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Abstract

ed, as it allows the manager to predict the workflow better. Subsequently, it removes obstacles, it provides clarity on the goal, and ensures prioritization.</p><p id="1fd5">Also, I bet the last thing you want to do is spend the entire evening before a deadline catching up with unfinished work because you didn’t feel like spending 30 mins on your Tuesday after lunch following up with John on some pending work.</p><h2 id="d8e6">Cons considered</h2><p id="c02d">On the other hand, in the absence of it you risk missing deadlines and compromising the expected deliverables from the project.</p><p id="1463">Quality of the work can be jeopardized by omitting important details considering that without regular checks and reviews, mistakes may go unnoticed, leading to subpar results.</p><p id="b936">And of course, if team members aren’t held accountable for their tasks, it may lead to a culture of complacency affecting overall team performance. It’s like when a fruit in the fruit basket becomes rotten and affects all other fruits.</p><p id="9e78">So, what can you do?</p><h1 id="6e55">The pathway to resolution</h1><h2 id="1688">Formalize the procedure</h2><p id="510b">As a first step, it is vital for a shift in mindset to happen where the follow up procedure will be treated just like any other critical component of your operational manual.</p><p id="7dcf">The inclination must be that this is implemented not from the perspective of micromanagement, but rather from an angle of performance maintenance and quality of work perseverance.</p><p id="d0ad">This will deliver meaningful impact in people’s mentality as their capability and integrity of delivering quality work will have direct correlation.</p><p id="266b">Food for thought here: better to have this come as an initiative from the business, than enforced due to an incident where something which could be captured by a simple follow-up became the cause of a failure.</p><h2 id="90fd">Set up a framework</h2><p id="407d">Next, a framework that will help individuals carry out their follow ups must be established. Frequency of follow ups, types of projects and/or tasks applicable for it, the relevant communication channels, as well as the relevant stakeholders, are all important details that must be considered and defined.</p><p id="f882">Your team will need to rely on clear instructions so they can execute with precision. If you’d like to take things further you can also outline and assign responsibilities to the respective team members tasked with following up.</p><h2 id="a6ea">Define the expectations</h2><p id="449a">Having set up the framework along with its parameters marks the beginning of what I like to call the “delegation phase”. In other words, we enter the stage where we rely on our team to follow up and deliver the expected results back to us.</p><p id="72b1">The question is, are our expectations clear? Does our team know what we want

Options

by when? For this to be successful, they have to be. We must clearly define the deliverables we expect our team to bring to us. Otherwise, scenarios where misalignment and miscommunication have festered become the very next thing you find yourself engaged with, spending your time and energy resolving them.</p><p id="192b">Most probably, the expectations will largely depend on the type of task or project we are following up on. A solid way of identifying these dependencies is through the framework that has been established. Smaller tasks may be designated for frequent check ups, whereas large projects may have a more spread-out frequency.</p><h2 id="ff36">Include margin for error</h2><p id="d2f5">Due to our nature, we tend to plan or estimate activities with an extra dosage of wishful thinking. In other words, we act with the preconception that everything will work out perfectly. It’s how the human mind works — it’s built in our systems.</p><p id="91c3">An extra safety measure therefore is to add a margin for error when it comes to deadlines and deliverables. Naturally, mistakes are prone to happen no matter the amount or the quality of the procedures and processes.</p><p id="e39f">There is a saying along the lines of “the best way to plan is to plan knowing that the plan won’t go according to the plan”.</p><p id="116a">Consequently, it’s best that we accept this rather than fight it, and mitigate it with a bit of extra padding.</p><p id="c8d9">So for example, instead of following up on a request right before the designated delivery date, you can do so 2–3 days before that in order to give yourself space to breathe. You may also capture and address issues that had not been identified before but emerged during the progress of the task.</p><h2 id="d808">Analyse the results</h2><p id="351a">And last but not least, we must reap what we sowed.</p><p id="8f06">You can compare this to the lessons learned approach in Project Management where important information and feedback from one project can be used to improve and inform the actions of the next one.</p><p id="81cf">This is of particular importance as it provides a direct glance into how well or bad your procedure has performed. It gives you the opportunity to identify what parts need improvement, and which ones can remain the same (since they are delivering the results).</p><h1 id="ed57">All in all</h1><p id="75c2">It may not seem so, but having a properly setup follow up procedure is vital for your organisation’s successful results. We tend to think of this as a supplementary activity, however the reality is far from that.</p><p id="e7e0">This is what sets apart the hugely successful companies from the others. It’s the attention to detail, the persistence to keep everything on track, and the realization that success relies on support between each other as much as it does on the skills and competencies of people.</p></article></body>

Optimizing Your Outcomes: The Impact of Formalizing Your Follow-Up Procedure

How to drive success home

I am positive somewhere along your career you experienced the recoil of not following up with a task you delegated. You assigned a job to someone, slapped a deadline on it too, and then sat back expecting the results until delivery day only to find out that the work is incomplete.

You are not the only one to have encountered this. Countless times where I chose not to follow up with people as a sign of trust and respect towards them I was proven wrong.

We all have this assumption that by simply delegating, our jurisdiction stops there and our work will be done. And then we are shocked when the reality differs when the person supposed to do the work doesn’t come through.

And we also mix following-up with negative terms of management such as not trusting people — aka micromanagement. Hence, it becomes something we tend to dread.

These stories we tell ourselves about following-up however are lies we believe.

It’s time we realize that assigning, explaining, or even planning, may not be enough on their own. People prioritize tasks with accountability. In the absence of it, items may be delayed or not get done at all.

A closer look

Originally discussed in this article, a key component in improving communication within teams is establishing a follow-up procedure. Hence, following up should be included in your organization’s manual and be an integral part of your operational procedures.

The whys are pretty straight forward.

The rewards perspective

Particularly for large projects (and for tasks to a great extent) where multiple parties are involved and there’s constant exchange of information, consistent follow ups are what keep me afloat and prevent any important details from being missed.

It can make the difference between project success or failure; it can be the differentiator between having significant consequences or impactful accomplishments.

Put simply, a proper follow-up procedure ensures performance is maintained and improved, as it allows the manager to predict the workflow better. Subsequently, it removes obstacles, it provides clarity on the goal, and ensures prioritization.

Also, I bet the last thing you want to do is spend the entire evening before a deadline catching up with unfinished work because you didn’t feel like spending 30 mins on your Tuesday after lunch following up with John on some pending work.

Cons considered

On the other hand, in the absence of it you risk missing deadlines and compromising the expected deliverables from the project.

Quality of the work can be jeopardized by omitting important details considering that without regular checks and reviews, mistakes may go unnoticed, leading to subpar results.

And of course, if team members aren’t held accountable for their tasks, it may lead to a culture of complacency affecting overall team performance. It’s like when a fruit in the fruit basket becomes rotten and affects all other fruits.

So, what can you do?

The pathway to resolution

Formalize the procedure

As a first step, it is vital for a shift in mindset to happen where the follow up procedure will be treated just like any other critical component of your operational manual.

The inclination must be that this is implemented not from the perspective of micromanagement, but rather from an angle of performance maintenance and quality of work perseverance.

This will deliver meaningful impact in people’s mentality as their capability and integrity of delivering quality work will have direct correlation.

Food for thought here: better to have this come as an initiative from the business, than enforced due to an incident where something which could be captured by a simple follow-up became the cause of a failure.

Set up a framework

Next, a framework that will help individuals carry out their follow ups must be established. Frequency of follow ups, types of projects and/or tasks applicable for it, the relevant communication channels, as well as the relevant stakeholders, are all important details that must be considered and defined.

Your team will need to rely on clear instructions so they can execute with precision. If you’d like to take things further you can also outline and assign responsibilities to the respective team members tasked with following up.

Define the expectations

Having set up the framework along with its parameters marks the beginning of what I like to call the “delegation phase”. In other words, we enter the stage where we rely on our team to follow up and deliver the expected results back to us.

The question is, are our expectations clear? Does our team know what we want by when? For this to be successful, they have to be. We must clearly define the deliverables we expect our team to bring to us. Otherwise, scenarios where misalignment and miscommunication have festered become the very next thing you find yourself engaged with, spending your time and energy resolving them.

Most probably, the expectations will largely depend on the type of task or project we are following up on. A solid way of identifying these dependencies is through the framework that has been established. Smaller tasks may be designated for frequent check ups, whereas large projects may have a more spread-out frequency.

Include margin for error

Due to our nature, we tend to plan or estimate activities with an extra dosage of wishful thinking. In other words, we act with the preconception that everything will work out perfectly. It’s how the human mind works — it’s built in our systems.

An extra safety measure therefore is to add a margin for error when it comes to deadlines and deliverables. Naturally, mistakes are prone to happen no matter the amount or the quality of the procedures and processes.

There is a saying along the lines of “the best way to plan is to plan knowing that the plan won’t go according to the plan”.

Consequently, it’s best that we accept this rather than fight it, and mitigate it with a bit of extra padding.

So for example, instead of following up on a request right before the designated delivery date, you can do so 2–3 days before that in order to give yourself space to breathe. You may also capture and address issues that had not been identified before but emerged during the progress of the task.

Analyse the results

And last but not least, we must reap what we sowed.

You can compare this to the lessons learned approach in Project Management where important information and feedback from one project can be used to improve and inform the actions of the next one.

This is of particular importance as it provides a direct glance into how well or bad your procedure has performed. It gives you the opportunity to identify what parts need improvement, and which ones can remain the same (since they are delivering the results).

All in all

It may not seem so, but having a properly setup follow up procedure is vital for your organisation’s successful results. We tend to think of this as a supplementary activity, however the reality is far from that.

This is what sets apart the hugely successful companies from the others. It’s the attention to detail, the persistence to keep everything on track, and the realization that success relies on support between each other as much as it does on the skills and competencies of people.