Time is money. Everybody knows this. Also in business. When you initiate a new project you are not yet certain about the money involved or about the scope of the functionality. One element however is set from the start: The end date.

“This project will be delivered on the first of April.” “The new product will be on the market the fifth of December.” “We want this as soon as possible (ASAP).” “Just in Time (JIT).”

But an even more important question is: “where are we going to?”

It is obvious that this question is more important, but nearly never posed at first, but most of the time when the fuel tank has been filled, ready to start the vehicle.

Imagine you are in the desert. There is no one to talk to. You are not able to communicate for hours or days. What should you do? If you are lucky you have a compass. You may be uncertain whether you will make it for two more days, but at least you know what direction to choose.

This compass is what you need to manage your business. You do not want to ask everyday the same about whether this or that is in line with what we have previously discussed. You want a basic direction, something you can use to delegate.

An Organizational (Style) Compass can help you managing day-to-day and also strategic decisions. Rather than only making a planning that takes time to build and time to implement, you are better off with an instrument that you can use on a daily basis. This compass shows you HOW you should organize. What the most preferable style of the organization is. You should be able to align (management) teams using such a compass.

And if you encounter new challenges, new information you gathered somewhere during a new project expedition, you are able to adjust the direction. And you are able to communicate the change in a very simple way.

© 2006 Hans Bool

Hans Bool is the founder of Astor White a traditional management consulting company that offers online management advice (by using the organizational Style Compass). Astor Online solves issues in hours what normally would take days. You can apply for a free trial.

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