$30 off During Our Annual Pro Sale. View Details »

Boosting Agility by Scaling Decision-Making

Boosting Agility by Scaling Decision-Making

Big companies are no longer guaranteed survival. Companies who move fast and pivot faster are disrupting them, largely due to an ability to make quick decisions. It seems that when companies grow larger, their decision-making processes get slower.

Lean leaders know that an ability to make quick decisions at scale comes when you empower those with the most information to make decisions - but getting started can be terrifying. In this session, Julia will share how to alleviate management fears and embark on a safe journey of distributed decision-making.

Julia Wester
PRO

October 04, 2018
Tweet

More Decks by Julia Wester

Other Decks in Business

Transcript

  1. #lascot
    @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !1
    Boosting Agility
    by Scaling Your Decision-Making
    Julia Wester
    Co-Founder / Consultant
    Lagom Solutions

    View Slide

  2. Agility
    the power of moving quickly
    and easily; nimbleness
    @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !2 #lascot

    View Slide

  3. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !3 #lascot
    It is not the strongest of the species
    that survives, nor the most
    intelligent, but the one most
    responsive to change.
    Charles Darwin, 1809

    View Slide

  4. #lascot
    @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !4
    Adapted from Stephen Bungay’s
    “The Art of Action”
    Outcomes
    Actions Plans
    What We Think Will Happen

    View Slide

  5. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !5 #lascot
    But, Human Systems are Complex Human Tower
    www.designboom.com

    View Slide

  6. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !6 #lascot
    The very business of getting
    an organization made up of
    individuals, no matter how
    disciplined, to pursue a
    collective goal produces
    friction just as surely as
    applying the brakes of a car.
    Stephen Bungay, Art of Action

    View Slide

  7. #lascot
    @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !7
    Changing
    Environment
    Complex
    Environment
    Emotion
    & Stress
    Personal
    Interests
    Different
    Agendas
    External
    Actors
    Choice
    Lack of
    Data
    Noise
    Misunderstandings
    Different
    Interpretations
    Different
    Priorities
    Independent
    Wills
    Unpredictable
    Events
    Imperfect
    Information
    Imperfect
    Information Transfer
    Limited
    Knowledge
    Independent
    Agents
    Human
    Finitude
    External Factors
    Internal Factors

    View Slide

  8. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !8 #leanagileus
    Adapted from Stephen Bungay’s
    “The Art of Action”
    Outcomes
    Plans
    Actions
    !
    ! !
    Inherent Human
    Limitations
    Uncertain
    environment
    Failure to Execute
    The Complex Truth

    View Slide

  9. The 3 Gaps
    @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom
    !9
    #lascot
    Adapted from Stephen Bungay’s
    “The Art of Action”
    Outcomes
    Plans
    Actions
    !
    ! !
    Effects Gap
    Difference between what we
    expect our actions to achieve
    and what they actually achieve
    Knowledge Gap
    Difference between what we
    would like to know and what
    we actually know
    Alignment Gap
    Difference between what we want
    people to do and what they actually do

    View Slide

  10. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !10 #lascot
    Seem
    familiar?
    image creator unknown

    View Slide

  11. Outcomes
    Plans
    Effects Gap Knowledge Gap
    Alignment Gap
    Actions
    Outcomes
    Plans
    Effects Gap Knowledge Gap
    Alignment Gap
    Actions
    @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !11
    Two approaches to dealing with the unknown
    #lascot
    more detailed
    controls
    more detailed
    information
    more detailed
    instructions
    freedom to adjust
    actions
    limit instruction,
    give intent
    allow levels to decide
    & back brief
    Instruction Direction
    Leader - Follower Leader - Leader

    View Slide

  12. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !12 #lascot
    Instruction
    Leader - Follower
    more detailed
    instructions
    Alignment Gap
    Knowledge Gap
    more detailed
    information

    View Slide

  13. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !13 #lascot
    Image: ohmygodlife.com
    The Vicious Cycle

    View Slide

  14. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !14 #lascot
    Dave Snowden, released under CC BY 3.0
    Instruction
    Direction
    Context
    Matters!
    Cynefin: a sense-making
    model by Dave Snowden

    View Slide

  15. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !15 #lascot
    Bridging the Gaps

    View Slide

  16. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !16 #lascot
    If a problem is widespread and enduring, its
    origins are likely to be deep-seated.
    Stephen Bungay,
    Art of Action
    The solution is therefore
    unlikely to be a quick fix or
    something new to add to
    what we do already.

    View Slide

  17. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !17 #lascot
    Leaders, are you willing to
    1. Prioritize (I mean really prioritize)
    2. Let others make decisions?
    3. Be accountable for others’ decisions?
    4. Back off, but stay close for support?
    5. Stick with it when it gets tough (long-
    term over short term).

    View Slide

  18. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !18 #lascot
    Workers, are you willing to
    1. Make decisions and assume
    responsibility for them.
    2. Critically assess the way things are done
    3. Communicate intent, often
    4. Speak up when you see problems
    5. Work on things that matter

    View Slide

  19. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !19 #lascot
    Flickr: B4bees - CCby2.0
    What keeps us from giving away or taking control?

    View Slide

  20. Leader
    Worker
    @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !20 #lascot
    Leader
    Worker
    Intent-Based Leadership Requires Bi-Directional Trust

    View Slide

  21. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !21 #lascot
    How much control
    should be given?
    https://www.davidmarquet.com/2017/05/24/leadership-nudge-got-frustration/

    View Slide

  22. Intent-Based Leadership
    The Basic Steps
    @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !22 #lascot

    View Slide

  23. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !23 #lascot
    Leader: Decide What Matters

    View Slide

  24. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !24 #lascot
    Leader: Get the
    Message Across
    Via a Brief
    Context
    What triggered this need?
    What is the situation?
    Intent
    Short statement of task and its
    purpose
    Higher Intent
    How does this tie into intent from
    1-2 levels up?
    Implied Tasks
    Obvious tasks that need
    to be done. Keep it
    minimal.
    Boundaries, Freedoms
    & Anti-Goals
    Known constraints,
    conditions to avoid,
    potential future decisions

    View Slide

  25. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom
    The Plan
    Actions team will take that should
    achieve outcomes
    How team will monitor success to
    determine if course correction is
    needed
    !25 #lascot
    Worker: Listen, Process, & Respond via a Backbrief
    Context
    What triggered this need?
    What is the situation?
    Intent
    Short statement of task and its
    purpose
    Higher Intent
    How does this tie into intent from
    1-2 levels up?
    Implied Tasks
    Obvious tasks that need
    to be done. Keep it
    minimal.
    Boundaries, Freedoms
    & Anti-Goals
    Known constraints,
    conditions to avoid,
    potential future decisions
    Team Needed
    People / Skills Needed

    View Slide

  26. Worker: Keep Lines of Communication Open
    @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !26 #lascot
    Leader: Give People Space and Support

    View Slide

  27. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !27 #lascot
    Worker: Reflect and Adapt As You Go

    View Slide

  28. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !28 #lascot
    Outcomes
    Plans
    Actions
    !
    ! !

    View Slide

  29. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !29 #lascot
    Cascading intent fosters agility

    View Slide

  30. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !30 #lascot
    Punishment can backfire!

    View Slide

  31. Getting Started: Assess if everyone is ready, willing & able.
    @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !31 #lascot

    View Slide

  32. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !32 #lascot
    Choose a decision to begin with

    View Slide

  33. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !33 #lascot
    Resources

    View Slide

  34. @everydaykanban | @TeamLagom !34 #lascot
    [email protected]
    @everydaykanban & @TeamLagom
    https://lagom.solutions
    http://everydaykanban.com
    https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliawester/
    Contact me to talk more

    View Slide