My Life Blog

Strange title, I admit and a long post as well. Patiently read and it may all make sense. If not, I apologize for the time-waste.

The e-mail arrived yesterday morning.

Due to poor company performance, my bonus will be at least 1.5% less than it could have been. Now, I’m not complaining about getting a bonus as its a privilege to have that kind of opportunity. However, I have continued to elevate my performance — so how should I feel about this?

I have a theory.

My organization probably models on the micro level what’s going on corporate-wide. In my two years, I haven’t seen much innovation or evolution. We do the same things in the same ways. You can suggest change, but you are more than likely on an island by yourself.

Further, people wander the halls like zombies. No one is inspired. Everyone is serving their time, collecting a paycheck, and enjoying a secure existence. There’s little accountability. And there’s little recognition for a job done elegantly. Its Ground Hog Day meets American Beauty without the roses.

So if my organization models the company, its no wonder that market share is falling.

So what can one person do at my low level do? Is there hope? I’m weighing a secure, but unfulfilling existence versus a risky, yet challenging existence. And as I weigh such things, I’m analyzing my company and seeking insight into why it is the way it is.

One of our curious corporate culture quirks is to synchronize project due dates with appraisal periods. Appraisal periods are synonymous with bonuses. As you might imagine, we generally make all of our project due dates. But in almost every case, what’s delivered is very different than what was requested. As the due date nears, there is a mad scramble to eliminate scope and find a way to deliver. In the most extreme cases, we spend loads of money and deliver very little incremental value. Its amazing. Its discouraging.

Its unbelievable also to watch the architectural and procedural short-cuts that are taken. I often leave work having pitched for the right thing to do, but made to agree with and build something that I know is not in the long-term interest of the company. People opt for local safety. They protect their bonus possibilities and screw the company.

So is there a better way?

Given my inability to think of a worse way, the answer must be emphatically “YES”. What I would love to do is to revamp our reward system and the way we organize and work. I don’t like having my bonus be dependent on a big system that I’m largely not in control of. Give me the freedom to achieve and I will. Incent me and make the game fair and I will perform.

So here’s my idea. Imagine if I could form a team of my peers and be allowed to work projects with this same team. We could more quickly reach those mythical CMM levels using many of the agility principles that we already practice. Before long, we’d know each other so well and work so well together that we’d surely outperform those teams that get thrown together. But that’s not all.

The corporation would define projects and assign an ROI to them. Obviously, the higher the ROI, the more challenging they are. And with greater ROI, more value to the business. Along with the ROI, assign a project bonus commensurate with the ROI. And draw up performance and delivery terms for the bonus. And then let teams like mine bid for them.

What do you think would happen here? If there was a project bootie up for grabs, I think we’d self-organize and be highly-motivated to deliver the project. I think we’d have our eye on the prize every day and it’d be like we were running our own business every day. I think some teams would distinguish themselves — maybe become dynasties. And maybe some of the perks could be better corporate facilities and perhaps a bit of rock-star-like fame in the company.

What do you think?