← Ideas · Field note 003
Rush hour in the flow of work.
This week someone asked me a question I haven't stopped thinking about.
The question
"If everyone starts putting everything in the flow of work, at what point does it get in the way of the work?"
We got what we asked for
Everyone moved into the flow of work.
For years we've pushed to get closer to where the work happens. It worked. Now everyone's there.
Each one, on its own
A quick tip, right when they open a client record.
✓A policy reminder before anything is sent.
✓An announcement about the new system.
✓A two-question survey after the team meeting.
✓A suggestion to use the new AI tool.
✓Every one of these was designed for the moment of need.
The system they're working in
Now look at it from where the person sits.
to learnSomething
to checkSomething
to knowSomething
to answerSomething
to try
Can I please just finish this?
Nobody here is the villain. Each arrow makes sense on its own. Only the person sees the whole map.
An illustrative map. Any resemblance to your week is coincidental.
Our obsession with the flow of work
Start with the person. Then look at the system.
Content still matters. Good content, in the right place, changes how people work. The trouble starts when it becomes the default answer for every team at once, and the person becomes the place where it all lands.
Before adding anything, look at what they're trying to get done and the system they're doing it in. Sometimes the answer is content. Often it's a better tool, a simpler process, a manager who knows what to look for, or something taken away.
Then decide where support should live
Out of the work
When people need protected space to build something new, practise, rehearse or get feedback. Taking people out of the work is sometimes exactly right.
Around the work
When the answer sits with managers, peers, team habits or the process itself.
In the work
When there's a specific moment that needs support, and the person would welcome it.
In the work
Choose the volume.
Step in
Before a decision with real consequences.
On hand
There when someone gets stuck and goes looking.
Built in
The system quietly prevents the error.
Leave them be
They already know how.
Attention is part of the work. If we take some, we should have a good reason.
Before you put it in the flow
Four questions to ask first.
- 01What's the person trying to get done?
- 02What's already landing on them?
- 03Does this take a step out of the work, or add one?
- 04What comes out to make room for it?
The takeaway
Mind the flow.
To close
Sometimes the right support is a prompt.
Sometimes it's a better-designed system.
Sometimes it's there when you ask for it.
And sometimes people are doing just fine.
Leave them alone.
Field note 003 · Practice —Upgrade
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