A CEO’s guide to reenergizing the senior team (McKinsey & Co)
“Should you stay or should you go?”
In tough times, Boards ask this about CEOs and CEOs ask it about their teams. This article from McKinsey does a reasonably good job of framing the problems and pitfalls (e.g., getting rid of people too quickly) and the direction of a solution.
The direction, simply put, is for CEOs to manage, including managing their team’s emotional states. As much as we all hate to admit it, our states of mind are what lead to bad, blind or brilliant decision making. The idealized rational man –homo economicus– is as elusive as the mythical sasquatch, even in the halls of executive power.
Denial!
My favorite part of the article is a review of the “cognitive errors underlying denial…”
Toyota is Dead? Part 2
In Part 1 (Toyota is Dead? Part 1) I quoted a recent blog in BusinessWeek that suggested because Toyota had it’s FIRST quarterly loss in 70 years they needed to “…rethink supply chain technology…” A sub-heading in the same post reads, “The Limits of Lean: Why Technology Is Now a Must”.
Huh?
Anyhow…read my prior post for my opinion about this conclusion. Whatever anyone’s opinions numbers ultimately tell the story. Today Toyota announced a return to profitability in the latest quarter. I doubt new supply chain technology had anything to do with the return to (quarterly) profitability, just as a lack of technology had nothing to do with the previous (quarterly) loss. Both the recent loss and recent-er gain were driven by unique events (government programs helped this quarter, while crashing auto sales hurt the previous quarter).
Einstein famously said… ‘make things as simple as possible, but not simpler’. As humans and Americans in particular we’re constantly pinning ‘simpler than possible’ conclusions and solutions on problems that are warranted by the facts on the ground (i.e., when in doubt, computerize something).
Toyota is dead?
According to this post on Business Week, the fact that Toyota experienced it’s “…first quarterly loss in 70 years suggests a need to rethink supply chain technology… ‘. The post concludes that “…a tech-free Lean gospel just can’t hack it anymore.”
Whoa.
A QUARTERLY loss and Toyota should deep-six 70 YEARS of finely-tuned practices? AND…technology–supply chain technology–would have prevented the QUARTERY loss?
Not only does a rising tide lift all ships, but all ships de-rise [sic] when the tide goes out. No auto maker is immune or could have immunized itself from the massive, relatively sudden changes that have taken place in the global economy and consumer auto purchases in particular.
Even if there is an “…exploding level of risk…” in supply chaims, it’s by no means clear (a) technology CAN dramatically reduce that risk, (b) that said risk was a factor–let alone a major factor–in the quarterly loss, or (c) that the ever-illusive pot of gold promised by the rainbow of technologies wouldn’t cause bigger problems than those it solves.
Solving difficult problems is rarely so simple as automation…
Presentation (video): Pair Programming Re-Design
Presentation by Larry Leifer, Professor of Mechanical Engineering Design and founding Director of the Stanford Center for Design Research (CDR).
“…this study examines professional pair-programming practices in detail to understand when, how, and when pair programming is most effective. “
Wise vs. smart problem solving
Question: How do smart people solve problems? Answer: They develop complex solutions.
Better Question: How do wise people solve problems? Answer: They simplify the problem to eliminate the need for complex solutions.
This is the first lesson on lean I ever learned. To quote from the source:
“Instead of developing complex solutions, the Japanese way is to simplify the problem.”
Thought it’s nearly 17 years old, Japanese Manufacturing Techniques: Nine Hidden Lessons in Simplicity by Richard (buy it @ Amazon | read it online at Google) is an important book to read.
START AT THE BEGINNING: Amazon, Genchi Genbutsu & the Karate Kid
Amazon is already pretty good at fulfillment, but Jeff Bezos’s comment below shows the true spirit of kaizen: - no matter how good you are or
- how well you understand principles
- you can always get better at executing them
“At a fulfillment center recently, one of our Kaizen experts asked me, ‘I’m in favor of a clean fulfillment center, but why are you cleaning? Why don’t you eliminate the source of the dirt?’ I felt like the Karate Kid,” – Business & Technology | Amazon says Kindle sales top its ‘most optimistic’ projections | Seattle Times Newspaper.
This article in BusinessWeek shows why Bezos was in the fulfillment center in the first place: he’s following Genchi Genbutsu (aka “Go and see for yourself!”)
>> Read more about “Go see for yourself” and all the “14 Principles” in this Executive Summary of the Toyata Way (PDF)
Video: Self-Organization: The Secret Sauce for Improving your Scrum team
An important presentation by Jeff Sutherland on real-world Scrum. Kills one of the myths about Scrum that ‘management’ isn’t required.
The Visual Workplace: Improving safety…
Another cross-over from (lean) manufacturing into (lean / agile) software development is the visual management and information radiators. While not a ground-breaking post, this article hives an example of using visual tools to increase workplace safety. Deming (and I) would recommend discarding the slogans idea, however.
Reliable (software) factory?
Ever since I read the book Japanese Manufacturing Techniques I’ve had a deep love and passion for all things lean. Adding this site (http://www.reliableplant.com/) to my growing list of lean-related sites to check out as soon as there are 98 hours in a day.