Disruption

Disruption

What activities do we disrupt to focus on alternate action? Brushing my teeth, I often pause to take on another task before I return to finish the job. A spontaneous comment can carry a team off the agenda and into problem-solving mode in meetings. A single large donation can alter an organization’s strategic priorities. A law change from the state legislature might modify how programs are executed.

How might we assess whether disrupting one activity for another is intentional versus snack food satisfying? How might we honor fidelity to the act of decision-making?

Shocking

What is your lightning rod? Is it a topic, program, activity, political position, person, facility, partnership, etc.? What creates immediate thunderstorms for you cause when the item is brought up in conversation? How have you grounded it so the repercussions are not so volatile? What has worked successfully, and what is still a work in progress? How do you orient new members of your team to the topic? Are you hoping to wait the storm out, are you taking active steps to reduce the impact, or do you allow it to short out the enterprise’s work every time it strikes?

Slight Disruption, Major Impact

Ninety-nine percent success feels extraordinary. But if the one percent disturbance is the central communication outlet (see iCloud mail), then dissatisfaction can outweigh the other successes. How might we remember that not all detours create the same experience? How might we be prepared to communicate and fix the detours that are critical? What is the cost of pointing to all the services that performed when our community is focused on the damaged link?

Disruption and Displacement

Did the towns of Cooke City and Gardiner, Montana develop contingency plans in advance that include catastrophic disruption and historic infrastructure failures? The 2022 summer appears to be headed in a very different than anticipated. How do they find their way forward from the flooding and storm damage that has made travel into the towns and Yellowstone National Park uncertain? How do we plan with certainty if we cannot predict the future? Perhaps we need greater flexibility if the journey we seek is worthy of wayfinding.

Creativity During Disruption

British painter, David Hockney used the pandemic to focus his artistic expertises on his local landscape in Normandy. Being unable to travel and find sources of inspiration, David looked out the window and made it his masterpiece. Disruption might change our itinerary but it does not keep us from asking, ‘how might I….’

Supply and Demand

IMG_2902Disruptions, delays, and dislocation create demand. Supply and demand may not be the leading evaluation frames for the social sector. There is numerous points of overlap in the visions and missions of many causes. However, groups find ultimately find a niche or fail to sustain their efforts. Occasionally, the delivery of services is so disrupted that the demand far exceeds supply. The challenge is to understand when it is a short-term reaction and when it represents a systemic change.

Iteration, Innovation, Disruption

Brian Solis presented on the role of technology and disruption at the Ed Sessions.   His presentation provided a pathway to an audience seeking educational reform.  Brian’s core premise on change was that there are three types of change:

Iteration= Another chapter of what already exists

Innovation= A new method or approach

Disruption= Interruption of existing patterns

Brian used the TV remote control as an example of a piece of technology that desperately needs disruption but instead has only seen iteration.  TV designers have added more buttons, color, and maximized the buttons per inch on existing platforms.  Perhaps only the new Apple TV remote starts that process of disrupting a long line of poorly conceived iterations.

When considering our enterprise’s programs and services it could be valuable to frame our conversations through the lenses of iteration, innovation, and disruption.  As I board a flight this morning I believe that the airline industry is ready for major disruption.  Southwest and Jet Blue innovated a couple years ago but were not able to disrupt.  Uber disrupted getting to and from the airport and is now looking to iterate their platform.  Leading international airports are innovating.  The airports are passenger centric from arrival to security and onto boarding.  The airports themselves have become part of the destination and employ staff members committed to a remarkable experience for the travelers.

What level of change are you working on?  Which one is required to achieve your mission?  Brian challenged us to not miss our Kodak Moment, when we lose sight of what is relevant.  We must take a human approach to change and shift from sympathy to empathy in order to disrupt.  Innovation is deeply personal and the distance between our aspiration and vision is proportional to our ability to shift perspectives.

The journey to disruption may be lonely but fundamental to our ability to serve and add value.