Companies have fewer resources today, fewer people to work on projects. ‘Doing more with less’ does not equate to working people harder and longer. Retreat, renewal, and balance are required for any employee to be productive and stay motivated. Companies that simply work their people harder and longer during these tough economic times will face productivity loss because their people will become fried and face attrition when the economy turns around. Doing more with less should mean choose wisely – choose very carefully where you will spend your time, energy, and money.
Geoffrey Moore’s book, Dealing with Darwin, is an excellent tool for leaders to gain insight into where they will spend their valuable resources during these tough economic times. Mr. Moore refers to three ‘return on innovation’ zones for companies to target that give the best chance for competitive separation:
- Product Leadership Zone
- Customer Intimacy Zone
- Operational Excellence Zone
Mr. Moore challenges companies to specifically declare ONE innovation zone as the ‘core’ and for each initiative to ask the following questions:
- Which innovation zone does this initiative target?
- Is the innovation target for this initiative different than the innovation target for the organization?
- Are we staffing this initiative with the right people to support the targeted innovation zone?
- Are we measuring the innovation return we have identified?
These are great questions, especially as companies are tasked with doing more with less.
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