Power Series: Experimentation as a differentiator

The world, organizations, societies, and we as human beings are still adjusting to the new normal. The situation around is evolving at a rapid rate and is challenging all our basic and standard processes. Given where things are, survival, staying safe, and healthy is our utmost priority.

There are a lot of conversations in when would things go back to normal. However, what the new normal would be is going to be highly unpredictable. So let us paint a near promising future. The world has found a vaccine that can be administered through the air, and in two days, the world as a whole cured. The sick revive, and things start opening up slowly. So here are the key questions:

• Would we go back to work in public transit services?

• Would we go to large social gatherings?

• Would we have an urge or need to go to restaurants?

• Would we be comfortable sending our children to schools?

• Would we travel more?

• Would we???

The list of maybe's and would be's can be long? The answers to the above questions have multiple options. The scenarios can have various options and various outcomes, which can further have a trailing impact and paint different scenario's. The best tool available in such situations is experimentation. Experimentation plays many roles and is important in such scenarios. One of its essential characters is to test theories and to provide the basis for current and future knowledge. It can also call for a new theory, either by showing that an accepted theory is incorrect or by exhibiting a new phenomenon that needs explanation. To manage the current scenario, no one can deem themselves as experts. Hence managing the future requires an individual to master the art of experimentation. 

My recommendation for organizations (large or small) is to either set up a SWAT team or individuals whose sole responsibility is to think and build scenarios and experiment with different outcomes. Experimentation is the key to learning in organizations. Only through careful experimentation can causal inferences be drawn about the success or failure of new ideas. It is almost planning and playing for a game of chess. The world or the organization is on one side of the board, and the other side is the entire socio-economic factors that would react to how the situation/the game unfolds. 

I would highly recommend one of my favorite books - Experimentation Works: The Surprising Power of Business Experiments by Stefan H Thomke.  You can get the Kindle version from the following links:

I hope to see all of us get in the mindset of experimentation and love to hear the experiments you undertake. Chao..

Power Series: Agility

Today, we are all confined to our homes and locality without much movement. What sounded reasonable to all of us:

1. Going to work/gym/other public places

2. Taking public transports

3. Eating out in restaurants

4. Participating in events or other larger gatherings

Feels a distant dream and confinement to place or home was a scary moment or if we did if we had to take rest for a day. However, most of us are confined to our homes for weeks at a stretch now. The world has come to a standstill, actually humans and machines, yet, nature is blooming, and other living beings are thriving. The Pandemic of COVID-19 has challenged all of our thinking and movement in the so-called technology and thriving 20th century. 

The current times are challenging and world political leaders, large-medium-small organizations are relooking at their business models, and human beings at large are adjusting to a new normal at the same time contributing to fight out the pandemic. The novel Coronavirus doesn't have precedence Individuals, organizations, and countries would only thrive if they can quickly adapt to changing and evolving scenarios. The scenarios are rapidly evolving, and what seemed to be the benchmark yesterday has been disrupted today completely. Countries, organizations, and communities which have shown agility, swiftness, and accepting change have been able to arrest and control to an extent the situation.  

Agility is a mindset than a process that is either born out of a will or a necessity. Organizations that have been slow to adopt an agile mindset or methods are today, finding it difficult to survive or manage the current situation. What I fear is that, once hopefully, the pandemic is over, and either the circumstances take an upswing turn or goes in another direction, organizations again would not be prepared to manage it. The systems, checks, and controls would all go out of the window, and larger cracks would start forming within an organization.  

More so, industry experts deem that great leaders have to balance agility with consistency in the current state, and once we all come out of it, to adjust consistency would be the biggest challenge for many leaders. The past, present, and future all would have different benchmarks and standards that define consistency would be the biggest challenge. The only way to manage consistency would be to embrace empathy, listening, and to stay true to oneself, brand, and the country at large. Consumers and the nations would evolve at a rapid pace, and there would be new benchmarks set every day. The future would require a great sense of agility and the ability to balance the other moving pieces around oneself, organization, and the nation as a whole.

It is still not that late to develop an agile mindset, but those who don't would perish. Chao..

Power Series: Humility

When I started writing the article, I had a different perspective of being humble; however, the current situation which the world is facing due to COVID-19 has taught me and changed my view of what humility is all about. 

Today's scenario is challenging all the norms and processes which we have set in our personal and professional life. There is no benchmark or blueprints available in the world which can either prepare, prescribe, or allow us to take action, which we don't know the outcomes or measures. The world is in an experimentation mode, everyday new methods, information, and aspects are enhancing or changing our experimentation methods. Humans have survived, and we would all survive this phase of the world. 

The phase of the world also demands we, as human beings, take a step back, evaluate and appreciate what is around us. Today there is rage, fear, and a sense of hoarding which is brewing amongst us. We need to calm ourselves down and also evaluate how we manage the situations which are evolving every day and every hour. What is being requested of us is to demonstrate humility across the walk of life. Humility is a quality of being humble and a form of self-control that is neither having pride (or arrogance) nor indulging in self-deprecation.

Having a sense of humility in the business context allows individuals to build sustained relationships. In the age of digital, building relationships would test all the previous myths (in-person, handshake, body language, personal appearance, and many more). Displaying humility and being considerate of others' needs before yours would allow businesses to scale through the current and global scenario of the world. Functions in an organization like sales, marketing, finance, and even the board members sooner than later would need to adopt humility as a leadership style to weather the storm and also sustain the business in the short and mid-term. 

Recent research suggests that humility is a quality of certain types of leaders. For example, Jim Collins and his colleagues found that a particular kind of leader, whom they term "level 5", possesses humility and fierce resolve. Humility is being studied as a trait that can enhance leadership effectiveness. The research suggests that humility is multi-dimensional and includes self-understanding and awareness, openness, and perspective-taking.

I am no expert in humility but have been consciously and unconsciously practicing it since the last decade. If you have perspectives on it further, please do leave your comments below. Chao.