Our first reactions typically come from a patterned behavior or habit. We go through much of our days responding to things like we’ve been responding to things. We’re creators of habit because it makes life easier. One of the habits I encounter frequently is the habit of business leaders to “ask for a workaround in software.” It is the first reaction to almost all software implementations. As soon as the software requires you to do anything different than what you’re doing today, it's time for a workaround.

What is a workaround? I like to think of it as a detour. You’re driving down the road and you must go out of your way to get where you want to go because there is some impediment in the way. A workaround is extra. A workaround is rarely ever about the outcome (or the destination). It’s about the path to get there. This is so important. So many print businesses get hung up on workarounds that have zero impact on outcomes. Read that sentence again. We need a workaround because the software doesn’t precisely work the way we work right now. Read that sentence again. The sad part about getting hung up on workarounds is that the “hung up part” DOES impact outcomes. I recently witnessed two print businesses in the same market segment implementing the same artwork proofing solution. Printer number one dug into the solution, asked some questions, and in their words “changed the whole way they were doing artwork approval in order to optimize using the new software.” Printer number two is still waiting on workarounds. They are stuck because they refuse to change the order of their manual process. The software doesn’t support the order in which they do things today. The order of their process is not a differentiator. The order of their process is not important other than it’s a habit. 

Outcomes are being impacted. Printer one has decreased their average artwork approval times by two days. Yes, two days. Printer two isn’t using the software yet. Workarounds are a habit because we assume that business tools should flex to our way of doing things. Flexibility is the actual differentiator. Your flexibility as a company has a drastic impact on business outcomes. When you are flexible you don’t do detours/workarounds. You take the tools at hand and find the most efficient path to the desired business outcomes.