What can a bunch of royals and soccer players teach you about information sharing? The short answer is, “A lot.” For the long answer, read on!
Security: intricate yet invisible
On the 27th of April, the Dutch traditionally celebrate King’s Day. On this national holiday, the royal family always visits a town in the Netherlands. Their visit is aired live, and many people stay at home to watch it. So, the whole thing needs to go smoothly and effortlessly — from A to Z.
We can only imagine the level of security in place. Imagine, because the public gets to see virtually none of it. Sure, we catch glimpses of the occasional bodyguard escorting the royals. But the intricate organization behind it stays off camera. Obviously, this is partly because nobody wants to provide security information to those with malicious intent. But it would also hugely distract the public from the royals.
The same goes for soccer games: security measures are most definitely taken, but no one gets to see them. If soccer is your thing, you and your friends usually gather in front of the TV to watch two teams compete against each other. You don’t care for security measures or hooligans. It’s just about the soccer players and the game!
Laser focus on the right things
In both cases, we’re usually presented with a picture-perfect event. Organizers eliminate unnecessary distractions — including people who try to play havoc, and any measures taken to stop them. Since these people are not given any indirect ‘screen time’ (which would be the case if the underlying security mechanism was shown), they’re less inclined to disrupt the event.
Another benefit is that the public can fully focus on the people that organizers want to spotlight, whether they’re royals or soccer players. And this approach creates the joyful, pleasant atmosphere the public is supposed to feel.
Informed, motivated, and independent decisions
Now, let’s translate this to the work floor. If you only share the actionable, real-time information you want employees to focus on, they’ll be much more able to make informed decisions.
And if you leave out distractions, they will be more empowered and therefore more driven — which is why they’ll be more likely to make the right decisions. Combined with the resulting positive atmosphere, this will foster motivated, independent decision-making!
Want to use this philosophy to build an effective information sharing strategy that helps you achieve your organizational goals? Please don’t hesitate to contact us. We are happy to perform a Quick Scan and discuss your Visual Management opportunities.