Great planning begins with the end in mind and working backwards through the delivery supply chain. ‘Idealized design’, one of the many contributions from the legendary business thinker, Russell Ackoff, is a planning process that starts when you mentally eliminate your current business model and create a new model from scratch – start with a green playing field without any structure.
Bell Labs, the think tank research and development division of Ma Bell, did this exercise in 1951. They mentally destroyed the old model and idealized what the phone system would look like if they started today. This planning exercise created new innovations like touch tone handsets, caller ID, and cordless phones – all became new products that we take for granted today.
This starting from scratch thinking and linking it with an ‘idealized’ future state is a key principle of ‘creating a new box’ planning process. It can be beneficial to have a set of ‘fresh and objective’eyes help you in the process. Find a project provider that can look at your business without the historical references that have created your existing business model.
Soliciting the input from independent senior project providers that have no in-depth knowledge of your business or industry can lead to breakthrough ideas that can lead to future competitive advantage. Imagine what a new competitor would think about when they discovered your margins. What strategies would they create to take customers away from you. Would they create a business model just like yours – highly unlikely.
Thinking about all the ‘what ifs’ generated with the green field planning approach can also be liberating for you and your staff. Remember the goal is to create new strategies to keep you competitive. This exercise can be the first step to a roadmap that eliminates, redesigns, or opportunities to outsource low value business processes embed in your current delivery chain. Lastly, this planning exercise can be a lot of fun and a fresh start to create more meaning in your work life. GMO