Do LESS with LESS! Really??

Since the start of the millennium we have all heard that we must do “More with Less”.

I recently read an article where the idea of “Less for Less” was looked at from the perspective of if our resources are cut then we will have to cut programs, products, and services also. Perhaps we should look at how to cut back on to whom and what we produce in order to stay within our means. Government sequestration may have triggered this way of thinking for some service providers. This is a catchy title but is this really the case? Is there a different perspective on “Less for Less”?

Think back a few years when a downturn in the economy negatively impacted the workforce. Families got creative. The new trend became staycation instead of vacation. A staycation meant less travel arrangements for less time in planning, less time on the road or in airports and therefore less missed connections, less cost for the family resulting in less stress and less debt! What about VALUE! Was there value in this? Many did less for less and experienced real joy with lifelong memories!

When we consider the increase for demand of new or changed services from customers it is difficult to imagine how service providers can produce value with the concept of “Less”. The business demand is for MORE.

Some things IT staff and service provider executives would all like to see less of!

LESS MEETINGS!

In a recent discussion with ITSM practitioners is was noted that “Every time there is a release we have a barrage of meetings sucking up a lot of time and resources to resolve it! I am sick of meetings. We just get through one fiasco and another is brewing! “We keep doing the same thing over and over and expect a different result next time.”

LESS STRESS and OVERTIME!

These 60 and 80 hour workweeks are killing us! What is work life balance again?

LESS BLAME GAME!

Dedicated people who are working hard do not want to feel that they are not enabled for success, it must be the infamous “THEY” who are at fault!

What would you like to see less of? Add your list here!...

What could you do less of that would result in less of what’s on your list?

“Less resistance” could prove to be for service providers what staycations were to families who adapted to “less for less” and created some of their most memorable times together. For example: Less resistance to governance and process control might produce less chaos resulting in less time and meetings less frustration and less fires. Oh, did I mention less work, less effort and less stress? Perhaps a little less resistance to invoking best practice for proactive planning process into service design could result in less resources, cost overruns and lost revenue due to unsatisfied customers.

Optimizing value for service providers and their consumers might just be doable by thinking about “LESS for LESS” and how LESS could result in true VALUE for all involved. Do LESS with LESS! Really!!

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