Magical phrase, “best practices”

Management consultants use the phrase “best practices” often. Perhaps too often. You will see that magical phrase mentioned numerous times in white papers and research on these websites: Boston Consulting Group, Deloitte, PWC and Accenture. A few pictures that help explain why best practices are so popular with consultants and clients.

Like hiking trails

. . . they are market-tested

Many of these best practices have been around for years. Clients have a sense of comfort that they are following a well-worn path. You don’t have to read the most recent article in Harvard Business Review to know that the Toyota Management System for lean production still works today. Why not benefit from the mistakes of others?

. . . they are repeatable

Consulting firms work with so many clients that they see what works and what does not. Clients think they are unique (n=1), but a lot of the back-office functions are more alike than different. No reason to “re-invent the wheel” on mundane processes. Better to just follow the trail that is already there.

. . . they save time

It might not be perfect or holistic, but best practices will get you most of the way there. Not all clients want to spend the time or the money to dig into the problem. They want the 80% solution.

Like powerful telescopes. . .

. . . they appeal to the curious

Clients want insight into what competitors and other leading companies are doing.  here is a fine line between best practices, benchmarking, competitive intelligence – but the basic conformist tendency is the same: “Show me what other people doing.” Yes, companies get FOMO too.

. . . they help you see farther

Having access to best practices or other “special sauce” positions the management consultant as an expert who can bring new and external insights. While the client can draw on 10-20 years of personal experience, the consultant can tap into the firm’s collective history (for Trekkie fans, think of the BORG) and dig up example after example of previous client projects on the same topic. McKinsey started this 60+ years ago by typing up briefs on all their projects for knowledge management.

like cupcake tins. . . 

 

. . . They are standardized

Don’t expect to get a customized solution. This solves 80% of the problem for 80% of the people. These are useful tools, but you cannot “copy” your way to greatness; the most you will get is parity.

. . . They are (a little bit) lazy

If abused or misunderstood, best practices can become the lazy person’s way to propose a quick, often ill-fitting solution without thinking through the problem. Yes, we consultants can be guilty of this.

. . . They are Not strategic

If strategy is getting a sustainable competitive advantage by creating unique value, this is not it. These are pre-made, shelf-stored, cupcakes. For strategy, think about trade-offs (not best practices).

. . . The hardest part requires humanness

No surprise, but the technology, processes, investment can be understood and duplicated. The necessary leadership, risk-taking, culture of innovation, diversity of thinking, persistence through short-term failure . . .all that is human. No best practice is going to help you out there. 

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