How ‘Getting Real’ Relates To Our 'Discipline Of Teams' Presentation

One of the most useful business books that I have yet read is ‘Getting Real’ by 37Signals. Although ostensibly about getting things done in the context of software development, the principles and practices they suggest map to all businesses. Reading through it this afternoon looking for something that would resonate with our topic of ‘The Discipline of Teams’ that I could include in our presentation and that would be contemporary I came across this quote(excerpted).

Less Mass
The leaner you are, the easier it is to change
The more massive an object, the more energy is required to change its direction. It is as true in the business world as it is in the physical world.

Mass is increased by:
—Meetings about other meetings
—Thick process
—The past ruling the future
—Long-term road maps
—Office politics

Mass is reduced by:
—Multi-tasking team members
—Small team size
—An open culture that makes it easy to admit mistakes

Less mass lets you change direction quickly. You can react and evolve. You can focus on the good ideas and drop the bad ones. You can listen and respond to your customers. Nimble, agile, less-mass businesses can quickly change their entire business model, product, feature set, and marketing message. They can make mistakes and fix them quickly. They can change their priorities, product mix, and focus. And, most importantly, they can change their minds.

The complete article is here.