If you are like most leaders today, you are struggling with multiple demands and priorities, too much data and possibly no clear plan of where to start. There is a way to identify where to focus on tasks that will deliver high impact with minimal effort or cost. These are your ‘quick wins’.
Achieving small victories not only enhances productivity but also stimulates momentum for further progress on other initiatives, even when the pressure is high.
Here’s how to seize quick wins, no matter how many demands come your way:
We recommend taking a step back to understand the broader environment. Identify your most pressing projects and key pain points that are affecting performance or productivity. From there, look for opportunities where quick interventions could lead to rapid results or advance progress for larger scale projects that align with your overarching goals.
To select quick wins, consider:
Value/Impact:
Reach:
Next re-examine your list of potential wins for how much effort each will require vs the impact they will have. Opportunities that provide maximum impact (value) with minimal effort, are your quick win candidates. Effort, also considered burden can be how long it takes to complete the work, how much it costs, the number of people required to do the work and how long to achieve results. Additionally, if you don’t have the resources available inhouse to create the quick wins, then financial burden increases.
You are not alone. Gain a fresh perspective by collaborating with those who are closest to the areas identified for improvement. Connect with adjacent workstreams both up and down the value chain. Gain ideas on how to solve pain points and contribute to efficiencies from those who will benefit from a quick win. Brainstorm how to solve roadblocks, and gain ideas on how quick wins can be tested or rolled out. When you empower engagement from others you create a sense of teamwork and ownership in the gains achieved.
Once you have identified your quick wins record your current state metrics and define your targets metrics for when your quick win is achieved. Monitor the impact of your quick wins. Validate these quick wins to demonstrate their effectiveness and share these gains to instill confidence in your leadership.
Recognize your teams’ contributions to these wins and how they have furthered the business’ strategic goals. This builds momentum for further support of new quick win opportunities.
Remember to celebrate even the smallest successes as this recognition boosts morale and enforces collective achievement, driving your team forward.
Finding quick wins is the art of defining where to focus to achieve faster progress and/or savings. This approach is how we manage our client engagements, working through a strategic plan and roadmap for larger projects while identifying where we can add value through quick wins along the way. If you need help to prioritize projects, create roadmaps, define accountabilities and identify quick wins – this is what we do! Embrace the challenge with strategic focus, and let these early triumphs propel you towards sustained success.
