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Neuromap analyzes management trends
There is a massive epidemic of coronavirus now - a pandemic. Silmuntaniously, the world economies are still falling due to the coronavirus, as well as the oil crisis, which will cause a new way of issues. First of all, this will affect small and medium-sized businesses. The situation will be easier for big businesses.
What's happening?
Due to the quarantine human interaction is changing. People cannot leave their houses and cannot attend meetings so as not to infect each other. In theory, there is nothing to worry about. Basically, only the methods of communication between people are changing.
But most businesses are not ready for communications to become digital. Meetings on a daily routine via video or text are not usual, unlike meetings in meeting rooms, where groups of people discuss a number of issues. Upon discussion, a number of tasks are formed that need to be completed, and at the next meetings, the results of these tasks or additional issues are discussed or debated on.
As a result, communication in business breaks down.
Due to the quarantine human interaction is changing. People cannot leave their houses and cannot attend meetings so as not to infect each other. In theory, there is nothing to worry about. Basically, only the methods of communication between people are changing.
But most businesses are not ready for communications to become digital. Meetings on a daily routine via video or text are not usual, unlike meetings in meeting rooms, where groups of people discuss a number of issues. Upon discussion, a number of tasks are formed that need to be completed, and at the next meetings, the results of these tasks or additional issues are discussed or debated on.
As a result, communication in business breaks down.
What is the main problem?
When the same meetings and communication to take place online, then it is enough to master the online video-communication tool and the task tracking methodology. But this is complicated because most people have had no motivation for online communications before today. They used to come to the office and communicate in meeting rooms. They lacked empathy, face-to-face contact, and sometimes even pressure, negativity and more.
When the same meetings and communication to take place online, then it is enough to master the online video-communication tool and the task tracking methodology. But this is complicated because most people have had no motivation for online communications before today. They used to come to the office and communicate in meeting rooms. They lacked empathy, face-to-face contact, and sometimes even pressure, negativity and more.
In companies in which online meetings were not a custom, online tracking tasks weren't applied. Tasks were discussed orally, as a rule, sometimes they were written in the form of a text or a protocol, but there was no regular tracking with task prioritization, weekly backlog and fixing of the effect on these tasks (for what purposes and tasks).
Why? Because everything worked like that. Everything was usually discussed face-to-face. Everything was mostly planned and executed without tracking tasks online.
Under quarantine, problems arise in the following areas:
Why? Because everything worked like that. Everything was usually discussed face-to-face. Everything was mostly planned and executed without tracking tasks online.
Under quarantine, problems arise in the following areas:
- 1Task scheduling
- 2Tracking progress
- 3Communication
And communication issues cause problems with coordination and synchronization of tasks. Therefore, coronavirus and quarantine are an excellent incentive for a company to rapidly strengthen the digital communication platform - tools for planning,online task tracking, organizing employee activities, group organization and also new labor distribution methods.
Such evolving organizations use efficient processes to organize remote employees at home offices and online meetings.
Such evolving organizations use efficient processes to organize remote employees at home offices and online meetings.
For the effective growth in new communication platforms the current situation is positive! Any crisis forces change in order to survive.
Another plus that managers especially need to understand is that it used to be difficult to get employees to use new tools. They say: "Our productivity is reduced because it's better for us to meet in person", "don't mess with us with your tracker, we know what to do without your help", "the positive indicators in our company are growing without these techcnological advancements". Now the motivation is such: either they accept the new rules of operating, or companies will suffer great losses.
In the current situation, the entire evolution of management can be represented as crisis management and performance requirements.
WHAT ARE THE TOOLS IN THE MARKET?
Firstly, there are many tools for online phoning in the market - from Skype for Business to Zoom and more professional conferences, teleconferences with rich functionality.
There are all kinds of systems that allow you to register business processes.
However, all systems for organizing labor, i.e. ERP systems, have several main disadvantages.
There are all kinds of systems that allow you to register business processes.
However, all systems for organizing labor, i.e. ERP systems, have several main disadvantages.
- 1The first major con is that they are complicated, that is the transition to full usage of these systems requires from three months to six months.
- 2The second con - these systems are not designed for flexible task management. They require more serious and long-term planning. Most of these systems are not suitable for Agile. And in a crisis, long-term planning is inefficient.
Currently all companies urgently need to become flexible as fast as possible to survive in the market- because all companies have suddenly turned into startups.
Here is an example with real estate. All real estate is built on the fact that apartments were bought and rented out, on AirB & B, for instance, and then the tourist market sharply collapsed.
So, now we urgently need to sell apartments but nobody buys them, the demand is low because there is a crisis; either the customers have to pay a mortgage for these apartments or something else that they hadn't.
Here is an example with real estate. All real estate is built on the fact that apartments were bought and rented out, on AirB & B, for instance, and then the tourist market sharply collapsed.
So, now we urgently need to sell apartments but nobody buys them, the demand is low because there is a crisis; either the customers have to pay a mortgage for these apartments or something else that they hadn't.
Firstly, there are many tools for online phoning in the market - from Skype for Business to Zoom and more professional conferences, teleconferences with rich functionality. Then the entrepreneur will either come up with a new solution or not .
None of these actions have an extensive planning involved. In the new market conditions you need to:
None of these actions have an extensive planning involved. In the new market conditions you need to:
- Qualitatively test hypotheses
- Aim to hold anti-crisis planning meetings daily
- Try to quickly and cheaply test additional entrepreneurial moves in your business
Programs like Success factor, Jira and Trello will not help companies in this areas because they are focused on long-term project activities and on linear management of operational activities. However, most modern companies require tools for organizing in a high flexibility and change environment. The good news is, there are already few such tools, and most of these tools have disadvantages.
That is, the market has a huge number of tools for planning activities - they allow flexible management, these are scrum boards, flexible trackers. But here is the problem. It just happened so that before the crisis, they were used by small startups and small departments - well, because it was their market. It was not that medium or large business had to be abruptly flexible - it calmly earned his money.
That is, the market has a huge number of tools for planning activities - they allow flexible management, these are scrum boards, flexible trackers. But here is the problem. It just happened so that before the crisis, they were used by small startups and small departments - well, because it was their market. It was not that medium or large business had to be abruptly flexible - it calmly earned his money.
And so most of these tools were tailored to the audience of a small team that did not have complex resource problems and organizational structure. And basically, these were digital and product teams and marketing, but by no means an operational business, such as purchases, retail, security, etc. There were no trackers there and no start-ups were used, because they already worked without any digitalization.
Eventually:
It just so happened it's fortunate that we have a tool that allows, on the one hand, to solve the problem of planning, coordination of activities, and organizational structure, and business efficiency, productivity in crisis management, flexible management. But on the other hand, we were previously focused on large and medium-sized businesses.
That is, we took the issue of large budgets, complex organizational structures, complex departments and large numbers. We just got lucky. This is our time.
- There is a solution for large business on the market, but it is heavy and not suitable for crisis management and does not give the opportunity to manage flexibly.
- The tools that are available on the market for flexible management are not suitable for large and medium-sized businesses, because they were never aimed at this segment - because this segment was never interested in crisis management in such a massive mode as it is now.
It just so happened it's fortunate that we have a tool that allows, on the one hand, to solve the problem of planning, coordination of activities, and organizational structure, and business efficiency, productivity in crisis management, flexible management. But on the other hand, we were previously focused on large and medium-sized businesses.
That is, we took the issue of large budgets, complex organizational structures, complex departments and large numbers. We just got lucky. This is our time.
Steps to be taken by a company from a medium or large business under crisis management:
шаг 1
Organizational structure
It is necessary to describe the organizational structure, but not in the form of business processes and not in the form of a staffing table, but in the form of an activity structure, the so-called "Circle Map".
шаг 2
Goals and short-term purpose
It is necessary for each of the circles to fix the short-term goals and short-term purpose of this circle, and not long-term planning, i.e. basic metrics, income-expenses, goals, some kind of main meaning of a given department or circle. In fact, you need to put the technical specifications (terms of reference) of the circle.
шаг 3
List of actions
You need to write an initial list of actions with the help of the leader of this circle, and add it to the backlog, to the tracker, to Tactical.
шаг 4
Employees of the circle
The fourth step - in the circle you need to add the appropriate employees of the circle, only to divide those employees who are going to be reduced and those who remain in the circle.
шаг 5
Installation meeting
The fifth step is to fix the list of tasks with the participants of the circle at the installation meeting on Zoom or Skype, and clarify this list. Additional tasks may need to be discussed. Also all the issues discussed at the installation meeting are recorded, e.g. organizational, problematic, and others - in addition to the list of tasks.
шаг 6
Self-organization
The sixth step is to go on self-organization. Each person calmly, at a distance, fulfills his list of tasks, noting which task is done and not done. And in the online chat - Telegram or WhatsApp there is a correspondence of this circle on the topic of these tasks.
шаг 7
Retrospective
Next, at the end of the week, a retrospective is held, it is discussed what tasks are done, which are not done, why they are not done, what problems have a risen, how to solve them, and then the sprint for the next week is specified.
We summarize what happened:
There was a shift in operating activities to a sprint-like operating model, i.e. flexible model.
- 1It allows you to change the strategy and tactics of each circle very quickly.
- 2This model allows you to remove from the circle those people who are not able to perform tasks.
- 3This allows people to take each other's tasks, because the backlog (task list) is common to the whole circle.
- 4This allows active people who work remotely to perform tasks and work and passive people who have not coped with the remote work just to leave the circle in a timely manner
- 5This allows you to flexibly motivate employees and give out salaries based on the specific operational activities of the employee, and not on his job responsibilities
And most importantly - it transfers any department, any circle to the product cycle, i.e. the circle begins to understand what value it generates, what service a large or medium-sized business purchases, whether this circle is viable or can it be optimized and fired (reduced as part of optimization; regular cost optimization in connection with crisis management). And most importantly, this allows you to flexibly reorganize the organizational activities of each department individually, and not centrally with the help of large consultants and business process cards. That is, to change flexible, weekly and slightly the activities of each circle.
Support
We provide not only software, i.e. tools for all these steps, but also we are ready to accompany and select a special employee who becomes a full-time employee for your company. He already owns the software and knows how to use it.
His task is to teach other people how to use this software, and how to train the methodology for using this software.
His task is to teach other people how to use this software, and how to train the methodology for using this software.
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