I don’t know anyone that truly enjoys going to the doctor. For most people scheduling an appointment means that something is not only wrong, but it’s gotten to the point where action must be taken. Similarly, companies like to manage their own organizational health themselves for the most part. Just as a patient might say, “I know my own body”, a leader will say that they, “know their own business.”

This is not in and of itself a bad move, but it’s important for individuals and organizations to know when to bring in an outside expert to help with a major intervention or even for a simple check in to make sure they’re on the right track.

Let’s use oral health as an example. Humans are not born with an innate knowledge of brushing, flossing, using mouthwash, etc. Children need external help from their parents to learn and establish this behavior! As we grow, we (hopefully) maintain and expand on this foundation. However, when it comes to improvements or fixing major problems (like getting braces put on) it’s no surprise that we opt to go to a professional rather than do the work ourselves!

In the business world, it’s an organization’s leaders that are responsible for establishing foundational best practices, staying up to date on new trends that affect their industry, and being honest with themselves about their organization’s health. Unlike our bodies which have been pretty much the same for three hundred thousand years, organizations and the industries they’re within are constantly having to adapt and change. With the lifespan of organizations in the Fortune 500 decreasing at a consistent pace, it is imperative that good habits around innovation and transformation are not only put in place, but maintained to current standards!

So we know that health, be it for our business or body, is important. Why do we wait so long to take action?

In healthcare, the high cost of seeking treatment is actually not the top reason that keeps people away. Instead it’s concerns about the interpersonal skills of the doctor (communication, listening, etc.) which results in a lack of confidence in their recommendations! Second, to that was the classic, “I was just hoping this problem would get better on its own.”

When it comes to asking for help with digital transformation (or business problems in general), leaders are guilty of inaction for similar reasons as well. “I don’t want some guy who ‘knows tech’ to come in and tell me how to manage my own business.” And that’s fair! When you haven’t established confidence in your provider and their abilities, you’ll undoubtedly question the effectiveness of their recommendations!

As is true with doctors, we at Codelitt know that listening is the key. We are experts in the software engineering, design, and strategy space, but if we don’t listen honestly and try to understand our partners then we can’t serve them well. Sure, we may have worked with, say, a large insurance organization before, but that doesn’t mean the next one we work with will be similar. No two organizations are exactly alike. We must listen and gather, like a doctor, the symptoms that are affecting your organization and dive deep into the “why” to get to the root of the problem.

So how do we accomplish this? Our 3 Approaches to Problem Solving mirrors the journey of a new patient seeking care.

1.  Build Workshop

To use the doctor/patient example, this is where we sit down during an in-person session to listen, diagnose, and strategize on one of your problems. Through collaboration, we arrive on a “treatment plan” - a complete scope document with timelines, estimates, wireframes, and recommendations on architecture and tech stack.

We like to start all our projects here because it ensures our mutual compatibility, builds confidence, and mitigates the risk for our partners (patients) in moving forward with expensive care. While most of our partners do choose to continue to the next stage, Product Development, the Build Workshop delivers you value that you can take to another “doctor” (should you so choose) or to your in-house team (if the resources and expertise are there).

2.  Product Development

So you like the plan above that we’ve collaborated to create and mutually agreed upon - great! For whatever reason (bandwidth, expertise, time, etc.) your internal team can’t take care of this particular health problem. You’re confident in our thought leadership and our stacked team made up of developers, designers, user testers, and QA folks.

This stage is where we get to work in collaborating on building products that provide value to your business and its users. This could be a small improvement or a major “surgery”.

3.  Innovation Pipeline

Lastly, we provide the service of being your ongoing partner in transformation. This is akin to acting as a patient’s “primary care physician”. We are the ones you call when you have a number of ongoing projects that can’t be handled internally.

With our expertise and a holistic health perspective on your organization, we help interpret your backlog of projects. In collaboration with you, we aim to hone in on the ones that will provide you with the most value. In this continuously evolving process, Codelitt becomes an extension of your own team.

Conclusion

Just like physical health care, organizational transformation is almost never 100% outsourced. It is crucial that companies, like people, do their best to take care of themselves and take an honest look internally and externally to see gaps.

Sometimes, the best way to do this is to bring in an outside pair of eyes to help. It is admittedly hard to get perspective on oneself! You get used to the day to day operations and don’t notice when your idea of “normal” is needing improvement or worse in desperate need of change.

Codelitt helps organizations large and small strategize on their transformation and build solutions that amaze their users. We seek to challenge your status quo in collaboration with you so that you can learn from our strategy, take advantage of our solutions, and become the master of your own healthy transformational journey. Once you’re there, then we can high five and I’ll say, “call me next year for your annual checkup!”

Do our 3 Approaches to Problem Solving align with the way you work?

Let me know! You can schedule time to chat with me here.

Check out some of our great resources to aid in your transformation!