Friday 19 March 2010

You know more than you think you do


The vast amount of experience within your organization. Surprisingly, there is a lot more there than you knew of and it’s right under your nose.

A client needed to know what kind of SAP knowledge our organization has. With our focus heavily in other areas, we thought we’d fall short. But with a simple email asking our team "what do you know about X?" garnered a HUGE response. We were floored.

Your company, when you combine all that existing knowledge together, is far more powerful than you could even imagine.

So let US know what you find out when you ask your colleagues what THEY know. Bet you'll be surprised.

2 comments:

MDWDFW said...

The best organizations consist of individuals who complement one another almost perfectly, and not simply on a professional, nuts and bolts level, but in personality and demeanor. I liken it to how Rocky explained to Paulie why his relationship with Adrian worked so well: "I got gaps, she's got gaps, together we fill gaps."

The last team I worked for had several people at the divisional level that fit this bill. Aside from the daily responsibilities we all had to the job, the mix of characters there each had outside talents, none of which really overlapped, that we all brought to the table - talents that could be leveraged into projects and other ventures.

Legal background, real estate background, retail background, college background, programming background... none of these skills directly related to our jobs, but they all came in handy in positioning our brand the way corporate wanted it positioned. Is a certain computer idea feasible? Talk to the programming gal before you waste IT's time with a lame duck proposal. How would such and such promotion work? Ask the retail guy, then ask the legal guy if there are any pitfalls to avoid. And so on.

Not only do the peripheral skills matter, but the means by which each person transmits those talents makes a difference, too. 12 people that think just alike working on a project may get things done, and done efficiently, as they likely know each other's thought process. But introducing people who process information differently, and thus may offer up ideas from alternative points of view, can increase said project's effectiveness. A concept that is completed quick may save money, but the extra cost of thoroughly covering all of your bases will often make its additional costs back and then some.

Tracey said...

MDWDFW - your reply is so well thought out, and the Rocky reference is INSPIRED! Contact me, will you? tracey@brightbluemarketing.com