When I was kid, I did like a lot of kids do in that I typically listened to conversations I probably shouldn’t have listened to and I heeded only the advice and warnings I wanted to hear. I am sure you can relate, but if not, I will own it for myself. Back then I specifically remember listening to a conversation where one person was telling another that sometimes “the juice ain’t worth the squeeze.” Given a different context I would have been able to relate to the comment. However, I had listened to the conversation long enough to know there had been no discussion about fruit, squeezing or juice, so it simply did not make sense to me. Over time I came to understand the true meaning of the phrase, sans fruit. In fact, I have applied the real meaning many times throughout my career and suspect I will continue to apply its principled approach to decision-making in the future. The true meaning that person was trying to stress was simply the results you seek are not always worth the collateral damage caused by the process of achieving your goals.
Collateral damage
People in supervisory, managerial or executive roles make decisions daily in an effort to improve results of their respective departments, divisions or companies. Generally speaking, the decision-making process should involve critical thought and consideration of how their ultimate steps will impact: 1) the culture, 2) the brand and 3) the financial state of the company. Many fall short because they fail to consider each of these broad areas of concern. The decision-making process often will focus on one or two of the factors but that is not enough. In many cases, the decisions may be minor or have less impact, but, in some cases, the decision-making may be strategic and require deeper review and an understanding of the potential collateral damage in each key area. The trouble with some decisions is collateral damage is not given a voice in the process. The best example is any merger and acquisition (M&A) process. I have never heard any organizational leader say, “We are proceeding with this merger because our cultures are similar, and we like each other.” M&A has been, and, probably always will be, about financial considerations such as growth and stability. However, I believe, and the facts back this up, the vast majority of M&A failures are related to cultural problems that were not considered pre-merger.
Collateral damage from a flawed decision-making process is real and can impede achievement of your corporate goals. So as you make decisions, give collateral damage a voice and make sure the “squeeze” is not too damaging.
Measure the impact then squeeze
The juice is not always worth the squeeze, but that does not mean you shouldn’t squeeze anyway. The point of the phrase is not to say you shouldn’t be assertive and push forward toward your corporate goals, rather it is simply a reminder if you do not properly assess and measure the impact of this pressure, you could find yourself in a worse position than when you started.
Managers and executive leadership worldwide are charged with making the correct decisions to foster growth and optimize corporate resources. That cannot be done without some squeezing, but it is naïve to believe decisions can be made in a vacuum. True leadership carefully considers the impact of their decisions on the culture, brand and resources of their organization. Making decisions without these considerations is reckless and endangers the very existence of your company. As you go forward, understand there are times progress can not be achieved without some “squeezing” but prior to making the decision to apply pressure, understand and mea-sure the impact of the collateral damage to your organization, because sometimes the juice just “ain’t worth the squeeze.”
For more information, call Jeffrey Webber at (281) 478-6200 or email him at jwebber@altairstrickland.com.