Stick a Spork in It!

We've all been there. Whether you are responsible for a department's budget, a talent acquisition professional with time-to-fill goals on open positions, an operations leader charged with increasing productivity, we've all been put in a position where we have KPI's to meet but we don't have access to all of the resources we think we need. Whether it's a limited budget, legacy technology systems, a talent pool in need of upskilling, aggressive timelines set by senior leadership, we've all been asked to accomplish a goal with suboptimal resources. Accomplishing goals with budget and/or time constraints often requires creative thinking along with strategic planning. I call it inventing the spork. A spork is a hybrid utensil combining features of both a spoon and a fork. So, let's say in order for you to meet your goals for this fiscal year you need to have both a spoon and a fork, but your budget only allows for one, so how do you accomplish those goals given the limitations on your resources? You invent the spork. One tool, dual uses, your project stays on course, and just like that Bob's your uncle! It's not as optimal as having both an individual spoon and fork, but it'll get the job done, usually on time and under budget. This is the mindset going into a fiscal year or a project having less-than-ideal resources. It's a way of not letting a limited budget or lack of other needed resources prevent you from meeting your goals. Here are some methodologies you can consider for inventing a spork:

Prioritization: Duh, common sense, right?! Identify the most critical aspects of your goal and focus your resources on those areas first. Prioritizing ensures that you allocate resources effectively and maximize impact. One potential issue could be if you have partners across divisions who will be impacted by your prioritization. Remain cognizant of any collateral effects, properly communicating the "why" behind your prioritization decisions can go a long way towards maintaining those relationships.

Lean methodology: Adopt lean principles to minimize waste and optimize resource utilization. This involves reducing or eliminating non-essential activities wherever possible and streamlining processes to achieve more with fewer resources. This may involve reallocating resources from less productive areas to those with higher potential for impact. This approach allows you to achieve tangible results while maintaining momentum and motivation. One potential issue with this is that you may have to ask your team to do more work or to take on new and/or unfamiliar tasks. Be cognizant of and empathetic towards this. Effective change management solutions along with communication with your team will be critical.

Continuous Improvement: Foster a culture of continuous improvement by encouraging your team to identify and implement small, incremental changes to office processes. This could involve regular brainstorming sessions or improvement projects focused on eliminating redundancies, reducing errors, and increasing efficiency. Also, break your goal down into smaller, manageable milestones and focus on making incremental progress over time. Continuously evaluate how resources are being utilized and look for opportunities to optimize their usage.

Collaboration and Partnerships: Are there other leaders in your organization that have similar KPI's that you can pool resources with? Others who share similar goals or complementary resources? Collaborating with partners can provide access to additional expertise, networks, and resources that you might not have individually. Value stream mapping and just-in-time inventory could involve reducing the stockpile of office supplies, printed materials, or obsolete documents by ordering only what is needed when it's needed. Reducing the amount of "busy work" and allowing your team to focus on tasks that add more value.

Outsourcing and Freelancing: In many organizations the go-to resolution for many departmental issues is to create a new position and hire more FTE's. This can be expensive, time consuming, and redundant. When feasible, delegate tasks or projects to external contractors or freelancers instead of hiring full-time employees. This approach allows you to access specialized skills on-demand and reduces overhead and other additional costs associated with adding headcount.

Technology Adoption: Another commonsense solution, but often overlooked. Leverage technology to automate processes, increase efficiency, and reduce manual labor. Investing in the right tools and software solutions can help you accomplish tasks more effectively with limited human resources.

Perhaps adopting some combination of these methodologies to your specific circumstances, you can effectively purchase Champagne when all you've been given is beer money.