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On Hope and Pessimism
As I approach 2006 year-end, I find myself musing over the events and engagements of the past year, thinking about what I've learned, what's challenged me, and those areas that have demanded the lion's share of my focus. I also have been thinking about what I need to learn in order to be a better consultant and resource to my clients, colleagues, and friends.
Typically, there are big themes and big ideas that run through our industry. Like every other sector, we have our flavors of the month when it comes to management ideas and approaches.
Ideas, like wide belts or capri pants, come in and out of fashion. This year's big idea pushes last year's big idea aside. This isn't news to most of us. Ideas, like products, have diffusion patterns and life-cycles. What is troubling to me, however, is that many of these "new ideas" are used like fashion is used - to make the wearer look good or sound smart. I suppose it's understandable. Looking good is easy compared to being good.
Often, new approaches and strategies aren't thought through, executed rigorously, or evaluated according to any useful or meaningful array of dimensions. Instead, there is all too often a pattern of discovery, excitement, adoption, disillusionment, discarding, and then substitution with the next new fashionable idea. Is it any wonder that people within our industry - especially those who aren't in control of organizational agendas - have become cynical about implementing new processes or ideas?
The cycle of snide remarks in the coffee room about the boss's "next new thing" comes as no surprise to me. But, I've got to tell you, when I find myself entering an engagement, it is no fun, and sometimes a huge waste of time and energy, to have to work through all this pessimism and cynicism, no matter how justified those feelings may be. I experience considerable empathy for people who feel that they are on the "new-idea-treadmill," but I must admit that I have little patience with people who are more committed to their problems than they are to working toward solutions.
If there is one thing that really worries me about the state of the non profit arts sector, it is the degree to which people in our sector have become cynical, impatient, and resigned. We all understand that it's not easy out there. But, it seems to me that it's never been easy. As times have changed, so have the problems we confront. But we are no less resourceful than we've always been. We may be less willing to tap those inner resources, but they are there for us to use for our purposes.
When we do organizational culture work, we repeatedly hear that most people want to work in an organization that values innovation. What's interesting, however, is that most people are unwilling to accept the failure rate that goes along with working in an innovative culture.
Truly innovative organizations fail often, but the best of these innovator organizations have both processes and cultures in place that foster learning from failure. What is learned from failure is precious. How often do we treat this knowledge as if it were precious?
Organizations always pay for what they learn, but all too often organizations shame those who fail rather than take the lesson from the failure. This behavior doesn't support an innovative culture. Not one bit.
When I was in Memphis last month, I learned that the Federal Express Board of Directors fired Fred Smith once early on. Of course they hired him back (and thank God they did), but that doesn't erase the fact that they pushed this genius out the door.
Apple got rid of Steve Jobs, too, and since they brought him back Apple has flourished in unimaginable ways. What do Fred Smith and Steve Jobs have in common? They are a couple of guys who know how to fail forward. You can bet that there were more than a few snide remarks made about them in the coffee rooms where they worked, too. That's the problem with judging people in the middle of their innovation trajectories; their stories haven't ended yet.
As we enter 2007, I fervently hope that our sector's leadership will embrace that one of their principal roles is to keep hope alive. Hope is a form of capital. It's precious and shouldn't be squandered.
I hope, as well, that our sector's leaders will more carefully think through and more rigorously scrutinize those initiatives to which they commit their organization's time, money, and hope. I pray that they make sure they execute well and evaluate vigorously, because most good ideas fail in execution, not in planning. I hope, as well, that they will not allow another bandwagon idea trend to run their initiative off the road, at least until it's been given a reasonable chance to succeed.
I hope that those organizations that say they value innovation will walk their talk by focusing on fixing problems instead of fixing blame. Leaders of successful innovative organizations recognize that sometimes things get worse before they get better, so cutting losses early may be exactly the wrong thing to do (Remember Fred Smith). Short implementation and evaluation cycles may be trendy, but I think they are wrong-headed and short-sighted.
Finally, I hope that the team members who are charged with implementing those innovations drill fresh wells of optimism and commitment, and that they will drink long, heartily, and deeply from those wells.
Posted on December 30, 2006 10:40 AM | Permalink
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Comments
Thank you for this post as it comes at a wonderful time as I contemplate my own goals for the coming year.
I am a marketing manager for a performing arts center in the Midwest and we have gone through a lot of changes in this past year, including a new executive director. I have been encouraged by this major change as a charge of creativity and innovation has been backed with support.
So for this year my goals are as follows:
• Strategize with creativity
• Plan, plan, plan
• Execute with abandon but within budget
• Evaluate and stay on track. If the plan is working adjust to make it better and learn from mistakes that are made by me and others.