Have you ever heard this situation? A company makes changes to its strategy and people development plans to grow, only to find it is stumbling significantly after the changes are made. This exact situation came to light in a conversation recently. A few decades ago, the company underwent an initiative to address cyclicality in its business, leading it to change its strategy and expand its offerings to minimize the impact of the cyclicality. It also undertook a deliberate effort to match the right people to the right position to minimize risk in the business and grow skillsets.

Years later, the company backed out of the newly expanded offerings. The cyclical part of the business was doing extremely well at the time and the newly expanded offerings were not quite as profitable, so resources were reallocated. And to meet the needs of the business, people were promoted more quickly and did not have the full skillsets. As a result, the company found itself in the same spot it was a few decades before. The history lessons had not transferred between generations of leadership. How are you making sure history does not repeat itself in your business?

It is summer in the Portland area. The views are stunning—snow capped volcanoes that sit atop mountain ranges, green rolling hills and winding rivers that surround the city. The many bridges provide for a brief, but spectacular view that is unmatched. And that can be distracting for some drivers new to the area, or just visiting for the summer. Yesterday was a prime example. A driver proceeding well below the speed limit suddenly pulled over to the shoulder and stopped to observe the view. His actions created a hazard, unbeknownst to him, as he was distracted from accomplishing his task of driving safely.

Distractions in the workplace have a variety of impacts on the business. It could be as simple as lower productivity. But it could be a serious as someone getting hurt or killed. Many times, the distracted person is not the one who gets hurt. It is someone else that is nearby. How are you creating a distraction free culture?

Do you ever drive down the freeway and see people driving at 60 miles per hour or more with less than three car lengths ahead of them? Not a day goes by that I don’t see this many times over. And, there are typically a number of people driving in blind spots. It is surprising that there aren’t more accidents. The reality is, there is not enough room to stop at that speed and that distance should the need arise. The drivers are lucky, not good. But, they think they are good drivers due to the absence of accidents.

Do you have this situation in your business? Is the measure of success the lack of something bad happening? If so, it is time to take a step back and look at the risk factors in your business. High performing companies know their risk factors and they know the levers in the business to pull at the appropriate times. Their measures of success are positive measures of their performance. How are you making sure you are good, not lucky.

It has been raining pretty significantly for days. I didn’t notice it at first because it was dark and due to the amount of runoff in the hilly areas heading to the storm drains. After days of walking by, something didn’t seem right, so I took a closer look. And there it was – probably a broken pipe at the sprinkler irrigation box with significant quantities of water literally heading down the drain. The house was on the corner – it’s front door and driveway on one street and the leak on the other. It’s a house I walk past daily and is a few miles from home, so I don’t know the people. After knocking on their door and three others, I finally found someone home to alert. It’s likely the people are out of town. A few more days passed and a few calls to the water department, the issue was addressed. But the water keeps flowing. They will be facing a massive water bill and huge amounts of wasted water. Clearly there was no mechanism to alert the city or the people to the problem.

Many businesses face similar issues around leakage. They may arise in areas with low visibility. Without a mechanism to alert you to the issue, it can go unchecked for quite some time, resulting in a big surprise. Other times, it may be noticed, but unresolved because the people don’t have an avenue to resolve it. The challenge is to keep ahead of it and address the root cause before it becomes significant. Do you have warning systems in place that alert you to issues in your business? And if you do, do the people have a mechanism to resolve the issue before it becomes significant?