Our organization changes don’t feel like the work of transforming a shoreline or beach, but maybe they should. Imagine if the transformation team members viewed themselves as stewards of the environment and not experts playing with boxes on an organization chart in pursuit of trivial outcomes. I suspect more of those initiatives would succeed.
This is my pre-election post on government, and I promise to stay focused on performance and not politics. There’s enough hot air being expended by the candidates and pundits and I don’t need to add to the global warming. However, it does seem like a good time for all of us to evaluate the return we are getting from government and frankly, ask for more. And by more, I don’t mean more money or even more government. I mean quality, performance, results, and yes, even a bit of good old-fashioned customer treatment.
It is a time to adopt a philosophy that seeks to find opportunity in chaos. It is a time to carefully evaluate your strategies and check your assumptions. It is also a time to consider making some hard calls on your future.
From my own perspective, I like the concept of thinking about our tenure as finite. It creates a sense of urgency and it helps focus on priorities. I’ve observed too many corporate managers that lost track of the fact that they are not guaranteed a job or even that their company will be there next week. Once you start acting like you own the bricks and mortar and the chair and desk that you sit at and even the people that work for you, your judgment clouds, your motivation weakens and your intentions become suspect.
