Volanno’s Post

Yesterday I was in a virtual meeting with a colleague I recently met discussing a new regional project for which I have been asked to provide change management and communications consultation. A great opportunity for me to partner with colleagues across CooperVision’s Americas Region‼️I have much to learn and did what I always do when I am starting a new project, I asked questions. Many questions, including: ❓What are you trying to achieve❓ ❓What will the finished deliverables include❓ ❓What has already been communicated and to whom❓ ❓What problem are you trying to solve❓ ❓What’s in it for the stakeholders and those impacted by the anticipated changes❓ ❓What resistance do you anticipate❓ ❓What’s your why❓(Thank you Simon Sinek ‼️) The first 2 questions reflected my desire to start with the end in mind! (Thank you Stephen Covey‼️) I need a clear vision of the desired outcome, deliverables and benefits to the business and our people to get started. However, it is also essential to know what the current state and/or problem(s) are. Why are we initiating this this project? Really excited to roll-up my sleeves and get started! Much to learn and time is of the essence! #communicationstrategy #leadingchange #onecooper

One of the most common mistakes in transformation initiatives is failing to engage stakeholders effectively. When key individuals are not involved, resistance grows, and the likelihood of success diminishes. To drive meaningful change, it’s essential to foster open communication and collaboration. By actively involving stakeholders, you can align goals and enhance buy-in, ensuring a smoother transition and lasting impact. For more insights on successful transformations, visit >> https://lnkd.in/epDjPTiM 🚀 📈

I'm thinking of going away from the PXL as a prioritization framework. It's too much. There's too much friction in it. And it doesn't get to the point of things. I'm falling in love with a system of: > potential weighted revenue, + > quality 'problems/opps' provided by product leadership. + > some kind of feasibility/effort (time to market) factor that dings the rev# Are you tracking potential weighted revenue in your programs? Are you sizing your campaigns, tests, projects, sprint points by the win/loss potential? It helps a TON to align everyone and get teams and organizations on the same page. Note that the 'weighted' terminology helps keep everyone calm about the model that goes into creating this. It's napkin math, not the ingredients of a P&L. This is at the prioritization stage, and to reiterate again, should be focused around solution/ideation on top of senior leadership strategic problem guidance. After validation, we're having great success combining: > quant metric: the 'discovered, weighted revenue' + > qual metric: the customer insight and/or value statement inspired by posts today by Ruben de Boer and Manuel Da Costa

Quick and easy to listen to course with some great take-aways including how to identify when you've moved from discussion to decision making and how to engage with team members who have differing approaches to decision making without making them feel less valued.  Just finished the course “Tips for Better Collaborative Decision-Making” by Cheryl Einhorn! Check it out: https://lnkd.in/eiEeR_be #teamwork #collaborativedecisionmaking.

Recently, I led a strategic planning effort for a local organization. Along the way, I was reminded that the output will only be successful if you have the right inputs. Specifically... 🤝 Break out of siloes. Know which people and functions need to be consulted for input. 📍 ID key stakeholders at the beginning. Don't leave them in the dark - engage throughout the process. 🧠 Know what each of your stakeholders cares about. If a specific area is a sticking point for someone, bring them into the fold early, rather than butting heads over tactical questions at the end. 🏁 Don't live and die by committee. Leverage groupthink by communicating a clear, desired outcome. Once you have the necessary inputs, a smaller task force can take your plan over the finish line. There's more to it than this, but the balance of collaboration and death by committee is delicate. Bottom line: creating a roadmap of the inputs you'll need to be successful at the beginning, can help avoid headaches that come from a strategy created in a silo!

If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail right? Join us on the 15th March to learn the impact of planning within high performing teams. REGISTER NOW https://lnkd.in/eQ2g6Nfk

The Power of the North Star Metric Discovering the product team's approach to North Star Metric was a game-changer for me. By closely collaborating on a primary goal with all relevant stakeholders, they ensure diverse perspectives are considered, innovative solutions are brainstormed, and best practices are shared. This collaborative approach saves resources as it prevents duplicate work. How this approach helped me? While planning a project to improve several KPIs, I realized we needed an additional headcount, but we couldn't allocate more people from our budget. So, I strategically engaged all related stakeholders from the departments focuses on the same KPIs, emphasizing the project's impact across the whole company. The stakeholders responded positively by providing the necessary headcount within their budget constraints. The result? We completed the project on time with a transformative effect on various operational areas, reaching far beyond initial expectations. So, the North Star Metric it's like a journey that helps us work together better and achieve really good results. #NorthStarMetric #operations #collaboration

One prioritization method I know a few companies use to prioritize features is called the MoSCoW framework — Must have, Should have, Could have, Won't have. It's a good way to collaboratively speak about feature prioritization that seems simple, straight forward, and easy to guide team conversations around. I'm a little on the fence about it because, despite the benefits I just mentioned, I believe it's just a repackaging of another — more familiar — framework. That framework is the Eisenhower matrix. Here's how the Eisenhower maps to the MoSCoW framework. Urgent and Important == Must have Important but not urgent == Should have Urgent but not important == Could have Not important or urgent == Won't have If you're not familiar with either of these, here are a few links to learn more: Eisenhower: https://lnkd.in/e2XP7CyG MoSCoW: https://lnkd.in/e3Q-7wpb #prioritization #leadershipdevelopment #management #performancemanagement

Just finished the course “Tips for Better Collaborative Decision-Making” by Cheryl Einhorn! This was a great class. My thanks to Jennifer Harrington for putting this on my radar. Check it out: https://lnkd.in/gQmaMK7U #teamwork #collaborativedecisionmaking.

Getting you priorities right is vital, and requires thorough assessment and questioning of all possible options to get us to the right decision for the situation.