THE BIG IDEA
In HR, the combination of being very busy, wanting to add value, and wanting to reduce risk, can very quickly move us to action without putting in the necessary thought or consideration of whether what we want to do makes sense, or even has a hope of solving the presenting problem.
Put bluntly: Starting a project feels like a win… even if that project is doomed to fail.
Pausing to clarify, agree and approve the SCOPE of the potential project is the single-most powerful thing you can do before making any commitment to act.
TRY THIS
Pick any upcoming work-stream (or even one that’s already underway) and assess 4 dimensions for focus and clarity (score each 1-10):
- Bottom line impact? (WHY are we doing this?)
- Context for deliverables/milestones (WHAT will be happening?)
- Stakeholder frame-of-reference (WHO will be affected, and HOW?)
- Source for “Elevator Speech” (HOW will we describe the business case?)
If you scored under 25 in total, don’t go any further! These 4 factors encompass the SCOPE of the work-stream, so keep reworking until you score 35 or more.
USE THIS
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
“Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.” ~Sun Tzu
