Going Off-Road

Now we are going “off-road.” What on earth does that mean in a business context? I consciously use this saying in leadership.

When executing anything new, like a major operating model transformation, the worst mistake is trying to polish the first version to perfection. It takes a tremendous amount of time, the end result easily becomes too complex, and implementation becomes difficult.

Instead of perfection, the most essential thing is to get the first “good enough” version into practice as quickly as possible. One that already delivers wins, while explicitly acknowledging that with this version, we are intentionally going “off-road.” When everything does not go perfectly, we gather critical data to improve and build the next iteration.

What does this mean in practice?

• Speed: We get version 1.0 into practice quickly and gather genuine data.
• Grace: It frees us from the pursuit of perfection. The work is done smartly, but we are looking for learnings, not flawlessness.
• Commitment: People get to immediately influence what works and what doesn’t.

It even happened once that the proposed name for a certain department was “The Forestry Board” (Metsähallitus). We didn’t quite go that far, but I was pleased because the message about tolerating imperfection had clearly landed.

Aspenly · Thinking