Policy Framework and Integration [Fusion-Ops Organisation Blueprint]

Organisation Blueprint [OB]OB500002

HICCS Fusion-Ops

HICCS Fusion-Ops Organisation Blueprint [OB]

‘Policy provides intelligent and vital guidance, structure and control across both the workforce

and business, elements crucial for

achieving stable, value added delivery’

The Purpose of Policy -Structure, Control, Leadership

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Policy is one of the majormisconceptions in business andsociety. Common belief seespolicy as an extension to,and enabler of, increasedbureaucracy, something onlyrequired for meeting legalrequirements and jurisdiction.

In the Fusion-Ops Model on theother hand policy plays a vitalpart, it is seen as the enablerof right first time practice,structured guidance to theworkforce, as well as the basisfor effective leadership andmanagement. A strong policyframework reduces the amountof human error taking place;encourages the business tolearn effectively from mistakesand adapt; reduces the needfor un-controlled decisionmaking and intervention in thestructured running of a business(especially by management);and removes division inside thebusiness between people andbusiness units.

‘Just like in the world of physics, things are

governed by rules and regulations, some are elementary, some can

be adjusted, but all have a common

purpose to maintain structure and control’

‘Power Through Awareness’ Page

The Purpose of Policy

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Policy is DNA

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Policy Integration Practice

5

Policy ROI Return On Investment

8

Policy Enforcement and Education

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These operating strains caneasily more than double theoperational costs of a business,hence a huge inefficiency tocarry both from a financial andefficiency perspective.

When policy is well defined andenforced, leadership turns into abackground activity, focused onsupporting the workforce todeliver results and inspiringnatural development andchange. This will make themanagement team morestrategic than reactive, lookingat the business on a 1-5 yearwindow rather than weekly ormonthly. The net gain is acontent workforce which doesnot resist change, happiercustomers and clientele whotruly value the services andproducts. This forces leadershipand management to focus onworking together towards abrighter future rather thancompeting amongst each other(a very unhealthy and narrowminded yet common behaviourin business which rarely deliversany long term gains).

One of the best working DNAstructures we know of is thehuman DNA. It is complex andvery adaptive and therefore canbe used to illustrate the purposeof policy in organisations, whichwe have attempted on page 4.


‘We encourage business owners to

use policy to clean up the leadership in

organisation by clearly defining detailed

accountabilities for all roles and using it to remove waste and poor performers’

Policy Is DNA - Intro

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The business DNA is somethingmany business leaders talkabout and use as a phrase toexplain what the business does,stands for, and how it works.The problem with this approachis that it is often created bypeople who want the businessto reflect their own personalvalues, visions and aspirations. Asmart business man, or woman,understands and knows that abusiness needs to be designedto fit the purpose it is set out todeliver, not to fit the dreams,beliefs and ideologies of theperson or people starting it.

We therefore tend to say ‘Policyis DNA’ as it is the actualframework and skeleton of thebusiness that determines thesuccess and potential long term.We must not forget that strongpolicy does still require strongleadership, but it comes with adifferent focus. When businesslacks policy and structureleadership is forced to be visiblewith a lot of intervention, andmanagement practice tends tofocus on resolving issues ratherthan developing the businessforward. As a result theoperating costs are very highand tend to be driven byinefficient service and salesmodels, HR and grievancescosts, as well as creation ofadditional management roles.



‘For all you young and ambitious aspiring

entrepreneurs, do not make the mistakes of past generations; you must accept that your role is to provide the

inspiration for a venture, the building blocks; the business,

when in shape, should then be allowed to

govern through process, structure and control’

Policy Is DNA - Illustration

4‘Power Through Awareness’ Page

1) We need a brain [for making intelligent decisions and adapting to

changing circumstances around us, as well as for monitoring the

health of the body and its actions. This is equal to business

management and operations]

2) We need speech, eyes and limbs [for communicating and

influencing the environment around us, as well as for performing

activities. This represents outward activities like sales, services and

marketing]

3) We need our vital organs [like heart and lungs, as well as processes,

like blood circulation, which are essential for us to function. Similarly

the business requires a supply and delivery model with agreed

processes and procedures, as well as governance to ensure it can

keep functioning]

4) We have skin, nails and hair [which defines how we look. Similarly a

business needs to have a brand and representation outwards]

5) We reproduce [which allows us to evolve and adapt. Businesses

need to re-invest, re-invent and innovate to ensure they evolve]

We must also invest our time inunderstanding all the areas ofour business in detail, which iswhere most businesses fail. Wehave a tendency to assume weknow rather than actuallycompleting the exercise ofknowing. For many this mayseem like a waste of time, theopposite is true however, it isthe biggest inefficiency thebusiness will face. This Lack ofunderstanding will result in thebusiness becoming both un-controlled and un-manageable.

You could make this illustrationmuch wider, however the pointwe want to make is that ourbodies have controls and rulesin place that ensure we stayalive and operational.

The business is no different, itrequires controls and ruleswhich are clear and welldocumented, continuouslyimproved, easily communicated,as well as enforced across all ofthe business functions (includingsenior managers and owners).

Before engaging the workforcein policy design the businessneeds to provide a ‘skeleton’ ofpolicies and proceduresrequired to achieve lean andeffective business practice. The‘skeleton’ should be based on acompanywide statement ofpurpose (why does the businessexist) and code of conduct(behaviours and principalsexpected of the workforce, andhow to represent the business).


‘Policy documents act as the brain of the

business, documenting both the initial strategy and expectation on how the business should be

managed and run’

Policy Integration Practice -Policy Framework

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Integrating policy into anorganisation can be challenging,but does not have to be. Aclever business will recognisethat all or part of the workforcecan be used to document andimprove policy, in the end policyimpacts the workforce the most.Unfortunately workforce tendsto have the least impact andinfluence on policy because ofpoor delegation and trust frommanagement.


An effective Policy Framework ‘Skeleton’ needs toaccount for the following areas as a minimum standard:

1) Executive Intelligence [rules for controlling the behaviour and

expectations of board, shareholders and senior managers]

2) Operational and Governance Policy [documentation and control

principals for business delivery, Finance, HR, HSE, Legal practice etc.]

3) HR and Leadership Policy [policy regarding people management,

discipline, development, empowerment, delegation principals etc.]

(generally this is the biggest failure in organisations, partly because

businesses are poor at recruiting and developing leaders, as well as

thinking that HR is some sort of replacement for leading people)

4) Service and Sales Delivery + Quality Control [principals on

management of all customer facing aspects of the business]

5) Supply Chain Management Policy [rules and controls for

production, purchasing, distribution, shipping etc.]

6) Media and Brand [rules and principals on how the business is

marketed and represented in public media channels + web]

if and when policy managementis treated more like a 1000 piecepuzzle, then shaping it andworking on it will not feel nearlyas daunting. The biggestchallenge is however to keeppolicy ‘fit for purpose’ whichmeans that the amount ofinformation on display is:• Easy to understand by whole

of the workforce, externalparties and partners (if achild can understand it thenit’s about right)

• Structured in a way thatrecognises policy links whereappropriate

• Communicated and enforcedin way that is simple tounderstand and logical

Policy should never be writtenin a way that leaves room forinterpretation, the aim shouldalways be to answer all differentscenarios and outcomes tominimise confusion andmiscommunication, however doremember that policy shouldalways keep evolving.


‘Policy needs to be designed to be fit for

purpose and logical, as well as easy to interpret

and understand’

Policy Integration Practice -Policy Engagement and Development Journey

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If the policy framework isdesigned and built around thefundamental building blocks(Fusion-Ops) it is much easier tointroduce a ‘Policy Engagementand Development Journey’PEDJ, which focuses on creatinga road map for delivering acontrolled future state of policyas the driver of HTSE (healthy,transparent, sustainable, andethical) business practice. Thisshould be the aim of everybusiness in this day and age.

Successful implementation ofPEDJ does require:• Subject leaders who are in

charge of developing thepolicy framework ‘skeleton’

• PEDJ leader who monitor andreport on the development,must be fully supported andprotected, not pressurised orinfluenced by senior people,leadership and management,the business needs to acceptthat the best policyframework shapes itself ifsubject specialist are selectedcarefully and supportedappropriately

• Improvement forums whichdelegate policy developmenttasks and activities across theorganisation, subject leadersline manage the taskdelivery and are ultimatelyaccountable for the work andhandover to PEDJ


Policy development shouldinvolve the whole workforcewhich will encourage teamworkand guarantee that all gradesacross the business understandwhat each policy is designed for.In this process seniority isirrelevant if the requirementsare clearly documented by thecentral management team whooutline which policies needdeveloping and how. Managersneed to be given clearguidelines to interact in thisprocess as a peer and not toabuse power, rather provideprogressive support to thepolicy development process toensure it is easy to follow,logical, accurate and fit forpurpose as mentioned before.

As and when policy finally startsshaping the businesses ‘DNA’ itwill make policy enforcementmuch simpler through regularauditing. This is not only moreeffective, it reduced the strainon line managers who often endup struggling with policyenforcement as it is not theircore skill. Remove this strainand they will become muchmore productive and geared todeliver positive outcomes.When the structure is strongteaching policy is really moreabout informing the workforceof the progress, supported byspecialist teachings.


‘If you view and treat the whole of your

workforce as an asset in policy development you will find that it provides

them with purpose, clarity, and vision which

in turn makes them more loyal and willing to go the extra mile’

- Niklas Christides, 2017

Policy Enforcement and Education

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Policy has a complex naturebecause it interlinks anddocuments behaviour, patterns,requirements, scenarios etc.,which makes it difficult to teachand enforce. However, as withmost things there is anothermore effective way to consider.

As mentioned engagement iskey, if the workforce is allowedto engage in policy developmentit will remove obstacles relatingto both the teaching, as well asenforcement, of policy asemployees and managementcan already see themselvesfeaturing as part of the policyframework. This does howeverrequire that policy is present inthe role description and deliveryaccountabilities.

Policy is generally resisted bythe workforce because of poormanagement communicationsand lack of quality leadership.Society and managers inparticular have learnt to usepolicy to make their own rolesand positions secure throughmisusing the power policy bringswith it. Hence policy can eitherbe of progressive or destructivenature. Achieving progressivepolicy requires strong centralmanagement and education toensure the process is controlled,and not influenced by pockets ofmanagers who may abuse it.


When defining the policy‘skeleton’ we also need tounderstand the ROI to ensurewe feel that the activities willactually improve the way thebusiness operates andcontributes towards enhancedsustainability. Having visibility ofROI will ensure that we do notovercommit or become overambitious with our policydevelopment, it is a long termactivity that needs to be scopedout ideally over 3 years or more.

Designing a sustainable PolicyEngagement and DevelopmentJourney (PEDJ) needs to accountfor affordability which is key fordetermining what developmentactivities may be committedover time and when (see PEDJillustration).


‘Starting a Policy Engagement and

Development Journey is always worth it, as

it will make your business stronger,

more agile, ambitious, and sustainable; just remember it is not easy to achieve, so

take it seriously and incorporate it in a way

that does not strain the rest of the

business’

Policy ROI Return On Investment

8

One of the challenges we face isputting faith into things thathave an ongoing developmentcost which may put some strainon the financial performanceand profitability of a business.When we commit ourselves tothings in business we need toalways look at ROI (Return OnInvestment), which can impactthe company in many ways:- Financial gains, profitability

and improved sales margin- Improved working practice,

human and machinecapability and methods

- Risk reduction and stability- Production effectiveness and

product quality

These are some of the countlessareas where policy can make adifference for the better.


Policy Framework and Integration [Fusion-Ops Organisation Blueprint]

Leadership & Management

Transcript of Policy Framework and Integration [Fusion-Ops Organisation Blueprint]