“Process > People…”
Shared by Kristina Smedley
Process > People”
This is probably the last thing you would expect me to write or believe in – process over people.
It’ll make sense here in a second.
Yesterday, my manager took myself and my two peer managers out for lunch.
We went to this little dive bar/restaurant called Slim’s Last Chance.
Nestled in a South Seattle industrial area, with a large backyard-like patio and picnic tables, we had some really tasty food.
In fact, it was featured in Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives on the Food Network for having great comfort food.
Beef brisket chilli.
Poured over jalapeno mac & cheese.
Topped with sour cream and chives.
And a side of cornbread.
I didn’t say healthy. But definitely tasty.
If only I had time for a nap afterwards!
This was our first “Quarterly Forward Thinking” lunch of the year.
Where, we will come together and share some of the ideas, struggles, and visions that we’ve been contemplating.
We each took a turn.
And what we shared varied greatly.
It was insightful to hear what was on their minds and also to better understand how they think and what’s important to them.
One insight stood out to me, above the rest.
He mentioned that he felt a divide between one of his values and his actions.
He values fostering an environment that enables empowered teammates.
But he’s finding himself getting frustrated with teammates when they don’t understand, or they don’t perform as he would expect, or they aren’t as prepared as needed.
“Why don’t they get it!”
He blames the teammates.
In an ah ha moment, he considered if there was something missing or needed that would better enable our people? Is there something about our processes or the systems that hold them back?
Why doesn’t he blame the process first, before immediately blaming our people?
This makes perfect sense!
And it has me thinking now too.
Where am I blaming the people, when I should be be digging into the processes?
Where are my teammates struggling, and there’s a process change that could greatly improve their situation and experience?
It’s a choice to assume good intent in others.
It’s a choice to take a deep breath when getting frustrated and then choose to look a little deeper.
And it’s a choice to serve others through understanding the processes and systems they are operating within and making changes for the better.
Thanks to our forward-thinking lunch and this great work team, I’m being even more intentional to consider processes > people when things aren’t going as expected.
#DaringlyResilient
#PassionatelyServing
Comments
Post a Comment