{
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    "title" : "Strengthen Your Organization's Vision Through Collaboration |Digital.gov",
    "description": "Strengthen Your Organization's Vision Through Collaboration",
    "home_page_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/","feed_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2020/04/22/strengthen-your-organizations-vision-through-collaboration/index.json","item" : [
    {"kicker" : "How We Work","title" :"Strengthen Your Organization's Vision Through Collaboration","deck" : "Build community <em>with</em> people who will be adopting new technologies.","summary" : "Inclusive visioning helps accelerate successful outcomes. To help agencies innovate from within, bring people together to make big IT Modernization strategies come to fruition.","date" : "2020-04-22T16:00:00-05:00","date_modified" : "2025-01-27T19:42:55-05:00","authors" : {"nina-bianchi" : "Nina Bianchi"},"topics" : {
        
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            "product-and-project-management" : "Product and project management"
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  "A group from the Centers of Excellence come together to vision and reflect together.", "format" :
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      "filename" :"2020-04-22-strengthen-your-organizations-vision-through-collaboration.md",
      
      "filepath" :"news/2020/04/2020-04-22-strengthen-your-organizations-vision-through-collaboration.md",
      "filepathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/blob/bc-archive-content-3/content/news/2020/04/2020-04-22-strengthen-your-organizations-vision-through-collaboration.md",
      "editpathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/edit/bc-archive-content-3/content/news/2020/04/2020-04-22-strengthen-your-organizations-vision-through-collaboration.md","slug" : "strengthen-your-organizations-vision-through-collaboration","url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2020/04/22/strengthen-your-organizations-vision-through-collaboration/","content" :"\u003cp\u003eHow often do you think about why you do what you do? Purpose matters. When we align around shared purpose, we turn moonshots into moon landings.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThere is a famous story about \u003ca href=\"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5626826/\"\u003ePresident John F. Kennedy’s first visit to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) headquarters\u003c/a\u003e in 1961. During his visit, the story goes, President Kennedy noticed a janitor carrying a broom. He interrupted his tour, walked over to the man and asked: “What are you doing?” “Well, Mr. President,” the janitor responded, “I’m helping to put a man on the moon.”\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUnderstanding our purpose, the literal words on a website, memo, or policy document, is the first part. An even bigger question is: do we really believe in this purpose?\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBusiness futurist and author, Cecily Sommers, describes the role of leadership in catalyzing the reasons to believe.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cblockquote\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“The ultimate function of leadership is to inspire people to work cooperatively toward a common vision. As you may know from your own experience managing a team, family, project, or even just a meeting, this is no easy feat. For people to invest themselves in a coordinated effort, they have to know that what\u0026rsquo;s good for the group is relevant to their personal values and aspirations.”\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/blockquote\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat does this mean for \u003ca href=\"https://www.meritalk.com/articles/gsas-cheriyan-it-modernization-not-just-about-tech/\"\u003eIT Modernization\u003c/a\u003e or \u003ca href=\"https://digital.gov/resources/21st-century-integrated-digital-experience-act/\"\u003e21st Century IDEA\u003c/a\u003e? At the \u003ca href=\"https://coe.gsa.gov/\"\u003eCenters of Excellence\u003c/a\u003e (CoE), we start with purpose. To help agencies innovate from within, we bring people together to make big IT Modernization strategies come to fruition. We build community with people who will be adopting new technologies, like robotic process automation (RPA) or artificial intelligence (AI).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCheck out the following “wisdom gems” we put together from our experience working across federal agencies. We encourage you to try them!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"wisdom-gem-1-vision--missionmdashtheres-a-difference\"\u003eWisdom Gem 1: Vision \u0026amp; Mission—There’s a Difference\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGovernment agencies are mission-based. Yet goals, objectives, missions, and visions often get confused. Clarify the difference.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mission\"\u003eA mission is a specific task\u003c/a\u003e in which an organization is charged. Visions are aspirational. Visions are not bound by resource limitations. A vision is bigger than big: it’s a future destination. It’s the picture, the feeling, or the ideas that come to mind when you say “imagine a future where…”  It’s a lift that requires us all to stretch as individuals, teams, and holistic organizations to deliver on our missions.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor example, a functional mission is “deliver food to people.” An inspirational vision is “people never go hungry across the nation.” The vision inspires us to keep growing and getting better at achieving our mission. Strategic goals and objectives are designed to roll up to drive a mission which advances us towards a vision\u003c/p\u003e\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"image\"\u003e\n  \u003cimg\n        src=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/coe-team-nina-bianchi.png\"alt=\"A large group of people in an open office space.\"/\u003e\u003cp\u003eA group from the Centers of Excellence come together to vision and reflect together.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\n\n\u003ch2 id=\"wisdom-gem-2-begin-by-listening-really-listen\"\u003eWisdom Gem 2: Begin by Listening (Really Listen)\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePeople are more likely to support and implement a vision when they feel that they belong. Remember the janitor sweeping the floors at NASA? He was bought into the vision to put a man on the moon. Scientific studies \u003ca href=\"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5999113/\"\u003eshow that people work better\u003c/a\u003e when they can see themselves reflected in a vision.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs a leader, you can create space for people to share their viewpoints. Bring your key stakeholders together and ask them what they envision for the future. Invite them to write sentences down on Post-Its during a \u003ca href=\"https://digital.gov/event/2018/07/26/civic-service-design-tools-tactics/\"\u003edesign thinking\u003c/a\u003e activity or use \u003ca href=\"https://medium.com/@NinaFuture/indexing-the-future-890206351b6b\"\u003eindex cards\u003c/a\u003e. This work helps you understand the diverse perspectives and motivations in the collaboration equation. It also helps the team understand that they’re part of something bigger — more than a list of tasks.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAshley Wichman, Program Analyst for Employee Engagement at TTS notes that “Facilitating a meaningful conversation between people who may see the world differently is key — this exchange, whether in times of crisis or everyday work activities, is part of what bonds us in shared purpose.” To get you started, we have published \u003ca href=\"https://digital.gov/2020/01/22/10-employee-engagement-experiences-foster-collaboration/\"\u003ea number of employee engagement methods that you can try (virtual or in-person) to bring people together\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"wisdom-gem-3-triangulate-and-align\"\u003eWisdom Gem 3: Triangulate and Align\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAfter gathering input from your stakeholders, it’s time to bring your core vision to life.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTake the patterns and insights you find amongst your stakeholders and map them to larger organizational strategic plans and even higher level management imperatives, like the \u003ca href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/management/pma/\"\u003ePresident’s Management Agenda\u003c/a\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReach back out to your stakeholders and ask them for quick input  to help them see the connections between micro and macro visions. Think of the sample from earlier in the article If “deliver food to people” is the mission, take time to help different people understand how their unique roles, like driving a truck or orchestrating annual budgets, are part of the future where “people never go hungry across the nation.” When you hone in on the vision statement, some stakeholders’ words may not be included. Help them understand that, not unlike a smoothie, just because the original ingredient isn’t visually obvious, doesn’t mean it isn’t there and adding value!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"wisdom-gem-4-refine-and-listen-more\"\u003eWisdom Gem 4: Refine and Listen More\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen you’re working with diverse stakeholder groups, there are a broader range of ideas you’ll need to accommodate. \u003ca href=\"https://datascience.harvard.edu/people/david-c-parkes\"\u003eHarvard Professor David Parkes\u003c/a\u003e at Harvard’s Data Science Initiative says that, “Decision making requires bringing together + reconciling multiple points of view.  Decision making requires leadership in advocating + explaining a path forward. Decision making requires dialogue.”\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen you’re refining the vision, bring groups back together and report out on vision drafts. Invite colleagues to give feedback on different vision scenarios. Offer them the opportunity to explore these ideas in a tangible way before they’re finalized: try out new methods like \u003ca href=\"https://digital.gov/2019/08/21/prototyping-engagement-workshops/\"\u003etactile supplies that appeal to the senses\u003c/a\u003e. How might you take testing cues from best practices like \u003ca href=\"https://methods.18f.gov/validate/multivariate-testing/\"\u003e18F’s Multivariate Testing Methods\u003c/a\u003e and apply them to words within a vision statement? How can messages be integrated into product feature development?\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"wisdom-gem-5-living-the-vision\"\u003eWisdom Gem 5: Living the Vision\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt’s critical to acknowledge that mission and vision stories are living, like you and I, and we must keep them fresh over time. Thinking of NASA and moonshot example, this vision was achieved in 1969. A man was sent to the moon. In the present, NASA’s vision is broader —  “We will continue to push the frontier of space. We will develop new technologies for use in air, space, and on the ground.”\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLeaders keep listening and updating, they should be revisited regularly. Visions aren’t one-offs from a workshop during performance planning. Strong visions are regularly talked about and values manifest as behaviors in action.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLike NASA, what’s the next “frontier” for your organization?\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLet’s create a future where more people flourish and feel that they belong! Check out \u003ca href=\"https://coe.gsa.gov/press/updates.html\"\u003emore collaborative employee engagement resources\u003c/a\u003e produced by the CoE.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n"}
  ]
}