It’s always fun to travel with my family. Though I’ve done my fair share of work related travel, I still prefer to travel with my wife and daughter. I never know what adventure we’re going to take on or what deep knowledge my four year old will drop, sometimes unbeknownst to her. In a recent trip back from Seattle, while we were at the airport, my daughter saw the fish embedded in the Seattle airport floor and immediately states that the rule is “Don’t step on the fish”. I was tired and so my immediate reaction was to comply and so there I was walking towards our gate half-stepping, long-stepping, zig-zagging across the airport towards our gate avoiding stepping on the fish. As I sat down while we waited to board our flight, it made me realize that even a corporate environment most employees follow the rules without questioning or understanding why. However, organizations that get into a cadence of evaluating rules and policies to ensure they still make sense and adjust to support the needs of the day are truly embracing agility into their culture.
Rules are meant to be…atleast questioned
As leaders, we often establish rules and policies to guide our organizations. These guardrails provide structure and order. However, we must be careful not to blindly follow them without questioning their intent and effectiveness. Just as technology evolves rapidly, so too should our policies. We need to regularly re-evaluate if they still serve their intended purpose.
The same applies to organizational policies. There may have been a valid justification when they were created. But we should pause periodically and examine if that rationale still applies or if the policy now hinders progress. This regular review allows us to course correct based on changing needs. It prevents stagnation and status quo thinking. And it helps us build truly agile cultures where we don’t follow rules simply because “that’s the policy”.
Policies are guideposts meant to move us in the right direction. But if the environment shifts, we may need new guideposts. Blind adherence leads to complacency. Thoughtful examination of intent leads to progress.
The Perils of Rigidity in Policies
Blindly sticking to policies can be detrimental in a rapidly evolving landscape. A Bain & Company study found that only 9% of surveyed companies reported being highly agile. The remaining 91% fell into an “agility trap” where processes hindered their ability to adapt quickly. Legacy policies that made sense years ago may now act as barriers today. They create needless bureaucracy and slowness. Employees waste time navigating red tape instead of innovating. This rigidness stifles creativity. People fear being penalized for breaking rules, even if bending them would lead to better outcomes. Unwillingness to challenge the status quo makes organizations fragile in disruptive times.
The Benefits of Flexibility
Meanwhile, research shows the benefits of regularly revisiting policies. A McKinsey study found that agile organizations have a 70% chance of being in the top quartile of organizational health than non-agile competitors. This is one of the best indicators of strong long-term performance. This agility stems from questioning assumptions and existing frameworks. Instead of blind obedience, there is fluidity and adaptation when needed.
Empowering employees to rethink rules leads to innovation. One study by the University of Kansas found that employees engaged in rule bending to overcome burdensome, ineffective rules. Regularly re-evaluating policies allows correcting outdated thinking. Practices that were once mainstream may now be inappropriate or unethical. But unless examined through a modern lens, they persist simply out of habit.
Best Practices for Flexibility in Policies
Here are some tips on ensuring policies evolve with the times and organizational priority:
Document intent – When creating rules, clearly outline the desired goal or outcome. This makes it easier to reassess if it is still relevant.
Set a cadence to review – Schedule regular reviews to see if policies require updating. Annual or bi-annual assessments allow adjusting as needs change.
Involve stakeholders – Include different perspectives when evaluating policies, not just leadership’s viewpoint. Fresh eyes may better judge effectiveness.
Gather data – Track quantitative metrics related to policies and assess impact on factors like employee engagement, customer satisfaction, quality, and productivity. Measure outcomes empirically.
Encourage questions – Foster a culture where people feel comfortable respectfully challenging current norms if they have better ideas. Make suggestions welcome, not taboo.
Allow exceptions – Empower employees to thoughtfully break rules if following them would be counterproductive or harmful in a particular situation. Bureaucracy should not trump moral judgment.
Reward improvement – Applaud those who identify policies that are outdated, unnecessary, or misguided. Recognize those who have the courage to say commonly accepted practices actually need reform.
Moving Forward With Purpose
Rules certainly have an important role in organizations. They codify best practices, set boundaries, and promote harmony. But they must evolve alongside changing needs. Innovation often means straying from tradition.
As leaders, we have the responsibility to set a cultural tone in organizations. We can either create rigid bureaucracies where blind rule-following is valued over progress. Or we can foster agile cultures where assumptions are continually questioned and policies re-examined. For forward-thinking organizations, the latter is the only way to operate and become market leaders.
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