They say clarity is kindness, and I tend to agree. The clearer we are about vision, expectations, roles, deadlines, deliverables, etc., the better our teams become.
I’ve learned that clarity doesn’t appear out of thin air. It’s an intentional commitment an organization makes to its people. And the way you create greater clarity, in my view, is through building better systems.
Consider a few common sources of stress in an organization:
- Unclear roles: When people don’t know what they own or what others own, you need a system that proactively defines roles and responsibilities.
- Projects are vague: The deliverables and deadlines are fuzzy, so you likely need a better project kickoff and management system.
- Poor communication: If key people aren’t “in the loop,” you might need an internal comms system that makes sure updates flow the right way at the right time.
- Decision-making bottlenecks: If people don’t know who can make what decisions, you may lack a system for defining authority and approvals.
- Mission drift and shiny objects: If your team struggles to stay aligned on long-term goals, or too many “exciting ideas” keep popping up, you need a system for setting plans and regularly reviewing goals.
Again and again, when an organization lacks clarity, it’s not just a communication issue, it’s a systems issue.
If you want to create greater clarity, try identifying the missing system.
