Overview, insight, impact.

The problem.

If only you had a thorough understanding of the situation, you could act on it in the best way. Going through distinct phases helps you collect enough information to get the right insights, and to act on those.

Often the overview and insight phases are rushed, to get things done as soon as possible. Or the opposite happens: too much time goes into the overview, to have exhaustive data, or into the insights, to make them "perfect".

The model.

1. Overview. Collect all the assets and sources you have or need, find what is missing, and prepare for the moment you have to create insights.
2. Insight. Browse through everything you collected to work out the right next steps. What is the key need? Which part causes the most problems?
3. Impact. Which actions, in which order, make things better? What will have the most impact?

Example.

A process that frustrates everyone. In the overview phase you map it: what are the steps, and who is involved? In the insight phase you ask which part of that process causes the most problems. In the impact phase you act: cut two steps, skip two meetings, give one person more autonomy to decide.

The same works for customers. Interview enough of them to get a full overview of their needs, for example with a simple empathy map. Then find the key need. Then decide what to change first.

Why it matters now.

AI can put together an overview in minutes. That makes it tempting to jump straight to action, or to keep collecting forever. The middle step, deciding what actually matters, is still where the judgement sits.

Origin: to confirm. First published here in May 2020. Related: the speedboat approach.