Systems are valuable.  We create them on small scales to organize our lives and homes.  That calendar in the kitchen, the notes on the fridge or the software on your computer are all examples of small scale systems to keep work and family life organized.  Organizations scale things up from there (sometimes way up), organizing and codifying processes to create efficiencies, cut costs, and deliver products and services.

I have a baseline question to ask about ANY system.   For whom does it exist?   

The question is based on an observation and much personal experience which suggests that at some point in time a system begins to exist for the system itself, serving it’s own needs rather than the “customer”.  It takes on a separate life of its own.

Let me continue with my story at the Doctor’s office. 

In my case – as we sat there coming up to one hour after our scheduled appointment time, many were leaving.  Only after people got up to complain did the receptionist acknowledge them and offer to re-book.  During a lull in the exodus she called a patient who had missed an appointment that morning and informs them they will be assessed a fee for that!  The system said “issue a fine”.  The reality was that had that person come, they likely would have left anyway (as I was also about to do).  Ironically it was a benefit to the rest of us and the office operations that this person did not come!

The system was not serving people that day.  It was serving its internal rules. Had the system been focused around patients and employees, it could have empowered the receptionist to make adjustments and judgment calls based on serving the client.  For instance, she could have:

·         Forgiven the missed appointment and rebooked given the reality of that day’s scheduling catastrophe.

·         Proactively discussed with patients in the waiting room that they were likely to be significantly delayed and would be better served if rebooked.

But she did not.  The system’s rules were fixed and she followed them.

My bold bias here is that systems exist to serve people (customers, clients, employees, volunteers). Systems are needed to deliver goods and services in an efficient manner to customers & clients.  They are also needed to help employees and volunteers know best how to do that consistently.  NB-the common element here is the people. 

Most organizations begin setting up their systems with the noblest of intentions and it usually involves a way they can best help their people get their product or service out there to people.  In subtle ways and over time adjustments to the system can begin to favour internal ‘efficiencies’ and needs, thus drifting away from benefitting the end user or the implementer.  An outrageous and admittedly old example of this is from an organization known globally for its extremely cumbersome systems.  At one point in its history the United Nations suspended, for an entire day, its efforts at dealing with drought, detente, and desert oil, in order to debate whether UN employees should continue to ride first class on airplanes. (Systemantics; How Systems Work... and Especially How They Fail -by John Gall. New York, Pocket Books, 1978)

When you create or make adjustments to a system, I suggest you change your thinking in a way that will ensure your processes continue to be oriented toward people.  Move your mind from an efficiency focus to a personal/end user focus by asking better questions when you set up your systems:

PURE EFFICIENCY          Let's make rules for making appointments
PERSON-FOCUSED         How do we manage patient flow?

PURE EFFICIENCY          Standardize collection of student records
PERSON-FOCUSED         How can we keep up to date with them?

PURE EFFICIENCY          Get the computers handling all incoming inquiries
PERSON-FOCUSED         How will we stay in touch and keep a customer loyal?

You still need a system - just take some time to orient your mind around who it is for.

Oh - and Doctor?...I know you invested in a system – just don’t leave me in your office again for an hour without at least acknowledging me (the one who pays your fees!).

Invest in me.

Harv Matchullis

harvey@visiontracks.ca

 

Purpose: Organizing VS. Institutionalizing

Disclaimer:  Readers of this blog who are not followers of Jesus Christ as I am may find this particular blog overly laced with references to my faith context.  This is your chance to opt out of reading it.  A provocative leadership discussion is embedded here that applies to anyone, but the context I am speaking to has particular application to my brothers and sisters who follow the Way.  It is to their leaders that I write.

What is the difference between organizing ourselves to accomplish a task/purpose and institutionalizing around those same ends?  

My answer:  Meaningful and timely impact

“The One who calls you is faithful and He also will do it”

This scriptural reference from 1 Thessalonians 5:24 appeared in many of my letters home and my verbal presentations to supporters when I was an international worker with my mission agency back in the late ‘80’s.  I knew then (and have repeatedly experienced since) that God often calls us to places, people and tasks that are simply beyond our ability or comprehension.  Once convinced that it is God who is calling, what that is required by God is that you start walking in that direction.  He will unfold the map and supply the provisions as the journey progresses.  Not that we start out without any training or ongoing preparation, but we don’t hold back just because we think/feel our 'stuff isn’t together’ in our personal or corporate lives.

I’ve lived and exercised this personally.  While some paths I took were absolutely awesome and exhilarating, not all were easy.  Some still don’t make any sense to me from my terrestrial perspective.  Some gave me scars.  All of them formed my faith, character and leadership.  

Today I am on the verge of a major step in the launch of a new ministry/organization and I am asking some questions:

• Can the lessons from my personal journey of faith apply to the organization?
• Can this scripture above be a guide for a corporate endeavour?
• Can I be as flexible and nimble when charged with organizing other people and resources toward a specific end?

These are significant questions because for me, it’s institutionalization of what was once a person/groups nimble, faith-filled response to the ‘call’ of God that prevents their ability to respond to any new call for a route change, a new focus, or even an end to their journey. (God forbid that any ministry or even a church should have a shelf-life???)

It seems to me that we Christians are schizophrenic about God’s leadership.  He can move individuals freely into new areas of focus, but our organizations (ministries/churches) for some reason are a different story.  People move in and out of organizations because they don’t ‘fit’ or are not ‘called’ or are called to a new purpose. Has anyone ever thought that perhaps an organization no longer ‘fits’ or is ‘called’ as it once was?  

Institutionalization occurs when God’s voice is  muffled by other voices crying out for attention such as physical assets, strategic planning, fund-raising, staffing, structures and a myriad of other things required to sustain the mere existence (let alone purpose) of the organization.  Perhaps leaders feel too much responsibility to the reputation, assets and employees of their organization.  I am not being dismissive here. These obligations are a significant influence on leaders’ readiness and willingness to hear and respond to the voice of God should He ever say something like:  

• “It’s time to pick up the tent.  I am sending you and this whole group into new territory”
• “ I have a new purpose for you to accomplish”
• “This was good for its time, but now it’s time is over”

If you are organized around a purpose, you can respond to these calls.  If you have institutionalized around a purpose, they are a threat to the existence of interests, jobs and reputations.

As I contemplate the beginnings of this organization I will lead, I have crafted this prayer for myself:

Harv – don’t idolize, petrify or overly cling to this new thing.  It is not yours even though it’s entrusted to you.  It isn’t yours & never will be.  It is God’s and exists ONLY for His purposes.  Stay attuned to the voice of God in the further building of this organization.  God called it into being and will continue to do so for as long as it fits His purposes.  He will continue to speak into its development and delivery of its services.  Stay attuned.  There is only ONE reason this thing exists – for His purposes.  The moment you institutionalize it is the point you take it out of His hands.  Organize it. Don’t institutionalize it.

Lead whatever you lead for meaningful and timely impact. 

If neither is occurring, what are you doing about it?

Harv Matchullis

 

The SLOW Movement for Leaders

Yesterday I faced some challenges.  They were solved, but the process dishonored my own character.  At the root - my impatience.  I want to 'git 'er done', and right now. But at what cost?

Got me thinking about advice I gave to myself and others in a blog I wrote back at the dawn of 2013.  I re-read it for myself and decided I needed its lesson of practicing deliberate SLOWNESS.  Perhaps you do too.  Here is it, edited for 2016

For 2016, join the SLOW movement for leaders.  There are already movements around slow living, slow eating, slow art, slow travel and even slow beer brewing!  Did you know there is also a World Institute of Slowness?

But who among us have ever considered the benefits of being a slow leader?  Isn’t that an oxymoron? 

Consider the habits and talk of leadership in our culture:

The words leaders like to use (especially about themselves) include:

o   Progressive – advanced – forward looking – cutting edge –radical – avant-garde – revolutionary - innovative

We are constantly inundated by leadership fads and systems:

o   Dressing & presenting casual like Steve Jobs did

o   TQM

o   Six Sigma

o   Ropes courses and other ‘team-building’ activities

o   7 Habits of everything...

Ever notice the fad of printing leadership books with a bold RED jacket?  In this case it’s not about STOP, but about action.  RED now symbolizes a topic that MUST be read, NOW

“Speed of the leader, speed of the team”.  This of course assumes a high rate of speed!

The latest book, seminar, or other ‘fad’ can serve to drive interest and discussion, but rarely does it drive effective change.  Why?  It drives leaders into bad decision-making out of a falsely perceived need to be ‘on the cutting edge’.  If being cutting edge is your raison d’être for being a good leader, you are going to bleed a lot!  No sooner will you get a grip on this ‘new thing’ and then another comes along. 

Who wants to always be on the cutting edge?  It’s bloody painful there!

Remember that dog in UP?  Every once in a while his attention was distracted…”Squirrel”!  Our culture contributes to a collective ADD.  Sound bites, advertising, fast-paced movies and fast food are the surface elements of a deeper distraction.  Innumerable and cleverly marketed leadership theories, systems and certifications prove my point.

You are likely thinking about advancing your leadership in 2016. Excellent.  But before you get carried away with plans and ideas:

• What’s’ the true benefit to speaking the latest lingo or possessing the latest certification?
• What’s the rush to be on the front edge? 
• Does it have to be done NOW? 
•  Where & how will this latest ‘thing’ actually show up and benefit your organization? 
•  Who does it serve for you to be ‘trendy’?  I suspect it serves YOU more than your client or your constituency.  There is a lot of narcissism among leaders, even spiritual ones.  We are driven by our grandiosity more than we think.

Frankly I don’t believe a client or constituency cares if you are cutting edge and trendy.  They care whether you deliver on what you/your organization promises.  I suggest to you that their loyalty and support deserves leadership than can weather the elements; that is resilient in a chaotic environment; that has a stronger foundation than what group-think provides.   In other words, they look for leadership that is DEEPLY & FIRMLY GROUNDED rather than acting like wing-nut, leadership theory groupies.

I contend that leaders need to slow down, take longer walks and stop looking only to the future.  They serve others best when they include a 360 degree perspective on the way they perceive their world.  The enduring values of a culture and its' history, along with present needs and issues must also be included in the leaders’ point of view.

Recently our long-tenured Prime Minister experienced an electoral defeat. He was a capable man, but had lost perspective.  He viewed the future of our nation primarily in economic terms. While our economic status was envied globally, domestic social issues and values were left largely ignored and proved to be the swing factor in a change of government. He and his party suffered an evident lack of 360 degree leadership perspective.

The nomadic leader is inherently open to change.  They have to be.  But neither are they battered by every wind of change or fad.  2 questions to reflect on before impatiently running toward a change or fad:

1. "What is the actual purpose for this change?"  
2. "What values will this change serve?" 

The answers may help slow you down.

Effecting the right kind of change requires leaders who have created a personal foundation of habits, attitudes, behaviours and values they deem necessary for leading others into quality living. Leadership isn’t just about navigating change.  It’s about navigating to a place of purpose, prosperity and meaning!

So, join me in the SLOW LEADERS movement. 

• No sign up.  
•  No marketing strategy. 
•  No time frame for fulfillment or recertification! 

Make a choice to slow down and anchor yourself in the timeless habits, attitudes, behaviours, and values that comprise a foundation for enduring leadership.

Here are some self-coaching questions for you.

For questions that ask you to rate yourself, use this scale:   
1 = least important, to 10 = critically important

1.       How often do you think about the foundational anchors that define your leadership?

     Score_____

2.       When you think about your answer, how important is this to you?

     Score_____

3.       How important do you want it to be? 

     Score_____

(If the gap between the answers to # 2 & # 3 is wider than 2, keep going...)

4.       Describe 3 anchors you provide as a leader to your organization/family/team.

5.       Take each one and rate them in 2 ways:

• To what extent do I actually demonstrate these in my leadership activity?

     Score_____

• Where on this scale would I truly like these to show up?

     Score_____

6.       What is my plan to address the gaps? (Contact me if you need some help – harvey@visiontracks.ca)

Jesus Christ told a story of 2 men who built their houses on various foundations – one on shifting sand and the other on rock.  Which one do you think endures stormy and unpredictable weather? 

Choose a foundation that endures.  Then start building. 

Migrating Leadership

If ever the concept of leadership was in flux, it is now.  

Leadership is migrating from institution-centric to the perimeter. 

Some say the driver is the merger of the Gen Y/Millennials coming of age, globalization and social networks, combining to fuel this leadership revolution. Those are significant drivers but I would also add leadership is migrating because of the frustration with the distance between institutional leadership and ground level reality.  And it really doesn’t matter whether that’s in the political, business or even religious institution realm.  No longer can any leader hope for a safe distance from grassroots issues to allow them to cocoon for extended periods of  status quo management.  Contemporary ubiquitous access to knowledge, high values of justice and activism, impatience for geological-time administrative processes and increasing access to funding sources to create change outside of institutions means people will go around you!

Leadership is not synonymous with authority.  Many of the grassroots leaders in the social movements we have observed over the past 2 years did not have formal positions of authority but they pursued organizational changes that challenged the status quo of their institutions.  Not all were successful.  But just wait – many have tasted and seen the potential for change.  They won’t shrink back for long.

I have been part of institutional leadership internationally and nationally.  Funny thing is that before I entered an international position, I remember thinking about my leaders that it seemed after 5 years they should get out for a while because it seemed after that period of time they started to lose touch with the ground.  After being on the “inside” I now see that it’s not the 5 years which is the issue; it’s the distance you can create between yourself and the very reason for which your institution exists. 

How can we avoid that as leaders?

Acknowledge that leadership exists throughout your organization.  They exist among those who are employed and those who volunteer.  How will you identify them?

Engage them.  Leadership input ought not to be restricted to your hired team.  Gather the people who are not in positions of authority and engage them in developing/examining the core purposes and practice of your organization.

Recycle yourself and your leaders out to the ‘field ‘.  Not just some ‘site visit’ scenario, but a significant portion of time where they invest working energy in the places you work and products you produce.

Loosen the reigns. I have often advocated for organizational leaders to “centralize the questions and decentralize the answers”.  In other words the leadership task is not to declare your vision and create appropriate structures where everyone can achieve your dream.  Instead, gather the formal and the grassroots to develop the core questions & values.  From there, release your people to innovate on the answers.  

Float through your organization– remind, recognize and reward the efforts made in accordance with agreed upon core questions and values.  We have heard it many times, but redundant communication is critical – but in this case you are reminding them of the outcome of their collaboration, not what you declared in your ‘grand plan’.

Bring them back – like Pulsars (rotating Neutron stars) which emit pulses of light in short, regular intervals, create the same regular impulse of expansion (releasing them to act) and contraction (bringing them in to reflect and recalibrate where needed).  This keeps your leadership knowledge current and their input valued.

Bottom line:  If you don’t acknowledge the migration of leadership thinking and power to the grassroots and engage it accordingly, those leaders will simply migrate to a new location. 

The Nomadic Leader!