Today we discuss the summary of another book. In the book the 4 disciplines of execution, authors - McChesney, Covey and Huling discuss ways for an organization to achieve its goal. The 4 disciplines of execution (4DX) is mentioned as a simple repeatable and proven formula for executing the most important strategic priorities in the midst of the whirlwind. The disciplines include focusing on the priority, acting on lead measures, keeping a compelling scoreboard, and creating a cadence of accountability. 4DX is a proven formula not a theory.
The first discipline - focusing on the wildly important goal (WIG) - helps channel the energy to the one or two goals that can make the most impact.
To get the organization to focus, the authors recommend that
1) No team focuses on more than two WIGs at the same time
2) The battles chosen must win the war.
3) Senior leaders can veto but not dictate.
4) Every WIG at every level must have a measurable result that can be said to be its finish line.
The second discipline - act on the lead measures - is a way to predictively measure the progress in closing the gap to the goal. A lag measure is one that talks about things that happened. A lead measure is one that talks about how likely we can achieve a goal. The more we act on a lead measure the more likely we are to meet our goal. As an example, a lead measure for winning a game could be to get the most number of runs and suggest that those players be brought on board who could get to base more often rather than the costly power hitters. Another example cited was how the folks at the Savannah Morning News closed a serious revenue gap by hitting a certain number of new customer contacts, reactivation contacts, and upsell offers every week. The lead measure chosen should be simple and clear to all so that everyone feels inclined to participate.
The third discipline is about keeping a compelling scorecard. This is the discipline of engagement. If the lead and lag measures are not captured on a visual scoreboard and updated regularly, they will disappear into the whirlwind. Great teams must know at all times where they are with the game.
In fact when designing the scoreboard, an audience would want to know if its simple, if it can be seen easily, if it shows lead and lag measures and if we can tell at a glance whether the team is winning.
The fourth discipline is to create a cadence of accountability. This involves a frequently recurring cycle of accountability for past performance and planning to move the score forward. This is where the rubber meets the road.
4DX is not a set of guidelines but a set of disciplines. The way to go about it is to execute it in stages where the team first gets the WIGs clear, launches it and spends time on adoption followed by optimization and lastly by sharing the past success and taking on new ones as a habit.
When implementing discipline 1, we begin by brainstorming possible WIGs, followed by ranking its impact, testing the WIGs to see if it works, and then defining the WIGs with a verb, lag measure and the accountability.
When implementing discipline 2, we strive to identify those that are more predictive, influenceable, measurable and worth measuring and then spend some time defining it.
When implementing discipline 3, we choose a theme, design the scorecard, build it and keep it updated.
When implementing discipline 4, we demonstrate respect for the participation, reinforce accountability, and encourage performance.
The authors argue that 4DX works very well in aspects of life such as personal goals, be it running a marathon, finishing a degree, or learning a new sport.
The first discipline - focusing on the wildly important goal (WIG) - helps channel the energy to the one or two goals that can make the most impact.
To get the organization to focus, the authors recommend that
1) No team focuses on more than two WIGs at the same time
2) The battles chosen must win the war.
3) Senior leaders can veto but not dictate.
4) Every WIG at every level must have a measurable result that can be said to be its finish line.
The second discipline - act on the lead measures - is a way to predictively measure the progress in closing the gap to the goal. A lag measure is one that talks about things that happened. A lead measure is one that talks about how likely we can achieve a goal. The more we act on a lead measure the more likely we are to meet our goal. As an example, a lead measure for winning a game could be to get the most number of runs and suggest that those players be brought on board who could get to base more often rather than the costly power hitters. Another example cited was how the folks at the Savannah Morning News closed a serious revenue gap by hitting a certain number of new customer contacts, reactivation contacts, and upsell offers every week. The lead measure chosen should be simple and clear to all so that everyone feels inclined to participate.
The third discipline is about keeping a compelling scorecard. This is the discipline of engagement. If the lead and lag measures are not captured on a visual scoreboard and updated regularly, they will disappear into the whirlwind. Great teams must know at all times where they are with the game.
In fact when designing the scoreboard, an audience would want to know if its simple, if it can be seen easily, if it shows lead and lag measures and if we can tell at a glance whether the team is winning.
The fourth discipline is to create a cadence of accountability. This involves a frequently recurring cycle of accountability for past performance and planning to move the score forward. This is where the rubber meets the road.
4DX is not a set of guidelines but a set of disciplines. The way to go about it is to execute it in stages where the team first gets the WIGs clear, launches it and spends time on adoption followed by optimization and lastly by sharing the past success and taking on new ones as a habit.
When implementing discipline 1, we begin by brainstorming possible WIGs, followed by ranking its impact, testing the WIGs to see if it works, and then defining the WIGs with a verb, lag measure and the accountability.
When implementing discipline 2, we strive to identify those that are more predictive, influenceable, measurable and worth measuring and then spend some time defining it.
When implementing discipline 3, we choose a theme, design the scorecard, build it and keep it updated.
When implementing discipline 4, we demonstrate respect for the participation, reinforce accountability, and encourage performance.
The authors argue that 4DX works very well in aspects of life such as personal goals, be it running a marathon, finishing a degree, or learning a new sport.
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