SCRAP "Treatments" (or, the 3 things you can do with SCRAP)

General
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When there is some SCRAP that we agree/decide we want to work on, there are several things we can do about it. We currently call them “Treatments” though that languge is subject to change.

What is Organizational SCRAP?

Rehash: Organizational SCRAP are structures culture rules assumptions processes that don’t suit our purpse or that get in the way. They may have been useful at one point, but they are no longer. Or they are useful for some but not others. etc…

Below is the current thinking on the kinds of treatments that exist for SCRAP. Comments welcome!

How do we treat SCRAP? By “treatment” I mean “things you can do with SCRAP”. There are only a few general ways to treat SCRAP: Rework, Eliminate, or Accept it. Each of those three treatments can be broken down into more focused forms of those treatments based on the situation.

  1. Rework it - Basically, change it. There are a number of ways we might rework SCRAP- redesigning it or realigning it, for example. They should result in better alignment to purpose and less waste/less stuff in the way that isnt truly needed. At least a few kinds of rework we might choose to do:

    • Redesign or realign it - Just like it sounds. We change SCRAP into something that is not SCRAP by making it fit for purpose. Change may be more involved than it sounds as we might modify, add or remove things.
    • Prune it - Like a bush with dead branches, some SCRAP is only partially SCRAP. In this case we trim off the dead branches, eliminating just the parts that are SCRAP. The textbook example is the process or rule that is important for one group, but not for another. We call this out specifically because the art of decoupling is one that can benefit just about anyone and is not discussed enough.

  2. Eliminate it - Get rid of it. This may take the form of retiring it if it ever had a clear purpose.

  3. Accept it - acknowledge it and allow it to exist. Deciding to accept SCRAP is no less a decision than deciding to do anything else with it. There are all kinds of reasons we might accept it. There are some things we might want to do whenever we accept SCRAP- contain it or monitor/measure it, for example. A decision to not do anything is still a decision, and so if we take this path, there are things we can do to mitigate the risk, minimize the damage, and continue to keep an eye on it.

Is there any type of treatment that doesn’t fall under one of these three? Share ideas and examples of things that don’t seem to fit any of these three treatment types. Or share something you might do with SCRAP and we will either determine how/where it fits.

This topic is focused on just the 3 general types of treatment that exist. There are many specific treatments that I believe all fall under 1 of these 3.

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