A temporary solution
With the remaining house keys left in the locks, we felt reasonably safe and were able to get some sleep that night. However, this was not a practical solution with our vacation only a few days away. We did not feel comfortable leaving the locks as they were while we were gone. It seemed we would have to call in a specialist after all.
Time for an expert, or not?
The next morning, we immediately contacted a locksmith. To our surprise, he told us that replacing the lock ourselves would be perfectly manageable. My boyfriend and I looked at each other in disbelief. We had always considered locks and locking mechanisms to be complicated pieces of engineering. It had never occurred to us that replacing a lock could be done without any prior experience or expertise.
But that assumption could not have been more wrong. The locksmith talked us through the process, and within three minutes we were holding two lock cylinders in our hands.
The challenge was not the replacement itself, but the absence of the right knowledge at the right time. We had assumed that replacing a lock always required a specialist.
Reality is sometimes less complex than it seems
I see the same situation in organizations. When processes or tasks are viewed as highly complex or specialist work, employees can become hesitant to take ownership of them. In reality, these seemingly specialized activities are often far less complicated than people imagine. In many cases, a much larger group of employees could perform them successfully, provided the right support is available. This reduces dependency on a small number of experts for tasks that are actually well within the capabilities of many others.
Making expertise accessible
Eluxis helps organizations make expertise accessible through documentation, work instructions, training, and knowledge solutions. This enables more employees to carry out tasks independently, allowing experts to focus on truly complex challenges.
Curious about what we can do for your organization? Get in touch with us!
We certainly learned something from the experience. More often than not, you are capable of more than you initially think. It has encouraged us to pick up the tools ourselves a little more often and give things a try, although not before first confirming that it really is something we can do ourselves.
Kind regards,
Floor Stefess
floor.stefess@eluxis.com
LinkedIn: Floor Stefess
