In my last post and one in late November, I wrote about the changes coming to our society, our government, and perhaps even our way of life in the US. Like many of you, I am disgusted and appalled by what I see happening (and not happening) in D.C.. I won’t go into that here, tempting as it is, because I want to address something specific and pertinent to all social service programs, including reentry - the status quo.
Milton Friedman said there are four ways to spend money. You can:
Spend your money on yourself.
Spend your money on someone else.**
Spend someone else’s money on you.
Spend someone else’s money on someone else.
To Mr. Friedman, governments engage in #4. I’ll accept that, but let’s drill down a bit. Once the government disperses funds to a social service entity, it’s up to that organization to develop programs and deliver services. There are certainly mandates, requirements, and strings attached, but the process begins and continues until the funding stops, an imminent possibility for some. A byproduct of this arrangement is the development of an operational or bureaucratic status quo. What begins as a sapling becomes a mature tree with a complex and entangled root system, resulting in structure, org charts, and positions.
And so…change becomes difficult. There’s a lot baked into the cake: People administer the programs and deliver services, the organization has relationships with other organizations, and the need for services continues to grow. Over time, a degree of calcification sets in. The organization, constrained by the status quo, finds it hard to change itself. It’s stuck, no longer lean and nibble.
We see this. We know this. We get this. And we may be part of this. You may be part of it and maybe frustrated by it. You may want to see better outcomes, more efficiency, and effectiveness…but how do you turn the battleship, especially one that’s gotten much heavier and bulkier? More specifically, how do you course correct if you’re not the captain or, for that matter, an admiral?
To restate where I’m coming from, I don’t like what’s happening in Washington. Mike Murphey’s “Chimpanzees with Chainsaws” analogy is spot on. That said, two things are apparent:
Organizations (read this, social service entities and related programs) can get stuck and develop a status quo over time. They can’t/don’t/won’t change independently.
And because of this
Change is coming, cut-and-slash style, to something leaner and perhaps meaner, like it or not.
Look, I know, there’s a lot more to it than this: politics, competing public and personal agendas, power, position, money…the whole nine. However, the fact remains that organizations with status quo and calcification problems (and let’s be honest, there are many) are sitting ducks when this kind of change shows up.
So what to do about it?
As I noted earlier and will do so again, start incorporating for-profit business concepts into your programs. I know this may be distasteful to some, if not outright blasphemous. If so, you’ll have to get over it, as this may be a matter of survival, not capitulation. The time has come to get “lean” and use every tool and app to achieve better outcomes for the communities and individuals you serve. In upcoming posts, I’ll have more to offer on this.
What sets you apart from the for-profit, techie startup MO is the need that your organization serves (the “why” for your existence). They don’t have this and essentially don’t care about it. But you do, as do many others in our society. For-profit businesses exist to make a profit and create wealth…you have a different mandate. Your objective is different and is defined by the needs you are addressing. Lead with and lean into this NEED. And use every business idea, concept, tool, app, and metric to SERVE that need. The other team may pretend no need exists and try to move past it. Don’t let them. Instead, use THEIR tools and methods to serve the NEED.
There’s no time to waste. Your organization and your reentry program are essential. The NEED remains despite the change in social or political wind direction. Yet, whether you realize it or not, it is no longer business as usual. You're in trouble if you “committee it” or sweep it under the rug.
Start today, now.
The tsunami is headed your way.
** BTW, this is where philanthropy lives. But here, too, organizations grow big, the status quo mindset sets in, and inefficiencies develop. All entities can benefit from a leanness tech-tool audit. Efficiency is in, and that’s good so long as it doesn’t displace the mission.
Onward.