Youre not the CEO or even the Chief Digital Officer at BigCo.
So how are you going to drive change without losing your job?
Here are five strategies Ive used to walk the fine line of effective disruption.
It’s free, every week, in your inbox.
Understand the space and why youve been brought in
BigCo hired you, not a strategy firm.
Even with executive buy-in, youll still get push-back.
People are used to punching in and turning the crank.
Theyre not used to asking questions like, Is this a value-add?
Your job is to encourage people to think critically about whether what theyre doing is truly effective.
The way you do that will depend on BigCos size and culture.
How do things get done?
Who are the power players?
What makes people tick?
Sit back and survey the landscape quietly for a while before you make any moves.
In my business, software development, daily stand-up meetings are generally open to quiet observers.
Use such opportunities to learn where the organizational blockers are.
Pay special attention to those people with a huge plate of deliverables and a really high cycle time.
Wait is wait, regardless of the cause.
Anything that prevents people from achieving their goals is a constraint.
Another trend to watch for is a clash between automated and manual processes.
Thats a small but obvious point of friction crying out for automation.
More serious friction points may be hampering your ability to deliver products to market quickly and efficiently.
Keep in mind there will be bottlenecks hiding behind bigger bottlenecks.
Once you fix one, youll find another and another.
Constantly re-evaluate what constraint gives you the most upside to fixing.
Youll earn major respect by eliminating them and helping people save time and effort.
As you go, youll find dozens of these inefficiencies deeply entrenched in the organization.
Were creatures of habit, after all, and we get scared and frustratedwhen routines change.
People only have so much patience for change.
They need to see that your initiatives benefit them before theyre willing to get behind you.
Sometimes you might need to call your little disruption a proof of concept to get it off the ground.
Befriend the IT crew
Its a truism by now that all businesses these days are digital businesses.
These folks dont get much corporate visibility, but they can really make things happen.
Get to know the group that resets passwords, provisions hardware, and sets up VPNs.
Take a genuine interest.
Take people out to lunch, grab a beer, drop off cookies after a release.
IT processes are a common source of bottlenecks and a prime target for digital transformation.
But dont stop at IT.
The more friends you make, the better.
Eventually, like-minded people dying for a change will come out of the woodwork.
Thats when you know youve made it: When people start reaching out to you for help.
Once you reach critical mass, the disruptive force is self-sustaining.
5.Apologize and mean it
Pushing against long-standing processes can land you in hot water.
Sooner or later, you are probably going to ruffle some feathers.
Permanently pissing people off, however, is totally preventable.
You cant afford to make enemies!
If you get into a tiff, apologize.
If you get in an argument during a meeting, circle back later to smooth things out.
Remember that there are people on both sides of the process.
Many people associate transformation with downsizing or leadership changes.
Overall, lead with patience
Digital transformation isnt just about technology.
Technology cant change your organization without people embracing it.
Automating testing and deployment, iterating in shorter cycles thats the easy part.
Convincing coworkers to change their habits and hoping they still like you is tougher.
Culture change is the hardest implementation out there.
But dont lose hope.
Go to the happy hours.
Organize lunch-n-learns to share your progress.
You wont get fired for making the company more efficient.
Youwillget fired for being a jerk.
His experience includes development within the .NET, JavaScript and Microsoft ecosystems.
Previously, he led teams at Thomson Reuters, Ford and Pfizer, among others.
