Stop putting out fires: How Thinking in Systems Revolutionizes Operations in Creative Agencies, part 2
Last week I laid out my theory for how bad processes become systemic issues with a lovely (and insulting) comparison of monkeys smashing keyboards to creative teams creating processes. You keep anyone at it long enough, at some point, the monkeys write Romeo and Juliet, and the Creatives create a QC process. Meaning even when you're moving haphazardly, some semblance of order comes about. That’s how we create our processes. But that doesn’t mean that those processes actually function well. Next thing you know, you’re bundling them together, and if there is an issue with any one of those processes (and most likely, it’s more than one), that forms systemic issues.
The problem is, getting to the root of the issue isn’t easy. How do you even know there is a connection between a Designer who won’t use their QC checklist and an AM who doesn’t do monthly reach outs to their clients? Instead, we fix each of these as if they are singular issues, and that root cause goes unnoticed, and it’s a constant game of whack-a-mole. In this article, I will share the tools and methods I use to help identify system issues.
So how do you know if you have a systemic issue in the first place? How do you know if you are having a truly “one off” issue or if it’s a sign of a deeper problem? Ask yourself:
Do you sense a constant "whack-a-mole" sensation with your issues?
Does it feel like you're constantly putting out fires with no end in sight?
Do you feel like you are the sole problem solver despite having a team of smart people?
These feelings are a red flag. We need to dive deeper if we are ever going to be able to understand why your capable team members struggle to fix problems. But once you identify those signs, that means that you have a systemic problem. The next step is to make the connection between what are generally disparate issues. But it's challenging to start with the connections themselves. Instead, you need tools that provide the raw material and the ability to lay it all out, allowing the connections to emerge. Through repeated practice, your intuition will recognize systemic issues, that feeling of "this is connected to something."
Here are the tools I like to use:
Mural board or whiteboard
Design Thinking
The 5 Whys
Mural or Whiteboard
Before we dive into the details, let's appreciate the flexibility of whiteboard tools for collaboration. Your team doesn't have to be physically together; you can utilize digital platforms like Mural or Apple's whiteboard app. The key is an environment where you can process the raw material generated through Design Thinking (DT) exercises. Look for a spacious platform that allows multiple people to create ideas, move things around, and provide room for necessary adjustments. Sticky notes are essential, available in different colors and sizes. Additionally, consider using stickers or markers to assign numbers for ranking and refining ideas. Choose your weapon, and let's get started!
Design Thinking
There are many flavors of Design Thinking, but at its core, it’s an approach to problem-solving that is user-centric (what is important to the end user of this product or service) and then cycles through divergent thinking (ie, brainstorming) and convergent thinking (analyzing) to gain understanding and get to usable solutions. Although at first glance, systems thinking would seem more apt for, well, systemic issues, at the agency level, we don't require the level of engineering precision found in, say, circuitry troubleshooting that systems thinking focuses on. Instead, we aim to understand why recurring issues, such as quality control (QC) mistakes, occur. Plus, you don’t have a team of engineers to help. You are the sole problem solver in this context. You can either address individual QC fires by blaming someone's competence or training needs, or you can seek to understand why these issues happen in the first place. And since it's just you, the approach must be simple and fast. We can quickly adapt DT exercises to tackle various challenges.
For solving systemic issues, I consider DT as a way to take brainstormed material, categorize it, generate more suitable solutions, and continuously test and revise them. This article won't delve into DT extensively, but if you want to learn more, I highly recommend IBM's website and the DT Double Diamond framework .
Let's feed the beast using a modified version of DT's "Big Ideas Vignette" combined with the 5 Whys technique.
5 Whys
In the DT "Big Ideas Vignette" exercise, you already have a problem statement and stakeholder needs. However, we don't have that luxury here. Instead, we'll gather a small, diverse team (around three people, depending on the issue) who can spare about 15 minutes of their time. These individuals should be thoughtful and considerate. Remember, more people don't necessarily mean better results, and there's a diminishing return on investment beyond a certain number. Craft a good starter question. Try to pose your question unbiasedly - don't put your fingers on the scale. For instance, if designers keep missing client comments, instead of asking, "Why are designers so bad at making revisions," the question could be, "Why do designers consistently miss client comments?"
Ask the team to write their answers on sticky notes and give them one minute. After one minute, push further and ask them to brainstorm "why" for each response. The “5 Whys” technique recommends asking “why” 5 times. For example, if someone answers, "Because they don't have Acrobat turned on to view the comments as a checklist," ask them to brainstorm "why" for that particular response. Add that new sticky note to the original one. Each sticky note should contain only one comment. Keep going, asking "why" for each subsequent answer. The exercise should take no more than five minutes to complete. Encourage speed. Write fast and avoid discussions. Now, you have your raw material.
Making Sense of It All
With the raw material in hand, use DT and Mural (or any other whiteboard) to organize it. Give your team a minute to read all the sticky notes. Ask them to categorize and group them. Whereas there was silence before, now we’ll encourage discussion. Ask them to explain their thought process out loud as they group the sticky notes. For instance, they might say, "I'm moving 'add instructions for viewing Acrobat Comment Checklist' under the 'Information' category." Encourage them to label their categories using whiteboard tools like pens and text. Allocate five minutes for this step.
At this point, if people are busy, you can stop. As the acting Problem Solver, you have everything you need to develop practical solutions. Moreover, you should start seeing patterns. These patterns can range from abstract notions like “in fact, we did hire inappropriate people" to specific requirements like "improving training for X, Y, and Z." However...
Does everyone have an additional five minutes? Ask your team if they see any patterns and commonalities. What potential solutions can they identify? Tell them to use a different sticky note type for these ideas, switching colors or shapes if necessary.
There you have it. In just 15 minutes, you may have solved an issue that would have taken years to address individually. Attempting to solve systemic problems at the component level is like fixing a faulty foundation by replacing one bathroom tile at a time.
Now, let's revisit our calculation. Solving issues one by one would cost us $1,875 in lost value for one employee over three to four months. Assuming this is a systemic issue, it will persist and potentially (conservatively) occur twice a year. That amounts to $3,750 per year per "problematic" employee.
In contrast, let's assume our chief problem solver spends one hour mapping out this DT exercise at a rate of $150/hour. The three-person team assembled has hourly rates of $150, $100, and $75, contributing 15 minutes. This amounts to $118.75, including yourself*. You might need an additional two hours to synthesize the information into a plan and another two hours for rollout planning, totaling $600. Let's include a 30-minute studio-wide training (though most problems can be solved with simple tweaks, like checklists, that don't require extensive training). Assuming a studio size of 15 people with an average salary of $100/hour, that amounts to $750. The grand total for this process is $1,618.75. You just saved $2,131.25 per year. After the first year, this is an ongoing savings of $3,750 annually, ad infinitum.
*All monetary values are averages that include non-salary overhead such as equipment and benefits
Naturally, this is a simplified example, and the reality is more complex with numerous factors and variables. However, I wanted to present a tangible illustration of the monetary values associated with unresolved problems and declare: "Busy work" and ignoring issues come at a cost. They are not free or neutral. And to any of those invested in “busy work, " solving problems correctly saves money and takes less time. The first scenario took over four months, while the DT scenario could be resolved in less than two weeks.
Nevertheless, it's crucial to remember that identifying the problem is only half the battle. Solving it requires planning, project management, and change management skills. These elements form a life cycle: identifying the root cause is akin to wanting to conceive a baby; planning and project management represent the pregnancy stage; and change management is raising the child. All three are vital to truly address problems and form the three legs of the problem solver stool.
But let’s take a victory lap: that’s a lot of work you did in a super short time span. An analogy I had heard years ago sums this up perfectly: imagine walking out of a bar and seeing a man on his hands and knees under a streetlight, searching for his keys. You offer to help and ask where he dropped them. He points to a dark corner of bushes a few yards away. Perplexed, you ask why he's looking here if he dropped them over there. He replies, "Because there's more light here." We resemble this man when we don't try to solve the actual problems. The keys won't magically appear under the light, no matter how hard or long we look. It's merely busy work, an illusion of “doing something." But it will never fix the underlying problem. Let's remember that solving problems requires identifying the right ones to solve. And the monkeys to do it.