How is it that some companies are successfully growing faster than others in the same industry? Fast Track companies handle new projects or target markets like a general might plan a battle. But before you declare you’re a commanding officer, realize that the secret is:
- Plan
- Brief
- Execute
- Debrief
Having a complete “beginning to ending” plan will help take the hesitation out of new projects. This cycle is explained the the book Flawless Execution by James D Murphy of the US Navy fighter Pilots and his business Afterburner.
Often businesses do the plan for a new project, product or service, but making sure everyone is briefed on the plan and how it will be executed is left to guess work. Or maybe the brief happens but the execution is only explained to “those involved”. Getting the entire company behind and involved is key to success, but even with plan –> brief –> execute some projects will go array or produce less than stellar results.
When things don’t produce the results you want, that is where defrief comes in to play – an honest conversation about what worked and what didn’t AND most important will changes make it successful in the future. This is a good read and it leads me right back to LEAN and PDCA or Plan-Do-Check-Act.
What’s your best way to get the results you want?
