Awareness is growing for the important role vernal pools play in our ecosystem. Home to and breeding ground for creatures such as spotted salamanders, wood frogs, and fairy shrimp, these often overlooked and misunderstood patches of standing water are far more significant to the overall health of the natural environment than once believed. Each pool is essentially a lead indicator of how well — or poorly — things are going in the grand scheme of things. When disrupted by carelessness or ignorance, critical parts of the system are threatened, sometimes destroyed.
Organizations have their own vernal pools, full of lead health indicators including morale, vision, and culture. Taken for granted, it isn’t until one of these disappears completely that their importance to the company’s overall well-being are truly recognized, understood and appreciated.
As they’re eroding, their gradual absence might not seem to make that much of a difference. But all too soon how vital their role really was to keeping the system running well is discovered, leaving leaders faced with the daunting task of trying to save an endangered species or worse — decide what to do next in the wake of extinction.
