You can't improve what you don't understand
Many organisations experience increasing operational pressure. New responsibilities are added, projects continue to accumulate and priorities constantly shift. Yet despite this growing complexity, answering one seemingly simple question often proves surprisingly difficult:
Where is our capacity actually being spent?
For Tommy Kraak, Transformation Consultant at Projective Group, that question is often the starting point of a transformation programme. Rather than searching for solutions immediately, he believes organisations first need to understand how they actually operate.
A growing department with limited visibility
Within a Client Service Delivery department, an increasing number of activities had gradually been centralised from different parts of the organisation. While this created opportunities to streamline operations, it also made it increasingly difficult to maintain a clear overview.
What work are we actually doing? How much capacity does it require? And where are our teams really spending their time?
"There was limited visibility into which activities were being performed across the department and how much capacity they required," Tommy explains. "Without that understanding, it's difficult to make informed decisions about how you want to organise the department in the future."
His assignment therefore wasn't to improve processes from day one. It was to create insight first.
Understanding before improving
According to Tommy, organisations often jump to solutions before fully understanding the problem they're trying to solve.
"We first wanted to understand what teams were actually doing, how much time different activities required and where capacity was really being spent."
Reliable management information simply wasn't available through existing systems, meaning the answers couldn't be found in dashboards or standard reports.
Instead, the project adopted a practical, bottom-up approach that actively involved employees in building those insights.
Building insight together
The project began with interviews and workshops, during which employees mapped their activities, grouped similar tasks and jointly defined how their daily work should be categorised.
Next, a straightforward time-tracking methodology was introduced, enabling teams to record how they actually spent their time over a defined period.
People often find time tracking uncomfortable. That's why it's so important to clearly explain why you're doing it.
For Tommy, that was one of the most important aspects of the project. The objective was never to monitor individual performance or measure productivity, but to create a shared understanding of how capacity was being used.
That's also why he believed the message had to come from leadership.
"As a consultant, you can explain how the process works. But the reason behind it should come from leadership. That's what creates trust."
Data before decisions
As the analysis progressed, both management and teams developed a much clearer understanding of day-to-day operations.
Which activities consume the most capacity? Where do differences between teams exist? And where are opportunities to make better-informed decisions?
Tommy emphasises that the data was first and foremost intended for the teams themselves.
The data is for -and created by -the teams."
By giving employees visibility into their own work, the organisation created a shared foundation for conversations about priorities, workload and future organisational decisions.
Building the foundation for a future target operating model
During the project, the client's global organisation requested the development of a future target operating model for the department.
Because the organisation now had objective insight into how capacity was actually being utilised, those strategic decisions could be based on evidence rather than assumptions.
Tommy supported the analysis, helped shape the storyline and worked closely with management to develop and present the plan.
The outcome was not only a vision for the future, but also a more informed way of making strategic decisions.
From insight to practical improvements
Although the project was not primarily focused on process optimisation, the insights naturally led to several practical improvements.
Teams standardised the way they organised weekly planning sessions, became more deliberate in allocating project time and introduced dedicated focus blocks into their schedules.
Rather than large-scale operational changes, these were targeted improvements that emerged from a better understanding of the day-to-day reality.
Understanding is the foundation of change
For Tommy, this project demonstrates that meaningful organisational change always starts with understanding.
If you want to improve capacity management or redesign the way a department operates, you first need to understand how the organisation works today.
Only once that foundation is in place can organisations make well-informed decisions about the future and implement changes that truly fit the way they work.
How well do you understand how capacity is being used across your organisation?
Many organisations experience increasing workloads but lack the insight needed to make informed decisions. Curious how greater visibility into capacity allocation can help improve decision-making, collaboration and the way your organisation operates? Our consultants would be happy to start the conversation.
About Tommy Kraak
Tommy Kraak is a Transformation Consultant at Projective Group, specialising in capacity management, organisational development and operational transformation within the financial services industry. He helps organisations create the insights they need to make better-informed decisions about their operating model and the effective use of capacity.
