Challenge

I am the operations manager for my international company’s Asian business.  We service the engineering and  architectural design industry and my staff consists of 50 people spread over 6 departments.

We have had just over 5 years of rapid growth with some major success, but I have noticed recently a lack of  production and a decline in quality. To our credit we have retained the majority of our staff over our time of  operations therefore I needed to analyze the current state of operations, our projects and production to determine  what was first failing, and second how to fix the issues.

Part of my role was to restructure the company in an effort to improve efficiencies, production and sales.  To do this  required me to gather the key stakeholders across our departments to determine what we considered to be ineffective  or problematic with regard to the business.

There have been many times over the years where we have addresses some issues in an isolated context and have  generally used assumptions and biases to propose solutions which in general have had limited affects. Our team has  already gone through several design thinking activities/tools, so we are ready to try the learning launch tool.

Selection

I plan to keep the learning launch experimental meant to quickly test an idea and prototype quickly, seeing results  (positive or negative) early.

Application

In the weeks leading up to what I planned would be a learning launch, I individually interviewed each department,  spending time watching how they interacted with their counterparts in other countries and within their team.  Independently of all of the departments I used SWOT analysis to identify common and unique strengths, weaknesses  opportunities and threats that I could use as a basis for initiating agile projects aimed at addressing the outcomes.

Along with my SWOT points, I set some very generic goals but left the path for getting to that goal undefined as I  required the input and experimentation from all stakeholders to define the path for itself.

I was determined to set the culture not only for the experiment and project but for the entire office. To do so required  me to loosely plan the approach with the key stakeholders, so together we determined some "organizational tenets”  that would keep us on task towards the goal, but would not allow us to be manipulated with bias. The ended up  being:

•  Realization of the past, present & future   Now is the time to reflect on our purpose, we need a bold direction, and to marshal as a team toward  that goal, we will prioritize everything we do accordingly. Sustaining a forward-looking view.  •  Focus on the way things are done, not the structure.  While org charts are important to define some of the formal building blocks, we cannot try and force  our business processes into a structure that does not suit reality. We will fix our structure last because  defining a structure will not fix the problem. We focus on execution improvement regardless of role to  a certain point, and revisit structure after,  •  Make the most of our top talent  We design positions and roles to suit our talent, we respect commitment and determination and  implement training strategy to help them meet their aspirations where skill is lacking. We optimize  management by minimizing direct reports with the goal for every level of management to essentially  “replace themselves” that is the true gauge of their success as managers.     •  Focus on the controllable  There are issues we are aware of companywide that in the immediate term we cannot control. That  does not mean we cannot influence them or aim to fix them long term, but while we are focusing on

issues that are out of our control we will not fix things that are. We need to aim as a group to be second  to none in our duties before we can begin to fix others.     •  Accountability is paramount and will be rewarded  People will be accountable for their past and present work without being micromanaged. We will apply  RACI to everything we do, and it is those that strive to perform when responsible and manage when  accountable that we will foster for the future.      •  We do not benchmark ourselves against anyone else.  We have a unique business model with a set of goals and values that are no one else’s, We need to  identify internally how we benchmark success as a business and what our products are required to be.  We do not take superficial competitor pricing as a benchmark for ourselves without first making an  informed business decision based on fact. We have an identity that is entwined with a business model.     •  Our organizational structure fits our purpose.  Traditionally we have been weak matrixed where we need to be balanced, we need our functional  managers and departments but we must put more focus on the project team. This will not happen by  itself, the leader of the project must stand up, be accountable and take charge.      •  Higher value on the informal  There is a lot of value in our formal processes, they are crucial to process and production. However I  want a strong focus to be on the informal, intrinsic motivation of our teams. Transparency and honesty  between business units is paramount and I expect to be aske anything and everything while being told  everything. The office junior should be told the big picture, while sharing their thoughts and concerns  on production.     •  Acknowledgement and exploitation of strength.  After 5 years of production and growth, we have tried many things.  At this point we have a good  understanding of what our strengths are (see SWOT) complimentary to “focusing on the controllable”  we need a sustained period of getting better at what we are already good at. This will mean putting  some long term goals on the shelf, but ultimately we will be more prepared for them in the future.                    Being guided by the tenets, the key stakeholders were given weekly tasks which were designed to address the  SWOT, goals and issues. These weekly experiments were small enough to not cause an impact but were discussed  informally followed up by an evaluation to determine their success and the approach for the next weeks tasks.

Insight

By being allowed to fail/succeed early with a higher value on observation and the informal over a document heavy  workflow, the buy in by the entire office is a lot more positive than it has been in the past. The teams see the instant  results of an initiative without the negative thoughts that usually meet “yet another procedure”

I am happy to say that after 2 months of this approach we have already met 4/14 of our major goals, and are well on  the way to meeting all of our targets by the end of the year.

I can honestly say that an open mind, in line with design thinking we are a lot more agile and adaptable to change.

Approach

I will continue to use design thinking to reach larger focused goals, as the only thing that is certain in any  organization is that there is uncertainty, design thinking allows for what is usually a negative (uncertainty) to be  used for the improvement of an organization.


Challenge I am the operations manager for my international company ’s Asian business . We service the engineering and architectural design industry and my staff consists of 50 people spread over 6 departments . We have had just over 5 years of rapid growth with some major success , but I have noticed recently a lack of production and a decline in quality . To our credit we have retained the majority of our staff over our time of operations therefore I needed to analyze the current state of operations , our projects and production to determine what was first failing , and second how to fix the issues . Part of my role was to restructure the company in an effort to improve efficiencies , production and sales . To do this required me to gather the key stakeholders across our departments to determine what we considered to be ineffective or problematic with regard to the business . There have been many times over the years where we have addresses some issues in an isolated context and have generally used assumptions and biases to propose solutions which in general have had limited affects . Our team has already gone through several design thinking activities / tools , so we are ready to try the learning launch tool . Selection I plan to keep the learning launch experimental meant to quickly test an idea and prototype quickly , seeing results ( positive or negative ) early . Application In the weeks leading up to what I planned would be a learning launch , I individually interviewed each department , spending time watching how they interacted with their counterparts in other countries and within their team . Independently of all of the departments I used SWOT analysis to identify common and unique strengths , weaknesses opportunities and threats that I could use as a basis for initiating agile projects aimed at addressing the outcomes . Along with my SWOT points , I set some very generic goals but left the path for getting to that goal undefined as I required the input and experimentation from all stakeholders to define the path for itself . I was determined to set the culture not only for the experiment and project but for the entire office . To do so required me to loosely plan the approach with the key stakeholders , so together we determined some " organizational tenets ” that would keep us on task towards the goal , but would not allow us to be manipulated with bias . The ended up being : • Realization of the past , present & future Now is the time to reflect on our purpose , we need a bold direction , and to marshal as a team toward that goal , we will prioritize everything we do accordingly . Sustaining a forward - looking view . • Focus on the way things are done , not the structure . While org charts are important to define some of the formal building blocks , we can not try and force our business processes into a structure that does not suit reality . We will fix our structure last because defining a structure will not fix the problem . We focus on execution improvement regardless of role to a certain point , and revisit structure after , • Make the most of our top talent We design positions and roles to suit our talent , we respect commitment and determination and implement training strategy to help them meet their aspirations where skill is lacking . We optimize management by minimizing direct reports with the goal for every level of management to essentially “ replace themselves ” that is the true gauge of their success as managers . • Focus on the controllable There are issues we are aware of companywide that in the immediate term we can not control . That does not mean we can not influence them or aim to fix them long term , but while we are focusing on issues that are out of our control we will not fix things that are . We need to aim as a group to be second to none in our duties before we can begin to fix others . • Accountability is paramount and will be rewarded People will be accountable for their past and present work without being micromanaged . We will apply RACI to everything we do , and it is those that strive to perform when responsible and manage when accountable that we will foster for the future . • We do not benchmark ourselves against anyone else . We have a unique business model with a set of goals and values that are no one else ’s , We need to identify internally how we benchmark success as a business and what our products are required to be . We do not take superficial competitor pricing as a benchmark for ourselves without first making an informed business decision based on fact . We have an identity that is entwined with a business model . • Our organizational structure fits our purpose . Traditionally we have been weak matrixed where we need to be balanced , we need our functional managers and departments but we must put more focus on the project team . This will not happen by itself , the leader of the project must stand up , be accountable and take charge . • Higher value on the informal There is a lot of value in our formal processes , they are crucial to process and production . However I want a strong focus to be on the informal , intrinsic motivation of our teams . Transparency and honesty between business units is paramount and I expect to be aske anything and everything while being told everything . The office junior should be told the big picture , while sharing their thoughts and concerns on production . • Acknowledgement and exploitation of strength . After 5 years of production and growth , we have tried many things . At this point we have a good understanding of what our strengths are ( see SWOT ) complimentary to “ focusing on the controllable ” we need a sustained period of getting better at what we are already good at . This will mean putting some long term goals on the shelf , but ultimately we will be more prepared for them in the future . Being guided by the tenets , the key stakeholders were given weekly tasks which were designed to address the SWOT , goals and issues . These weekly experiments were small enough to not cause an impact but were discussed informally followed up by an evaluation to determine their success and the approach for the next weeks tasks . Insight By being allowed to fail / succeed early with a higher value on observation and the informal over a document heavy workflow , the buy in by the entire office is a lot more positive than it has been in the past . The teams see the instant results of an initiative without the negative thoughts that usually meet “ yet another procedure ” I am happy to say that after 2 months of this approach we have already met 4/14 of our major goals , and are well on the way to meeting all of our targets by the end of the year . I can honestly say that an open mind , in line with design thinking we are a lot more agile and adaptable to change . Approach I will continue to use design thinking to reach larger focused goals , as the only thing that is certain in any organization is that there is uncertainty , design thinking allows for what is usually a negative ( uncertainty ) to be used for the improvement of an organization .