Better, simpler, cheaper: The formula that makes Tesco great (Fast Company)

When Tesco realized it wasn’t as agile as it used to be, the multinational grocery and general merchandise retailer went back to its founding roots: simplicity. The company created a guide to make processes “better, simpler, cheaper.” Sir Terry Leahy, CEO of Tesco, uses the ABC test to check whether a change will be truly simple for employees—is it achievable, beneficial and clear. Achievable means employees can do a new process correctly the first time given the skills and necessary resources. Beneficial means the new process helps the company or fixed something that was broken. Clear means the new process is easy to remember and explain to others without needing a manual to understand. Instead of hiring strategists, the company started incentivizing employees to come up with simpler processes.