I have always had a real problem with a growing phenomenon in the business world that is spreading in the common social sphere as well. This is the pervasive tendency for commitment breaking. People do not follow through like they used to. In business this is frustrating but my recent experience working with a client has demonstrated how lack of follow through on commitments is a serious issue. My client is a fast paced consulting firm that has enjoyed some reasonable growth in the past few years. They have had the normal teething pains with systems and processes but nothing too serious. The real problem is that action items from meetings are not done, commitments made in conversations or informal meetings are not followed up or followed through. The visual clues that raised yellow flags to me was the lack of any note taking in any meeting! The lack of execution has caused a culture that has little trust and interpersonal relationships are under strain since there is a pervasive belief that you cannot rely on your colleagues. This has led to territorialism and reduced sharing and collaboration. This has led to poor enculturation of new employees and on it goes….YIKES! But why? I know these guys are not unique. Are we too bombarded with stuff to do and information to digest? Or are we unable to discipline ourselves to do our work and execute our plans despite the external bombardment? The real scary part is that this behaviour creeps out of the organisation and begins to infect client and other stakeholder relationships. The commitment to call back or ’send some information’ that never gets followed through is a certain precursor to a relationship breakdown and lack of trust. I know this sounds simple but just once I would like to see my client replace those Blackberries for pads of paper. I recall seeing many more people taking notes and reminders with a pen than I have ever seen punched into a micro keyboard on a handheld.
