Breaking the Cycle of Inaction
By Trevor Sprague, Senior Project Director
The widely-known definition of insanity – doing the same thing repeatedly while expecting different results – is a cycle many business owners find themselves trapped in, stuck in meetings to discuss solutions that never seem to be implemented.
The key to breaking free from this cycle and reclaiming your time is a systematic approach: The Structured Improvement Process, which is focused on six actionable steps to ensure the problem gets solved and a solution is implemented by someone who will maintain momentum and accountability.
Step 1: Identify and Embrace Variances
What is a variance, and why does it matter? A variance is the difference between what you expected to happen and the actual outcome, and it’s a good metric to show where a business is performing well and where it’s falling short.
To identify variances, you must be able to compare two things. It’s not enough to say, “I made X today.” Is that good or bad? It’s easy to stop short and forget to ask that follow-up question: “Compared to what?”
Entrepreneurs seek success, which can often lead to avoiding comparisons that don’t feel like wins. To break the cycle, you must learn to embrace variances and see them as opportunities rather than failures when performance falls short. When you don’t quite measure up, that should be exciting because it gives clarity to exactly where opportunities for improvement exist.
Step 2: Determine the Root Cause (Using the 5 Whys)
Once variances are identified, you must determine the true root cause. Why didn’t you hit your goal? What were the actual barriers? Your initial answer won’t be the true answer. To get to the bottom of “why,” you need to question your answers five times using the classic 5 Whys technique.
Example Issue: We didn’t hit our sales goal.
- Why didn’t we hit our sales goal? Answer: We didn’t generate enough leads.
- Why didn’t we generate enough leads? Answer: The salespeople are waiting for them to come in rather than proactively seeking them out.
- Why are the salespeople waiting? Answer: They have not had enough training on transitioning prospects to qualified leads.
- Why haven’t they had enough training? Answer: We didn’t budget enough for training.
- Why didn’t we budget enough for training? Answer: We underestimated the value training for the sales team would provide to our top line revenue.
Step 3: Define Corrective Action(s)
Once the root cause has been identified, it’s time to determine the plan to correct it. In the example above, the corrective action would be to change how training is valued and budgeted; ultimately, this will improve sales and lead to improved performance throughout the entire sales process, not just in lead generation.
Step 4: Assign an Action Champion
While many people will help implement and maintain an action, one person must be designated as the Action Champion. They will be responsible for leading the charge and driving the outcome. The Champion does not need to be the highest-ranking person on the organizational chart. They just need to be someone capable of not letting go of the task until it’s complete and who can remind, motivate, or ensure follow-through. The action must have a measurable result so you know precisely when it can be marked complete. Following the above example, one result may be providing a revised budget.
Step 5: Establish a Hard Deadline
Actions without deadlines are like a race without a finish line. We all have “to-do” list items that get pushed off for whatever fire arises. A firm deadline helps focus the Champion on completing the action in a timely manner and provides the critical framework for the next step.
Step 6: Implement Accountability and Review
When actions, Champions, and deadlines are set, these must be recorded in an Action Item Log. Crucially, that log should be reviewed at each consecutive meeting. This is where true accountability is established. By consistently reviewing agreed-upon action items and questioning Champions about hitting deadlines, accountability can exist. If it’s unknown who agreed to do what, and by when, then accountability cannot exist, and the chances that the actions will ever take place are jeopardized.
Stay Focused
This Structured Improvement Process is an easy way to implement a business-wide behavioral change to drive action – that doesn’t require after-hours or weekend work. By assigning accountability to an Action Champion, leadership can maintain focus on strategy, vision, and outcomes for the business without getting lost in the weeds.
