Ready-Fire-Aim
Editor’s Note: This post is part of a blogging experiment started by Tim Walker at Hoovers. Tim challenged bloggers to offer up what comes to mind when they see Sherman Tan’s “Break Glass” photo.
For me, the first thing that comes to mind is the Ready-Fire-Aim mentality some organizations seem to follow. They run around, always putting out real or imaginary fires instead of taking the time to do things right…because that might involve personal challenges, difficult conversations, and hard work. Everything becomes an emergency, which allows them to justify dispensing with the required or appropriate process.
Examples:
- The employee who is terminated instead of coached (because there are tons of employees in the job market right now.)
- The benefits and bonuses that are cut or eliminated (without notifying people in advance so they can prepare.)
- Services being cut to customers because companies are willing to sacrifice quality for profits.
- Letters from attorneys (i.e. “sue first, ask questions later”) instead of trying to resolve matters directly.
Businesses (and business leaders) should ask themselves which kind of operation they want to be. The ones that watch the smoke and say, “Let’s see if this turns into a fire”, or the ones that continuously question if they are fireproof. If your company is looking to minimize risk and maximize value, ask yourself the following questions:
- What does your company do better than anyone else?
- In what areas have your stakeholders told you to improve?
- What opportunities exist for your business in the next 12-18 months?
- Are their potential pitfalls to your operational plan?
Sure, every business needs an emergency alarm. We all need to be able to “break the glass” in a true emergency. But if we’re always setting off the alarm because we don’t have the courage, foresight, or training to lead properly, we put our company in serious jeopardy. Because it won’t be long before your employees start ignoring the bell.
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