From output to outcome – a difficult but essential step

GOTO Aarhus 2024

It sounds so easy. Focus on outcome and set your teams free to deliver on it!

The hard truth is that it is not easy at all and that even in 2024, outcome focused teams and organizations are few and far between. It is easy to just blame traditional governance models, hierarchies and outdated incentive and functional structures, but even when those barriers are not in place, we observe teams and leaders that are drawn to output as moths to a flame.

The problem is multidimensional:

• We seem to have a deep desire to focus on tangible outputs.
• Our brains are hardwired to avoid the friction that often follows with an outcome driven approach.
• We do not even agree what constitutes outcome let alone how to observe if we have reached it.
• We are not able to separate leading from lagging metrics.
• What is initiated as outcome goals are translated to output goals once they reach the teams or people doing the actual work.
• We do not understand how to work with output in an outcome driven setting
• We believe that using OKRs will solve our outcome vs. output problem but end up reintroducing the same problems in a new framing.
• We believe that everything must happen either top-down or bottom-up and create unintentional conflict between teams and leadership levels

And the list goes on……

But just because it is difficult does not make it any less important!

In this masterclass you will learn why moving from output to outcome is likely the most critical move you need to make to succeed as a team or organization. We will look at the organizational context and the specific tools and processes needed to get you started and what is expected of both teams and leadership to succeed together.

Through hands-on exercises you will also get the chance to:

• Identify both the problems and solutions needed in your local context.
• Identify (and understand the difference) between North Star and proxy outcome metrics.
• Create your own outcome driven roadmaps and how to use suggested output in relation to those.
• Work with suggestions for reporting and transparency so they become a positive driver rather than an administrative burden

You will leave the day both inspired in terms of the opportunities ahead of you but also respectful of the challenges you will need to overcome to translate nice sounding ideas into a working setup