How Wrike Puts Strategy, Goals, and Sprints in Sync
A company with a big product or product portfolio has to work to synchronize strategy with the daily efforts of each employee. If teams act out of order, the strategy remains just a beautiful document. In this article, we’ll unveil how our company aligns goals at different levels, what goals are set at different stages of planning, and who is involved in planning. Wrike has three levels of product goals: Annual Quarterly Team-specific sprint goals At each level, there are employees who build processes and are responsible for achieving the goals. Strategy and annual goals Wrike has a company strategy and a product strategy that supports it. To understand how they relate, let’s look at an example. If a company wants to operate more in the enterprise segment, certain product changes should follow — that is product strategy. Company strategy is much broader. In addition to product changes, we need, for example, to change the way we hire people in the sales department, restructure marketing, etc. Company strategy is about which market segments we want to go into, while product strategy is about how the product needs to be changed to enter these segments effectively. Since product strategy and company strategy are closely related, their updates occur synchronously. We usually review the strategy once a year. Company strategy is the responsibility of the executive team, in which the product organization is represented by the VP of Product. The executive team meets regularly and, as a result, defines the overall strategy of the company. That is how it becomes clear what we want to achieve as a company. The product team is less involved in this process: for example, the VP of Product can ask someone to work on a specific issue or prepare the necessary data. The product team is much more involved in product strategy. The VP of Product is responsible for this process and all product teams are engaged. To better understand the product strategy process, it is important to understand how our product team is structured. It consists of separate divisions (units). Each unit has its own leader. In this article, we will call them Lead Product Manager, but it can also be the Director of Product or Senior Product Manager. Within the units there are product teams, each headed by a product manager. The formation of the product strategy takes place in two directions: top-to-bottom and bottom-to-top. Top-to-bottom is the general vector of product development formed by the VP of Product. To do this, they use different input data: company strategy, general market trends, competitive research, reports from analytical agencies like Gartner, product sales analytics (e.g., stronger segments, growing segments, etc.). All this information helps us understand what to focus on. In addition, it allows us to understand our limitations. What resources can we invest in product development this year? What percentage do we need to spend on mandatory support processes, such as improving the technical platform and fixing defects? Top-to-bottom direction forms the framework within which concrete proposals for strategic initiatives need to be formulated. Bottom-to-top direction is ideas for strategic initiatives from the product team. They are formulated by Lead Product Managers but generally, they first consult with product managers from their unit. This is an opportunity for PMs to submit their ideas and participate in the formation of product strategy. When all proposals are collected, they are discussed at a series of meetings of unit leaders, where each idea is evaluated. We consider investment areas that will later be included in the product strategy according to different criteria. The prioritization processes are constantly refined and improved. For example, we can calculate the possible ROI from the implementation of some idea, see how it fits within the company strategy, and evaluate each idea according to ICE. After discussions and prioritization, the VP of Product analyzes the results and draws up the product strategy for the next year. The formed strategy first goes through a feedback loop. Lead product managers carefully study and discuss it, and then bring it to a meeting of all product managers. The output is a refined product strategy: Investment mix: This includes where and how much in percentage we will invest this year. High-level product goals of the year: An example of such a goal could be to release a solution for a new market segment or make the product cover some new big business needs. High-level goals serve as inspiration and usually turn out to be quite abstract in the sense that it is not at all obvious how exactly these goals can be achieved. There should be quite a few such goals. This year we have three of them. For each goal, we define a core metric on how we will measure success. Specific sub-objectives for each goal: These chart the path to the higher-level goals that we all believe in as a team. At the same time, this path is still formulated quite abstractly at the level of intermediate goals that we want to achieve, not specific features. For example, I’m currently in charge of a goal called “Improve Configurability of Platform.” A specific Lead Product Manager is responsible for each of its sub-objectives. Their task at the planning stage is to clarify the sub-objectives and, together with the product analyst, determine the metrics for those. We will work on the goal metric throughout the year, so for the metrics at the sub-objective level, we set quarterly goals. Quarterly Goals Quarterly goals stem from the sub-objectives defined during the yearly planning and may, to a limited extent, overlap with them. By the beginning of quarterly planning, we already have, in first approximation, Objectives (sub-objectives for top-level annual goals) and Key Results (goals for the metrics that we have defined for each quarter). But since the beginning of the year, some changes could have occurred, so some of the goals may be revised. We may decide not to work on some goals in the next quarter and instead focus only on part of the goals. There may also be additional new targets in a particular quarter. Like annual goals, quarterly goals are first discussed between the VP of Product and Lead Product Managers (who confer with their product management team). After discussing quarterly goals with unit leaders, the VP of Product presents quarterly goals at a general meeting of all product managers, answers questions, and collects feedback. The next task for product managers is to propose concrete initiatives that will help achieve this goal and the desired change in the metric. Ideas for initiatives are discussed within the unit with all product and development managers (after all, initiatives must be realistic). We hired unit managers in our company to be responsible for development within units. They help to plan how, where, and which teams to assign. Plus, the teams themselves can assess their capabilities and understand which initiatives they are ready to take on in the next quarter and which they are not. Ideas may also require discussion with other teams and units. Wrike is a large and complex product and you often need the help of other teams to achieve a goal. In order to properly formulate quarterly plans, it is necessary to take into account and calculate all these dependencies and agree on how we will achieve the overall result. After all discussions, plans are brought into the Wrike app, which is our main management tool. To make sure that we have the same understanding of what the plans turned out to be and why, a general meeting is held, at which the Lead Product Managers present the plans of the unit. The meeting is attended by all product managers and development managers, as well as everyone who wants to. Sprint Goals A specific team is responsible for sprint goals, including their product manager. All teams at Wrike work according to Scrum with a two-week iteration (very convenient when the planning cycle is aligned across the entire company). Specific processes can seriously differ from team to team. It has to be convenient for the team, while all the company requires is for each team to have a product increment at least once every two weeks that brings us closer to the common goal. The team as a whole builds sprint goals to achieve the quarterly goals that we jointly formulated for the quarter. Usually, the team highlights progress against quarterly goals on the Sprint Review. All teams try to set ambitious goals, so sprint goals are sometimes not met. We believe that this is not a big deal because the team is tasked to plan each sprint so that the unit gets closer to the overall quarterly goal. Planning tools We try to make the most of the Wrike app, at least for dogfooding purposes. You can build different levels and hierarchies of goals. We feed it annual goals, sub-objectives, quarterly plans with metrics, and even sprint goals. Goals can be viewed in different sections. For example, if a product manager plans sprints, they may not look at other goal hierarchies at all. At the same time, the connection between the levels is preserved and can always be traced or visualized. We use Wrike primarily for the implementation stage. The development of different options for plans and brainstorming is often done in Excel or Miro since those are better suited for working with unstructured data. Structure of goals in Wrike Company strategy (exec team) — annually Product strategy — annually. Driver — VP of Product Inputs: Company strategy Market data (trends, analysts, competitors, win/loss, etc.) Current investment mix Proposed areas of investments (Lead PMs in collaboration with PMs) -> evaluation Outcome: Investment mix Annual goals with metrics (three this year) Sub-objectives with metrics (e.g., improve configurability of the platform) Objective priorities Each objective has a responsible Lead PM who refines the definition and drives metrics discussion Feedback loop Quarterly goals: Sub-objectives for this quarter Suggested by VP Product, feedback loop Clarified metrics for the quarter — Lead PM + Analyst Proposed initiatives — PMs+teams, discussed with Lead PM, presented to a broader group Cross-unit dependencies resolving Sprint goal (Set by PM + team) This article was written by a Wriker, in Wrike. See what it’s like to work with us and what career development opportunities we offer here. Also, hear from our founder, Andrew Filev, about Wrike’s culture and values, the ways we work and appreciate Wrikers, and more here.
Top Priorities for Marketing Success During the 2023 Recession (Part One)
2022 was certainly a year for the books. Marketers have faced unprecedented challenges following a global pandemic and rapid digitalization, including a switch to hybrid work and transition challenges posed by employee turnover during the Great Resignation. New market trends also necessitated a fundamental shift in the way we work, engage our buyers, and connect with customers. Turbulence ahead 2023 is shaping up to be just as challenging, but we see an opportunity for growth if planning is done both thoughtfully and creatively now. A recession is on the way, and it’s looking to be an unavoidable one. We’ve seen hints of it on the horizon as well, with the US Labor Bureau reporting a labor productivity decrease by 4.1% in the second quarter of 2022, while hours worked increased by 2.6%. Wrike’s own research also demonstrates how most marketers are still working in silos, which contributes to mounting stresses and burnout while we juggle multiple tasks, systems, and applications. As marketers, most of us know what that means — increased internal pressure on ROI and performance, decreased budgets, and changing buyer behavior. However, these incoming challenges are far from insurmountable. Marketers are a resourceful, tenacious kind — and as always, a little planning and foresight can go a long way in meeting new expectations. Here are the five most critical considerations for any marketing teams looking to tackle a challenging 2023 and establish their department as a primary driver of business in the year to come. Accelerate time to market Do more with less — sound familiar? It'll be a necessity as teams race to beat the competition in a highly competitive market that's more conscious than ever about their budgets and bottom line. A study from McKinsey & Company discovered that being late to the market by six months can potentially cut earnings by up to 33% when compared to an ideal, earlier launch. Don’t fall behind — plan in advance, and execute on time. Stay focused on ROIIt’s not always easy for marketers to demonstrate ROI, but doing so and optimizing it will put you ahead of the curve. With organizations holding teams accountable for every dollar spent, being able to maximize the utility of each cent of spending will not only help your department survive and thrive, but give your campaigns the edge against fierce competition. Execute omni-channel campaignsNew challenges and a recession doesn’t mean you should reduce your marketing footprint – consistent messaging across all available channels, specified for each audience, is still necessary. Companies with omnichannel engagement strategies retain an average 89% of customers compared to just 33% for companies without. Omnichannel strategies are also essential to eliminating silos among different marketing functions — keys to driving productivity and efficiency during a time when they're needed most. Optimize resources Newfound attention on budgets and resources makes optimization key. Time and money management will make or break many marketing departments this year. Three things to focus on to make sure you make it: - Accurately measure project resource needs through campaign resource planning - Workload optimization based on team availability, capacity, and strengths - Clear-cut, no-nonsense budgeting Keep employees happy Unengaged employees are unproductive employees — this is particularly true for marketers, who happen to be a creative bunch that need the time and space to think big. Employee burnout can contribute to churn and turnover as well, costing companies serious time, resources, and funds needed to replace them and train new employees. And a bonus tip — establishing a single source of truth is the answer to ensuring visibility and efficiency across your projects and teams. The good news is that most of us already know this. 86% of business leaders made it a top three priority to create a single source of truth for the information and activities ongoing in their business functions. Opportunity to lead It’s undeniable that 2023 will be a challenging year for many of us, but it's also a huge opportunity for marketing teams to set a precedent and take a more strategic role at the head of the organization. What will set us apart is our capability to better understand and speak to our customers, especially during a tricky situation like a recession. By nimbly responding to changes in demand and long-term shifts in consumer values and attitudes, and navigating changes within our own business, marketing teams will have an exceptional opportunity to emerge as a north star for their organizations to look up to. In part two of this blog series, I’ll discuss the marketing trends to watch out for this year. Look out for my top tips to factor into your 2023 planning!
Working With Machines: AI in Work Management
The age of artificial intelligence (AI) is upon us, changing forever the way companies operate and grow. Machine learning (ML) now helps to predict and minimize delays, reduce time spent on mundane tasks, and optimize the skills and talents of the human workforce. [caption id="attachment_475270" align="aligncenter" width="868"]Generated by Midjourney[/caption] PwC refers to AI as a ‘game changer’ in digital transformation, contributing as much as $15.7trn to the global economy by 2030. Wrike is at the forefront of this wave, developing the best AI tools, solutions, and features on the market, saving 20,000 organizations time and money every year. But what does AI in a work management platform look like? And where might it take us in the future? The adoption of AI is underway They don’t look like the futuristic robots we once imagined but, in reality, machines are already part of our daily life. At home, we use AI every time we ask Siri or Alexa a question, open our phones using facial recognition, or scroll through a streaming service’s TV suggestions. [caption id="attachment_475276" align="aligncenter" width="811"]Generated by Midjourney[/caption] AI also has a major influence on our work. We might rely on AI to help us manage customer relationships through chatbots, scan for fraudulent activity in financial systems, or turn documents into data via optical character recognition (OCR). Gartner estimates that a third of organizations are currently applying AI across several business units, a figure that is only set to grow. There are many reasons why companies choose to use the best AI tools available. For example, they may wish to: Save time spent on tedious tasks Optimize processes through automation efficiencies Accelerate and ameliorate customer service Gather and analyze data for better decision-making Seek out opportunities for new revenue streams The benefits of AI are clear to most stakeholders, particularly during a challenging economic climate. Research from Forrester indicates that 80% of executives say AI boosts productivity and creates new positions. At the same time, about 20% of all workers say they will use automated assistance technologies to make decisions and get work done. [caption id="attachment_475282" align="aligncenter" width="730"]Source: Forrester[/caption] “We see similar statistics in Wrike as well,” says Igor Akimov, Head of AI Solutions at Wrike. “More than a quarter of our users work with AI Recommended Tasks every day.” He has ample experience leveraging ML systems, and believes that AI can help us reach significant breakthroughs without the need for major investment. One of the reasons why Wrike represents such good value to its 2.3m customers is because it delivers the best artificial intelligence tools for project and task management, for a fraction of the cost of bespoke software engineering solutions. The many roles of AI in the workplace The ways in which AI can help us in our work expands every year. Some of the most interesting uses to emerge include: AI as an artist Text and picture generation is more advanced than ever before, with the best AI tools including DALL-E 2, Midjourney.com, Stable Diffusion, and so on. These neural networks are fed with billions of images with descriptions, allowing you to generate content with just a single text prompt. This means that AI can not only copy famous images and create psychedelic graphics, but also generate award-winning masterpieces like this one by Jason Allen and Midjourney AI. AI as a developer Platforms such as Copilot from GitHub can now accept requests and write code based on your comments, saving developers or software engineers countless hours in the process. For example, if you need to write simple but time-consuming code to program a form to access a database, you can simply enter the instruction, select the data from a table, put it into an array, and let AI write the code for you. This has the benefit of extending basic coding abilities to people outside of the developer audience. AI as a writer Drafting high-quality content for books, education materials, or blogs takes time. While AI won’t be as natural or nuanced as a professional writer any time soon, it can significantly accelerate the researching, writing, and editing process. With GPT-3 from OpenAI, you can generate whole articles from one sentence. For example, AI suggested that this piece of text should follow the previous sentences: Artificial intelligence is also being used to create music. For example, Google's AI Magenta project is creating algorithms that can generate original music. For example, teams can overnight data, feed it to personal learning models, and use AI to craft statements that leverage key elements. Some creative teams are using this technology now to generate raw content that can be later finessed by human editors. Startups such as Jasper.AI help thousands of companies to create marketing materials. On a day-to-day basis, almost all writers use some level of AI-driven technology to find relevant search terms, auto-complete predicted text, and check spelling or grammar. AI as an administrator The best AI tools in project management have the ability to take care of time-consuming tasks and monotonous work with automations, suggestions, and search intent technology. Robotic process automation (RPA) or standard automation can replace tedious work like opening an item in one app and then copying or moving it somewhere else. However, these days AI can also infiltrate our creative and management work, something that was not achievable even two years ago. Automating workflows makes progress from project planning to delivery far more efficient. It can adjust tasks, assign owners, ask for approvals, and offer updates in the background while humans take care of the more valuable work. AI and work 3.0 [caption id="attachment_475312" align="aligncenter" width="811"]Generated by Midjourney[/caption] The way we work has been transformed in recent years. While we may be working remotely, or outside of the 9-5, we’re also dealing with high levels of complexity, with some knowledge workers using up to 14 different applications every day. Choosing the right work management platform is vital to effectively manage more data, more connectivity, and more expectations than ever before. If organizations want to drive results and reduce busywork in this new modern environment, the best work management software option for them will be one that includes artificial intelligence tools. Take Wrike’s ability to analyze computing behavior to predict a user’s next actions, for example. This means that if a Wrike user tends to start their day by viewing their dashboard or opening request forms, AI can learn and then replicate these steps every morning. The best AI tools can also take care of the most time-consuming data entry tasks, like transcribing meeting notes. Automation such as Wrike’s AI engine can then use those notes to find actionable tasks and create action lists and project plans. Users can further extend this process by highlighting key parts of the text to create subtasks, instantly transforming a meeting discussion into tangible actions — something we can do today with AI Subitem Creation. Wrike’s advanced AI Search can even recommend who might be the right person to carry out these subtasks, saving yet more time in the planning journey. AI has been able to analyze large volumes of complex data for some time but, in the near future, it’ll also be able to summarize the contents for humans. For example, a manager who wants to check on a project could click to receive a short video reel, a one-page brief, or an AI-voiced verbal update. As with most things, artificial intelligence tools are only as good as the data that powers them. Some work management software providers have limited access to good-quality data in the system, but Wrike is different. We’ve invested heavily in the area of AI in project management, which led to our exciting Work Intelligence technology. This creates a structure that understands the issues, dependencies, and human input challenges of your working environment, and puts that knowledge to work to suggest accurate answers to your queries. This type of differentiating factor will become all the more important in the future, as work continues to become more complex and the data we deal with more dense. Humans and machines: The dream team [caption id="attachment_475318" align="aligncenter" width="811"]Generated by Midjourney[/caption] Much has been written about ‘robots replacing humans’ and the possibility of machines taking over our roles in the workplace. Like the Industrial Revolution in the past, the global embrace of AI may well result in a shift in job roles, but that doesn’t have to mean job losses. In fact, Forrester research predicts that cognitive technologies such as robots, AI, ML, and automation will create 9% of new U.S. jobs by 2025. These new jobs may include robot monitoring professionals, data scientists, automation specialists, and content curators. A recent Stanford study titled ‘How to Survive the A.I. Revolution’ recommends a human-centred approach to AI, which envisions “a future where people and machines are collaborators, not competitors.” We shouldn’t expect machines to be just like humans, they say. They can do some tasks very well, while we have more time to excel at other types of work. For example, creatives could channel the technology to take care of the research stage, so they can focus on crafting engaging visual or written messaging. It’s also important to recognise that there will always be cases where a human’s input is needed. Take chatbots, for example. Sure, they can answer quick queries or funnel users into specific categories. But for more complicated questions, most people will opt for the ‘speak to an operator’ option. On the upside, that operator will have more time to spend on resolving your problem, because the chatbot is taking care of the rest of the queue. The best outcomes are achieved by combining human expertise and experience with the speed and efficiency of ML. One can benefit the other, ultimately providing customers, clients, and companies with a better experience and service. AI and Wrike — An exciting future AI is advancing at such a rapid pace, every year brings huge leaps forward. Connected devices are one of the most exciting frontiers, representing a way for humans to feel at home, wherever they are. As machines continue to learn, they will better understand humans’ habits, particularly as our interactions extend from our laptops to our phones, cars, and even the kitchen fridge. Over time, these computers will know a lot about us, which will allow them to recognize our pain points and deliver bespoke solutions. Wrike already does this for us at work. Every time the platform digitizes data and connects to different integrations like Slack, email, or Zoom, it better understands our everyday needs. It can then offer a variety of ways to make the process smoother and faster, such as suggested to-do lists via AI Recommended Tasks, daily due date reminders, and nudges for overdue approvals. That means greater clarity around your workflow and much improved focus on the priorities at hand. A good example of this is Wrike’s risk predictor, which leverages an advanced work graph model, the user’s interactions with the platform, and thousands of other data points to help flag at-risk projects. “Our AI Project Risk Prediction can help managers and owners track their projects without active involvement,” Akimov explains. “The system monitors your projects for any risks that may cause you to miss your deadlines, then assigns a risk level (low, medium, or high). It was developed using our custom-built AI and learning from millions of Wrike projects.” This all helps to focus teams on the work that matters most, ensure consistently on-time delivery, and position the organization for growth in a rapidly changing environment. A transformative technology Forbes writes: “There has been no better time to be in the world of artificial intelligence than now. AI has achieved an inflection point and is poised to transform every industry.” This means that the time is now for organizations to build the technology into their daily operations. Those who don’t might find themselves left behind, as competitors harness the best AI tools to pull ahead. The good news is that Wrike makes taking the first step easy. When you become a Wrike customer, you open up a world of possibilities, which includes 360° operational visibility, cutting-edge collaboration features, valuable data analysis and powerful automation. Wrike can help you create a more productive, efficient, and profitable work environment by enhancing your human resources with AI. Ready to see how? Get a free two-week trial today to see how Wrike can put machines to work for you.
How to Define Processes for Your Team (and Actually Get Things Done)
Here’s the thing about your processes: they shouldn't be "set and forget.” You need to be consistently evaluating them to identify what’s not working, and then use that information to build more ideal systems for your team.
Ask the Industry Expert: How to Project Manage the Six “Severance” Personalities on Your Team
If you’ve watched the latest Apple TV® hit Severance, then you’ll know what I’m talking about. If not, you’ve at least heard the hype – it’s that dystopian/sci-fi series where some people elect to have a brain implant to essentially “sever” the link between their work and personal life consciousness so that their work selves don’t remember their personal selves, and vice versa. Given the myriad types of personalities that project managers need to work with, I found that the six main characters in this series fit really well with some typical archetypes that PMs find themselves working with. So, let’s get into these personalities, and how they map to some familiar stakeholders you may need to communicate with (a note for superfans: this covers only these characters’ innies, not outies): 1. The “Mark” a. Meta tags for this personality type: Mark is pretty much your ideal boss – trusting, caring, and only a smidge of a tendency to be a rule-breaker, as long as nobody gets hurt. b. Preferred communication style: Model their model-like professional behavior and you will be fine. c. Hot buttons: They think a lot about their concerns about you — whether you’re unhappy or have an issue of any kind. They are all about taking care of others and dealing with constant disruptions by trying to keep things at an even keel. d. Sweet spot for communication: Mark loves for you to simply meet simple expectations. Anything else may throw them off and cause confusion. e. A project template they would love: This personality would love our Change Request template to help them see how to manage the constant disruption and volatility that a workplace can experience. This will speak to their sensibility, and maybe even garner you a special look with kind eyes. 2. The “Harmony” a. Meta tags for this personality type: Harmony is a micromanager and uber-company ambassador. This type can be a boss, a boss’s boss, or another higher-up stakeholder. b. Preferred communication style: Check in and communicate as much as possible – but be short and sweet about it. c. Hot buttons: Forgetting to cc them or inviting them to meetings really pushes "Harmony's" buttons. Not including them in key conversations will make them feel out of control and out of the loop, which are big fears for them. d. Sweet spot for communication: The more this personality sees their name everywhere in your documentation and meeting invites, the better. e. A project template they would love: This personality would love the OKR Template to give them detailed visibility into how all projects tie back to the higher-level strategies that they are responsible for. This will keep their wolfish behavior at bay, and maybe even get you an optional handshake. 3. The “Helly” a. Meta tags for this personality type: Helly is a rebel with an unknown cause, with uncertainty issues. They could be any team member at any level. b. Preferred communication style: Offer Helly guideposts to help them manage their ups and downs, but otherwise, don’t bother them too much. c. Hot buttons: Hovering, putting too many demands on them, and not giving them enough structure or guidance are all touchy areas for Helly. d. Sweet spot for communication: Having a good listener and someone that can guide them through their experiences is crucial for Helly. e. A project template they would love: The Roadmap Template would help this personality see where their tasks are leading, how they are interconnected, and the progress of what their work leads to. This will help a person of this type feel more secure, and maybe even get you invited to a team dance party. 4. The “Dylan” a. Meta tags for this personality type: Dylan is a bit of an egomaniac, snark-master, and also comic relief. They usually fall into the peer-type of resource category, but this can vary. b. Preferred communication style: Trade some good barbs; make Dylan feel good about the work they are doing. c. Hot buttons: Taking work too seriously, or not including them in conversations or tasks can annoy Dylan. d. Sweet spot for communication: Having some lighthearted conversation and looping them in to help solve problems helps Dylan feel comfortable at work. e. A project template they would love: This personality type would love the Retrospective Template to show them shout-outs for themselves and other team members, and help them feel good about the work they are doing. This will help a person of this type feel more motivated, and maybe even inspire them to get a glass sculpture made with an image of your team. 5. The “Milchick” a. Meta tags for this personality type: Milchick is a watchdog – they can be a mid-level manager, team manager, functional manager, or another supervisory role with a team of direct reports. b. Preferred communication style: Be available and responsive at all times, or Milchick will come looking for you. c. Hot buttons: Not being in your seat (or at-the-ready on Slack) during your working hours, or really any appearance of rule-breaking is a red flag for Milchick. d. Sweet spot for communication: The more they see you in person or online doing what you are supposed to be doing, the more Milchick will like what you do. e. A project template they would love: This personality type is all about the Kanban board – to see quickly and easily what everyone is working on and their real-time progress. This will make this type so happy, that maybe you’ll even throw you a waffle party. 6. The “Irving” a. Meta tags for this personality type: Irving is a by-the-book, process-hound, regular drinker from the Kool-Aid fountain. They could be a teammate or someone who has been at your company long-term. b. Preferred communication style: Irving likes to be looped in and directed using language from the company handbook. c. Hot buttons: Stepping out of protocol is a no-no for Irving unless you are taking a trip to their favorite department. d. Sweet spot for communication: Using the company lingo as much as possible to get your points across will put you right on Iriving's radar. e. A project template they would love: The Security Governance and Compliance Checklist is perfect for this personality type to clearly see the protocols that ensure compliance with governance guidelines. This will make this type feel so policy-giddy, they may even forget to say their cringe-inducing, trademark greeting to you. And there you have it. Whether you’re refining data, or are in any other industry or sector where you are managing teams, chances are that there are correlations between who you manage and the templates that will serve them well. As Wrike is both the compiled and the manifested blend of “work,” “life,” and “right” (the polar opposite of Severance's plot), I wish you all a happy Wrike-ing. Chris Hare is an award-winning author and certified program and project management professional with 16 years of experience working for such companies as Adobe, Patagonia, and Guitar Center. Her tenure includes managing hundreds of successful projects for a myriad of client- and agency-side organizations, PMO permutations, and methodologies. At her current role at Wrike, she lends her industry thought leadership and subject matter expertise through product innovations, events, mentor groups, and blog columns. Have a question you’d like Chris to answer? Send us an email! Featured image: Apple TV Plus
Earth Day 2022: 5 Ways for Your Hybrid Work Model to Be More Eco-Friendly
As spring has finally sprung and we can get back to enjoying nature that little bit more, our planet is at the forefront of our minds. The theme of Earth Day 2022 is “Invest in Our Planet” — a fitting frame of mind for approaching our business models this year and beyond. The threat of global warming to our planet’s wellbeing is becoming more and more apparent. According to the latest IPCC report on climate change, approximately 3.3 to 3.6 billion people live in environments that are highly vulnerable to climate change. We need to avoid the global temperature rising by 1.5 degrees Celsius, as this would cause “unavoidable increases in multiple climate hazards and present multiple risks to ecosystems and humans.” According to earthday.org, to avoid this rise in temperature, we need to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. We can all play our parts in this effort, and whether you’re an office manager, a team leader, or a CEO, there are plenty of ways to drive down your workplace’s carbon footprint. As more and more businesses move to a hybrid work model, we’ve gathered five ways to encourage your hybrid workforce to be more environmentally friendly. Encourage hybrid work While some of your teammates may be embracing the hybrid work model, many others may find it hard to break from their traditional schedules. The first step in making your hybrid workplace more eco-friendly is to encourage hybrid working in the first place, as it holds huge benefits for your carbon footprint. Less air and noise pollution from commuting cars, less single-use plastic from breakfasts and lunches, less energy waste from office buildings — the eco-benefits of working from home stack up quickly. While there can be some debate as to whether working from home really cuts carbon emissions with heating and energy costs, the consensus is that it is far preferable to commuting to work, with one study even finding that net carbon emission reductions of 77% can be achieved from working at home. Trial an equipment sharing model One of the benefits of a hybrid working model is that office equipment does not need to be supplied and replaced at such a high rate. Tech turnover can have massive eco-implications, from the mining for materials to the e-waste produced when a piece of equipment needs to be retired. Set up an equipment sharing model with your hybrid workplace, and see how much technology can be shared or saved by staying at home. For example, if a team member has their own computer suitable for work use, offer an incentive for them to use this, rather than request a new laptop. Avoid doling out new technology just for the sake of it. Many of your employees may not need a company phone to do their work, for example, while others may work fine without extras like headsets or external hard drives. If one or more of your employees work part-time or flexible hours, investigate whether they could share their equipment on a rotational basis, passing it between them on the days they need it. Measure office power usage When your teammates do work from the office, there is an opportunity to reduce the amount of power your building uses. Research when your office has the highest capacity, and see if you can reduce the power consumption in off-peak hours. For example, there should never be a need for your office to have full power on overnight. You can also invest in light sensors and LED bulbs, which are both great ways to reduce the need for constant power usage. Depending on the size of your organization, you may be able to switch to a greener energy source for the entire office, such as solar or wind power. Talk to your office manager or the leadership team and state your case for why this investment could be worthwhile. Set up a recycling drive Making an effort to be more environmentally friendly doesn’t have to be a chore. There are plenty of ways to turn your efforts into fun, team-building activities for your team. Why not organize a recycling drive or a local area clean-up for your employees to mingle and do some volunteer work? You could also organize a clothes swap or a furniture flipping competition to let your workers see how going green can be fun and fashionable. Getting everyone involved is key to ensuring your eco-efforts go the distance, and it’s a great excuse to get together outside of work. Offer green incentives If you currently operate a rewards system in your workplace, why not offer more green perks and incentives to your best-performing employees? There are plenty of eco-friendly swag items to choose from, like reusable coffee cups or water bottles, compostable phone cases, or clothing and tote bags made from recycled materials. Go the extra mile and offer these items at your next event or conference, and make your mark as an eco-conscious company. Find the right software for your team to stay connected While working from home, it’s crucial that your employees have the tools they need to collaborate and be productive so that we can all reap the benefits of less time commuting. A collaborative work management system like Wrike allows your team to work together from anywhere. With features like real-time proofing and approvals, over 400 app integrations, customizable workflows and views, and robust security features, it’ll be like you never left the office. Find out more with a free two-week trial.
