Journey Towards Success
The Seven Deadly Traps
The potential for failure lurks at every phase along the journey to success. In researching hundreds of large undertakings, we identified seven recurring pitfalls, traps that can bedevil any significant change effort in the public sector.
Unfortunately, these traps do not announce themselves with trumpets blaring. The most dangerous aspects of the journey come from the hidden snares embedded in the terrain of the public sector. More information on the book and the traps can be found at www.deloitte.com/manonthemoon.
• The Tolstoy Trap: Seeing only the possibilities we want to see, often while staying blind to what is really in front of us. Most often occurs at the idea phase.
• Design-Free Design: Designing policies for passage through the legislature, not for implementation. Most often occurs at the design phase.
• The Stargate Trap: The risk that the idea never makes it through the legislature or it becomes so distorted on the way through that it will never achieve the intended results. Occurs only at the Stargate phase and is particularly challenging in the public sector.
• The Overconfidence Trap: Creating unrealistic budgets and timelines. Can occur anywhere but most often arises during the implementation phase.
• The Sisyphus Trap: Failing to comprehend the special challenges of the public sector terrain, and how human factors can make or break an effort. Can arise anywhere, but problems most commonly arise at the results phase.
• The Complacency Trap: Failing to recognize that a program needs change. Occurs in the reevaluation
The potential for failure lurks at every phase along the journey to success. In researching hundreds of large undertakings, we identified seven recurring pitfalls, traps that can bedevil any significant change effort in the public sector.
Unfortunately, these traps do not announce themselves with trumpets blaring. The most dangerous aspects of the journey come from the hidden snares embedded in the terrain of the public sector. More information on the book and the traps can be found at www.deloitte.com/manonthemoon.
• The Tolstoy Trap: Seeing only the possibilities we want to see, often while staying blind to what is really in front of us. Most often occurs at the idea phase.
• Design-Free Design: Designing policies for passage through the legislature, not for implementation. Most often occurs at the design phase.
• The Stargate Trap: The risk that the idea never makes it through the legislature or it becomes so distorted on the way through that it will never achieve the intended results. Occurs only at the Stargate phase and is particularly challenging in the public sector.
• The Overconfidence Trap: Creating unrealistic budgets and timelines. Can occur anywhere but most often arises during the implementation phase.
• The Sisyphus Trap: Failing to comprehend the special challenges of the public sector terrain, and how human factors can make or break an effort. Can arise anywhere, but problems most commonly arise at the results phase.
• The Complacency Trap: Failing to recognize that a program needs change. Occurs in the reevaluation