​​​​​​Whenever I perform a Maintenance Operation Effectiveness Review (MOER) for a client, rarely do I find a maintainer who is truly satisfied with his or her current state. Many believe they are undervalued and misunderstood. Although most would welcome the chance to be innovative and execute positive change, they can't imagine a different future state because of the “we’ve always done it this way” trap. In short, many maintenance team members want to change the status quo, but don't know how to unlock the door(s) to change. Often, the current state is so comfortable that it discourages change and makes the exploration of new possibilities very difficult

So how do we generate an atmosphere that allows us to explore the edges of possibility in our existing working environments, networks, and formal/informal processes (habits) that frequently suppress innovation and relevant change? We do it by challenging the validity and value of each element of the current state, unlocking one door at a time. We do it through exploration of the adjacent possible. 

In his 2010 book, Where Good Ideas Come From – The Natural History of Innovation, Steven Johnson describes the adjacent possible as a phrase that captures both the limits and creative potential of change and innovation. He goes on to liken it to a house that magically expands with each door you open: You begin with a room with four doors, each leading to a new room you haven’t yet visited. Those four rooms are the adjacent possible that, once entered, leads to more doors and rooms you could not have reached from your original starting point. 

Changing from a current state to a “Best Practice” state is a journey achieved by opening one door and exploring one room at a time to provide new insight into the validity and value of what we do. That's what a MOER is designed to do: open doors and flush out sources of innovation through exploration of “Why do we do what we do, when we do it, and does it make sense to continue to do it?" This insight-generation process requires us to challenge our current processes, relationships with stakeholders and clients, perceptions, incongruities, deliverables, data management, and more. 

While Maintenance is, arguably, the most integrated department within an organization, it's often treated as an operational and information silo. A MOER automatically takes on an integrated approach and applies the theory of adjacent possible through collaboration and exploration of partner relationships between Maintenance and its stakeholders and clients. Among other things, partners are invited to roundtable discussions and encouraged to provide valuable context and insight on the relationship from their points of view. At the same time, they learn that to deliver quality service, Maintenance relies on its partners to supply detailed work requests, accurate information, easy access to assets, adequate funding, timely purchases, and the like. 

Similarly, a MOER applies the adjacent-possible theory to all business processes by systematically walking upstream or downstream through each process to diagnose the relevance and value of each step, based on current needs. As the adjacent possible opens, doors open, change moves forward into a new room, and business processes continue to be challenged and updated.

To put it another way, Maintenance doesn’t have to stagnate in the “we’ve always done it this way” trap. Taking an adjacent-possible approach leads to positive, incremental, and meaningful change, one door and one room at a time.