Expectation Management

  Expectation Management 

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)

As we are discussing the relevance of self-management for enhancing execution capabilities, one aspect we discussed was time management for ourselves and others.

The next aspect is "Managing the Expectation."
 
Managing expectation is about being aware of what is expected from us in professional dealings and how we set expectations for others.

First, we need to be aware of what is expected to deliver for the role we assume
Second, we must be clear about the priorities sequence we need to follow.

Why is this CLARITY important?
 
When we do not have clarity on the expectation, it affects our execution capabilities and growth opportunities.
Most of the firefighting and chaos in the organization is due to a lack of clarity on the expectation between people or stakeholders.
 
It is not what you can do or deliver, but knowing and delivering the same as expected from you completes the execution cycle successfully. Otherwise, the efforts will be wasted only.

One incident happened to me with my client where i realized the importance of expectation management. At the beginning of my consulting career, a human resource head from a company called me and briefed the requirement for productivity improvements, as he understood from his business head.

Since this company is abroad, they organized flight travel and accommodation. I went, met a few people and spent a couple of days, and identified the opportunity areas for improvement. At the end of the day, i met the business head and was about to make a presentation and hurry to catch the flight. When i started presenting the potential areas where we could work on improvements, the business head began showing signs of confusion and irritation. He turned to the human resource head and started firing him up. He asked me to stop the presentation and explained he wanted to know the methodology of manpower assessment, not improvements at that point: completely different expectations and realities. The entire effort became a waste.

The business head, however, asked me to stay back, and i refused as i had some other work lined up. Then i  returned and sent a proposal as per his expectation, but it did not work out as the first impression was not appealing to both of us.

I realized in this incident that i must be clear enough about the expectation from key stakeholders as communication distorts from person to person. It is not how good you are or how you deliver; whether you deliver as expected or not matters in professional dealings.

Knowing the expectation is a must for delivering effectively, and our effort in getting the expectation right is essential.

However, regarding expectation management,  executives need clarity on accountability vs. responsibility which affects the execution capability. Let us discuss that next week.

Have a great week ahead.

Managing time for OTHERS

  Managing time for OTHERS  

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)
 

 As we have discussed the importance of being effective vs. efficient and punctual for managing time for ourselves, the other aspect of time management is how we manage time for OTHERS.

How do we manage time for OTHERS?

It is more about how we organize ourselves effectively so that we are not time wasters for others. Generally, we do not like to work with people who are tardy and waste others' time. When others like us, our ability to get things done will enhance. We need to invest in making ourselves useful to others.
 
We must relook at some of our behaviors and practices, which take others' time.
 
Let me list down some of the behavior which i have observed in many executives in the workplace which affects others’ time.
 

• Talking on our mobile phones or chatting on the computer when some people sit and wait in front of us. We need to attend an incoming call, but we have a choice to have a detailed conversation later. 
• Conducting a meeting without specific agenda, discussing general or day-to-day issues, and wasting all people’s time.
• Even if we meet with some agenda, keeping irrelevant people and discussing with a few people signals disrespect to others' time and low engagement.
• Switching between macro and micro or business and functional activities.

For example, i have observed in one of the organizations, during the monthly business performance review meeting, the business head got into a detailed technical review of the particular quality issue and spent more time on it with a few attendees. Nothing wrong with discussing the technical problem, but the subject is irrelevant for many of the attendees, and their body language reflects their concern about their time spent on the unrelated topic. Also, that forum is meant for business review and not for functional review.

• Coming for the meeting without data/facts and wasting time in setting up the computer/ projectors/ switching between many files and distracting the attention of others.
• Frequent follow-up: One of the ways we can make others waste their time is by not keeping up our commitment. Generally, we may not like to work with a person who needs constant follow-up to get things done. In some organizations, things will be done only by following a person multiple times.

We may be doing without our consciousness, but it affects others’ time, and if they are our junior colleagues or peers, they may not be able to express it to us as feedback. However, they prefer to avoid us, affecting our execution capability.

It requires consciousness of how we organize ourselves for OTHERS.

 
Have a great week ahead.

Managing Time - Effectiveness & Efficiency

 Managing Time - Effectiveness & Efficiency 

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)

 

Under the topic, "how we organize time for ourselves, we discussed the rationale behind "being on time" or "being punctual".The other aspects of "managing time for ourselves" are prioritizing the task and execution.
 
Most of us experienced that despite being busy with many activities throughout the day, we do not feel a sense of satisfaction. Time Management conflict on active and impact!
 
Time management is not how we engage in some activities and are busy.

Time management is purely inward motivation than externally monitoring time or counting activities. It is all about being effective and efficient.

Efficiency is how we do things right, and effectiveness is all about how we choose the right things to do.

Efficiency is related to skill, and effectiveness is related to awareness and mindset to choose the right activities.

If we want to excel in time management, in my opinion, we need to be more concerned about EFFECTIVENESS, i.e., awareness and mindset to choose the RIGHT activities.

Once we get into EFFECTIVE ACTIVITIES, efficiency is a matter of skill development.
 
If we choose the wrong task and whatever we do with high efficiency, it is not going to deliver desirable results and impact. There is no sense of satisfaction.

For example, choosing the right path to travel is EFFECTIVENESS. How we travel in the path quickly by walking fast or running or using the vehicle is all about EFFICIENCY. If we choose the wrong path and wildly run fast, we end up with the wrong destination.

Hence, the purpose or result gives satisfaction.
 
In a professional environment, choosing the right task is very important than doing the task faster.

How will you choose the right task?

It is defined by your role and the delivery expected from you from your organization. That is a priority.
 
You are effective when you know your priority as defined for your role or what you're expected to do and engage in that activity.

You become efficient when you execute the priority with speed by upskilling, delegating, and using the tools and techniques.

You need to feel good for having completed priority tasks with efficiency. It is all about time management. It is purely inward motivation and fulfillment.

First, we need to ask ourselves whether we are aware of our priorities; if so, are we doing it with efficiency?

Organizing self-managing Time

 Organizing self-managing Time  

(Execution Excellence -"Ability to get things done" Series)

 

We have discussed the importance of personal leadership or organizing self to improve the execution capability.
 
Let us discuss one of the essential elements of self-organizing, which is "Time Management."
 
We have discussed many aspects of time management in the earlier discussion; let us understand how managing time will impact getting things done at the workplace.
 
Managing Time should be looked at from two angles.

1) How do we organize our Time for ourselves;
2) How do we organize our Time for others

 How we organize our Time for ourselves 

It consists of planning our priorities/activities, making a To-do list, being on time for any events or meetings, and being aware of our Time wasters.

 How we organize our Time for others 

It consists of how we respect others' Time, keep our commitments up without follow-up or reminders from others and be available for others when needed.

Let us discuss all aspects, and the critical, fundamental conduct for any professional is "Being on Time" or "being punctual."
 
In childhood, we used to be punctual in school as an act of obedience or control from teachers and parents, and somehow we have not learned the basics behind it.

Fortunately, i  learned the science behind "being on time" from the beginning of my career. As most of us are aware that TVS as an organization is very specific about being on Time (punctual). They differentiated themselves from others in their bus service business by punctuality when they started the company in the 1910s in the southern part of Tamil Nādu.

When i was working as a trainee in TVS, one day, i went for a learning session late by a minute or less. All my colleagues were inside the room, and then the Vice president sarcastically greeted me as welcome mappillai! (meaning bridegroom). I felt embarrassed and shamed. After the session, i asked him why he was so concerned about being less than 1 minute late. What he said was real learning. He said, "It is not a matter of one minute late, it shows how you look at your work, event, and other people's time. It reflects your attitude".

Very profound learning for me. Since then, i have never been late to any event by plan, and i will keep informing people when unforeseen circumstances beyond my control pull me to be late.

While growing up, i observed that many people who keep up on Time are cool, handle situations calmly, consistently grow, and lead a quality life. Quality of life starts with the right attitude toward managing Time.

In my consulting experience,i have seen a typical pattern that the leaders who arrive at the organization on Time and start the meeting on time relatively manage the business well in any circumstances. Because they set the tone of their attitude towards Time to others, the organization follows them. The first step towards execution!

When you organize well, obviously, you will get things done efficiently.

Let us discuss some more aspects of time management next week.

Personal Leadership

                                             

 As we discussed, Execution capability comprises three elements, viz. 

1. Personal Leadership or how we organize ourselves
2. Inspiring and Influencing  others to get things done
3. In-depth knowledge about our work or business
 
Let's talk about Personal Leadership or self-organizing. 
 
What is self-organizing or personal leadership?
 
Self-organizing or personal leadership is about proactively preparing ourselves for the position/ title or the job or task we do."

It is all about how we conduct ourselves, shape our character, attitude, enrich our knowledge and skill for the position.

It is all about personal effectiveness.

It is the foundation for getting things done.

For example,

Suppose you are a functional or business head. In that case, this position demands certain behaviors, knowledge, and skills like being a role model for others on respecting time, and people, expertise in functional or business knowledge, and specific skills to demonstrate. How you prepare yourself for those requirements is about self-organizing or personal leadership.
 
Why do we need to self-organize from the "Execution Capability" perspective?
 
1) When you have not organized yourselves, you can not lead others effectively. You can not improve your team's capability without improving your effectiveness
 
As per the law of organized performance, the ratio of a leader's performance to their team remains constant.

For example, if you measure your performance on a scale of 1~10 and your score is 8, your team score would also be eight or less. Hence ratio is 1:1

You can not change your team's performance score to 10 unless you also improve your score to 10; therefore, the ratio remains constant as per law.

The point is your team's execution capability, or effectiveness depends on your execution capability only.

To get things done, you need to enhance your effectiveness first.

2) You will derail any time during the growth stage if you are not organized.

As said, self-organized is more about disciplining yourself. You will get derailed when you do not maintain the discipline as the job demands.

We might have come across many talented people who derailed their careers not just due to performance alone but lack of personal leadership.

Some of the examples could be ICICI bank Ex women CEO or  Satyam computer founder's fall mainly due to governance issues from a business perspective or integrity issues from a personal point of view.
 
The point is self-organizing is very fundamental for enhancing execution capability. Without that, we cannot inspire or influence others. When you grow up, people look up to you for everything.

Let's talk more about personal leadership next week.

Summarising- Developing decision making skill

 

For the last 40 weeks, we have discussed the topic "Developing Decision-Making Skills" in the workplace. Let us summarise some key points before moving on to the next topic, as this will help you to recall.

 

1. One of the primary responsibilities of a manager/ leader is to make decisions on any workplace challenges at the right time, given the facts and assumptions. Whether the decision is right or wrong, time will decide. It is better to make decisions rather than be indecisive.
2. When we make a series of decisions that yield results, it eventually improves our self-confidence.
3. As emotions overdrive logic, we need to be aware of emotions vs. reasoning in decision-making situations.
4. Everyone will go through a decision dilemma, and one of the approaches to overcome it is to go through the " Decision Vs. Consequence" matrix, as it will give clarity to move forward.
5. Understanding the problem and defining it RIGHTLY will be the first step in problem-solving
6. As a manager/leader, which problem do we solve most of the time, " Adhoc or Chronic"? The answer will tell our managerial time spending and effectiveness.
7. All chronic problem needs structured problem-solving methodologies, and everyone should learn the process of the structured problem-solving process.
8. Prioritizing the problem itself is an art as there are numerous problems one has to solve. One approach we discussed was using the " Complexity Vs. Impact" matrix.
9. Developing the "Data Skill" is a must for professional development. This skill includes the ability to collect the suitable data set, analyze and remove noises, see some patterns, converge on root causes, and sell the ideas to others and implementation.
10. Most technical and managerial problems result from a lack of people and processes. Please be sure to look for the root causes from this perspective as it helps you to reach the solutions quickly.
11. Selling ideas to others is essential apart from data analysis. We discussed some of the hurdles like self-doubt, fear of rejection, and fear of failure. We also discussed the solution approach to overcome the limitations.
12. Developing Action Plan is a managerial art; developing the skill will improve communication.
13. We discussed the checklist for decision-making, and one profound list is putting the highest stakeholders as a focal point to make the right decision.
14. We also discussed the leadership patterns in creating a conducive decision-making environment in the organization where people love to work for the manager/leader.
15. Ultimately, a senior professional is paid for deciding at the right time for the challenges. It calls for probelm solving and decision-making skill development. It can be acquired by awareness and practice.

You can read all the articles in the below link.

https://lifeexcellenceinsights.blogspot.com/


 

a simple guide for the right decision making

 a simple guide for the right decision making 

(Emotional Management for Personal & Professional Growth Series)
 

In line with our topic on "problem-solving and decision making," recently, in one of the management reviews, one manager asked the following question, which i thought was relevant for the topic.

The question was, " how to balance the boss and the junior colleagues?".

He seems to find it challenging to manage his boss and junior colleagues as some of his decisions went against him. This situation is common as most middle-level managers go through in a day to day life in the organization.

My view is as follows.

We do not need to balance any stakeholders with our decisions other than how to make the right decision so that the impact would be more significant and we will not feel guilty about the consequence.



When we make a decision and consider the impact of our decision at a higher level in the hierarchy, as shown in pic, it helps us to make the right decision most of the time.

For example,
as a manager, if you want to do a favor for one of your junior colleagues and the decision will not affect other people in the function or the organization, the decision will be right. If the favor to one person will affect the functional team or even the organization, then the decision may not be the right decision.

i know an entrepreneur with high creditability among his customer's circle, not due to the quality or craftsmanship of his product, but because he always decides in favor of the customer than his organization's short-term expenses. For example, when the customer approaches him for doing the rework in the product due to the customer's mistake of mentioning the wrong specification, he never hesitates to do the rework, and he does it at this expense than arguing with the customer on who is right and what needs to be compensated etc. His generic decision-making thought process puts the higher purpose first than his organization in the short term. In the long run, his decision-making process pays him well as he gets repeated orders from the customers.

My key learning is when we make decisions when we put the higher stakeholder as a priority, likely we will make the right decision, even sometimes, in the short term, we face criticism or pain.

Above all hierarchy of consideration in decision making, listen to your inner consciousness before making any decision, which is more powerful to guide you to make the right decisions than anything else.

Have a great week ahead.

Checklist for better decision making

 

 

As we have been discussing "problem-solving and decision making" in the professional front for solving chronic issues, we have outlined some insights on data, analysis, converging to solutions, selling to others, and making the action plan. The next step before execution is timely decision-making.
 
I have observed in many organizations that despite the leadership teams being presented with data analysis and the approach to solving the problem, many managers/leaders struggle with indecisiveness.
 
Indecisiveness can be defined as the inability to take any decision or delay the decision despite given facts and knowhow.

The reason for indecisiveness is that we are stuck between emotional and logical bais.
 
Decision-making is one of the key attributes of effective managers/leaders. We need to learn to strike a balance between emotional and logical bias in the decision-making process.

One logical approach some effective people use is the checklist for making decisions.
 
The typical checklist will help you to think clearly and go with conviction with the decision.
 
Given below some of the checklists for taking business decisions for solving chronic problems
 
1.What is the decision's impact on Productivity, Quality, Delivery  &  Cost aspects of the business? (will give clarity on which one you are solving as a compelling issue)
2.How the decision will affect the people at the function and organizational level? ( give clarity on decision impact on small or majority of the people)
3.How this decision will help the customer at large?( will give more clarity and conviction as your purpose is higher than you )
4. What other alternatives I have for this decision? ( will help you to revisit your existing decision and to find something better)
5. Am I missing any aspects in this decision? ( final check on assumptions)
6. What is the impact of this decision in one year / three years down the line?( give clarity the importance or significant of this decision on time frame…if it is insignificant, why to break our heads now? )
7. What are the opinion of the key stakeholders on this decision? ( to check the majority's pulse, sometimes others may be right !!)
 
 You may use the above checklists when you are in a dilemma in making important business decisions, as this helps you to overcome your emotional bias.
 
Have a great week ahead. 

Developing Action Plan skill

 Developing Action Plan skill 

(Emotional Management for Personal & Professional Growth Series)

On the topic of structured problem solving for chronic issues in the organization, we have discussed the importance of data, data analysis, getting into causes, and selling the ideas to others. In selling ideas to others, each manager must learn one critical skill: "making an action plan."

Action plan :

• An action plan is planning the action in terms of what, who, when, and sometimes explaining by how.
• The action plan is about articulating what needs to be done to solve the problem, who is supposed to be accountable for the action and when the action is to be completed.
• It is all about setting the direction for others to solve the problem

Making an action plan is nothing but the manager's conviction on the solution part.

 
One typical pattern i observe in many young managers is that they are good at data collection, analyzing the data, and identifying the causes, but stuck at converging on the solution part with conviction.
 
Why are we stuck in making the action plan stage? 
 
The simple reason is uncertainty about the future outcome, fear about the consequence of failure, and worry too much about others on rejection. That is natural for anyone, but one who overcomes it emerges as a  better manager/leader in their profession.
 
There are many techniques/formats available like 5W1H / 3W1H, which can be learned as knowhow.

However, the lack of courage is pulling us into making the consolidated action plan skill, which we can develop with awareness and by practice whenever the opportunity comes.
 
Benefits of developing the skill  :
 
When we improve the craft of making an action plan,

• our communication or articulation ability is increasing even in day-to-day conversations
• enhances our comprehensive skill  in any complex situation  
• Team perceive us as a leader as they need someone to guide them on things to be done

 
Hence, developing the skill of making an action plan is an art that can be developed by learning the techniques and practicing.
 

Have a great week ahead.

Redefining failure to overcome the fear of failure

 

 

On the subject of "fear of failure in selling our ideas or solutions to others" in a professional setup, last week, we discussed the reason for fear and its impact. We listed the following approach to overcome it.

1. Redefine the failure
2. Imposing Logical / reasoning over emotions
3. Learning attitude

 Let us further understand each approach
 
Redefine the failure:
 
Smart people are using this approach to redefine their success or failure in any event when they have a fear of failure and progressing further.
 
For example,

let us consider the following situation.
 
Your organization has shortlisted you and other colleagues to elevate to the higher roles and assigned a challenging task that you have not done so far. To get finalized, you need to go through the assessment and interview. You have fear inside whether you will succeed in the new role. You have a dilemma to go for an interview or not.
 
In this situation, how you define your success or failure will help you to overcome the fear and progress to the next step.
 
Completing the new assignment will be a function of many factors like team dynamics and changes in external and internal business environments. Those factors may not be in your control. At this moment, you have control only over how you do in the assessment and interview process.

In this kind of situation, smart people redefine their success in such a way that "doing well in the interview is success" at the moment. Again in the next step, they redefine their success or failure in new assignments as how they perform well using the experience and giving their best. That mindset and focus on their performance will help them navigate the interview process well and to the next step.
 
This way of redefining will help to manage the fear factors.
  
You can relate this approach to M.S Dhoni's style of leadership. When captaincy came to him to lead the Indian cricket team, someone asked him whether he feared failure in the new role. He responded that "success or failure in a cricket match depends on how other players do their job; let me focus on what i can do best during the game." 
 
We do instill that mindset of defining success or failure in any event.
 
To sum up,
 

• Effective people break up the event in multiple steps.
• They focus on their performance/influence in each step and ignore the external force. 
• That mindset of redefining the success or failure helps them manage the fear of failure.

 
Let us discuss other approaches next week.
 
Have a great week ahead.
 
 

Managing "Fear of Failure" in selling ideas

 Managing "Fear of Failure" in selling ideas 

(Emotional Management for Personal & Professional Growth Series)
 

 

As we discussed the emotional aspects preventing us from selling our idea or solutions to others, we have discussed the fear of rejection last few weeks. The next fear most of us go through is fear of failure. Let us understand the insights on fear of failure and the approach to managing the fear of failure.

Whenever we have some idea or suggestion to offer, internally, we fear failure. We worry about the negative outcome and the consequence of failure. That is fear of failure.

Why this fear of failure comes to our mind?

1) The experts say the origin of fear may be our experience or our environment. We might have experienced some failure or bitter experience in the past in similar circumstances.

For example, in one of my client organizations, the management is reluctant toward low-cost automation. When we go deeper into the reason for that behavior, we realize that they had invested money in many automation projects in the past and have not succeeded as expected. That bad experience prevents them from thinking about any future investments in automation.
 
2) Also, when something goes wrong, most of us associate the experience with a personal failure and blame ourselves. The more we have past bad experiences and blame ourselves, the more we get the feeling of fear of failure.
 
We might have observed that the younger generations take more risks in any adventure in business or career since they do not have any past references. In contrast, the experienced people would think twice in any venture as they might have experienced both positive and bad outcomes in the past.

Hence, the reasons for fear of failure are our past bitter experiences and the tendency to personally associate ourselves with the outcome.

Impact of fear of failure?

Since the future is unknown, fear of failure is common and natural. When we realize the fear and take action, there is an equal probability of winning and failure in any event. If we do not overcome, we end up with the status quo, and progress will be muted.

How do you overcome the fear of failure in selling the ideas to others?

Fear is just emotion, and this can be managed with the following approach

1. Redefining the failure
2. Imposing Logical / reasoning over emotions
3. Learning attitude

Let us discuss the approach and insights next week!
 
Have a great week ahead.

Selling your ideas or solutions to others.

 

As we have been discussing the structured approach for solving any chronic problems in the organizations, last week, we discussed the holistic vs. countermeasure solutions. The next important step is selling the solutions approach to others.
 

Whether we find a holistic or incremental solution, the solution will get value only when it is accepted and implemented by others.

As i observed with many managers/leaders, they find it challenging to sell their ideas or solutions to others and convince them. The others could be junior colleagues, peers, bosses, or even customers.

Why do we have the challenge of selling the idea to others?
 
Based on the data and analysis, we might have arrived at some solutions to any problem. However, we may not be sure whether the solutions will work or deliver results. There is always self-doubt within us.

Also, assumptions will vary over time in a complex environment and uncertain future. That leads to an internal dilemma and thinking about what would happen if our solution fails..? Fear of failure!

Also, we have apprehension about whether others will accept our solutions or not. As human beings, we tend to mix the acceptance of self with acceptance of solutions by others. Fear of rejection! 
 
The above reasons lead to personal / team challenges to sell the idea to others with conviction. The emotional aspect of fear of failure and rejection is quite normal, and everyone needs to go through it in our lives whenever we propose or suggest an idea or solution. That is a natural process.

We need to develop the skill of selling the solutions when we grow as managers and leaders.

Why do we need to develop the skill of selling ideas?

As managers or leaders, we are measured by delivering the result only, not on the data collection, analysis, and root cause finding capability. If we do not convince others of our solution approach and move towards implementation, we are halfway through problem-solving, which is almost equal to not solving the problem.

When we develop the skill of managing emotions through a logical approach, we evolve as successful problem solvers. Since every one of us will go through emotional aspects, the one who overcomes it will be perceived as the winner.
 
Next week, let us discuss the practical approach to overcome the emotional aspects of selling the solutions!
 
Have a great week ahead.

The first step in developing Data skill

 

 

As we have discussed developing the data skill, one aspect is to avoid the tendency of bias toward your opinion on the data. The second aspect is to be aware of what you want from the data.

By nature, some data is registered in the system every second or every transaction.

For example, consider any equipment in your organization. Every second, it gives us data like the energy spent, cycle time, idleness for various reasons, and many such data.

Similarly, consider your product or service, or customer. Much data is being generated in every transaction like volume, value, complaints, quality or service feedback, etc. 

What do you want from those data? 

When you want to improve your data skill, the first step required is CLARITY on what you want to solve from the data. What data do you want from the pool of data mine, and how will it help solve the problem?
 
How will this clarity help you?

As a manager/leader, if you know what you want to solve or what information you want, you can design your FORMAT, TEMPLATE, or FILTER the unwanted data.
 
Today the problem is not on the data availability; As Managers/leaders, we need to learn to ask the right questions about the correct data required to solve the problem.
 
In one organization, i observed that the team spent resources like software and human resources to capture the plant data, organize and send the report to all. Still, the organization struggled to know the exact reason for delivery failure. The reason i found was that the leaders/managers were focusing more on technology on capturing the data and engaged in the data storage and retrieval process than on finding the right question on which data or insight they have to look for to solve the business delivery problems.
 
The point is that technology is an enabler, and it is the managers/ leaders who need to know how to use the technology to filter out the RIGHT data for solving the functional or business problem.

Clarity on what you want from the data pool or what data is essential from the gold mine will help improve the data skill of the practicing managers/leaders.

Have a great week ahead.
 

Developing Data Skill

 

Unlike crisis moments, all chronic problem-solving requires an essential ingredient: DATA.

In an organizational setup, the data is created in every transaction or moment, and the data is considered a hidden treasure or gold mine. The way the managers/ leaders access the correct data, refine it for decision-making makes a difference in their problem-solving capability. That is data skill.

Data skill is the ability to get the correct data and interpret and use the insight to make decisions.

Generally, most of us tend to either give immediate solutions based on the data or give our opinion about the data, which leads to a different direction. If you are at the influencing level, your opinion counts much, and the truth from the data will drift.


 
For example,
 
You have data that say that the "machine breakdown on an avg 3 hrs per day".
Here, the opinion could be "our machine is old, thereby we get this trouble," or "Maintenance service provider is not providing good service,"
 But, the truth could be that machine lubrications are not ensured at the right time or periodically.

Your opinion strongly drifts the data far away from the truth, and the data may not be helpful.
 
The data skill is how you collect RIGHT inputs, identify some of the noises, remove them, and finally get into the TRUTH. That is a skill every manager needs to learn for better problem solving and decision making.

In one of my client organizations, the delivery was not consistent, and when the team collected the data, they found some supply chain partners were not supplying on time. This is DATA as registered in the system.

The team shared the OPINION that the cash flow was the primary reason, as the firm could not pay to supply partners on time; in turn, they could not deliver the material on time.
 
Later, the team found the truth that there were planning and communication issues like forecasting, coordinating with supply partners and the cash flow was a relatively minor cause for the problem.

That is learning data skills for using the data, removing the noises, and reaching out to the truth. 
 
The point is how we collect the right inputs, filter out some of the noises, weigh down opinions, and get into the truth.It is essential in data analytics as a skill.
 
We need to introspect our bias towards data, opinion and truth in solving chronic problems or even in data to day interactions.

Let us discuss some more insights on data analytics and skill development next week.
 
Have a great week ahead!
 

Why should we define an Objective clearly before solving a problem?

 Why should we define an Objective clearly before solving a problem?  

(Emotional Management for Personal & Professional Growth Series)

As we discussed the insights in structured problem-solving methodology, first, we have discussed how the business managers can choose or prioritize the problem in the organization. The next step after selecting the problem is         " Defining the objectives clearly."

What is meant by Objective?

Objective means aim or goal or target or where our effort should go towards solving the problem.

For example," Reduce the customer complaint by 50%" is an objective, goal, or target.

Why should we define the Objective clearly?

First, it gives clarity to all what we intend to solve
Second, it sets the boundary condition or scope under which we are going to work 
Third, it improves the focus as we define the end and the scope clearly at the beginning.
 
Without a clear objective definition, the team may divert the focus in many sub-problems related to the main problem and go endlessly without achieving the goal.
 
For example,

As a business head, you set the goal to increase the business profitability by 25% in the next financial year.
 
To achieve this goal, you may have multiple options, and you can pursue all the possibilities. In the process, you may be chasing many options, achieving the goal, or failing to achieve it.
 
When you define your Objective clearly, like by specifying the result and the focus area, like
to increase profitability by 25 % by introducing new customers or new products, it sets sharp direction and clarity to you and the team on which path you want to pursue. By establishing a clear objective, you are certain to focus your energy on building new products or new customers, and most likely, you may achieve the result.

Likewise, instead of defining objectives like reducing rejection by 50 %, if you define clearly, like, reducing the supply base rejection by 50 % within three months timeline, you are giving more clarity and direction to the team, where they suppose to focus. Otherwise, the team can choose to work on supply rejections, inhouse manufacturing rejection, customer rejection, and so on…
 
The point is that articulating the objectives clearly helps to reduce ambiguity and improve the focus. 

Suppose managers and leaders learn to articulate the objectives with a clear target, timeline, scope, which will likely improve the team's effectiveness in solving the problems. Also, it helps them become better problem solvers in their careers.

Have a great week ahead!

How to prioritize problems?

 How to prioritize problems? 

(Emotional Management for Personal & Professional Growth Series)

                              

 As we discussed the steps in structured problem solving, in this series, let us discuss some of the insights in each step as this helps the Managers/ Leaders to get a perspective on the practical dilemma in problem-solving.
 
One of the challenges for most managers and business leaders is "How to prioritize the problems in the organization ?"

The question arises as there are many problems in the organization, and almost all work on one or other problems. Still, in the end, the quantum of the problem remains the same, or the organizational objectives are not met consistently. This scenario is most common in an organization where people are busy managing a day-to-day crisis.

Some leaders are good at prioritizing the problems, channeling all the resources in solving that problem, and finally making an impact on business, thereby creating a pleasant work environment.This competency is required for every leader and can be learned as well.

One method of prioritizing the problems in the organization is through  Impact Vs. Complexity.

Impact vs Complexity:

Impact means if the problem is resolved, it will improve business performance like delivery, revenue, customer retention, morale etc.

Complexity means the solution calls for many stakeholders or cross-functional teams and the problem arises due to a variety of reasons like people, equipment, money, communication issues etc. Generally, a day-to-day crisis management methodology cannot solve the complexity.



For example, 

As a leader, if you choose a "customer delivery problem" as a priority for solving through a structured approach, it will significantly impact the organization. The delivery problems also call for involving cross-functional stakeholders and addressing many areas.

when you choose the high impact vs high complexity problem and involve many stakeholders as part of the structured problem solving and delegate in submodules, eventually, the solutions will make the organization make a high impact on business performance and morale of the people.

alternatively, when we choose low impact and less or more complex problems, neither the organization will realize many benefits nor the problems deserve much attention from many .

As Managers / Leaders, we need to have clarity on where to focus for higher impact!

Have a great week ahead!

Steps in the structured problem-solving process

 Steps in the structured problem-solving process 

(Emotional Management for Personal & Professional Growth Series)

Having discussed the definition and type of problem (Adhoc or chronic) one needs to solve at the workplace, we need to learn the structured way of solving the chronic problems.

 
What is a structured way of solving chronic problems?
 
Unlike emergency or firefighting situations, all chronic problems can be solved step by step logical process. We are sure to move towards permanent or practical solutions to the problem in each step of the logical process.

What does it call for?

The structured approach calls for data analytical skills, the ability to look at the big picture and micro-detail, the ability to get the insight and narrow down to the causes, decision-making skills, and more than above the ability to get the collaboration from all the stakeholders to implement the solutions.

Since structured problem-solving competency is a combination of multi-skills, only a few people take effort to learn and become masters in applying the holistic approach.

Steps in a structured problem-solving approach?

Since there are many problem-solving processes available in the market like Six sigma, QC approach, A3,8D, all the approaches lead to solving the chronic problem in a structured way. The tools and formats may be different, and it is up to the individual to learn and master any approach.
 
Ultimately all the approaches consist of the following step.
 

• Prioritizing the problem
• Defining the objective
• Collecting the data/ facts
• Understanding the insights from data /removal of noises
• Converging to causes
• Articulating the actions -short / medium / long term perspective
• Taking action and checking the effectiveness

Developing a comprehensive understanding of the problem-solving process as a capability will enhance your managerial skill to get things done and career growth.

Let us discuss some of the insights in each step next week.

Have a great week ahead!

Awareness of thinking traps in decision making

 Awareness of thinking traps in decision making 

(Emotional Management for Personal & Professional Growth Series)

As we have discussed the different types of thinking traps that affect our decision-making process, let us summarise the thinking traps and their influence on our decisions.

• Except for routine activities, most of us have decision dilemmas in all business decisions.

• We generally assume that we are logical thinkers and equipped with tools and techniques for decision-making. However, research says that despite all the resources on the rational decision-making process, we are unconsciously trapped into thinking bias which affects the quality of decision making, particularly in complex business decisions.

 
Some of the thinking traps we have discussed with examples are
 

• Giving excess weightage to the first information
• Maintaining the status quo even though it is not relevant now
• Seeking confirmation evidence for our initial thought from people who are favoring us
• Not clearly defining the problem itself
• Judgement trap either overconfidence or underestimating.

 
In every stage of the business decision-making process, we have more stakeholders, more assumptions, and inputs coming from different ends, leading to misperception. This bias influences our choices or decision-making quality.

Some of the above thinking traps can work in isolation, or they can work in combination.

For example, we give more weightage to the first information we receive, believe it true, and seek confirmation from the people in favor of our initial thinking. Then we take some decisions that will become status quo. We stick to it as our sunk cost mentality will not allow us to detach ourselves from our earlier decisions and finally get into the trap of living with the pain of our decision.

The only protection from the different thinking trap is AWARENESS.
 
Even though we cannot avoid the inputs/assumptions from different stakeholders, we can build tests and be disciplined enough in the decision-making process, which will help to get into the trap. That needs a step back and challenge our thought process while making decisions in important events.

More we take unbiased choices without a trap, our confidence improves.

It is easier said than done; however, it needs awareness and practice to take the unbiased, right decisions in a complex business environment.

Have a great week ahead.