#4 Existing Conditions
We can't change what we don't know
The first step of any experiment is to understand the current situation. Before any interventions, it's critical to know how things exist. The second step is to examine the current situation, measuring what works, what doesn’t, and what’s missing. These are non-negotiable. Without them, any experiment is as unreliable as a house of cards. We must look backward before we move forward.
This will sound familiar to those of you who have been reading since the beginning (hey, hi, thank you). Quartermasters embody these characteristics. Quartermasters use different historical data to create precise, informed probabilistic outcomes. They base these outcomes on what worked in the past, what didn't, and what wasn't accounted for. Then, they outfit their leaders and teams accordingly.
It’s time for us to be our own quartermasters. We can design a future of work that works for us and the businesses we represent.
So, it’s time to take inventory of what currently exists about work for you and your team. (Note: for now, I’m defining teams as groups of fewer than 15, but ideally around ten people.)
What types of activities are you doing?
What helps your ability to do those activities?
What hurts your ability to do those activities?
What’s missing that would help you do those activities better?
Although the season of Festivus is upon us, this exercise is not an airing of the grievances. This exercise requires that we think objectively and not point fingers. Articulate your experience and perspective. Don’t speculate about who might be responsible for the challenges you confront. Opinions will differ based on age, personality, nature of work, and more. But, this exercise intends to help you focus on your collective challenges. It will inform what you experiment with in January.
Consider this step the drawing of our bow. We are gathering our resources and energy in one place. This way, we can concentrate our efforts in a clear, singular direction when we’re ready. And what better time of year to do it? Year’s end is always a time of reflection and contemplation. This year has brought quite a bounty for us to consider what deserves to come with us into 2024 and what stays behind in 2023.
In 2024, paid subscribers will have access to:
Detailed qualitative questions for Existing Conditions exercise
Access to an Experimentation Dashboard that will allow you to input data from the Existing Conditions exercise to see a team-wide view
Additional dashboard features added monthly to help you measure the success of your experiments and build upon them
Wishing you and your loved ones a gentle, healthy, and restful end of 2023. We’ve got a lot of work to do come January.
See you on the other side,
Corinne