Businesses often seek external advice. Most often this advice often comes in a form of a hired expert. Experts can be brought in to perform a variety functions (to discover and frame the problem; to recommend solutions to the known problem; to facilitate the internal process of decision making; and so on). Regardless of their purpose, the value of their advice rests with the willingness and readiness of the organisation to buy-in and act on their advice, and that is not trivial.
A barrier that appears between an external adviser and an organisation is known as Not-Invented Here syndrome (NIHS). NIHS is a psychological phenomenon that captures doubts or biases towards the outside knowledge and manifests in the unwillingness to recognise the value of work created else where. It is a corporate version of ‘us and them’ tribalism and overcoming it is crucial for experts and organisations to effectively introduce new ideas.
Several strategies can be helpful for bringing two systems together.
Strategies for experts
Anchoring* the advice
The practice of anchoring refers to the actions adopted by an expert to create associations between the local system and the emerging advice. Using local language, quoting in-house experts or referencing internal bodies of knowledge help facilitates effective anchoring. Anchoring builds up credibility of the new idea and increased the receptivity and the likelihood of the future action. *Not to be confused with the cognitive bias called anchoring.
Advising through questions
HBR suggests that the biggest value of an expert is in ‘pulling the deep smarts of others’. Deep smarts is the business critical knowledge and pulling it out can be challenging. Questions are known for their ability to invite dialogue, continue the exchange of viewpoints, as well as for their ability to empower and engage. Pulling deep smarts by asking questions demonstrate curiosity, humbleness and empathy, all the essential ingratiates for overcoming NIHS.
Working with the system
Going beyond the relationships at stake and working with the wider system is also one of the effective strategies for the successful integration. All sorts of stakeholder or mind mapping techniques can be helpful here.
Using principles, not rules
This factor has deep-seated psychological roots. Rules create boundaries and they are associated with a fear of breaking them, therefore to reduce this fear framing advice as principles creates a cognitive flexibility and open-mindedness required to adopt new ideas. This is possible through active listening, collaboration and empathy.
Inviting feedback
Inviting feedback about own practice is essential for building trust and credibility. It denotes desire to improve, ability to listen as well as denotes vulnerability and humbleness. Inviting feedback signals that local opinions matter and therefore reduces the likelihood of the NIHS barrier.
Strategies for businesses
Explain
Fear sees danger everywhere, and fear of the unknown is often very forceful. Arrival of the expert can be interpreted in many ways by the organisational audience (uncertainty, loss of job, loss of status), and reducing these interpretations to the one that matters is crucial. Taking time to explain and communicate is essential for managing unnecessary fears and minimising noise in the system.
Listen
Communicating is great, but listening is even greater. Listening to conversations and concerns around the arrival of the expert acknowledges the value of different opinions and engages people to actively deal with the uncertainty of what the arrival of the expert might bring. Ensuring that the organisation is heard represents one of the most powerful instruments that is available to the current day leadership.
Use champions
Local acknowledgements and recommendations are the hardest to get, but they are most trustworthy and effective for the wider adoption. Positive internal examples are encouraging for the wider organisation to consider and get on with the expert advice.
Work through collaborations
Weaving expert advice through a collaboration helps minimise biases and facilitates working collectively through possible concerns around expert advice. Collaborations are instrumental for an intelligent advice its they reduces potential mistakes and ensures appropriate integration with local systems.