Future Work/Life is my newsletter in which I share future of work insights for business and career growth. If you find it interesting, please share it!
Sometimes to move forward, you have to work backwards.
Not that long ago, full-time employees were the norm. Yes, you might have a band of contractors working with your business. Employing outside consultancies or agencies certainly isn’t anything new. But the scale, variety and frequency with which you’re now engaging a diverse set of contributors is rapidly increasing. As I discuss on this week’s podcast with Jeff Schwartz, the world of work is undergoing mass transformation, with dynamic workforce ecosystems replacing traditional structures.
So, how should you respond?
Well, for inspiration, I like to look at the most innovative organisations and entrepreneurs, applying and evolving the lessons they’ve learned to new challenges. And when you’re talking about a diverse, fast-growing and complex workforce, it’s hard to look beyond Amazon. Leaving aside more controversial labour practices for a moment, let’s consider how we can borrow one of their core ideas to guide how you approach these new workforce shifts:
The principle of ‘working backwards’.
Step 1:
The first key step is to Define Your 'Customer'.
Amazon puts the customer first in every decision. When creating a product this means relentlessly focusing on the customer’s ‘problem’, followed by a granular analysis of how the perfect solution might look for them, how much they’d be willing to pay for it, and all other considerations influencing their purchase decision.
What does that mean for you?
You might also think of the end consumer as you begin to assess how to build your team to create the maximum possible value for them. But you needn’t necessarily take the idea of a ‘customer’ literally. For example, an HR team could consider the employees they serve as their 'customers', aiming to create the best possible employee experience from recruitment to retirement.
Why does this matter?
It provides a clear focus for your team's efforts and creates a shared understanding of who you're serving.
Step 2:
Next, it's crucial to Identify the "Job-To-Be-Done."
Clearly understanding your objectives - specifically in the context of the customer’s problem and their perfect solution - gives direction to your team. It helps you begin to define what’s required to get that job done and what resources you need to achieve it.
Consider a software start-up. The founding team, originally composed of software developers and engineers, have successfully launched the product. But to scale the business, they need to clarify the new "job-to-be-done" and accordingly adjust their team structure.
Rather than just 'creating software, their job becomes 'helping businesses improve efficiency through our software'.
With this broader job description, they may realise they need skills outside their current team - for example, business development professionals, customer success managers, and content marketers. They can then recruit new members or train existing members to fulfil these roles
Step 3:
So that means Identifying the Required Skills and Where to Find Them.
A clear vision of your team’s purpose, combined with a deep understanding of the job you need to deliver for your customer, enables you to scope the necessary skills and experience you need. Perhaps you still have these in your existing team. If not, are there people in other parts of the business who have them and are well-suited to align with your new ‘customer-centric’ vision?
In a large organisation, that may mean tapping into internal talent marketplaces, but if you need to recruit from outside, what does an ideal new ‘contributor’ look like?
Does it matter where they’re located?
Do you need someone working full or part time?
Does the role require regular face-time in real life, or can they work remotely?
What’s the right level of synchronous versus asynchronous work for them to succeed?
How can you most effectively balance the required skills levels with cultural fit and diversity of experience?
You may no longer even look for just one individual but instead tap into the power of crowds or what Jeff Schwartz describes as ‘complementators’:
“Complementors are people that work in some way on your platform for your company and provide services that make your company more valuable. The most obvious example of this are people that create apps or content that are part of, let's the iOS, Android App Stores.”
Step 4:
Once you know what skills you need and your options for finding them, focus on Building a Culture of Success.
Consistently communicate your customer-focused vision.
Encourage your team to think from a customer's perspective in every task.
Schedule regular sessions for team members to share their insights about customers and suggest improvements.
Recognize and reward customer-centric initiatives and outcomes.
Back to Amazon for a moment, which has long used the 6-Page Memo in meetings to encourage encourage detailed thinking and enabling a platform for diverse views to thrive. As Jeff Bezos explained:
When you have to write your ideas out in complete sentences, complete paragraphs it forces a deeper clarity. Time doesn’t come from nowhere. This way you know everyone has the time. The author gets the nice warm feeling of seeing their hard work being read. If you have a traditional PowerPoint presentation, executives interrupt. If you read the whole 6 page memo, on page two you have a question but on page four that question is answered. And so that is what we do, we just sit and read.
Such rigour in their meeting discipline was essential as the company scaled. But more than that, Jeff Bezos understood that a carefully constructed written narrative was more effective at communicating the benefits (or shortcomings) of every aspect of their business - whether related to financial planning, product innovation, or major logistical decisions.
You may or may not use this system in meetings, but there’s a broader point that’s relevant in the context of workforce ecosystems.
While creating a system of accountability and transparency, Amazon has also built a growing, shared knowledge base. As team members join or you introduce new contributors, they have visibility on what has been previously discussed and how decisions are made.
Step 5:
Lastly, working backwards offers a chance to Harness Your Team's Potential.
Many are concerned that as AI becomes more advanced, their jobs will become redundant. The truth is, some will, which is why working backwards from the ‘customer’ problem is so critical. Rather than just view their potential through the lens of the tasks they do now, here’s an opportunity to match their underlying skills with your new ‘job to be done’.
There'‘s even a role for the much-maligned middle manager.
While organisations of the future may require fewer managers in the traditional mould, the skills the define the best who perform that role can be leveraged in other ways. The interface (digital communications) and audience (a diverse workforce ecosystem, including AI) may be different, but the ability to prioritise, quickly distil information into actionable tasks and coordinate multiple stakeholders remains critical.
As I write in Work/Life Flywheel, the secret to harnessing the work revolution is approaching the future:
With an open mindset
Making creativity a value
Consistently experimenting
Cultivating a community of supporters and collaborators
Approaching the challenges with a sense of curiosity and constantly learning.
Taking time to pause and reflect, to help you make important breakthroughs.
Leading forwards by working backwards:
As managing diverse and complex workforce ecosystems becomes the norm, don’t just adapt, take the initiative!
Ask yourself and your team one simple question:
“If we put our customers at the heart of every decision, how should we design our team and work processes?”
Start with the end with mind, and work backwards.
Thanks for reading and enjoy the weekend.
Ollie
P.S. If you’d like to me come in and share more insights and practical advice with your team, book a call with me HERE.