The 4 Disciplines of Execution
"To achieve goal you have never achieved you must do things you have never done before."
4 Disciplines of Execution
Introduction
People fail to execute goals because they are caught up in the "whirlwind" of urgent daily work that saps their time, energy, and focus. These day-to-day activities must get done to run the organization, but they destroy the execution of larger goals.
The 4 Disciplines of Execution are a simple, repeatable, and proven formula for reaching the goals in any organization. They are designed to beat the “whirlwind” by focusing on one or two wildly important goals (WIG) that will make all the difference.
When leaders in their organizations try to implement a new strategy, goal, or initiative, behavioral change is one of the most difficult tasks they face. The authors of Four Disciplines of Execution (4DX) agree that most of the teams in any organization go through 5 Stages of Behavior Change.
Stage 3: Adoption
Stage 1: Getting Clear
Stage 2: Launch
Stage 4: Optimization
Stage 5: Habits
Results
Installing 4DX in my organization
My organization's goal is to implement, Literacy ePortfolios as a learning tool to make students learning more joyful and keep them engaged. According to my Innovation Plan, we will start with the pilot for one of the 5th-grade' classes. Since the 4DX is a repeatable procedure, we can follow it each school year when incorporating more classes.
Stage: 1
Getting Clear
As a leader, I will explain to my team how I developed the four disciplines of execution for the initiative Literacy ePortfolios. Considering that there is more engagement when the team is involved in the process of finding the WIG, lag, and lead measures, we will evaluate them and make any changes if necessary. After reviewing the scoreboard that will help to track our performance, my team will decide if it needs improvement or if we need to create a new one. Finally, after everything is clear, we agree to meet once a week for a brief check-in and to make our weekly commitments.
Discipline #1
Focus on the Wildly Important Goals (WIG)
Following the steps recommended to find the WIG, I recognized the goal that won't be achieved without our special attention. It is also measurable in terms of X to Y by When.
Discipline #2
Act on the Lead Measures
I found two activities directly influenced by the team's actions that will drive the success of the WIG. I defined two lead measures; one focuses on the team's weekly achieving, and the other one will be tracked by the specific behaviors we want the team to perform throughout the week.
Discipline #3
Keep a Compelling Scoreboard
I found meaningful to relate the theme of the Scoreboard with the logo and mascot of our school. The apple represents the Lag measure, and the Mustang is the Lead measure. The graph with the score will be posted on the school's board every Monday morning, making it easy to see if we are winning toward our WIG.
Discipline #4
Create a Cadence of Accountability
My team will share feedback during our weekly WIG meetings and highlight individual and team achievements, tasks, and responsibilities.
WIG
Create an ePortfolio and continue developing it to show 90% of learning pieces of evidence by the end of the school year.
LAG MEASURE
From 0 to 90% of learning pieces of evidence by the end of the school year.
LEAD MEASURES
1. Small Outcome
Add three learning pieces of evidence to the ePortfolio every week.
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2. Leveraged Behavior
Review learning pieces of evidence on ePorfolio once a week.
Compelling Scoreboard
3
Tentative scoreboard
4DX for implementation of Literacy ePortfolios
1
2
4
Tentative WIG meeting schedule
The team will be meeting for fifteen minutes every Monday during planning time.
Stage: 2
Launch
Once the planning is done, it is time to put that initiative in motion. As a leader, I will model desired behavior. I will remind my team that implementation is a process, not a quick fix; we need to trust the process. My team will be patient and consistent with the plan, fighting the whirlwind. We all focus and put all our energy toward the WIG.
During this stage, I will Identify the most engaged team members (models), those who lack focus/knowledge (potentials), and those with negative attitudes (resisters).
We continue with our weekly WIG meetings, holding each other accountable. As the scoreboard moves and the motivation remains consistent, my team continues to work toward the WIG. We continue to make weekly commitments to impact the lead. Scoreboard is updated weekly. It is time to clear the path for resisters (catch up with those who fall behind). By tracking the results, my team has started to see progress.
Finally, if necessary, we will adjust lag and leads measures.
Stage: 3
Adoption
Stage: 4
Optimization
We reached the phase where 4DX is in full implementation, and team members are starting to take the lead on initiatives within the plan. Engagement is high, and actions are tailored toward playing the game to win. This stage is fit for providing recognition; the potential members started performing like the models. My team celebrates victories and continues to encourage creativity and teamwork.
Stage: 5
Habits
My team has reached the wildly important goal it set out to achieve. The strategy has become a standard set of habits that have shifted the culture within the organization. Since the WIG has been met, it's time to celebrate accomplishing and brainstorm ideas for a new WIG. As a leader, I will help individual team members become high performers by tracking and moving the middle.
4DX versus Influencer
I am using two models to implement my innovation plan. The Influencer and Four Disciplines of execution, 4DX. In my opinion, they complement each other. While the 4DX focuses on the actual process involving the team to develop and execute the most impacting goal, The Influencer model focuses more on behavioral science through motivating and giving the ability to the individual in the organization to change the behavior toward the goal.
Both models set a measurable goal, but the 4XD assures the accomplishment by tracking the behaviors (lead measures) during the process.
Learning about these two models makes me feel more confident to implement my innovation plan successfully. Moreover, applying them in my personal and professional journey is very useful.
References
Grenny, J., Patterson, K., Maxfield, D., McMillan, R., & Switzler, A. (2013). Influencer: The new science of leading change. New York: McGraw-Hill Education.
McChesney, C., Covey, S., & Huling, J. (2012). The 4 disciplines of execution: Achieving your wildly important goals. New York, NY: Free Press