Newly Agile

The narrative influencers - media, academia, politicians and other institutions - have been quick to embrace a new descriptor for the effect of the worldwide pandemic: "The New Normal."  It’s a softer framework for the hyper-change that has been thrust upon us. To be sure, in the past 120 days we have been forced to change at a pace that will tire even the most ardent agents of change. However, in a business context, there is nothing “new” or “normal” about this change.

The idea of a “new normal" carries the connotation that there was an "old normal." Nothing has been “normal” in the complexity of business change for at least several decades. Cycles are shortening, robots are intelligent, machines are learning, digital currency thrives, workforces are displaced, cars are autonomous, information is everywhere and digital collaboration is abundant. Successful businesses have been designing agile systems to proactively harness change and predict outcomes precisely because shaping the future is an enigmatic effort.

The pandemic is reflective of past crises in that it demands the best of people, systems and leadership. We have all witnessed the people who run toward a calamity rather than away from it. First responders and good Samaritans run into dangerous situations with little regard for their personal safety. In reflection, they will say they are “well trained” or “wired that way." What if you could “wire” and “train” your organization to respond to change and crisis with speed and agility reflective of the heroes charging into danger?

It takes courage for a leader to objectively assess their business delivery model and affect change. Even after the evident lessons from this current crisis and global pandemic, many organizations will continue with business-as-usual and a hopeful strategy. For the courageous, these five steps are an introduction to a process necessary to develop a purposeful, agile organization in the age of hyper-change.

Assess Organizational Design

People, process, technology and structure are four things foundational to sustained success. Each one should be kept in a constant state of refinement, never settling for the status quo.

Plan from the Foundation

Studies show that only 5% of employees are aware of their company’s strategy, and even managers are not able to articulate it effectively. Planning from the foundation will engage your front-line team in the creation of the plan while bolstering the support you will need to execute.

Bridge Planning to Execution

Over 60% of senior executives believe their company does a poor job bridging strategy to execution. A failure to execute is inexcusable in a market chock-full of affordable software solutions that can automate and simplify this process to ensure the goals and objectives, borne out of the plan, are cascading throughout the organization. 

Wield the Data Sword

You can’t manage what you can’t measure. The successful curation of data sources springing from your business operating systems will unearth rich clues to a treasure of opportunity. Enabling real-time access to the metrics you choose to measure performance is critical to galvanizing agility.

Innovate Incessantly

Structurally, the previous points will allow your company and team to weaponize agility, pivot quickly and outperform the market. If agility is the engine to harnessing change, then innovation is the fuel. Cultivate an environment tolerant of imperfection where the point-team can forge a new path forward. During a time of crisis, the innovators win.   

Leadership must take the first courageous step toward embracing new systems to future-proof their businesses. Sustained success is borne of an aligned culture and intelligent system designed to execute high-performance outcomes. It’s deliberate. It’s purposeful. It’s the agile organization that will win the future.

Authors Note:  Watch for new articles detailing specific methods for each of these five steps to creating agility in your organization.
Source: HBR – Executives Fail to Execute Strategy, Ron Carucci, 11/2017