This week I wanted to follow up on a theme that is often a point of contention. It regards the balance between boundaries and autonomy.
When considering the concept of autonomy (under whatever guise it is dubbed), it is important to remember that it’s about doing what is right for the company and it's customers, which is not necessarily always the same as what you think is right for yourself as a individual.
Within every facet of a company there is a desire to be integral to the success of the whole, and that makes their viewpoint the most important to them, that is just human nature to understand our point of view better than others. We see this across all companies and teams – at any one time often there is a dominant voice be that marketing, sales, architecture, engineering, product, finance – but if we can step back from our own views, we’ll see that the truth is that the greatest success comes when all parties understand their value but also see the value that comes from adding together not over-taking so 1 rule over the others.
"The whole can be greater than the sum of it's parts, that we all have something to put into the pie to make it better, and that the collaborative interaction works." Frank Gehry
It's about Balance
The key within any organisation to get pace, innovation and control is to find a balance of autonomy within boundaries. We have some boundaries set for us from the outside - regulators, courts, ombudsmen, others internally by the board set strategy. Even more by the forums that are appointed to set guardrails and policies to enable consistency and control. These are put in place to ensure we don’t crash and burn, that we don’t diverge too far from one another and that we do so as efficiently and effectively as possible.
When a company is going through change those boundaries too will change and some will start to feel inefficient and ineffective, which is frustrating. But the time will come where the broader boundaries are reset, and the autonomy can then be passed to assess the route forward within them. Even if you are part of the team that are making those changes, that doesn’t exempt you from needing to understand and work within other boundaries.
Management Duty
It’s management’s duty to support boundaries and ensure that we all have the knowledge and tools to execute within them. That’s where the autonomy comes in. It about trust between staff of all levels, between departments and the based on the desire and focus on supporting and share each others ideas. This develops within the boundaries and that is what will make a business successful.
It is clear that both sides of the coin are needed – that’s the way with balance. Without boundaries, everything can go haywire – there is confusion, contradiction and that saps energy, focus, pace and quite often the sense of achievement! The goals, regulations and requirements maintain focus on what’s best for everyone in the company. Lack of boundaries or misunderstanding of the regulations/ strategy or internal guardrails can waste time, money and eventually destroy a business. Whether it’s management or staff members that are making the effort, boundaries need to be in place to ensure that goals are met.
But, without autonomy, the best ideas and the details will be lost by those who are not the subject matter experts. No one likes a dictatorship, especially when the dictated tasks don’t make the best sense for the job that needs to be done.
We already know the answers
Here’s where it can get exciting…the folks that do the job every day usually have the key to reducing cost or making better products, creating efficiencies. They are the ones that know what works best because they do it day in day out. They may have a redesign idea or a material modification. Without a forum to share and freedom to fail, improvements can be lost.
But unfortunately, that does not mean that all suggestions will be applicable and taken onboard or implemented. Many may challenge the ultimate boundary or miss part of the rationale for that boundary (from the organisational perspective). Others will be come to fruition slower that desired due to organisation education, governance and comfort of the unknown and new.
This doesn’t mean there is no autonomy it means the balance has been misperceived by the individual – they may be seeking to make their life easier, not that of the Organisation or customer, or they may be misunderstanding the purpose of the boundary, or just ahead of the organisation and in need of patience. That is the role of management to help understanding, inform and guide autonomy within the boundaries.
In my experience, i've worked in companies where there is a cultural undertone that suggests any individual can chose to move a boundary – be that by changing a decision, ignoring it and proceeding a different way, or seeking dispensation because they believe their way is better. That is not what autonomy means. It will always be given within the boundaries – not regardless of them. If you truly believe a boundary needs moving then there are processes in place to suggest, evidence and validate this – but the decision will still be down to those appointed to the forums to make that call. Our role in those instances is to educate and support – even if it takes longer than we’d like – not to disregard, criticise or undermine – that negativity does not help people or companies evolve healthy.
Actions like those, are more about personal views and agendas and not what is best for the organisation or it’s customers. We are paid to fulfil our roles to the best of our abilities within the parameters set. Yes, to bring our expertise to assist in the progress and evolution of the business, but to do that from a positive place. Frustration can bring out a bad side of us – and another blog gives options on how to better express that than to go negative. I, just as much as everyone else am guilty from time to time of letting frustration get the better of me, and often that resulting action is a great reminder of the need to reset my balance and remember the bigger picture.
We want where we work to be a place where we lead by example, where we respect what the Organisation is doing, where we work with each other, and with those we know are less mature or knowledgeable than us to help them progress faster, to make better decisions; and that when a decision is made we make it work – we are pragmatic, adaptable and honourable. We speak our truth from a place of positivity and experience, we do not throw stones.
So as many companies continue to work in a state of flux, lets’ strive to be the leaders – to support those who are struggling to come to terms with the change or are frustrated by their lack of voice or pace in it. Let’s focus on getting in sync with the direction and belief of your Organisation and its customers.
We know transformation is often competitive – we don’t need to fight, we need to demonstrate. Remaining staunchly on the same side, having one another's backs, and holding one another to account on our behaviours and alignment.
I believe we can make a real difference and so I leave you with the works of Daniel H Pink
“Autonomy is different from independence, it means acting with choice”,
Let’s focus on making good choices…
Until next time…
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