The Everything Problem
What is your core function?
A pet peeve of mine is when software designed for one specialized purpose branches out into many other functions:
Evernote used to be a note-taking tool, and then it decided to add dashboards, collaboration, and productivity functionality (and the price went up sharply every time they expanded).
Smartsheet was my favorite project management tool, then added dashboards and reporting and complex workflows. All of these features are great, but I’m paying for them when really I just need project planning and collaboration.
Technolutions Slate started as a college admissions tool, then expanded to include student success, alumni and advancement, full CRM functionality, and more.
I’m no longer in higher education administration, so I’m not sure how much of the expanded Slate package was adopted by schools I worked with (it was a fantastic product though from what I remember). I still use Smartsheet, because the features I do use are perfect for my needs even with all the additions that I don’t use. Evernote though, I’ve replaced with Obsidian. It’s a note-taking tool plain and simple (you can install community-built plugins if you want more), and it’s free unless you want to add syncing.
When software companies add multiple complex features that are not part of their core function, they probably get some customers to expand their use of the product, especially if these functions are new to them and will improve their work. But they risk shortchanging the functionality that made them unique. A lot of the company’s resources may end up focused on the new shiny features instead of improvements to the part they do best. And if you’re a customer who’s only interested in that core function or has it covered by some other company for whom it is the core function, you end up leaving much of the software unused.
Core function for departments, teams, and in projects
The same thing can happen with departments and teams in an organization as well as with projects. There can be scope or mission creep over time. Sometimes one department gets frustrated with the quality or timeliness of what another is doing and decides to take a task over, or doesn’t even know the other department is already doing it. Sometimes one team in a department gets asked to take on work that is not part of their role, because another team has too much on their plate. Sometimes a project gets bigger and bigger, or tasks are assigned to the wrong team or person.
As with software, when the core purpose is ignored or pushed aside, there will be consequences: When a department or team takes on work that belongs to another, there may be duplicated effort, conflict, or even regulatory issues if the work is not fully understood by the new group. And when a project expands endlessly, chances are good that it will not be completed efficiently.
But of course there are some things that we can do as leaders to regain focus in our teams and projects. I will list a few below, but there are others too:
Departments and Teams
Have regular conversations with the team to define/redefine the team’s purpose. What would happen if our department did not exist? What do we do that other departments do not? Why are we here?
Take some time also to define the purpose of other groups that your team works with. What do other groups do that ours is not responsible for? Where do we overlap and what needs clarification?
Encourage communication between your team/department and others that you work with. This can be regular meetings, a Teams group, etc. Talk together about the purpose of each group and clarify where teams disagree on what belongs to which group.
When taking on new work as a department or team, or when reviewing/revising operational procedures, refer to the purpose of the team. Where does this work belong? If issues of capacity are causing work to be pushed to another group where it doesn’t fit the purpose, either the purpose of the group needs to change, or resources should be moved to the group where the work belongs (this obviously is not always easy, to say the least).
Projects
At the start of a project,1 make sure to clearly define the purpose of the project, the scope, timeline, and the roles of each department and person who will work on it. Include in this discussion a review of the overall purpose/role of each department.
As the project goes on, assign responsibility for deliverables and tasks to the appropriate department and person, referring to the defined roles (which themselves are assigned based on that group’s core purpose).
Make sure any new tasks or goals that are added to the project are in scope and help further the project’s defined purpose. If not, make a note that you discussed them and determined they belong to a different project.
When the work being done clearly supports the core purpose of a group or project, and there is written documentation to define that purpose, work is easier and more likely to be done correctly. Setting this documentation up early, and reviewing both the work and the documentation frequently, will help prevent confusion and conflict. It may seem like a lot of trouble to pay so much attention to core purpose, but in my experience it’s always worth it.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments. And as always please share and subscribe!
I will have another post specifically about setting up projects for success. Starting out right is critical!