Ever felt like your organization is stuck in molasses when it comes to changing how you work? Not talking about development timelines here, but the painfully slow pace of updating processes and ways of working. Trust me, you're not alone in this frustration.
What's Causing the Slowdown?
There are a couple of common reasons. Not all of them will apply to your company, but you may recognize one or the other.
Fuzzy strategy: When nobody's clear on where the company's headed, every little change turns into a debate. Without a solid direction, teams can't make quick calls because they're constantly checking if they're on the right track.
Trust issues: Teams that trust each other zoom ahead. When trust is missing, you get bogged down with extra checks and approvals just to make sure people aren't messing up.
Report-itis: Related to the trust issues: Having to document every step for higher-ups adds a ton of non-productive work. This usually happens when leadership doesn't fully trust the team to deliver without constant updates.
Control freaks up the chain: Sometimes it's not your boss but their boss who needs to loosen the grip. This control mentality trickles down and slows everyone.
Process Overload: Old processes that hang around unquestioned. Both too much and too little process can slow you down, but excessive process is the usual culprit.
Big Company Hangover: Leaders from large corporations often bring heavyweight processes to smaller companies where they just don't fit (as much).
Poor Change Management: Rolling out changes without proper support is like launching a boat without teaching anyone to sail. The emotional side matters too!
How to Speed Things Up
Start by figuring out your specific speed bumps, then tackle them head-on. Some measures are obvious:
Get crystal clear: Make sure everyone knows what's expected and why it matters.
Loosen the reins: Show your team you trust them to make good calls.
But there are more things you can do to make things quicker. Not all of them will work for you, but you may have a look at these:
Make the call: Sometimes you just need to decide and move forward rather than waiting for perfect consensus.
Map out changes: Create a roadmap so people can see what's changing and when, giving them time to mentally prepare.
Embrace some uncertainty: You'll never have all the info, so get comfortable making calls with what you've got.
Share the big picture: The more folks understand the strategy, the less they'll need to check in before taking action.
Write it down: A team handbook can save endless repeated conversations about how things should work.
Every slow organization has its own unique issues. Find yours and fix them, and you'll be amazed at how much faster things can move!
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AI Product Strategy, The AI Strategic Lens Framework: A proven AI product strategy framework with examples.