Mission Creep and the Triangle of Truth

Jinkies! Zoinks! Jeepers!  No, that headline is NOT the title of the next Scooby Doo movie.  It’s an idea for managing programme drift. Because almost all transformation programmes are vulnerable to loss of focus or direction.

To reduce your anxiety about mission creep, the first rule is: accept it. Creep is almost inevitable, because organisations and their environments change during the course of every transformation. The best you can do with mission creep is to accept it will happen; be aware that it has started to happen; and then control it.

If your Discovery exercise is thorough; your purpose statement is clear; and you have a good understanding of the business at the start, then it cannot wander too far.

You will, however, need to be clear about your Triangle of Truth, which comprises:

                                            Cost

                            Quality                 Time                                  

Every programme has an anchor point on the Triangle of Truth. You will need to identify your anchor point on the triangle at the start – which of these three is non-negotiable for your Programme? Being clear about that will allow you to permit teensy bits of creep on the other two. So if the deadline is the deadline, then cost and quality could be allowed a little elasticity.

It is very useful to have this concept to hand when pressure is put on you by stakeholders. Explain the aim is to balance all three, but that Some Corners Are More Equal Than Others. It is a particularly effective tool when Nice-To-Have and Kids-In-A-Sweetshop Syndromes kick in. Because as you know, “if it wasn’t for those meddling kids” life would be easier…

But as I said, creep will inevitably occur. Sometimes there may be “positive creep” – when you need to accept that new circumstances have arisen and it’s essential to accommodate these. As long as the business is happy to do so; you can deliver to an acceptable quality standard; the necessary funding is available; and time has been allowed, then there’s no need to freak out, gang.

Mission Creep can also occur when you’ve missed something in the early (Discovery) stages. Again, this is necessary creep. Admit the mistake, accommodate the new information and crack on. Once you’ve recalibrated to take account of this new information – maybe even resetting your anchor-point on the Triangle - then you will need to communicate the new position to key stakeholders.

From there onwards, be dogmatic about what we are here to do and how. Keeping your purpose statement and agenda visible will help keep people on the straight and narrow. As will the occasional Scooby Snack...

This is based on an extract from Mark Aikman’s book Uncommon Sense: Alternative Thinking on Digital Transformation

Amazon location: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Uncommon-Sense-Alternative-Thinking-Transformation-ebook/dp/B08KSG513Q  

Apple location: https://books.apple.com/gb/book/uncommon-sense/id1536877985