Navigating future of work – November 2024

Navigating future of work – November 2024

by | Nudge

November-2024

In the previous nudge-letter, we explored the importance of goal setting in an organisational context, including a fresh perspective on SMART goals. Equally crucial is the need to evaluate whether traditional governance mechanisms still hold their value.

Today’s mantra for organisations is: “It’s okay to fail—but fail fast, learn, and course correct.” Embracing this mindset requires cadence structures that are purpose-built to foster adaptability, collaboration, and resilience—key ingredients for creating high-performing and happy workplaces.

This edition delves into that theme. As we share stories from around the globe and insights from the Semco Style, we encourage your feedback. Your thoughts will help us refine our approach, making sure we remain relevant, practical, and impactful.

Your organizational rhythm should value purpose over habit and effectiveness over efficiency.

– Ricardo Semler

Building a resilient organisation is a journey—one that comes with its own unique challenges. Knowing your goals, destination, or next milestone, and having plans to achieve them, is only part of the equation. In a world where everything changes rapidly, organisations need frequent feedback loops. Regularly pausing to assess progress and adjust plans is critical for navigating challenges and staying on course.

Here are three key areas leaders should focus on to design an effective cadence:

Define Clear Roles and Goals

Resilience begins with clarity. Start by setting SMART goals—a concept we covered earlier. These goals must be clearly communicated so that everyone understands their relevance and how they align with individual roles and responsibilities.

When alignment is achieved, team members gain a clear sense of ownership. They see how their efforts contribute to the organisation’s objectives, which drives engagement, accountability, and purpose.

Establish Governance Rituals and Rhythm

Effective governance depends on regular and structured rituals tailored to your business needs. These rituals set the rhythm for alignment, progress, and collaboration. Consider the following:

  • Daily Standups (or Custom Frequency): Short, focused meetings where team members share updates on progress, plans, and challenges. These quick syncs improve transparency, foster collaboration, and enable immediate problem-solving.
  • Weekly/Fortnightly Cadence Meetings: Structured discussions guided by data from an agreed-upon source. These meetings review progress, identify challenges, and focus on actionable solutions rather than fault-finding. Documented next steps ensure accountability and sustained momentum.
  • Retrospectives: Conducted at key milestones, retrospectives provide an opportunity for teams to reflect on recent work. By discussing successes, identifying areas for improvement, and strategizing for future milestones, retrospectives embed continuous learning and improvement into the organisation’s culture.

Set Hygiene Factors for Success

To maximise the effectiveness of governance rituals, it’s essential to address these foundational elements:

  • Relevant Participants: Ensure that only those who contribute to or benefit from the discussion are included. This keeps meetings focused and ensures value for all involved.

  • Reliable Data: Provide timely access to accurate, trusted, and easy-to-understand data. Establishing a centralised system for sharing this information streamlines decision-making and builds confidence in outcomes.

  • Active Participation: Foster an environment where everyone feels safe to express ideas and opinions. Leaders can encourage open dialogue by listening actively, valuing diverse perspectives, and reserving judgment. Leaders should aim to speak last to empower the team and let the group drive decisions wherever possible.

The Path to Resilience

By defining clear goals, establishing governance rituals, and addressing essential hygiene factors, leaders can build an environment where resilience, innovation, and agility thrive. This strong foundation will enable teams to confidently navigate the complexities of today’s business landscape and adapt to challenges with purpose and precision.

FROM AROUND THE WORLD

NETFLIX’s APPROACH TO MEETINGS

In “No Rules Rules“, Reed Hastings talks about the following key types of meetings:

  • High-Impact, High-Level Meetings: Focus on strategic decisions and long-term goals.
  • Real-Time Communication: Quick, spontaneous discussions to address immediate issues.
  • Context-Driven Meetings: Leaders share necessary context, not micromanage.
  • Blameless Post-Mortems: Reflect on failures to learn and improve, without assigning blame.
  • No Routine Status Updates: Status updates are shared informally, not through scheduled meetings.

Overall, Netflix’s approach to meetings emphasises efficiency, real-time collaboration, and a focus on high-value interactions that drive decision-making and innovation. They avoid excessive meetings, encouraging a culture where communication is direct, fast, and focused on the right people at the right time.

FROM THE WORLD OF SEMCO STYLE


CADENCE REDEFINED:
UNLOCKING AGILITY

In a rapidly changing world, organisations need frequent feedback loops. Discover how setting the right cadence helped an FMCG company tackle its competition’s disruptive move by responding with agility.

READ FULL STORY HERE

TRIVIA FOR YOU

DID YOU KNOW ABOUT THE COMMUNITY-BASED DECISION-MAKING RITUAL FOLLOWED IN POLYNESIAN CULTURE?

Among Polynesian cultures, particularly in Fiji and Tonga, the community decision-making follows a ritual Talanoa that encourages open dialogue involving sharing stories, perspectives, and emotions in a safe, non-judgmental space. It allows for an organic flow, with participants taking turns to speak, and emphasizes respect, honesty, and relational harmony.

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Navigating future of work – November 2024

Navigating future of work – October 2024

by | Nudge

October-2024

Organizations have long relied on goal setting as a cornerstone of performance management. From North Stars, KPIs, and KRAs to Balanced Scorecards, OKRs, and both lead and lag indicators, numerous philosophies and frameworks have emerged over the years. Whether it’s “measure what needs to improve,” “measure what matters,” or setting SMART goals, goal setting has evolved at both the organizational and individual levels.

But how do you choose the right approach to build a resilient, future-ready organization? That’s the focus of this month’s nudge-letter. We hope it helps you navigate the complexities of goal setting as you prepare for the challenges of the modern workplace.

Is your goal-setting SMART enough
to thrive in the VUCA world?

 

Organizational agility is the ability to quickly sense and respond to both internal and external changes. A performance management system should enable this by keeping employees aligned, adaptable, and continuously improving. At the core of this system is purposeful goal-setting—understanding why goals are set in the first place. Goals that focus on what truly matters, aligned with the organization’s stage of growth and maturity, are more likely to drive success. Goals that challenge employees to grow, show how their work contributes to larger objectives, and foster deeper engagement are more likely to be embraced.

Here’s how to set SMART goals, adapted for the future of work:

Significant

Ensure goals have a meaningful impact on both the organization and the individual. Strong alignment between personal and organizational goals fosters accountability and ownership.

Motivational

Define goals that inspire action, commitment, and purpose. Goals should stretch individuals beyond the obvious, but not so high that teams lose motivation. Balance ambition with achievability to drive progress.

Aligned

Goals must align with the organization’s strategy, values, and mission. They should also align with the individual’s role, giving them clarity on how their work impacts organizational success.

Resilient

Build flexibility into the system to allow for continuous review and adjustment of goals. This fosters agility, enabling teams to pivot in response to new challenges without compromising performance culture.

Team-oriented

As work becomes more interconnected, focus on team outcomes over individual performance. A performance management system that measures and rewards team success fosters collaboration and shared accountability.

Many organizations create a long list of goals whenever a problem arises, making their goal-setting system complex and ineffective. The 80/20 rule (Pareto Principle) applies to goal-setting too—about 20% of KPIs generate 80% of actionable insights. This makes it crucial to prioritize and focus on what drives impact. At Semco Style, we recommend no more than 6 KPIs.

Don’t forget, in goal-setting, less maybe more—focus on what truly matters.

FROM AROUND THE WORLD

MAKING SURE YOUR EMPLYEES SUCCEED

It’s common knowledge that helping employees set and reach goals is a critical part of every manager’s job. Employees want to see how their work contributes to larger corporate objectives, and setting the right targets makes this connection explicit for them,

LINK TO THE HBR ARTICLE

FROM THE WORLD OF SEMCO STYLE


THE GOAL IS TO ALIGN WITH THE MISSION

Ultimately, it wasn’t about OKRs or KPIs. It was about measuring what mattered in a way that fit the company’s needs, organizational maturity, and stage in their journey toward building high-performance teams.

READ FULL STORY HERE

TRIVIA FOR YOU

DID YOU KNOW THAT A WRONG GOAL LED TO A CRISIS IN AN ORGANIZATION?

In 2016, Wells Fargo faced a major scandal when aggressive sales KPIs pressured employees to meet unrealistic targets, resulting in the creation of 3.5 million fake accounts without customer consent. The fallout included $3 billion in fines, mass employee terminations, and lasting reputational damage—underscoring the dangers of misaligned KPIs that incentivize unethical behavior.

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Navigating Future of Work – September 2024

by | Nudge

September-2024

Feedback originated in regulatory mechanisms, initially describing closed mechanical systems, and wasn’t applied to psychology and human behavior until after 1940. Traditionally, feedback focused on the past, with leaders highlighting what employees did well or needed to improve. It has since evolved into broader forms, including top-down, bottom-up, peer-to-peer, and 360-degree feedback for managers. In the evolving workplace, feedback remains a vital yet challenging element of organizational culture, and it’s the focus of this month’s nudge letter.

This edition includes simple DIY steps to help you build a feedback culture within your teams and organization. We’ve also featured a podcast episode from Adam Grant’s “Re: Thinking” series and insights from “From Around Semco Style,” emphasizing that feedback is neither positive nor negative—it’s all about the mindset of the giver and receiver.

We hope you find this edition insightful. If not, please share your feedback; we’re eager to improve.

Feedback is a gift!
Not a verdict. Not a right.

 

Feedback is essential for growth, helping individuals and teams improve performance and align with goals. Whether you term it positive or constructive, it fosters development and drives continuous learning. However, feedback is a two-way street—every feedback leaves the giver something to reflect on.

Here is how you can build a culture of feedback in your team and organisation,

Delink Feedback from Rewards

Feedback should be separate from performance ratings, salary increments, or promotions. Address the issue while it’s still fresh, rather than waiting for formal reviews. This keeps the feedback focused on improvement, not compensation.

Be Objective

Stick to the facts. Avoid generalizations like “You always miss deadlines.” Instead, focus on the specific incident, such as “Last Friday’s delay pushed the project back by two days.” Keep the conversation clear and factual.

State the Impact

Explain how the action affected the team, project, or company. For example, “The client couldn’t launch on time, which disrupted their sales plan.” This helps the recipient understand the broader consequences of their actions.

Allow Time for Reflections

After sharing the feedback, give the recipient space to process the conversation. Encourage them to think about how they can improve, and schedule time to revisit the issue.

Do Follow-up

Set up a follow-up conversation to check on progress. This shows that the feedback is part of an ongoing process of improvement, not a one-time event.

And remember, giving feedback is an opportunity for you to reflect too!

Finally, for feedback systems to work and help organizations build a learning culture, there needs to be a culture of trust, psychological safety, and alignment, some of the topics covered in our prior editions.

FROM AROUND THE WORLD

How to look for the grain of truth in any critique, when to discount feedback, and what it takes to be honest without being brutal.

Feedback is not right, it is a gift. You should be willing to receive feedback from anyone, and it shouldn’t be dependent upon if you like the person or don’t like them and respect them. 

LINK TO THE PODCAST

FROM THE WORLD OF SEMCO STYLE


IT’S NOT ABOUT MISTAKES!

…feedback isn’t solely about addressing shortcomings, it also encompasses appreciation for what is being done well. Appreciation / positive feedback celebrates success and reinforces desired behaviors and motivates individuals to continue excelling.

READ FULL STORY HERE

TRIVIA FOR YOU

DID YOU KNOW THESE FACTS ABOUT FEEDBACK?

According to Gallup research shared in an article published in 2021, 80% of employees who say they have received meaningful feedback in the past week are fully engaged but only 26% of employees strongly agree that the feedback they get helps them do better work clearly pointing to a need for organizations to rebuild their feedback systems to make it effective..

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Navigating Future of Work – August 2024

by | Nudge

August-2024

VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, Ambiguity) is a reality, and history is full of examples of empires that collapsed because they were slow to adapt or stayed too comfortable, missing the chance to act. In today’s VUCA world, businesses can survive by reacting faster, but thriving requires being proactive, questioning the status quo, and constantly reimagining the future. This is the focus of this month’s nudge-letter, and we hope it helps you foster a culture that embraces change by challenging the status quo.

We always back our nudges with stories from Around the world and from the world of Semco Style. But if you still think all talks connecting the status quo with agility and competitive advantage are only for theory, don’t miss clicking the link in the “Trivia” section; you will change your mind.

“Why change if it is not broken?”


– Chief Status-quo Controller

The theory of evolution shows that our species excels at adapting to change. In organizations, which are made up of people and systems, resistance to change is a leading cause of failed transformations—a paradox, considering the saying, “Change is the only constant.” This contradiction arises from organizational inertia; the larger the organization, the greater the inertia, and the slower the response to change. The only way organizations can beat this inertia and build agility is by building a new capability in their organization where teams proactively and continuously challenge the status quo.

Challenging the status quo requires courage, strategic thinking, and effective communication. Here’s how you can start your journey,

Embrace Diverse Perspectives

Diverse teams foster innovation. Promote a diverse and inclusive workplace where individuals with different perspectives and experiences feel valued. Create an environment where open and honest communication is welcomed. Encourage team members to share their thoughts, concerns, and ideas without fear of judgment.

Question Assumptions

Many current practices would have been designed this way based on reasons and requirements at a certain time.  Create a forum that allows team members to ask why some of those practices exist and if they’re still relevant, given today’s technology, regulations, and business environment. Invite people not directly connected with a particular practice to get outside-in perspectives.

Lead by Example

When leaders challenge the status quo, they inspire critical and creative thinking. Engage with team members’ perspectives rather than dismissing them.

Celebrate Success and Failure

Share stories of teams that have successfully challenged the status quo and made a difference.  To encourage experimentation of unconventional ideas, treat failure as a learning opportunity, not something to be punished.

 The efforts will be well rewarded with an engaged, motivated workforce that believes it can make a difference, a competitive edge by staying ahead of the curve, and a resilient system capable of thriving in a VUCA world.

FROM AROUND THE WORLD

The Everyday Ways One Leader Helps Employees Bust the Status Quo

Abiding by certain rules and norms is necessary, but the balance needs to be between excellence and compliance.

Link to HBR Article

FROM THE WORLD OF SEMCO STYLE

BEWARE:
If Rules Become Hurdles, People Find Ways to Bypass Them

Bureaucracy thrives on the status quo. Taming corporate bureaucracy’s red tape is how organizations can build a culture of innovation and agility.

READ FULL STORY HERE

TRIVIA FOR YOU

DID YOU KNOW AN UNVIABLE PRACTICE THAT SURVIVED 150 YEARS EVEN AFTER LOSING ITS PURPOSE?

The newspaper industry in the UK continued printing on large-size pages even in the 21st century, long after the 1712 law taxing based on number of pages was repealed in 1855. In 2004, a newcomer saw how inconvenient large pages were in windy conditions or tight spaces like trains, which was negatively impacting readership. They switched to smaller pages and the readership surged. Established companies followed suit but not before losing market share. A status-quo mindset of established companies kept them from questioning a practice whose original reason had long been forgotten, and that opened the door for new competition.

Click here to see original video behind this story

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Navigating future of work – July 2024

by | Nudge

July 2024

Have you ever wondered why “Innovation is very hard in health care” is oft-heard? We found an HBR article that details “Why”.  But then, how can you, as a leader, build teams that innovate like never before? That is the focus of this month’s nudge-letter.

Our centrepiece, “Innovate Like Never Before: 5 Steps to Embed Creativity into Your Team’s DNA”, outlines a strategy for fostering innovation within teams, leading to continuous improvement and creative solutions. This month’s trivia is a good example of an innovative outcome of collaborative working.

Don’t miss the Semco Style case of how innovative thinking builds a solution mindset in people working at the edge of the organisation.

Innovate Like Never Before:

5 Steps to Embed Creativity into Your Team’s DNA

Imagine you’re in a team meeting filled with nervous energy. Everyone hesitates to share ideas. Great ideas go unsaid, stifled by fear. But what if you could change that? Here are five steps to foster a culture of innovation in your team.

Encourage Sharing Wild Ideas

Semco Style suggests embedding “Are you crazy” meetings* to fuel wild thinking.

Psychological safety makes people feel safe to take risks and express ideas without fear of judgment. Start by actively listening to your team, encouraging open dialogue, and valuing every idea. This boosts morale and enhances collaboration, creating an environment where everyone feels their voice matters.

* If you would like to try it out, please contact us, and we will be happy to help.

Build Trust and Transparency

Trust and transparency are key to fostering innovation. Consistently share your thoughts and plans with your team, be transparent about goals, processes, and expectations, and openly share successes and setbacks. When team members trust each other and their leaders, they’re more likely to share innovative ideas and take risks.

Get Bold and Celebrate Failure

Fear of failure can stifle creativity. Reframe failure as a learning opportunity, encourage experimentation, and emphasize that setbacks are part of the journey to success. Celebrate effort even when outcomes aren’t perfect. Implement a “fail fast, learn faster” approach, focusing on rapid iteration and continuous improvement

Promote Vulnerability and Learning from Others

Encouraging vulnerability can lead to deeper connections and trust within your team. Promote an environment where team members can share their experiences, including mistakes. Facilitate regular knowledge-sharing sessions where team members can showcase their expertise and learn from one another, enhancing individual skills and creating a supportive team.

Build Self-Managed Teams

Empower your team to make their own decisions. Set clear goals, provide necessary resources, and then step back. Encourage cross-functional collaboration and diverse perspectives, leading to more creative solutions. Regularly review progress and provide feedback to keep the team aligned.

Implement these steps and watch your team transform into a powerhouse of creativity and continuous improvement. The journey towards becoming an innovative organization is ongoing, and every step brings you closer to achieving your goals.

FROM AROUND THE WORLD

The Forces Affecting Innovation in Healthcare

The six forces—industry players, funding, public policy, technology, customers, and accountability—can help or hinder efforts at innovation.
Individually or in combination, the forces will affect the three types of innovation in different ways

Link to HBR Article

FROM THE WORLD OF SEMCO STYLE

Best Ideas Originate From Those Closest To The Challenge

This case is an example of how innovative thinking need not come from a group of people sitting in an ivory tower. If the right steps are taken, self-managed teams can think and act with innovation.

READ FULL STORY HERE

TRIVIA FOR YOU

 

DID YOU KNOW MAYO CLINIC’S FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND APP IN HEALTHCARE IS A PRODUCT OF INNOVATIVE TEAMWORK?

At Mayo Clinic, a collaborative, patient-centred approach drives their medical staff to find the best solutions. Their standout creation, the Mayo Clinic app, is a testament to this approach, as it gives patients easy access to medical records, test results, and appointments. This continuous push for improvement and interdisciplinary collaboration, with patients at the center, makes Mayo Clinic a leader in healthcare innovation.

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