Yves Morieux gives a really interesting TED talk here on how to reduce the complexity of modern day work.
He has six rules to help make this happen:
- Understand what your colleagues actually do.
- Remove rules: Reinforce the “integrators” Integrators are managers. Give them more power and interest to make others cooperate. Remove the layers so they can be closer to the action. Stop making more rules that reduce the discretionary power to managers.
- Increase the quantity of power so you can empower everybody to use their judgment and their intelligence. Move away from insulation and give more people the opportunity to take risks.
- Create feedback loops that expose people to the consequences of their actions
- Increase reciprocity by removing buffers that make individual employees self-sufficient.
- Reward those who cooperate and blame those who don’t cooperate. The CEO of The Lego Group, Jorgen Vig Knudstorp, has a great way to use it. He says, blame is not for failure; it is for failing to help or ask for help.