Fayoumi: The business world is moving faster than ever; Never stop experimenting

One of my childhood memories involves helping my dad set up science experiments in his classroom.

My sister and I would be instructed on how to handle the fragile glass beakers and Bunsen burners that we were to transport to his students' lab benches.

After contemplating following my parents' footsteps into public education, I determined that a career in human resources was a better fit given my interests and strengths. Over my career, however, I've become convinced that my chosen field is also full of important experiments.

On a recent flight back from an industry conference with association peers from across the United States, I summarized my meeting notes and then settled in to read the Harvard Business Review. Although I don't always indulge in the print version of HBR, this month's cover story, "The Busyness Trap," caught my eye.

Serendipitously, there were several thought-provoking features that correlated well with our meeting topics and shared a common theme of experimentation. The topics that appeared in both the HBR article and my meeting agenda included business metrics, hybrid work and AI/ChatGPT.

Spoiler alert: All these trending topics require ongoing experiments for any organization, team or individual to determine what works best. There's no easy formula, no plug-and-play solution, no one-size-fits-all approach. Smart people, savvy managers and dedicated leaders are all endeavoring to stay current by trying different approaches, analyzing results, learning from successes and failures, and adjusting course when necessary.

Here are a few ideas to consider when it comes to experimentation.

• Business metrics.

The article on "Busyness" struck a chord with me. The author, Adam Waytz, of the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, recommends five approaches to break the busyness cycle: 1) Reward output, not just activities; 2) Assess whether your organization is generating deep (e.g., innovative) work and eliminate low-value work; 3) Force people off the clock; 4) Model the right behavior; and 5) Build slack into the system.

Some of these approaches are easier than others, but all require a willingness to make meaningful changes.

• Hybrid work.

While my industry colleagues lead similar organizations, our policies and practices on hybrid work run the gamut. Some no longer have any physical office space and are 100% remote while others have a space where employees attend meetings, work on team projects, and "hotel," but have adopted a "work from anywhere" policy.

Still others maintain one or more offices where some or all their team members work from one to five days each week. The common denominator is that we're all still trying to figure out what works. We are experimenting with how to effectively deliver on our mission to serve employers, achieve a healthy bottom line, attract and retain talent, and nurture a productive, collaborative culture.

• AI/ChatGPT.

This subject has the most obvious tie to experimentation because it's evolving so quickly. Individuals, institutions and industries are all racing to learn more and determine how it applies to them and how to tap into its power. Answering these questions will require experimentation which means a significant investment of resources. It is vital for leaders to encourage their teams to embrace AI and share what they're learning to help inform critical decisions.

As Ferris Bueller once said: "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."

Things are moving a lot faster than they did in an Iowa classroom in the 1970s, but experimenting has never been more valuable.

• Mary Lynn Fayoumi is President & CEO of HR Source.