Planning

VIPs

What do your VIPs experience that eludes your general members? It is reported that Elon Musk had a small group of employees annotating data from his Tesla automobile to ensure self-driving mode worked most effectively. His data received special attention to maximize performance. This level of service was not available to the average Tesla owner. Elon’s driving experience is different than all other Tesla owners, unless they drive the same routes he uses with his Tesla.

What VIP services might conflate the experience the general member receives? How might we assess the service we provide to all our customers, not just those who have the special phone number and secret doors into our enterprise?

How might we monitor the experience of all our fans? How might we not focus solely on the VIPs who have secret phone numbers and private entrance privileges? If our organization’s stated values and actions diverge when it comes to our most important members, perhaps we need to have a generative conversation about our priorities.

Forecasted Priorities

How might a forecast change your priorities? What if the forecast is inaccurate? What if the forecast is fifty percent of the actual event, will you have bandwidth in your priorities to adjust?

How might we evaluate the forecast but leave room for wayfinding when real-time events present a different reality than the prediction?

Staging

I noticed multiple lawnmowers staged on lower yards around our neighborhood. Due to the slope’s grade and the proximity of stairs, it is more convenient for homeowners to place a second push lawnmower at the low point of their property and use it for a limited area that is difficult to reach.

How might we stage our resources so we can act when needed, even if it means dedicating an item with a greater range than the deployment area? How might we identify where staging might be more effective than repetitive load-in/load-out scenarios?

One Job

Jetways and Airstairs located at commercial airports have one job. They are necessary to load and unload passengers and crew. They are deployed for high-use periods and then sit idle. When reviewing utilization patterns, these items might not deliver a compelling return on investment. However, when a plane filled with people arrives, they are essential.
How might we not prioritize utilization metrics but look at the resource’s impact? A ladder would cost less money, but customer satisfaction would definitely drop. Even more critical, a jetway allows us to efficiently board a $100 million commercial airplane that does benefit from monitoring utilization metrics.

Power Source

What is your power source? Does it rely on pure power, or do you benefit from additional forces such as aerodynamics and physics? How might we ensure we are not wasting power by generating massive outputs but increasing drag by forgetting to put appropriate pressure in our tires?

How might we strategically deploy our power to do the work that matters?

Glance

What did you glance at that was exceptional, but you were unable to witness (or capture) the entirety of the event? A shooting star? A retreating grizzly bear? The first moments of an unforgettable keynote? An iconic board member who is finishing their term just as you start your service? A glimpse of the impact bestowed by the first year of a transformational grant?

Glances are helpful since they furnish a picture of what is possible. They may not be sustainable or ordinary, but they set the conditions for developing a vision for the future. How might we use glances to inform our current and future efforts? How might a glance be the beacon to which we orient?

What Baggage Carousels Teach Us About Planning

Airport baggage carousels are interesting devices. A lot of infrastructure and space is dedicated to the luggage retrieval process. When many flights arrive simultaneously, each carousel operates at high capacity. Visit the baggage area between busy periods, and the design appears dated. If a courier delivers packages directly to my doorstep, why can an airline not reunite baggage and passengers in a more personalized manner?

When operations are at full capacity, questioning utilization and design is more demanding. Visit the same site during a slow period, and the respite provides more opportunities for reflection.

How might we embrace generative inquiry during our more relaxed moments and assess if we are trying to solve problems when full or empty?

After the Hard Part

After you complete the hard part, then what? Do you stop and rest, or do you continue forward at a recovery pace? Can you accelerate on easier terrain, or is your journey finished? Tour de France riders do not call it a season after three weeks of bicycle stage racing. They move on to the next round of events (World Championships, Olympic Games, Vuelta Espana, etc.).

A way to distinguish ourselves is not by completing the hard section but by our actions after cresting the headwall. A social sector organization that completes a capital campaign and then goes silent is remarkable for not being able to double-click on its campaign’s impact. An enterprise that goes viral for a compelling story and continues to make that event its sole highlight reel for successive years is the equivalent of riding off into the sunset.

How might we plan for the crux move and the terrain that follows?

Chekhov’s Gun

Chekhov’s Gun is a narrative principle where an element introduced into a story first seems unimportant but will later take on great significance. The principle postulates that any seemingly unimportant element introduced into a story—an object, a character trait, a backstory, an allergy—should later have relevance. https://www.torontofilmschool.ca/blog/chekhovs-gun-definition-examples-and-tips/

What do you include in your organization’s plan that nods to future activity, and what is identified as a safety device? For example, an organization might title its expansion ‘Phase One’ to reference bigger plans in the future. Circus SR series of planes places a handle to activate a parachute to avoid catastrophic emergencies. Placing a ‘loaded gun’ on the stage can drive the narrative, or it might be a safety measure, with no intention of being deployed.

How might we monitor the intention of the devices highlighted in our plans? Without proper orientation, our team members might be waiting for us to activate the safety mechanism and be disappointed when we launch a future initiative.