Institutionalising an Organisation || From person dependent to process driven

Organizations should be institution driven rather person dependent.

There is a deep meaning to the same. A process driven organization would work for a longer run with same zeal and effectiveness; making it impactful and reliable.

Why and how to Instititutionalize?

People come and go. If fundamental processes are strong; it will not have impact on the performance of firm. For example If an overworked person who is singlehandly pulling the organization leaves; or there are transfers / resignations; the organization will collapse. Hence it is very much essential to set up processes strong; so as to efficiently run the organization.

1. Defining Vision & Mission & Target Audience

• Organisation and even individual is directionless if it does not have any goal.
• For private firms; core of vision and mission boils down to maximum profits. For NGOs it is betterment of society. Here the targets are “Customers” and “Society” respectively.
• However for public service organization; this needs a definition. Vision must be “Service / Problem Resolution” and target must be “Citizens”.
• Driving principles should also be clearly defined and communicated. For example some firms; client satisfication is utmost priority, while for some its a balance between employee satisfication and client.

2. Alignment, Onboarding, Training

• When a person joins an organization; he/she comes with a different mindset and culture. A new commer needs to be moulded in a way he / she aligns with purpose of the organisation.
• For this; a new commer needs to be trained rigorously on a set content by powerful trainers. Strengths and weakness of the organization/ resource must be clearly communicated during onboarding.

3. Knowledge Preservation / Wiki

• Building an organization is an evolving process. Each one who joins the organization contributes in their own way. However; the contribution and knowledge base needs to be documented and standardized.
• If knowledge is not preserved and documented; it would become a person dependent organization. Every time new individual comes to a particular role and he will start from scratch.
• Shortcuts; Contact Repository; Knowledge base; Do’s and Don’ts; Reporting Formats; Email Formats; etc should be properly documented and maintained. This will ensure a new joinee; be it at any role gets a faster absorption inside the organisation.
• Handover should be compulsorily done using these preserved knowledge repository.

4. Setting Processes Right and Tight

• Human Resource Utilisation, Finance, Procurement, Leave Management, Communication with Stakeholders & PR, Information Sharing, Peer review are some of key processes.
• Without overburdening the compliance; it must be ensured that everyone follows the process. A person in charge should be responsible for observing the same.
• A Grievance redressal mechanism and Ego Resolution center is much needed in powerful places.

5. Defining Escalation Matrix

• Flat hierarchy is an excellent way of operating an intellectual organization. However there needs to be an escalation matrix.
• The same needs to be shared with the respective stakeholders and adhered upon.

6. Right & Passionate People for Right Job

• Hire with passion and you won’t need management. If there is an option; hire people who align with similar intention and skillet that organization needs.
• Unmotivated and passive mentality is toxic for a firm and may result in disharmony and low quality work; impacting the overall performance.
• “Nepotism / Recommendation” based Jobs should be avoided. Rather “Recommendation based on Skill” should be preferred. There needs to be a vigil on who all are recruited and strict filter is required for those who come in.
• A smaller, motivated and sincere organization is much more efficient an d impactful rather than a large team with no motivation.

It takes lot of patience and skillful navigaion to build an impactful and lasting organisation.

For a public service organization; it must be ensured that “Public Interest” is prioritized over “Personal Interest / Ego”.

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