HRO: (9) Deference to Expertise

When an organization finds itself facing an error, process breakdown or episode of harm, decisions must be made regarding how best to recover and resume operations.  According to Weick and Sutcliffe and other discussions about how HROs operate, an HRO will respond with the fifth and final key principle:  deference to expertise.  That is, high echelons of management will refrain from diving into the weeds to develop solutions or modify processes; instead, they will identify and empower those individuals or teams best qualified to understand and solve the problem.  This deference to expertise ideally results in a solution of appropriate scope and focus, one crafted by experts with intimate knowledge of key details and therefore able to both direct intentional impacts and mitigate undesirable effects.  Not only can deference to expertise optimize problem solving, it may enhance buy-in of needed changes. 

In the book of Proverbs, we find many references to seeking and using good counsel.  The Proverbs are founded upon the premise that all wisdom comes from God; we should be diligently seeking His ways and looking to Him for guidance and discretion.  Proverbs 3: 5 – 8 tells us “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.  Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil.  This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.”  The beginning of wisdom is fear of the Lord and desire to do His will, to follow His guidance, and to give Him glory.  This deference to expertise sets a Christian leader and manager apart; we have access to the Creator of the universe, the divine architect, the one “for whom and through whom everything exists” (Hebrews 2:10).  

As a side note:  the full verse of Hebrews 2: 10 is “In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering.”  God’s plan of salvation for the fallen world, enacted through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ His Son, was divine problem solving.  He had a goal—reconciling the world to Himself—and acted within His divine character in perfect wisdom, justice and compassion; without meaning to speak heresy, these were His “constraints.”  The solution was atonement through Christ, which required “the author of their salvation [to be made] perfect through suffering.”  Even divine problem solving is complicated, difficult and painful.  We should expect our human problem solving, enacted in this sinful, fallen and frustrating world, to be no less.  On a micro level, our problem solving should have a similar goal—the establishment of order, safety, harmony—and as such we can rely upon God for wisdom as we strive to do His will in every environment. 

Here on earth, the visible and universal Church, the fellowship of believers, is described as the Body of Christ.  It is the Body of Christ—the unity of multiple organs and parts—which do God’s will here in time.  In 1 Corinthians 12: 12 – 27, Paul discusses the uniqueness and unity of the Body.  He scripts a conversation between eye and ear, between ear and nose: “because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body.”  He reminds us “If they were all one part, where would the body be?  As it is, there are many parts, but one body.”  If we were all leaders and managers, who would do the work—the cooking, the cleaning, the changing of bandages, the replacement of light-bulbs, the tightening of lug-nuts and the brushing of teeth?  The concept of “deference to expertise” fits well within our understanding of the Body of Christ—not everyone is in an ideal place to identify and solve problems, but each person (each organ) must rejoice in and fulfill the unique and necessary role they are given.  

For the eye to say to the ear “we had a problem with hearing, I the eye will solve it for us” would be foolish.   But how often does a far-distant manager elect to (is directed to) dictate a solution to a problem of which they have no intimate knowledge?  Or how often does the individual who participated in the broken process, who saw the error or harm event occur, throw up their figurative hands, abnegating all ownership, and expect management to craft a solution?  Can the eye say “I’ll solve our hearing problem”?  Can the ear say “hey, eyeball, fix this hearing thing for me”?  There is room—and necessity—for collaboration and cooperation at all levels, “The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body.” (1 Cor 12: 12)  It is the diversity of the parts that give strength to the Body of Christ.  Paul expounds on his analogy further in verses 28 – 30 where he says clearly that the gifts given to each person—prophecy, teaching, administration—are part of their unique contributions to the Body of Christ, elements to be praised, valued and used by the Body for the good of God’s people. Deference to expertise means that the problem solving authority is given to the person, team, organ or part best suited to solve the problem; this is a behavior well suited to Christians, and a concept we can gladly share with the world.  

1)      According to Proverbs 15: 22 “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisors they succeed.”  Proverbs 24: 5-6 says “A wise man has great power, and a man of knowledge increases strength; for waging war you need guidance and for victory many advisors.”  What “many advisors” do you have in your life?  Do you use the gifts and abilities of your colleagues and employees to solve problems, or do you rely only on your own abilities?

2)      If you are in a leadership or management role—how could “deference to expertise” be motivated by fear or laziness, or result in inappropriate delegation of authority or lack of ownership?  How is “deference to expertise” appropriately balanced by leaders consistently owning their area of responsibility?

3)      If you are in a followership role—how could “deference to expertise” be lived out in your scope?  Are there problems or broken processes that you have the ability and knowledge to fix?  How can this increase your job satisfaction and honor your desire to be an unashamed, approved workman (2 Timothy 2: 15)?

4)      St Teresa of Avila is quoted as saying “Christ has no body now but yours.  No hands, no feet on earth but yours.  Yours are the eyes through which He looks compassion on this world.  Yours are the feet with which He blesses all the world.  Yours are the hands, yours are the feet, yours are the eyes, you are His body. Christ has no body now on earth but yours.”  Obviously this quote refers back to the 1 Corinthians 12 passage we studied.  How does it also relate to our discussions of High Reliability and safety?  Consider how your abilities and scope give you unique opportunities to serve people in Jesus’ name and for His glory.