There are three strategies to achieving goals in the organizational context; doing nothing, doing nothing differently and doing something differently. Each of these three strategies is appropriate for different scenarios. Doing nothing refers to refers to both abandoning what an organization is currently doing and not adapting new strategies to meet its goals. Despite the efficacy of this strategy, conventional wisdom dictates that all organizational challenges must be met with action of some sort. However, busyness does not necessarily translate to productivity. Doing nothing allows for creativity that if channeled correctly will result in productivity. Evidently, this strategy is suitable in situations where, despite review all the available courses of action, including the current one under adoption, none seem to be appropriate for instance during crisis communication. Doing nothing allows the organization to reflect on the challenge at hand without the pressure of immediate and urgent action.
Doing nothing differently is slightly different to doing nothing. Doing nothing differently refers to remaining on the current course as opposed to abandoning all action. Simply, doing nothing differently can be perceived as accepting situations as they are and remaining on course, even if it is in the interim. Doing nothing differently allows the organization to prepare for the day when it will be forced to do something differently. Specifically, doing nothing differently allows the organization to focus on facilitating its workforce meet its goals using the available resources and strategies. Doing nothing differently is ideal for situations whereby an organization is in doubt about the next course of action. Both doing nothing and doing nothing differently are passive approaches and are therefore rarely adapted in practice.
Doing something different on the other hand, refers to finding new ways of doing what the organization is already doing. Basically, it can be termed as adapting to the changing business conditions. Innovation is one way of doing something different because it involves using the current resources to achieve the same goal, however through a different course. As far as organizational curves are concerned, organizations should progress from doing nothing to doing nothing differently and finally to doing something differently before doing something different. Doing nothing different is appropriate when change is inevitable and the organization adapts to change without steering off course. For instance, an organization can change its go to market strategy without necessarily changing the product.
Works Cited
Murnighan, Keith J. Do Nothing!: How to Stop Overmanaging and Become a Great Leader. New York, NY: Portfolio Penguin, 2012. Kindle eBook.
