How can you ensure that your team is aware of cost implications when proposing new ideas?

I find the key to be continuous transparency (as much as possible) when it comes to budget and prioritization. The more informed and involved the teams and the individuals are, the more likely it is for them to take cost implications into consideration when proposing new ideas.

Assuming you have a behavior/precedent of involving others in strategy and planning, encourage teams who are coming up with new ideas to pitch to each other before elevating it into serious consideration. Not only does this build skill and competence amongst others (building a great strategic planning and thinking capability) but the internal pressure-testing of ideas means that the ideas that 'make it' are more likely to be relevant, additive, accretive and in alignment with the ultimate outcomes.

Here are few points: 1. continuous learning 2. cost analysis tools 3. financial training 4. establish budget 5. encourage cost benefit analysis 6.regular updates on budget status 7. centivize Cost-Efficiency: Implement a system that recognizes and rewards cost-efficient practices. This can motivate team members to actively seek ways to reduce expenses without compromising the quality of their work. Open Dialogue:Foster an environment where team members feel comfortable discussing financial concerns and seeking advice. An open dialogue can help address questions and ensure that everyone is on the same page regarding cost implications.

Encourage teams to think through implications (not only financial) for themselves. Establish a relatively simple business case template that teams can (and should) consider when presenting ideas and concepts. Make this easy enough for non-financial employees to contribute to but will also be something that adds value to the decision-making process and also helps employees build great business acumen. Some options are also to build forced ranking scales into the template in terms of trade-offs. The more a team can consider the various implications and then be forced to assign some sort of comparative ranking, the more likely you'll receive ideas that have a reasonable probability of success.

Always ask teams to consider the counterpoint: - if instead of increasing x, we focused on y - if instead of moving into that new market, we grew another market - if instead of moving building out that product/feature, we invested in another option. Make an alternative the forcing function in a decision. Realise the psychology behind individuals and teams who lock onto their idea and believe it to be the best/only solution. As individuals we have a hard time realising that there may be problems or challenges with our ideas and one way to tease these out is to encourage teams to test their assumptions.

Amazon famously had an empty chair for the 'customer'; imaging what the customer (who pays for the product/service) would say is vital. Similarly, get as close to where the work happens as possible. I have seen corporate teams who 'roll out' programs to manufacturing sites or fulfillment warehouses that do little to improve performance at the site. In some cases they created more burden and bureaucratic process. If the teams had tested their ideas by getting closer to where the work is done, it is likely they would have changed the solution and not rolled out something that was met with frustration and annoyance.

Set up an easy to use dashboard to track performance. Make it visible to everyone. Acknowledge where you're on track and where you aren't. Don't hide the performance (even if it is adverse or not as expected). Learn from what hasn't worked as planned. Amplify what is working.

A simple yet highly effective approach we employ is to treat every new idea as a project. We have a well-defined structure, templates, and checklists that each idea must undergo to qualify as a viable project. We have clearly outlined the aspects that need to be considered when evaluating an idea, including its strategic alignment, resource requirements, potential costs, implementation details, and success criteria. Additionally, we have provided templates to facilitate a comprehensive assessment of these factors. This process takes a couple of hours, allowing colleagues to thoroughly consider the most critical aspects. By the end of this thought process, the individual proposing the idea has a clear understanding of its feasibility.