3 Ways to Make an Impact Despite Resource Reductions

By Lucy Rowell, Founder of Impactful Authority

Hands up if you’re feeling overwhelmed with the requirements on you and your team to keep delivering, if not increasing, the impact you’ve been providing for your organisation but now with a reduction in resources. These resources may be people, budget, time, etc., – or most likely, a combination of them all.

At times like these, it’s not unusual for employees at all levels of an organisation to start feeling the symptoms of burnout. While companies are tackling this in a number of ways, here are three strategies to consider that we’ve seen have positive effects on business performance and employee morale. If you’re feeling brave, a combination of these strategies will create an even bigger impact.

RADICAL PRIORITISATION

Prioritisation might be every company's favourite word and strategy, but let's be honest, how often is it actually working? We get it! There is a lot of emotion involved with prioritisation and a lot of bravery required to make sure you’re making the right decisions about where to focus resources. As leaders though, this is what is expected of us, and we have to be transparent and empathetic about how we communicate and help our teams with the decisions we’re making.

If you mark yourself today on a scale of 0-10 with 10 being ‘awesome at radical prioritisation’ and 0 being ‘I’m scared to open my to do list!’, and you score yourself less than a 7, I’d highly encourage you to look further into this strategy.

INCREASED OWNERSHIP

While many companies are moving to more of an increased ownership operating model, there needs to be a balance between individuals’ and organisations’ readiness for ownership and the freedom individuals are given.

If there is too much freedom, then confusion, lack of direction and overwhelm follow. If there is too little ownership, then frustration, demotivation and lack of business potential follow. So, there is an art to knowing where you are today and where you’re heading but making some small steps now can create large opportunities in the future.

If you mark yourself today on a scale of 0-10 with 10 being ‘my team has total ownership’ and 0 being ‘I’m micro-managing everything!’, and you score yourself less than a 7, I’d highly encourage you to look further into this strategy.

SYSTEMS AND PROCESS REVIEW

This is not everyone's favourite topic, but it is one that can make a big difference with often minor input. The key here is to make sure those involved have a say in where to focus the changes to make the biggest impact and to not necessarily go too extreme too quickly.

I’d encourage you on this one to do a quick poll to see if there are common systems and processes which are being reported as bottlenecks.

If you’re wondering how to start applying these strategies, my suggestion is always to think about the next positive step or two that will move you closer and to find your community. Who else is there around you who feels the same? It’s always easier to move forward with others. So, find those who want to see the same success as you and go for it.

Good luck!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lucy Rowell is a coach, consultant and podcast host. She works with motivated leaders, teams and organisations to create high-performing, impactful teams often through times of disruptive change. 

Lucy has over 20 years in senior leadership roles within the area of Data Science, Commercial and Research & Development in global corporate organisations. She was previously the chairwoman for a large non-profit company, PSI. She has designed and implemented a number of innovative large team/organisational transformations and enjoys the challenges transformation brings.