There may have be occasions during our work life, when we come across some annoying or unpleasant tasks. We may have put off some of these tasks intentionally. Dealing with personal procrastination is one matter, but what are the possible ways of dealing with procrastination, if seen as an Organizational Pattern?
- Does any one have any experiences to share as to how you dealt with this?
- Any views on how to approach this?
Regards,
Sujatha Das
******************************************************************************
Responses:
Messages from Frank Gorrell
Dear Sujatha,
About two years ago I was a finalist for three jobs. While all three were based in the Boston area, one had its headquarters in Oregon, and that was where the hiring manager was. Their "procrastination" was not what you seem to have in mind. They had to get three people east in order to meet me. (One could argue that it may have been swifter for them to pay my way west!)
Another company took over two weeks tracking down references and prior employers -- including one supervisor from over a decade earlier! The third company received my resume, scheduled two interviews, checked my references, and made me an offer in eight (8) days! Guess where I'm working?
There are two conflicting adages: "He who hesitates is lost;" and "Look before you leap." However, I would suggest that looking only takes a few moments. Therefore, for a company to seek input from a boss I had ten years earlier was hardly worthwhile. The person that boss would possibly remember is not the person I am in the present. In fact, I'm not the person I was two years ago.
So, Sujatha, it seems that some organizations procrastinate because they have certain forms to fill out, phone calls to make, meetings to attend, etc. In the global business community the ability to act swiftly and smartly separates those companies that succeed and those that lose market share. Providing a procrastinating company with how many dollars can be lost will, one hopes, make sense.
Regards,
Frank Gorrell,
Messages from Gerald Lo:
Commitment can sometimes be a difficult prospect.
Our management wields such power, it may be difficult for some of us to accept that they, too, have bosses and may occasionally be reluctant to commit to a course of action owing to the possible consequences.
Recognizing that, I try to prepare scenarios corresponding to different courses. The proposed schedule and budget is the one I have been working toward, with an established milestone for a decision and the likely outcome from that approval.
If the decision is delayed, the consequences may be articulated. Usually, in my experience, the results from a delay do not seem to advance the schedule nor improve the budget.
Superiors do not, as a rule, appreciate the impression of being forced into a corner. Whether they request it or not, I have found that preparing alternate plans and contingencies in advance has been helpful. It seems to me to be instinctive to look around for other ways out, and anticipating those questions and being prepared to substantively address them has appeared to have worked well.
I once was asked by a CEO to design and construct an R&D laboratory to support a VP he planned to later hire. I've never worked on a project with any scientist where I was congratulated for having read read the mind of the owner and fully anticipated all requirements.
I prepared two schedules, one indicating full acceptance of the proposed plans and one showing a milestone of review and comment from the new Vice-President.
The CEO regarded the second schedule like it was a poisonous reptile, and refused to touch it. I felt like a man trying to serve a subpoena, and left it with him.
Months later, the new Vice President rejected the design.
There was much consternation and quite a bit of loud unpleasantness.
I referred the management team to both versions of the schedule, with their original dates. There ensued an uncomfortable silence.
Later that day, I got into my car to go home. An enormous SUV pulled up behind me, blocking my exit. The CEO's executive secretary, a long-suffering woman, stepped out and walked up to my window.
Puzzled, I greeted her.
"Listen, we just want you to know - that was absolutely the best thing we have seen in twenty years! You did great!"
Evidently, the ladies who are stationed outside the boardroom had been making book on the likely outcome, and the dark horse came through.
Messages from Dr. Shaun Jamison
Great question Sujatha !
#1. Be patient and realize that what may appear like procrastination is process. It takes time for ideas to gain acceptance and for resources to be marshaled. Going too quickly in some organizations can be a disaster. Gain an understanding of the ins and outs of your organization.
#2. Keep notes and follow up with people. Sometimes an organization needs a gentle (or not so gentle) reality check. Get time commitments from your partners in an organization and follow up with them. Deliver on your time commitments to be a good example. Make sure that people understand the stakes of any particular project or deliverable and the consequences for not delivering.
Shaun Jamison
Messages from Supriyo Das:
This is to be dealt top-down, since it has to do lots with an organization's culture - & culture cannot be driven bottom up or by middle level managers.
Senior management (CEO's, CTOs, CIOs, Presidents) etc, who demonstrate 'walking the talk' & 'talking the walk' through effective decision-making, create organizations, where procrastination is literally unknown.
In other situations, particularly where "consensus based decisions" is a norm, and in more than one ways, turn out to be a misunderstanding of "participatory culture", organizations or organizational units may be plagued with "decision crisis". The result is anywhere between slow decisions making to lost business.
There is no particular solution to this, since one cannot wait for God to come and help one-take decisions, where the sponsors of the business induct this systemic defect.
I would recommend, that if one's decision making agility, is perceived to be superior (in speed & quality), & has a history of delivering quick results to business in the past - the fastest decision one can take is to move on to another organization.
Do not procrastinate this decision. :)
Messages from Robert Fornal
Dealing with it ... I really do not have good information; keep pushing, but carefully and gently.
I was with a company that used a custom developed application that was almost a decade out of date. The cost of maintaining it over a 6 month period would have paid for 20 off-the-shelf or 4 complete replacement via custom development. On top of this issue, we later found out that this multi-user application crashed with more than one user connected ...
The frustration as a content developer was high and we kept pushing for replacement ... nothing more that could be done.
Messages from David P. Schofield
Is it procrastination or analysis paralysis? Change the context of the delivery, and if there is no movement, change it again. Something in the proposal is not compelling them to either go out on a limb or make a decision.
Messages from Jay Hamilton-Roth
I've often found that the business problem is that no one has championed "the way" to solve the problem. This person doesn't have to have the "right" answer, but often times, having a "way" will cause people to realize that if they don't speak up (or act), then the "way" will eventually become reality. Nothing gets people in action like the possibility of impending "pain".
Messages from Victoria Pynchon
Deadlines. If it weren't for deadlines, I'd never get anything done!
Messages from Marietta C. Baglieri
Spin Off Question: Is it always "Organizational Procrastination"? .. or sometimes just bad politics among other evils .. Even those of you outside of the U.S. must be aware of the latest news on BP and mercury they're dumping into Lake Michigan
Admittedly, some organizations are notorious for letting things go until something (or someone) forces them to take action .. this is one of many examples of an oil company "procrastinating" when A) they should already be complying and B) they've had more than enough time to sort it out ..
Frankly, why is it anyone's problem but their own how they accomplish it?
That's my example and I'll be interested to see what comments emerge ..
Links:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/services/newspaper/premium/printedition/Frida...
Messages from Shankar Vaddadi
Good Question Sujatha ! Organizational procrastination can have many manifestations, It could be the board that is avoiding it, it could be the management committee, it could be the CEO, it could be a management decision. Assuming that it is the ethos of the establishment, dealing with it is a subjective issue of the executive concerned.
Links:
http://ISSUE
Messages from Mohamed Taher
My 2 cent: I would see this as an example of individual or corporate behavior--(aka human and institutional, respectively)--all the same strategy, tactics, and attitude (to sum up)!!!
And, I quote from a blog's post:
Procrastination - putting things off - important things -- is simply a lack of execution.
Procrastination can kill a career, a relationship, an organization. [source: see the second link below]
Links:
http://www.chacocanyon.com/essays/gettingthingsdone.shtml
http://sixdisciplines.blogspot.com/2006/11/organizational-procrastination.h...
Messages from Tarek Foda
The sad thing about this, it demands a way of management that we all preach to stay away from, "The hands of steel". As a leader you have to do something about it, here comes the time when you have to show your teeth. Not a good way of management, I agree but; it might be the only way to go at this time. If it works then it is the way to go at such times.
The organization has a vision and a mission statement that have to be reached and fulfilled all the time. Someone has to make it happen; otherwise we will all sit down and watch TROY fall.
If you lift the box, the mice will run. Our obligation towards our organizations at certain times will make us the least likable team members, but you know what, once all settles down and the boat is sailing again, they will understand.
I hope this helps.
Tarek Foda
Messages from Lucy Garrick
Hi Sujatha:
First, know that procrastination is a normal response to fear of some kind.
There can be many reasons people are procrastinating. Until you understand all of them, you cannot get unstuck. Your issue is more complex than it appears. Having an objective view to the organizational system often brings credibility to the process needed to get things moving.
Organizational procrastination is a symptom not a result. To deal with it, you need to get underneath it. What is keeping people from moving forward? You may need a process for discovering the answer to that question that makes people feel what we call "psychologically safe." And there are likely more than one reason, and perhaps more than one solution.
Lucy Garrick
Messages from Mukund Toro
I have observed two reasons used for organisational procrastination generally.
One, wait for consensus. Since everyone concerned does not agree, you keep on debating and discussing. In essence after some time nothing new comes out of these meetings, you hear the same views again and again. What will work these cases is to not to look for consensus. Even 70% agreement is okay. May be less too.
Two, procrastination by going by conventions and well laid down processes. Like asking have we done this before? Will it fit in our process and culture? Will it work? What will work in these situations is just jumping into action.
************************************************************************************
- Does any one have any experiences to share as to how you dealt with this?
- Any views on how to approach this?
Regards,
Sujatha Das
******************************************************************************
Responses:
Messages from Frank Gorrell
Dear Sujatha,
About two years ago I was a finalist for three jobs. While all three were based in the Boston area, one had its headquarters in Oregon, and that was where the hiring manager was. Their "procrastination" was not what you seem to have in mind. They had to get three people east in order to meet me. (One could argue that it may have been swifter for them to pay my way west!)
Another company took over two weeks tracking down references and prior employers -- including one supervisor from over a decade earlier! The third company received my resume, scheduled two interviews, checked my references, and made me an offer in eight (8) days! Guess where I'm working?
There are two conflicting adages: "He who hesitates is lost;" and "Look before you leap." However, I would suggest that looking only takes a few moments. Therefore, for a company to seek input from a boss I had ten years earlier was hardly worthwhile. The person that boss would possibly remember is not the person I am in the present. In fact, I'm not the person I was two years ago.
So, Sujatha, it seems that some organizations procrastinate because they have certain forms to fill out, phone calls to make, meetings to attend, etc. In the global business community the ability to act swiftly and smartly separates those companies that succeed and those that lose market share. Providing a procrastinating company with how many dollars can be lost will, one hopes, make sense.
Regards,
Frank Gorrell,
Messages from Gerald Lo:
Commitment can sometimes be a difficult prospect.
Our management wields such power, it may be difficult for some of us to accept that they, too, have bosses and may occasionally be reluctant to commit to a course of action owing to the possible consequences.
Recognizing that, I try to prepare scenarios corresponding to different courses. The proposed schedule and budget is the one I have been working toward, with an established milestone for a decision and the likely outcome from that approval.
If the decision is delayed, the consequences may be articulated. Usually, in my experience, the results from a delay do not seem to advance the schedule nor improve the budget.
Superiors do not, as a rule, appreciate the impression of being forced into a corner. Whether they request it or not, I have found that preparing alternate plans and contingencies in advance has been helpful. It seems to me to be instinctive to look around for other ways out, and anticipating those questions and being prepared to substantively address them has appeared to have worked well.
I once was asked by a CEO to design and construct an R&D laboratory to support a VP he planned to later hire. I've never worked on a project with any scientist where I was congratulated for having read read the mind of the owner and fully anticipated all requirements.
I prepared two schedules, one indicating full acceptance of the proposed plans and one showing a milestone of review and comment from the new Vice-President.
The CEO regarded the second schedule like it was a poisonous reptile, and refused to touch it. I felt like a man trying to serve a subpoena, and left it with him.
Months later, the new Vice President rejected the design.
There was much consternation and quite a bit of loud unpleasantness.
I referred the management team to both versions of the schedule, with their original dates. There ensued an uncomfortable silence.
Later that day, I got into my car to go home. An enormous SUV pulled up behind me, blocking my exit. The CEO's executive secretary, a long-suffering woman, stepped out and walked up to my window.
Puzzled, I greeted her.
"Listen, we just want you to know - that was absolutely the best thing we have seen in twenty years! You did great!"
Evidently, the ladies who are stationed outside the boardroom had been making book on the likely outcome, and the dark horse came through.
Messages from Dr. Shaun Jamison
Great question Sujatha !
#1. Be patient and realize that what may appear like procrastination is process. It takes time for ideas to gain acceptance and for resources to be marshaled. Going too quickly in some organizations can be a disaster. Gain an understanding of the ins and outs of your organization.
#2. Keep notes and follow up with people. Sometimes an organization needs a gentle (or not so gentle) reality check. Get time commitments from your partners in an organization and follow up with them. Deliver on your time commitments to be a good example. Make sure that people understand the stakes of any particular project or deliverable and the consequences for not delivering.
Shaun Jamison
Messages from Supriyo Das:
This is to be dealt top-down, since it has to do lots with an organization's culture - & culture cannot be driven bottom up or by middle level managers.
Senior management (CEO's, CTOs, CIOs, Presidents) etc, who demonstrate 'walking the talk' & 'talking the walk' through effective decision-making, create organizations, where procrastination is literally unknown.
In other situations, particularly where "consensus based decisions" is a norm, and in more than one ways, turn out to be a misunderstanding of "participatory culture", organizations or organizational units may be plagued with "decision crisis". The result is anywhere between slow decisions making to lost business.
There is no particular solution to this, since one cannot wait for God to come and help one-take decisions, where the sponsors of the business induct this systemic defect.
I would recommend, that if one's decision making agility, is perceived to be superior (in speed & quality), & has a history of delivering quick results to business in the past - the fastest decision one can take is to move on to another organization.
Do not procrastinate this decision. :)
Messages from Robert Fornal
Dealing with it ... I really do not have good information; keep pushing, but carefully and gently.
I was with a company that used a custom developed application that was almost a decade out of date. The cost of maintaining it over a 6 month period would have paid for 20 off-the-shelf or 4 complete replacement via custom development. On top of this issue, we later found out that this multi-user application crashed with more than one user connected ...
The frustration as a content developer was high and we kept pushing for replacement ... nothing more that could be done.
Messages from David P. Schofield
Is it procrastination or analysis paralysis? Change the context of the delivery, and if there is no movement, change it again. Something in the proposal is not compelling them to either go out on a limb or make a decision.
Messages from Jay Hamilton-Roth
I've often found that the business problem is that no one has championed "the way" to solve the problem. This person doesn't have to have the "right" answer, but often times, having a "way" will cause people to realize that if they don't speak up (or act), then the "way" will eventually become reality. Nothing gets people in action like the possibility of impending "pain".
Messages from Victoria Pynchon
Deadlines. If it weren't for deadlines, I'd never get anything done!
Messages from Marietta C. Baglieri
Spin Off Question: Is it always "Organizational Procrastination"? .. or sometimes just bad politics among other evils .. Even those of you outside of the U.S. must be aware of the latest news on BP and mercury they're dumping into Lake Michigan
Admittedly, some organizations are notorious for letting things go until something (or someone) forces them to take action .. this is one of many examples of an oil company "procrastinating" when A) they should already be complying and B) they've had more than enough time to sort it out ..
Frankly, why is it anyone's problem but their own how they accomplish it?
That's my example and I'll be interested to see what comments emerge ..
Links:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/services/newspaper/premium/printedition/Frida...
Messages from Shankar Vaddadi
Good Question Sujatha ! Organizational procrastination can have many manifestations, It could be the board that is avoiding it, it could be the management committee, it could be the CEO, it could be a management decision. Assuming that it is the ethos of the establishment, dealing with it is a subjective issue of the executive concerned.
Links:
http://ISSUE
Messages from Mohamed Taher
My 2 cent: I would see this as an example of individual or corporate behavior--(aka human and institutional, respectively)--all the same strategy, tactics, and attitude (to sum up)!!!
And, I quote from a blog's post:
Procrastination - putting things off - important things -- is simply a lack of execution.
Procrastination can kill a career, a relationship, an organization. [source: see the second link below]
Links:
http://www.chacocanyon.com/essays/gettingthingsdone.shtml
http://sixdisciplines.blogspot.com/2006/11/organizational-procrastination.h...
Messages from Tarek Foda
The sad thing about this, it demands a way of management that we all preach to stay away from, "The hands of steel". As a leader you have to do something about it, here comes the time when you have to show your teeth. Not a good way of management, I agree but; it might be the only way to go at this time. If it works then it is the way to go at such times.
The organization has a vision and a mission statement that have to be reached and fulfilled all the time. Someone has to make it happen; otherwise we will all sit down and watch TROY fall.
If you lift the box, the mice will run. Our obligation towards our organizations at certain times will make us the least likable team members, but you know what, once all settles down and the boat is sailing again, they will understand.
I hope this helps.
Tarek Foda
Messages from Lucy Garrick
Hi Sujatha:
First, know that procrastination is a normal response to fear of some kind.
There can be many reasons people are procrastinating. Until you understand all of them, you cannot get unstuck. Your issue is more complex than it appears. Having an objective view to the organizational system often brings credibility to the process needed to get things moving.
Organizational procrastination is a symptom not a result. To deal with it, you need to get underneath it. What is keeping people from moving forward? You may need a process for discovering the answer to that question that makes people feel what we call "psychologically safe." And there are likely more than one reason, and perhaps more than one solution.
Lucy Garrick
Messages from Mukund Toro
I have observed two reasons used for organisational procrastination generally.
One, wait for consensus. Since everyone concerned does not agree, you keep on debating and discussing. In essence after some time nothing new comes out of these meetings, you hear the same views again and again. What will work these cases is to not to look for consensus. Even 70% agreement is okay. May be less too.
Two, procrastination by going by conventions and well laid down processes. Like asking have we done this before? Will it fit in our process and culture? Will it work? What will work in these situations is just jumping into action.
************************************************************************************
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