I love this post https://oxfamblogs.org/fp2p/how-do-we-get-better-at-failure/ and the idea that organizations need to be much more open about failures, and using this to lead to changes. I have seen a variety of situations in which openness to admit failures is important. That includes, but is not limited to
- apathy (maybe things aren’t perfect, but it’s how it’s always been done) and
- resistance (This is how we have always done it, and we are not going to consider changing our ways.)
Some failures are more open (eg failed to account for an anticipated cost in the budget). Others, though are more subtle and harder to change. For example, sometimes, what got an org to where they are is not what is needed to move them forward. For example, a new organization might operate with a very lean staff and key positions all being held by the CEO/ED. However, after time, that structure needs to change, and the CEO/ED will need to hand over key positions to someone else, or risk the long-term viability of the organization.
In countless ways, what an organization/project needed in the past will not fully reflect what is needed in the future – so depending on the past, and repeating, will never get the best results. However, I see this coming up a lot – holding on to certain ways of doing things and failing to try new things, and thus creating a failure itself, since the old ways aren’t always relevant for the present or the future. Somehow, I think, organizations need more ways to check in and note those things – basically “That may have served us well in the past, but it isn’t what we need moving forward.”
I also like the idea of making check ins more frequent. Instead of this being something that is done once a year (or every few years, or more), I see value in making this a regular, key part of how organizations operate. Increased openness to learning and growing can only help. 🙂
