Stalling the Engine of Success – When Ego Trumps Data

By Ahunt at en.wikipedia [Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons

(Also published on LinkedIn Pulse here)

The phone rings, you pick it up and hear the voice of the company's Chief Operating Officer saying, “Come see me, I need to talk to you immediately.”

You drop what you’re doing and rush down to the boss’s office.

“I’ve got a project for the process improvement team,” he says as soon as you enter his office. “Our operating costs are rising faster than revenues.”

He proceeds to tell you what the problem and solution are, then pats you on the back and says, “Get your process improvement team together and get to work on the solution we talked about.”

While this is not an uncommon approach, this experienced leader is missing some key ingredients for effective process improvement and change management.

Over the years, I have been part of numerous process and quality improvement initiatives. Shepherding one through to successful completion is not easy. In fact, less than 65% of projects succeed, and of those that do, many are significantly over budget and fail to meet projected results.[1] 

A big reason for this is lack of adequate root cause identification, lack of organizational support, and an abundance of organizational resistance. Over the years, I have heard many explanations for individual resistance to change initiatives. The most common points seem to revolve around several main themes:

• “They talk about empowerment but don’t really mean it.  I tried the suggestion system, and no one listened.”
•  “All they want to see is a bunch of pretty charts that don’t really mean anything.  If they want to know what is going on, why don’t they just listen to what we have been telling them?”
•  “They don’t really ever take time to understand our processes and our problems.  They just sit in their office and come up with ideas that do nothing but make our lives harder.”
•  “They’re just changing for change’s sake.” or 
• "If it ain't broke, why are they fixing it?"

My years of training and experience in project management have given me a strong appreciation of the core principles of process improvement, the insights of the “Gemba” (those most directly involved in the processes), and the power of data. Information is the fuel modern, high performing organizations run on and these are its primary sources. Without information, progress stalls and resistance builds. 

However, surprisingly few organizations tap these powerful resources.

Today every desktop and most smartphones have the capabilities and tools to unlock the power of data, which 25 years ago was only accessible to statisticians and supercomputers. Furthermore, the number-crunching abilities of spreadsheets like Microsoft Excel and process improvement suites like Minitab have democratized data analysis and provided much more powerful tools for root cause analysis and problem-solving to anyone willing to spend the time to learn them.

More critically, the institutional knowledge of an organization has always been a largely untapped resource. With information restricted to silos and not generally accessible, organizations are leaving one of the most powerful sources of innovation untapped.

Together, data and the knowledge of the Gemba are powerful resources – if we will only trust what they tell us. In aviation, spatial disorientation is a serious situation and the cause of many accidents. This occurs when the pilot, usually during times of low visibility, loses track of the plane’s position relative to the earth’s surface. This becomes fatal when the pilot trusts on their own instincts and ignores what their instruments are telling them.

Similarly, when leaders ignore the data produced by their operations and the input of those most familiar with the processes, it can lead to serious leadership disorientation resulting in operational and financial inefficiencies and even disaster.

It’s not that intuition and experience are useless, leadership disorientation sets in when instincts and judgment are not validated against the instruments of facts and solid data analysis. In this state, they may miss key indicators that can point out additional or even true root causes. Until root causes are determined, it is impossible to find an effective solution.

No one knows everything, not even the boss. By eliciting input from all stakeholders involved, we learn more about the processes, real root causes, why things are currently done the way they are, issues with the current process, and possible solutions to the problems at hand.

Furthermore, soliciting input from stakeholders is more than data collection. Study after study has shown inclusive change management succeeds far more often than solutions dictated from the on high.[2] An inclusive approach not only addresses the common objections to change listed above, it also increases the pool of experts and points of view, making effective solutions much more likely and organizational buy-in much more probable.

Additionally, while senior leaders do not necessarily need to be Master Black Belts, Scrum Masters, or Project Management Professionals, an understanding of the principles of process improvement, project, and change management is essential. Project managers should take the lead in helping them understand basic principles and their roles in these processes. They should teach them that while an engaged and unified leadership approach is key to a project’s success, micromanagement and intellectual arrogance may muddy the waters and lead to missed cues and inadequate solutions.

Leaders, on the other hand, must understand the contribution accurate data analysis and subject matter experts play in identifying root causes and enhancing their ability to formulate solutions to address them. While gut instinct, education, and experience are key in reading the situation and input to root cause analysis, leaders who champion transparency during change, trust and truly empower their people, and build open communication channels will find their understanding of organizational processes, problems, and solutions increase. Having the objective data that not only confirms their initial understanding of the situation but also taking into account information, which contradicts it improves the quality of their decisions and may even prevent grave mistakes.

Finally, while traditional incentives play a part in motivation, most workers want to feel valued and want the company to succeed. When they feel their opinions are valued, even if they are not always accepted, they will feel they have a stake in the organization’s success and will be the eyes and ears on the ground the leadership needs to make the best possible decisions. However, they can only do this if they are comfortable in sharing the insights and expertise you may lack and providing the solutions you may have never considered.

While the leader always maintains accountability and is often the only person in the organization that sees the entire picture, letting go of their ego and being willing to “trust the instruments” and facilitate open and transparent communication throughout the organization will improve the quality and organizational acceptance of their decisions. Employees will understand the rationale and feel invested in the decisions.

Data, whether from processes or from people is the fuel that high performing organizations run on. Don’t let your ego clog the lines and stall the engine of progress.

[1] International Project Leadership Academy. Facts and Figures. 2016. 12 January 2016. <http://calleam.com/WTPF/?page_id=1445>.
[2] A few examples are:

•      International Project Leadership Academy. Facts and Figures. 2016. 12 January 2016. <http://calleam.com/WTPF/?page_id=1445>.
•      Lines, R. (2004). Influence of participation in strategic change: Resistance, organizational commitment and change goal achievement. Journal of change Management, 4, 193-115. 
•      Mirvis, P. H., Sales, A. L., & HackeR, E. J. (1991). The implementation and adoption of new technology in organizations: The impact on work, people, and culture. Human Resource Management, 30, 113-139. 
•      Ferguson, E., & Cheyne, A. (1995). Organizational change: Main and interactive effects. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 68, 101-107.Reichers, A. E. (1986). Conflict and organizational commitments. Journal of Applied Psychology, 71, 508-514. 
•      Reichers, A. E., Wanous, J. P., & Austin, J. T. (1997). Understanding and managing cynicism about organizational change. The Academy of Management Executive, 11, 4859.          

Corporate Citizens - Investing in Prosperity

Photos from UNESCO and NTPC

The old adage states, “Give a man a fish and feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime.”  One of the great obstacles to world prosperity is a lack of basic education and vocational training among the disadvantaged of the world.   In its pamphlet The Right to Education UNESCO states:

“Education is an inalienable human right.  It is also unique in that it empowers the individual to exercise other civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, attaining a life of dignity, while ensuring a brighter future for all, free from want and fear.” [1] 

While education is not a silver bullet against all the ills of the world, providing the disadvantaged of the world with that lifeline enables them to more effectively overcome the conditions that bind them to their life of ignorance and poverty.

Due to the economic incentive and the self-respect that gainful employment provides, businesses are in a unique position to influence the populations of the countries in which they operate for good.  There are three basic areas where this influence can be manifest.  First, as an employer, the company can provide vocational training.  Second, it can provide incentive and money for education in job-related fields.  And finally, the business can invest in the local school system, enabling a new generation of quality employees and creating a good public image.  The responsible corporate citizen doesn’t strive to merely extract all possible profit from their host country, but to improve the lot of its citizens as well and build lasting prosperity that will benefit them and the people for years to come.

In reality, these economic relationships are symbiotic relationships in which firms provide income, training, education, economic development, and humanitarian aid to the community and the host society provides motivated employees who are ever more capable of contributing to the profitability of the company.

While much of the world’s humanitarian aid merely applies a bandage to the symptoms of poverty by supplying basic provisions, businesses have the will and incentive to treat poverty’s root causes by providing economic incentives to work, go to school, and challenge the political, social, and institutional barriers to personal prosperity.  The first step is giving employees on-the-job and formal vocational training and then paying them for the use of those skills.  A person values what he has earned more than what is merely given to them.  Similarly, a villager in a developing country will take more pride in the bread he has earned than that, which was given to him with no effort on his part.  Although direct humanitarian aid is important, the hand that lifts him out of the cycle of poverty not only fills the belly, but builds pride in oneself by making them a self sufficient provider for their family.

The second area of influence involves programs to provide and encourage formal education.  By encouraging unskilled employees to seek formal and vocational education in a company related field, businesses can build a cadre of well trained employees, who know and understand the local culture and can therefore more effectively lead their coworkers.  Meanwhile, the employee increases his earning power and ability to influence his society by bettering themselves and improving the prospects for their posterity.

The final task, while long term in nature, is arguably the most important.  A company that exploits the workers and resources without contributing to the wellbeing of the community is often resented and does earn the loyalty of its employees or the host populace.  By investing in the local school system, a company improves the lives of the students, while also building a more capable generation of prospective employees.  Additionally, a father that sees his employer making his child’s life better will often be more devoted than one who only sees the monthly paycheck.  The UNESCO’s 2002 report on its “Education for All” initiative states, “…education is important for at least three reasons.  First, the skills provided by basic education, such as being able to read and write, are valuable in their own right...Second, education can help to displace other more negative features of life…Third, education has a powerful role in empowering those who suffer from multiple disadvantages. Thus women who have benefited from education may simply survive better and longer than they would otherwise.”[2]

While humanitarian aid in the classic sense of providing for the immediate needs of the less fortunate is vital, the underlying goal of any aid program should be to remove the underlying causes of suffering.  Responsible businesses can effectively fill this role.  A great example is Western Union’s Our World, Our Family program.  In addition to providing direct humanitarian aid, Western Union also funds education and mentoring programs to help build self sufficiency in migrant communities.  Western Union has provided educational benefits to over 500,000 migrant youth in the United States over the past 26 years resulting in a 94 percent graduation rate.[3] Western Union’s program and similar initiatives of numerous other corporations are making differences in the lives of those otherwise condemned to poverty.[4]  By giving the gift of education these corporate philanthropists are providing the proverbial fishing hole that will likely feed the man and his loved ones for generations to come.[5]

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[1] UNESCO.  The Right to Education (pamphlet).  September 26, 2005.  Paris, France.  <www.unesco.org/education>.  Accessed March 12, 2008.

[2] UNESCO.  Education for All:  Is the World on Track?  2002 EFA Global Monitoring Report.  Paris, France.  <www.unesco.org/education> .  Accessed March 12, 2008.

[3] Western Union.  “Our World, Our Family Program.”  Copyright 2001-2008.  <http://corporate.westernunion.com/ourworld.html> .  Accessed March 12, 2008.

[4] Also see the Indian company NTPC’s corporate responsibility website at https://www.ntpc.co.in/en/corporate-citizenship/empowering-people for another example of how corporations can build sustainable development by investing in the local population.

[5] Other Sources used in this article include: 

-          Bernstein, Jason.  “Is Education the Cure for Poverty?”  The American Prospect.  April 22, 2007. < http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=is education the cure for poverty >.  Accessed March 12,2008.

-          Lodge, George C.  “Using Business to Fight Poverty.”  Working Knowledge for Business Leaders.  Harvard Business School.  August 12, 2002.  <http://hbswk.hbs.edu/cgi-bin/print> .  Accessed March 12, 2008.

-          UNESCO.  “Right to Education.”  <http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php>.   Accessed March 12, 2008.

-          University of Maryland.  Poverty Rates By Education (graph).  <http://bsos.umd.edu/socy/vanneman/socy441/trends/poveduc.jpg>.  Accessed March 12, 2008.

-          World Bank Group.  “Education and the World Bank, What is the World Bank Doing to Support Education.”  2008.  <http:web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTEDUCATION>. Accessed March 12, 2008.

-          World Bank Group.  “FAQ.”  Updated April 2006.  <http:web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTEDUCATION>.  Accessed March 12, 2008.

-          World Bank Group.  “Education and Development, Why is Education Important to Development?.”  Copyright 2008.  <http:web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTEDUCATION>.  Accessed March 12, 2008.