It is easy to allow the best of initiatives to remain unfinished, as the daily onslaught of a demanding business takes up all your time. We are all guilty of having our focus taken by the immediate or the urgent, not the important in terms of moving our organisation forward.
Hundreds of partly completed and therefore ineffective projects are worth nothing, compared with one or two fully implemented initiatives, which will really make a difference to the business and its profits. There are probably areas of the organisation that can be dramatically improved with little effort. Avoid spending much time and energy on something that will have very little impact and small reward. Deliver what will deliver results!
See it through to the end
There are so many initiatives introduced into individuals work life which are poorly implemented, or are, but are never sustained. Leaders introduce great ideas, and solutions to problems, yet collectively there is a lack of commitment to sustain it. The instigators step away, and those left with the day to day continuation, people who already have heavy workloads, let things slide. For example, introducing performance targets that aim to improve efficiency are pointless if there is no consistent measurement in place to assess your team’s actual performance. Sadly, this failure reflects equally badly on the leadership of the organisation, as well as the layer of managers who did not sustain the initiative.
Even worse are the excellent proposals that are agreed in principle, yet fail during implementation because there is no determination to bring them to conclusion.
It is extremely disappointing to see real opportunities wasted. A project which is ninety five percent complete yet remains unfinished and remains in the hands of the contractor, is of no value or use to anyone. Excellent suggestions, proposals, and initiatives which never see the light of day are value-less in the commercial world, and count for nothing in terms of your own personal achievements.
Some people have a tendency to leave tasks unfinished. They may feel an initiative is never fully perfected, and hang onto it rather than release it for scrutiny and possible criticism. It is essential to conclude a proposal, however long you would ideally work on it, so that the benefits can be realised and value created. Your business cannot wait forever, and the competition certainly won’t. If you empower someone who is reluctant to release work, set a deadline by which it has to be completed.
So how do good initiatives stay the course?
Teamwork!
The benefits of sharing proposals through the team, prior to their implementation, are potentially huge.
Firstly, their collective input provides a more stable base for the proposal to move forward, having ‘covered all the angles’.
Secondly, after being consulted, people are more likely to feel they ‘own’ the project, and will be happier about its implementation.
Clearly not everyone can be consulted and involved in every proposal. Working groups and clear deadlines resolve this. Engagement is key to successful and sustained implementation.
Part completed initiatives are worthless. Implemented plans are the essential steps to sustained growth and ultimate success.
