{"id":21250,"date":"2017-03-03T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-03-03T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/global2020prd.wpengine.com\/insights\/aligning-with-others-taking-too-much-time\/"},"modified":"2022-04-29T11:46:39","modified_gmt":"2022-04-29T11:46:39","slug":"aligning-with-others-taking-too-much-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/aligning-with-others-taking-too-much-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Aligning with others taking too much time?"},"content":{"rendered":"

We ran a survey with a client recently who are relatively new to working in matrix. One of the comments, and one we see regularly in this situation, was that people felt they were spending too much time communicating and aligning with other parts of the matrix before making a decision.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re not used to doing this, it can be frustrating and can lead to delays in decision-making. However, this increase in alignment activity once we introduce matrix management can be seen in two different ways.<\/p>\n

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  1. we are doing unnecessary alignment<\/li>\n
  2. we didn\u2019t do enough aligning in the past and we are now getting it right<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Unnecessary alignment<\/strong><\/p>\n

    There is certainly a tendency when people are new to the matrix for the amount of alignment activity to increase sharply. The reason for this is often that decision rights and involvement processes are poorly defined. In a matrix, there are more people who are potentially involved in any issue, and if we are not clear about how wet they should be involved there is a tendency to \u201cinvite them all to the meeting\u201d. It\u2019s less risky than leaving someone out.<\/p>\n

    It\u2019s always a good idea to think through decision-making and involvement, whether you have a matrix or not. Many businesses tend to default to consensus decision-making and involvement where everyone is involved who may want to have a say.<\/p>\n

    Whilst this sounds democratic, it does mean that too many people get involved in issues and too many people think they are decision-makers or can block progress.<\/p>\n

    If you\u2019re in this situation and is worth taking some time to define<\/p>\n