IT Directions

In my last post, I described a framework that can be used to guide business change - the OMG's Business Motivation Model (BMM) - and suggested that you also need other techniques in the early stages of an initiative, project or venture. In fact a tool such as BMM is only the start.

Any form of business change must take into account a number of varied factors, any of which can derail the effort if not dealt with properly:

• Organizational structures both old and new
• Dependence and impact on external supppliers
• Perceptions both inside and outside the team
• Timescales and associated resources
• Risks and associated mitigations
• People and associated interactions
• etc.

To deal with all this harmoniously requires a clear understanding of governance. The methodology associated with Human Interaction Management distinguishes 2 forms of governance: how to set goals and stick to them (strategic control) and how to make the work fit into an organizational context (executive control).

Shown below are illustrations of the key governance roles:

... and of how these roles work both together and with lower-level roles for management control:

TAKE AWAY

In my experience, if there is a single key factor that distinguishes successful initiatives, projects or ventures, it is transparency. If everyone involved can see what is going on generally, they can understand their own part in it and make sure they are working effectively, safe in the knowledge that their work will be recognized. They can also help identify general issues as early as possible, and see why it is in their own interest to do so.

If, on the other hand, the waters are generally muddy, people go into back-covering mode. They work to rule, not only doing the minimum necessary but also spending valuable time proving that they have done so - time that would have been better spent making productive contributions. In extreme cases, in which there is little reason to believe that the work as a whole will succeed, people will devote most of their daily effort to saving their own reputations - much like a run on a bank that is suspected of failing.

In the next posts to this blog I will explain the pictures above, and show how the simple practices depicted help to ensure success both for the teams you work in, and for you personally.