The Ministry of Common Sense

1. Common sense is disappearing from businesses, eroding productivity and customer satisfaction

"Companies are so entangled in their own internally generated issues, and further beset by reams of invisible red tape inside employees' heads, that they lose sight of this core purpose—and inevitably pay the price."

Widespread problem: The lack of common sense in businesses is pervasive and costly. Organizations are often so consumed by internal processes and red tape that they forget their primary purpose - serving customers. This leads to inefficiencies, frustration, and lost opportunities.

Real-world examples:

• Complex packaging that customers can't open
• Confusing TV remote controls
• Airline policies that increase passenger anxiety
• Hotel practices that inconvenience guests

Consequences:

• Decreased customer satisfaction
• Lower employee morale
• Reduced productivity
• Wasted resources
• Diminished competitiveness

2. Empathy is the foundation of common sense in organizations

"The lack of common sense in companies (and in life) has a clear, if indirect, connection to the increasing disappearance of empathy."

Empathy defined: The ability to understand and share the feelings of others, putting yourself in their shoes. It's the cornerstone of human-centric decision-making and problem-solving.

Importance in business:

• Facilitates better customer experiences
• Improves employee relationships and collaboration
• Leads to more intuitive product and service design
• Enhances communication and conflict resolution

Cultivating empathy:

• Encourage face-to-face interactions
• Implement cross-functional teamwork
• Conduct customer immersion experiences
• Use storytelling to share diverse perspectives
• Provide empathy training for employees

3. Companies must shift from inside-out to outside-in thinking

"By bringing together employees with consumers, a company's muscle memory weakens—and resets toward a genuine customer-oriented mindset."

Outside-in thinking: Viewing the organization from the customer's perspective, rather than through internal processes and structures. This approach helps identify and eliminate pain points that may be invisible from within.

Implementation strategies:

• Conduct customer immersion experiences for employees
• Regularly gather and analyze customer feedback
• Create cross-functional teams to tackle customer issues
• Use journey mapping to visualize the customer experience
• Implement "voice of the customer" programs

Benefits:

• Improved product and service design
• Enhanced customer satisfaction and loyalty
• More efficient and effective processes
• Increased innovation and competitiveness
• Better alignment between company goals and customer needs

4. Corporate politics and bureaucracy are major obstacles to common sense

"Politics in companies, like any smokescreen, is the enemy of common sense. When company dynamics and priorities are unclear, not only does the resulting confusion mess up the chain of command but inevitably companies often privilege personalities over principles."

Politics defined: The pursuit of power and influence within an organization, often at the expense of efficiency and common sense.

Common manifestations:

• Multiple reporting levels
• Scattered geography leading to communication issues
• Inconsistent decision-making by leadership
• Homogeneous employee bases resistant to change
• Silos and excessive Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Overcoming politics and bureaucracy:

• Flatten organizational structures
• Encourage open communication and transparency
• Implement cross-functional teams and projects
• Regularly review and simplify processes and policies
• Foster a culture of collaboration over competition

5. Excessive meetings and PowerPoint presentations hinder productivity and common sense

"Meetings—and PowerPoint presentations—can eat up close to 50 percent of our time when we work in a company."

Meeting overload: Many organizations spend excessive time in unproductive meetings, reducing actual work time and fostering a culture of busy-ness over productivity.

PowerPoint pitfalls:

• Encourages linear thinking
• Can oversimplify complex issues
• Often used as a crutch for poor communication
• Time-consuming to create and digest

Improving meeting culture:

• Set clear agendas and objectives
• Limit meeting duration and frequency
• Encourage active participation and decision-making
• Use alternative formats (e.g., stand-up meetings, walking meetings)
• Consider banning PowerPoint in favor of more interactive discussions

6. Technology can inadvertently complicate processes and diminish common sense

"Tech often makes us feel crazy—when a lot of the time the problem is tech itself."

Technology paradox: While designed to simplify and streamline, technology can often create new complexities and barriers to common sense thinking.

Common pitfalls:

• Overreliance on automation
• Poorly designed user interfaces
• Excessive security measures that hinder productivity
• Constant updates and changes that disrupt workflows

Balancing technology and common sense:

• Regularly assess the real value of technological solutions
• Prioritize user experience in technology implementation
• Encourage human oversight and intervention in automated processes
• Provide adequate training and support for new technologies
• Maintain flexibility to bypass technology when common sense dictates

7. Fear-based corporate cultures stifle innovation and common sense

"When our brains are consumed by fear and anxiety, the truth is, we don't perform at optimal levels. Just the opposite, in fact. We perform better in environments where we feel 'psychologically safe.'"

Fear in the workplace: Many organizations inadvertently create cultures of fear through rigid hierarchies, punitive policies, and a lack of psychological safety.

Consequences of fear-based cultures:

• Reduced creativity and innovation
• Decreased risk-taking and problem-solving
• Lower employee engagement and morale
• Increased stress and burnout
• Diminished overall performance

Creating psychological safety:

• Encourage open communication and feedback
• Celebrate failures as learning opportunities
• Provide clear expectations and support
• Foster a culture of trust and respect
• Implement fair and transparent decision-making processes

8. Implementing change requires a strategic, step-by-step approach

"The Chicken Cage Syndrome shows that common-sense changes are best carried out using small, tangible, immediately 'winnable' steps."

Change management strategy: Implementing common sense in organizations requires a structured approach to overcome resistance and create lasting impact.

Five-step process:

1. Caged: Recognize the need for change
2. Courage: Implement small, immediate changes
3. Celebration: Acknowledge and reward successes
4. Check the Cage and Conquer: Address resistance and setbacks
5. Contribution Culture: Empower employees to drive ongoing change

Key principles:

• Focus on quick wins to build momentum
• Communicate successes and lessons learned
• Involve employees at all levels in the change process
• Address resistance proactively and empathetically
• Continuously reinforce the importance of common sense

9. A Ministry of Common Sense can systematically improve organizational efficiency

"Establishing an actual Ministry of Common Sense ensures that the daily, common-sense solutions that a company has already committed to creating aren't made out of duct tape, frayed string, and bent safety pins—that real change will last, without compromising the business or its employees going forward."

Ministry of Common Sense: A dedicated department or team responsible for identifying and addressing common sense issues within an organization.

Key functions:

• Collect and prioritize common sense issues
• Develop and implement solutions
• Measure and communicate impact
• Foster a culture of common sense thinking

Implementation steps:

1. Secure leadership endorsement
2. Appoint a Minister of Common Sense
3. Establish clear goals and metrics
4. Create a system for collecting and addressing issues
5. Celebrate and communicate successes
6. Continuously evolve and expand the ministry's impact

Benefits:

• Increased efficiency and productivity
• Improved customer and employee satisfaction
• Enhanced innovation and problem-solving
• Reduced costs and waste
• Strengthened organizational culture and values

Last updated: August 12, 2024