Quick Wins

At the center of an urban college campus was a small parking lot near the women’s freshmen dorm. Everyone knew the lighting in that parking lot was terrible.  There were lighting fixtures around the small lot, but most of the lights were burned out or broken.  It was definitely a safety hazard for the ladies who traveled that section of campus.  In an urban setting, there are a number of issues that can arise from a dimly lit area that is out of plain sight from the roadway.  Therefore, when the new university President hosted a forum for students to bring their ideas and concerns, the issue came up. 

A young lady stood in the middle of the room and asked the President about making some repairs so the parking lot could be better lit and therefore safer.  So how did the President respond?  He said, “Of Course!  That one is easy.”  Someone made a note about the issue and within a week the repairs that had been left undone for years had been made.  It was a “quick win” for the leader, the students, and the university.

Leading change is one of the most challenging tasks a leader is assigned.  However, not all change has to be a battle.  As a leader, you can earn credibility for big changes through a series of “quick wins”.  Here is how it works…

Identify A Small Issue That Needs To Change.  There are a variety of these in your organization.  It could be the way copies are run, the way mail is distributed, the way your shared folder works on the network.  It is a small problem in the overall workings of your organization, but it is something that does need to be changed at some point.

Identify An Issue Everyone Wants To Change.  These are not hard to come by if you are listening.  As you walk through your area of your responsibility you will find common threads of complaint that center around a single or small group of problems.  These complaints cry out for change by a large number of people in your organization.

Get Some Input.  Either formally or informally, gather a group of people to give you some input on the issue that needs to be changed.  Really listen to their ideas and reasoning.  Thank them for their time and consideration in the matter you are discussing.

Make The Change.  Go ahead and pull the trigger on making the change.  Do it quickly once you have gotten input so that those who put their ideas on the table know they are valuable.  Once the change is made give credit to everyone who contributed to the process of making the change.

Repeat.  Follow this simple process several times over, especially if you are new to your leadership position or the organization.  As you string together a line of these small, but impactful changes you are chalking up some quick wins that gain you some credibility moving ahead.

Will these “quick wins” guarantee that you will be beloved as a leader? Will they serve to galvanize your team to follow you into the heat of hard times in organizational life?  No, it is not that easy.  However, through a series of “quick wins” you will find that those you lead will begin to develop trust with you as the leader.  They will understand that you have their best interests in mind.  They will appreciate that you are actually listening when they speak.  “Quick Wins” build momentum toward bigger decisions in the future.