“You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.” Margaret Thatcher
Sometimes the mission cannot fail. When I was an officer in the U.S. Army circa 2010, we had a serious problem with sexual harassment and assault. In several cases, a soldier was harassed or assaulted and the Army failed to act. Our elected officials (Congress) took notice and threatened to seize control of our legal system and these cases – in essence, solve the problem for us. Army senior leadership took action and placed the responsibility squarely on the shoulders of its commanders and created programs such as the Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention Program or SHARP. We (Army leaders) had our no-fail mission.
No-fail missions are those missions where failure results in catastrophe. The risk(s) and cost(s) are so high that leaders and their organizations will pull out all the stops to ensure success. Indeed, we want every mission to succeed but every mission cannot receive equal focus, resources, and oversight to ensure success as no-fail missions do (or should).
Risk and cost are central to deciding if you have a no-fail mission. If Carl’s mission is to reorganize the filing system and it fails because his teammates have a difficult time finding historical files, the business will probably live to see another day. If Angie’s mission is to replace and inspect the safety harnesses for the company’s telecommunication bucket trucks and she fails, serious injury or life may be at stake. Though he should not, Carl can fail. Angie cannot. Choose your no-fail missions carefully. When you have one, here are three tips from the battlefield…
Continue reading: https://robcampbellleadership.substack.com/p/no-fail-mission-here-are-three-tips?utm_campaign=email-half-post&r=2pvmov&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
