Why vision isn’t a four-letter word BUT your most valuable tool for achieving IT success.
I was reading the book The Leadership Challenge by Kouzes & Posner the other evening and happened on a particular chapter that resonated with me, it was on vision. Yes, vision.
It is a word that causes many to quiver. If you don’t believe me, take out a piece of paper and write down what you believe your organization’s vision is in 35 words or less. Then, if you are really brave (or naïve), go ask your manager to do the same and then compare notes. If your manager can articulate a vision (nine times out of ten they won’t – that statistic was determined through the completely unscientific method of asking 20 of my peers if they could articulate a vision for their organization) then I’ll bet my lucky penny that your vision doesn’t match your managers.
Here is the opportunity for IT.
Vision is critically important if you are in IT. Technology is being revolutionized at a logarithmic rate (yes, even marketers like me can get a little geeky)… in fact, it’s evolving at a faster pace then just about everything else (if you exclude legislation). If you don’t have a vision for your IT department, you won’t be able to execute in the long run. And, since technology can be one of the greatest points of differentiation over your competitors, your organization depends on YOU getting it right.
If you are in IT and don’t have a vision for your department, it’s time to get started and set an example for the rest of the organization.
If you don’t know where to begin in creating your IT vision, Kouzes & Posner have a few suggestions and questions that will help you start uncovering it.
Imagine the Possibilities: “The greatest achievement of the human brain is its ability to imagine objects and episodes that do not exist… The human brain is an ‘anticipation machine,’ and ‘making future’ is the most important thing it does. –Daniel Gilbert. Start imagining!
Reflect on the Past: Research reveals that if we look to our past before we look to the future, we will actually be able to visualize farther into the future (the Janus Effect).
Attend to the Present: You have to think strategically first before you think tactically. Outline the over encompassing plan before digging into the details.
Prospect the future: “Leaders need to spend a considerable time reading about, thinking about, and talking about the long term view. Not only for their specific organization, but also for the environment in which they operate.” (Kouzes & Posner)
Feel Your Passion: It ain’t enough to know it, you have got to believe it with every part of your soul…
Find a Common Purpose: It’s not enough for you to believe it with every part of your soul… so does everyone else. If they don’t, it won’t happen, period.
Listen Deeply to Others: One of the most important steps in uncovering what the common purpose really is.
Determine what’s meaningful to Others: Kouzes & Posner mention four things that make employee work meaningful:
1) A chance to be tested, to make it on one’s own
2) A chance to take part in a social experiment
3) A chance to do something good
4) A chance to change the way things are done
Make it a cause for commitment: This pretty much sums it up. “People commit to causes, not to plans” (Kouzes & Posner)
Be forward looking in Times of Rapid Change: IT is changing at an unprecedented pace; don’t forget to look beyond your present situation. That is really the essence of a vision.
If you take the time to develop an IT vision for your organization, then you will set your organization up to go places that it didn’t think was possible.
