SBTI reposted this
My goal is to help companies make changes to benefit customers and their businesses.
Ok…I’ve been thinking for a couple of days about something that I am sure many of you will, at first glance, find boring. That’s why I have avoided a title hoping that this will entice you to at least read a little bit further to see if going on is worth you time. So, here goes. Do you know how things get done in your organization? Meaning, do you know the specific set of actions that are taken to produce the products and services that your customers depend on? Do you know what skills and capabilities are required to execute the set of actions resulting in products? Do you know the tools that are used within the set of actions resulting in products? Do you know who is responsible for ensuring that the set of actions are the right ones? That the tools being used are always at hand and ready to go? And, the skills needed are trained and up to date? (This is the BIG one!) Do you know where and how to focus improvement when something goes wrong? Each of these questions is being answered either by random accident or by considered design. Which is it in your organization? What I am proposing here is that every organization needs an operating system. The purpose of an operating system is to ensure that the answers to the above questions are defined and practiced. Interestingly, an operating system already exists. It may be completely random. Parts of the organization may be well defined and executed. Maybe yours is one of the unique places where everything runs like a fine Swiss watch. But, I must ask, where in your organization is it ok to be mediocre or poor? The operating system is intended to build capability in all the areas that are important to the customer’s experience and to your organizational results. An operating system can be reduced to a couple of simple ideas. 1. Everything in your organization happens because of processes, tools, and the skills/capabilities of the organization’s people. 2. The critical processes, tools, and skills/capabilities must be defined, owned and improved by accountable people. 3. Customer and business results are the focus of the operating system. I have included a simple slide below that demonstrates that an operating system doesn’t have to be complex. But, it has to be created and owned. If anyone out there has an interest in discussing the operating system in more detail and how it might apply to your organization, you can get ahold of me here…g.