One of the biggest challenges in any organization is figuring out organization structure. Because you’re going to have to decide what you solve for. Do you solve for the right structure? Or do you solve for people?
You’re often – if not always – going to have people to solve for.
I’d posit that the default assumption should be to solve for structure and velocity of decision-making first, and people second. In that order. With very rare exceptions.
The reason is that your ultimate role as a leader is to solve for the organization. And that means solving for high-quality decisions made at high velocity.
Every time you solve for people – by creating a role, or bringing together or breaking apart teams in a way that doesn’t structurally make sense – you inevitably trade that off.
And if you do that enough times, you’re in effect trading off the long-term health of the organization.
This is a really challenging place to be. You obviously cannot be absolutist about this rule. But it’s one of those places where you realize you can say all you want about playing to win. About what you value. About the value of winning as a team and as an organization.
And then make decisions that do the opposite.
Values are values until they cost you something.
A Learning a Day 