One of the more fascinating observations after nearly three decades across industries and roles—largely centred around technology—is this, it’s not how much technology has changed that surprises me. It’s how little human behaviour has.
Every organisation has that one sentence capable of stopping innovation and progress in its tracks with “we’ve always done it this way.” I sometimes wonder if it is engraved—perhaps in invisible ink—right at the entrance of every office.
A few months back, when I joined my current organisation, I noticed something interesting. Every proposal to a prospective client included a “pilot phase.” In fact, it was so institutionalised that it existed as a milestone in the sales CRM. Naturally, I asked why.
The answer was simple and familiar, “that’s how it’s always been done.” We decided to remove the pilot phase from our proposals. Almost immediately, the conversation with clients changed—and so did the order values.
Only later did I understand the origin of this practice. A few years earlier, when the organisation was still evolving, the pilot approach helped us learn, de-risk implementations, and avoid over-commitment. It made perfect sense then. But over time, that thoughtful precaution had become… hard-coded.
Today, the word “pilot” has quietly exited our lexicon—and our revenue cycle has become meaningfully shorter.
Going back a few years, I recall a conversation with my Executive Assistant—fresh out of business school—who asked a simple question: “why are we so conservative in our social media communication, especially when we’re trying to attract young talent?” Our instinctive response? Yes, you guessed it right, “we’ve always been this way.” That’s when it struck me that I was part of “this way.”
The irony was that we had built a genuinely vibrant workplace, with strong employee engagement and plenty of recreational initiatives. But none of this was visible externally – or for that matter, perceived internally! Within a month, we changed course. We expanded beyond our internal portal, became active on Instagram and Facebook, and began showcasing employee stories and experiences.
The result? A noticeable shift in how we were perceived by potential hires and, interestingly, even by our own employees.
Let me go further back about two decades to my time at one of India’s largest banks. We were evaluating outsourcing a significant operational function (incidentally, I was leading the initiative). The move promised substantial cost savings and a clear improvement in service levels. But the reaction was… dramatic. “It’s like selling the family jewels,” someone said. Here’s the quiet irony: most of the sub-activities were already outsourced. All we were proposing was to consolidate them under a single partner. Yet, reframing the same reality proved far harder than analysing it. Eventually, the decision went through. Today, that model is not just accepted—it is standard industry practice.
So, what’s the essence here?
1. Experience is invaluable… until it becomes inertia. The very experience that helps us solve problems can also convince us there is only one way to solve them.
2. Technology changes faster than habits. We talk about AI, automation, and digital twins. Yet many organisations still make decisions exactly as they did fifteen years ago. (Tsk tsk. Ironically, some now find it easier to converse with AI agents than challenge their own processes. I’m still somewhere in between).
3. Great leaders don’t have all the answers. They simply ask better questions. (I’m still working on that). One of the most powerful questions I’ve come across is “If we were starting this company today, would we build it this way?
And perhaps this says it best: “Progress begins the moment experience becomes a guide instead of a prison.”
To summarise – its’ about letting go of yesterday’s certainty. Innovation isn’t always about inventing something new. Sometimes, it’s simply having the courage to stop doing something old.
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