For nearly 23 years I was the President of a faith-based non profit and was a board member for another faith-based entity. These two organizations provided a different service to the community but most all non-profits and their boards feared, "the duplication of efforts". Competition was perceived as not so good for the non-profit community. The attitude among many of the non-profit leaders was, "Leave it to us we already provide the service and we do it very well". Sometimes self-assessment doesn't produce a real picture. I believe that all people are created equally in the eyes of God and are uniquely made to do good works that God has prepared for them. But, that doesn't mean everyone providing a similar service or producing a product will be equally as good at it. Consumers love competition and the government "tries" to stop monopolies from forming because they, monopolies, can eliminate or control competition. It becomes personal when it happens to be our lively-hood though. This self preservation attitude alone makes us selfish and protective of "our" turf. It is the consumer that reaps the benefits of the competition and duplication of effort. The real fear of those who decry "no duplication of effort" philosophy is when too many people are fishing in the same pool of money that pool won't produce enough money for all of them. We all need money but what we need more of are people focused on being the best they can be and the money will follow.
If you offer a service and someone in the community offers the same service it doesn't mean they are duplicating your efforts. It should be hard for the for-profit and the not-for profit. Why? Because it is good for the community and the consumer. If you want the best or to be the best you must compete with the best. This competition does better to produce excellence than does the lack of competition. If you want a stronger and better workforce you, the leader, need to be the best.
Why do I bring this subject matter up in a blog for business? Because the uniqueness of men and women given the same amount of money, the same talent, the same work environment doesn't guarantee equal outcomes for a business either. I grew up in a family of six people with two parents, a mom and a dad, and three other siblings. We were raised up in the same environment with access to the same things but all my siblings see things differently than I do. My efforts and choices, attitudes, behaviors, desires, and dreams were all different. We all excelled in something different. One brother became wealthy, another is a great leader, and the third has many struggles and difficulties in life. I am writing a blog that no one in my family would ever consider writing. Even though everything being "equal", which really isn't humanly possible, all of us succeeded in something but our outcomes were different. We found our niche in life because we were forced to by competition and our choices. That is okay because our presuppositions about ourselves, our world, and our God are different therefore we will have different motivations, drives, desires, and results. One person will try something and it works. Another person will try the "same thing" and it doesn't work. One person swears by Honda and another thinks they are junk. But a team is strengthened and made better when all people on the team do their own unique part to compete. This makes the team stronger. This is why employee engagement is so important. Instead of worrying about competition or duplication of effort invest in the development of your people so you can become a stronger and better team. This is the best way to beat the "duplication of effort".
There is no silver bullet or book that is going to catapult you or your organization to a better place. It will be with the development of your people. Once they produce great attitudes, trust one another, engage in the process, own the results, and work and communicate consistently everything else will improve including your employee attraction and retention. No one can possibly duplicate your efforts. Your efforts are yours. This includes your physical ability, mental ability, emotional strength, and you spiritual strength. Everything really is one-person growing at a time, working together for the same vision & mission. But all teams need good leaders to keep that team working together with a common vision and goals. Only then will you not fear duplication of effort or competition. So bring on the duplication of effort!
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