Speed
Count me in for considering all options before moving forward. However, there comes a time when you just need to move forward and seize opportunities that are presented to you and your team. We need to watch out for the paralysis of analysis.
Race car driver Mario Andretti said, “If everything seems under control, you’re not going fast enough”. There is much truth in this statement. We need to be careful that we don’t become complacent, that we don’t stay with the status quo. Sometimes we need to make quick decisions that may make us a little uncomfortable.
There are many times when good is good enough. Good will often beat great because of the time of delivery/time to market advantage.
We do need to run scared. If we don’t innovate and move quickly, we put ourselves at risk. Competition and new technology will pass us if we aren’t careful.
Speed can be a significant differentiator for your organization.
Here are some questions to ponder regarding speed:
- Have you been beaten to market by a competitor who is leaner and more aggressive than you are?
- How can you leverage technology to move more quickly?
- What is holding you back from moving more quickly? Identify what it is, eliminate it in your planning discussions, and see how fast and far you can go without this obstacle. Then, focus on ways to remove this roadblock.
- Do you have a lean decision-making process in place, putting decision making in the hands of the lowest level possible? We die by a thousand cuts when we have processes that require 5 signatures.
How have you been able to speed up your decision making and processes?
