Comments

Mike,

This is probably the most concise description of what it takes to change an organization I have seen so far (and yes, many situations like the ones you mention come to mind from our work with clients).

You also mention that "Our clients want to believe a brilliant idea can magically make a difference". I agree completely, but the only point I would add is that "selling" the implementation is part of the consultant's job. Which is what I guess this post is trying to do. Keep up the good work!

Posted by Hugo Stevens at February 5, 2008 3:06 PM

Great post Mike.

Golf legend Gary Player said ‘The more I practice (hard work) the luckier I get.’ Tiger Woods produces fantastic shot after fantastic shot because he works hard. David Beckham works hard to produce the perfect free kick. Thomas Edison said ‘I have not failed. I've just found 10000 ways that won't work.’ Why is it we think for even one nanosecond there is some instant single bullet solution that doesn't involve working hard?

Nothing beats hard work - I believe hard work is good for us. What is the point of just doing enough? What a boring life that is. We must stretch ourselves and that means hard work.

I get really irritated at the apathetic responses I get sometimes when my questions as a customer are interpreted as difficult. I feel like saying in Basil Fawlty (John Cleese) style;

‘Oh I’m terribly sorry that I’ve ruined the tranquillity of your peaceful day by my stupid questions. And there was me thinking you are being paid to help customers. I must rethink things – I really shouldn’t expect you to work hard at all’

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 5, 2008 3:57 PM

Implementing change is hard work. "Selling the implementation" requires the sponsors of the change to commit the time, support, and resources needed to make the implementation successful.

I previously worked at a company that was implementing a new assessment center to select supervisors in the operations department. The VPs of Ops and HR agreed to send 20 mangers to a three day training program to learn the process. However, only six managers showed up for the training. The consultant called the VPs of Ops and HR and said he was cancelling the training and the assessment program because they weren't commited to the initiative. The consultant strong decisve action proved to be a powerful wake up call for the two VPs.

Posted by Paul Thornton at February 5, 2008 5:18 PM

Nice post. Just this week I was cleaning out old e-mails (don't ask) and found one I wrote in 2000. I bragged about training college students in "radio" and video. I boasted media today is about a change in delivery and will struggle with how to maintain "legacy."
Eight years later, we have a hands-on, well oiled machine that develops talent for our system. A system that is struggling to make sense of change.
The "a-ha" moment did happen. But it took years to make it happen. I think that last line makes sense....

Posted by nextgenradio at February 5, 2008 5:44 PM

Thanks for adding to the discussion. Hugo, absolutely selling the concept is a huge part of the consultants job. I try to advise by offering real world data. Trevor, in my family it was pretty apparent that things weren't going to be handed to us on a silver platter. My Dad taught me that hard work pays off, eventually, and we had to earn our way. Paul I love the story on the principled consultant who walked away (don't want to sound righteous here, will admit it is easier to walk away when cash flow is good :) Nextgen...you gave me a chuckle along with your good words...you see, I don't have to ask about emails from 2000...it is a situation I am familiar with....Thanks

Posted by Mike Neiss at February 5, 2008 5:51 PM

Through my mother's words and actions, she taught her twelve children that hard work matters. I am the youngest born to this extraordinary woman who raised seven boys and five girls alone with strict discipline, zest, pure joy and unfailing love. Although she worked very hard and taught us to do the same, it wasn't the gritty kind that focused on lack, the kind that propels one forward for fear of going back or of not succeeding. She gave us choices of careers but insisted that we serve first. We are all ministers and chaplains with self-sustaining businesses and careers. All are artists. Through my mother's life she taught us that hard work is a mind-set. It is what you think about yourself expressed in your actions and shown in the value you give to others. Inspiration, innovation, and implementation without doubt begin where hard work had been.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 5, 2008 7:31 PM

The key here to recognize is the fact that it is always a coherence of powerful insipirational idea with a comitted action plan. As stated, it is easy to believe that great new ideas, motivating speeches can deliver lasting benefits but without a dedicated, lasting, continuous focus the goals are difficult to deliver. There is no substitute to hard work but hard work with brilliant leadership is unbeatable.

Posted by Arvinder Singh at February 5, 2008 10:36 PM

"They do not become actionable without the hard work required to unfreeze old behaviors, remove existing organizational barriers, build new reinforcement mechanisms into the system, provide the necessary funding for support activities, etc.".....Gee, ya think?

Folks again, please know I have nothing but the utmost of respect and admiration for anyone who writes and consults. I too have "frontline" knowledge" as a consultant but in a different capacity where I went into to organizations and helped each one develop and implement "Baldrige based" performance management sytems....from the Senior leadership level(Squadron Commanders) to the latest shifts at the lowest levels....all the training, strat and HR plans, metrics systems, assessment instruments and audits top to bottom. I was accountable based on the results these folks(my customers) achieved because there boss was also mine (the Wing Commander). The one thing these years gave me was "frontline" knowledge of the barriers to translating what is bought and sold in the boardroom to results on the frontline. We often in these discussions tend to categorize stuff as obvious and a given. The statement above is absolutely true, on point and accurate. Now...how do you fix it because whatever solution we're pushing ain't gonna work until this is done. Who is responsible and accountable? I don't doubt the veracity or motives of those selling solutions. But if you don't know or the leadership team doesn't know what the real challenges or barriers to excellence are on the frontline....how do you know if what you're selling and they're buying is the correct fix for what ails the company? The beauty of Baldrige is....it ain't prescriptive and it includes cycles of refinement. The practice of benchmarking doesn't mean you attempt to adopt a new process but rather to see if you can "adapt" all or parts of it to what you'e doing now. What might be a solution that gets results in one industry might not play in another. If you don't have the time, tools and training, if there is no accountability for results, these and hundreds of other factors all can affect the success of this initiative. But these are usually not identified or addressed until after it's bought but before it's executed. What's that they say "Prescription without diagnosis is malpractice"? The hard work is building the culture, the work environment that promotes trust, teamwork, and continuous improvement. That is Leadership....at any level. Mr Singh's "There is no substitute to hard work but hard work with brilliant leadership is unbeatable." is truly a prescription for excellence!

Posted by Dave Wheeler at February 6, 2008 1:12 AM

Brilliant words Dave - thanks as always for the reality check. I remember Tom Peters saying decades ago that ‘teaching’ corporate culture as a consultant is ‘legalised stealing’ – I love that. You can’t ‘teach’ corporate culture (whatever that expression means) Any effective ‘culture’ is created by hard work and inspiring leadership that allows front line employees to get on with adding value. Your experience among the muck and the bullets (literally in your case!) at the sharp end is a timely reminder. As a fellow graduate from the same institution ‘The School of Practical Management’ please be assured it is the most respected Business School I know.

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 6, 2008 4:22 AM

Mike, As someone who has spent a good part of my life doing what you do for a living, there is a test I recommend to any of my fellow road warriors. It is to seek out and work with those clients "who are serious about change". You can usually detect them early on by the way they position themselves right in the middle of the problem description. When an approach is agreed, they will put themselves in the middle of the solution, and put in the hard work that it takes to make a new approach stick. All of the work that has really mattered to me has been done alongside clients who are similarly serious about change. Clients who are spectators, those who like new ideas providing they can be prescribed to others, are always interesting people to know. But for results, it takes players!

Posted by Richard King at February 6, 2008 5:23 AM

This discussion of hard work leading to an innovation reminds me of Jim Collins and his findings summerized in "Good to great". One of the concepts which appeared along their research was that continuous growth is a result of excellent execution and innovations popping out of it.

Posted by Matt L. Hudzik at February 6, 2008 6:13 AM

There's a post below ("Disruptive Financing") about lending and it got me thinking about what a "have-it-now" society we've become. Don't save up for something, get it now on credit. Use a credit card and pay in 6 weeks. Spend a few years getting fat and unfit: go to a clinic and have a tummy tuck. Want an instant degree - get one from the University of Dodgyville. Got a problem? Here's the solution! Instant this, immediate that. And the other issue: people think they're entitled to all this.

I don't think we're going to change the business issue we're talking about here until we address the societal issue. We need people to realise that by and large you have to work at learning your trade, being healthy, relationships, building your home.

I heard a great maxim from a UK rugby club recently: "We train skills. We recruit attitude." Maybe we should ask if our schools are turning out people with the right attitude.

Posted by Mark JF at February 6, 2008 7:58 AM

Dave, I am afraid my experience with Baldridge is quite different than yours. Perhaps there has been an improvement in the process, but early on it was quite like ISO and QS...you could "buy" certification rather than earn it. One example, Cadillac winning in the 90's with absolutley horrific quality issues. I hope Baldridge is improved, but back then, too many inspectors would not be as frank as they could be, because they feared being rehired. So I agree with you and don't doubt your personal results with Baldridge, but it too is just an idea. And in too many practiontioners hands, a bad idea. Now, my point is not focused on the consultants, but how we so prefer the quick fixes in business, and yes, even the military. That includes the "leaders".

Posted by Mike Neiss at February 6, 2008 8:00 AM

oops..make that they feared "not" being rehired. Perhaps in a blog things have to be stated simply rather than full expressions of the complexity. My point was simple..when change fails it is often because the hard work of implementation is not done.

Posted by mike Neiss at February 6, 2008 8:18 AM

All this talk of hard work reminds me of a quote:

people can be categorised by hardworking/lazy and stupid/intelligent

Lazy, Stupid people - get rid of - they never do anything

Hardworking, Stupid people are useful because they just get on and do it

Lazy, Intelligent people are useful because they always try to find an easier way of doing things

Hardworking, Intelligent people should just be taken out and shot - they just plain dangerous!

Posted by PaulH at February 6, 2008 9:34 AM

The sense of what is obvious presupposes that as change agents we have already done considerable benchmarking But isn’t it true that while all clients have specific challenges, there is a process that can be applied to all clients?

While we tailor each strategy for specific clients, I find that because we are dealing with talent, the process of how we do what we do is pretty much the same. Dave makes this point clear with his detailed how-to strategy and results. Thank you. But can we do all these things and still not produce innovation? Can we follow a system once and not produce innovative results again? And is quality assured? Mike addresses this concern beautifully.

As change agents we should be able to go into any industry after considerable assessment and “co-invent” solutions with clients that produce innovative results. (Tom says a client is one with whom we co-invent the future.) Why such confidence? We tend to want to believe or in fact do believe that our challenges are unique to us, our industry, our family etc. But regardless of belief - which may or may not have basis in reality - a system can be applied to every industry to get innovative results.

The question is: what is this system? My understanding of The Future Shape of a Winner is a great one in that a system of thought is applied. (That is, of course, if my understanding is correct.) What follows is inspiration, innovation, and implementation. The beauty of The Future Shape of a Winner is that while it is a process, it does not allow for a staid system, but its system is one of constant change.

The Future Shape of a Winner for me implies that winning is an ongoing process which does not allow for a stagnant staid system but rather one of constant change. The Future Shape of a Winner seems to me to be a system of thought that produces pertinent strategies, creativity, innovation and constant change.

The Future Shape of a Winner seems to me to be talent and thought-focused in a state of perpetual imbalance, producing constant change and brilliant execution. (Constant change and brilliant execution seem like an oxymoron. Not so. The former engenders the latter.) The beauty of this state is one of forever becoming, a state of never arriving, yet executing...brilliantly. This "Shape" seems like the principle--the underlying--of hard work.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 6, 2008 10:19 AM

Mike, I think we agree on all points other than one...the Baldrige process. Our differences may be semantical but your perception of it's being a "certification" that could be bought with examiners worried about rehire definitely conflicts with mine of it being a "recognition" process established by public law with volunteer examiners.(From Day One) As for Cadilliac's being recognized in the 1990's with "horrible quality issues", it did win in 1990 along with Fed-Ex but this was based on it's performance from 1985-1989. The answers are somewhere on nist.gov but I think however we could agree with the fact that the best of tools in the hands of a poor craftsman will produce less than stellar results. On all other points we agree...One, Baldrige, TQM, Future Shape of the Winner are all idea's. Ideas who have many more similarities than differences. The "labels' are different, the models and visuals different, but they all share the same foundations. There is always a leadership component, a strategy component, a people component, a customer/process focus component, a culture component. I see much value in the Future Shape of the Winner Model because I see the many linkages and alignments to the Baldrige"system". Two, any idea can be a bad idea in the hands of the wrong practioners. Three, Leaders in all professions are looking for a "quick fix" and I'm with you 1000% on change fails because the hard work isn't getting done. My point, perhaps not clearly articulated, however was this. Our success wih Baldrige was due to leadership. They were credible, committed, accountable, knowledgeable, visible.....they did the right things the right way. Leadership is the number one reason these types of initiative get great results or fail miserably. As to Judith's question "Can we follow a system once and not produce innovative results again?" Absolutely! Change leadership. That is why building the culture to support this is essential. It has to be institutionalized, built in to the day to day way business gets done. All to often, senior leaders and consultants decide that a particular solution would get stellar results without having a clue as to the real challenges and barriers to excellence or the organizations capacity to fix it. Ideally, we should be able to lead folks to their own solutions rather than trying to "prescribe" a fix. My issue isn't with those who "sale then bail" because not all do it to be sure. It's with the leadership teams that buy a solution without having a detailed strategy for implementation (you argue vigourously for their implementation" and "don't oversell by promising results"?)
Statements such as your "They do not become actionable without the hard work required to unfreeze old behaviors, remove existing organizational barriers, build new reinforcement mechanisms into the system, provide the necessary funding for support activities, etc." I agree 10000%...to me this is a BFO. Could ya'll at least give them a clue as to how to do it?

Posted by Dave Wheeler at February 7, 2008 3:25 AM

Fair enough Dave. Baldridge, TQM, QS9000, etc are full of ideas how to accomplish things. My whole point is that you actually have to implement them. Of course we give them more than a clue how to do it. And up front so we can weed out those that are looking for the window dressing not the substance. You can put all the procedures and forms in place to meet the certification checklist, but that alone won;t get you the results..certification yes, results no. Dave, our business is based around the how...if our clients just want ideas, we sell 'em books...Thanks for the posts

Posted by Mike Neiss at February 7, 2008 6:39 AM

Dave-We always look to land; we look for the destination point. This is good in that it is directional; it leads to execution. (The landing point is NOT the execution, rather the process IS.) As there is nothing new under the sun, with all systems having elements of truth toward execution, it must be how we do what we do (the approach) that leads to the best results. My earlier point about a process applicable to ALL industries and benchmarking sought to address this. Many systems have produced results. But the question is sustainability over time. This in itself requires death. In one of Tom's IMPLEMENTATION slides there is a quote that everything deteriorates over time. This is true AND necessary. Unless a system dies, there can be no innovation. A systematic process is obligatory which includes remnants of many past processes. The question is one of systems which must die over time. But from death comes life. This is the process of INNOVATION and EXECUTION.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 7, 2008 7:35 AM

I definitely agree that Aha! moments come after long periods of hard work and usually are followed by long periods of hard work. The feelings we experience during the Aha! moments is what motivates us to perform all that hard work.

Posted by H. Peter Schiller at February 7, 2008 11:03 AM

Well really the today markets are very agressive and the companies will have to innovation much to not lost market for adversary is necessary very investment in innovation and is forever...

Posted by JOSE GILBERTO at February 7, 2008 12:44 PM

In investigating further the FSW, I am even more impressed with it. Perhaps death is not necessary here as this system seems to have a built-in changeability process whose axis is free to take any direction (ambition, brand, architecture, performance, experience, and execution) with talent as its rotor. I love it!

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 7, 2008 1:25 PM

Mike and Judith....I think in some respects our disconnects are purely semantical. There was an old saying about a good football coach take his players and beat your players. A great football coach could take your players and beat his players. The core concepts of FSW and Baldrige are so closely related that a person well versed in one could easily see the linkages and alignments with the other. A leadership piece, check,,,,a strategy piece, check....a culture change piece....check. A piece to evaluate the process, check. Both are about results....which is why the core oncepts of leadership, strategy, culture. customer focus are present in both systems. Procedures? Checklists? Certifications? Implementing ideas is a good thing. Implementing good ideas is better, implementing solutions targetted to the "customers" specific needs and challenges better still. Solutions based on the "how" of a generic system are good things. Solutions based on the "how" linked to the customers specific needs and challenges better still. But how can you base solutions on the "how" if you don't know the "what's", and the "why's"? If you don't truly know capacity, capability, culture, the barriers? It comes down to accountability. One word noteably absent however is accountability which is the key to my perspective. My boss was my customer's boss as well and he was accountable for what all of us did. As a result, my "accountability" to my "clients" mandated I live on their frontlines. My "business" was developing the capacity of their frontline teams to improve performance, productivity, and results. I guess you see how the "systems", regardless of their label, work or don't work on the frontline. I'm sure consultants are like leaders, trainers, and everyone else. You got great one's, good ones, those that need development, and some that fail. I'm sorry but "arguing vigorously" for implementation and not being held accountable for results just things I either didn't need to do (in the case of implementation) or couldn't avoid (accountability).Your mention of books reminded me of a Squadron Commander I worked with whose "leadership team" kept bugging him to go "off site" to get some ideas on the types of things they needed to do to increase capacity in their unit. He took them off-site.....to a local public library where they spent serveral hours on a Saturday cruising the "658" shelves finding those ideas! Thanks folks,for making me think.....

Posted by Dave Wheeler at February 8, 2008 12:27 AM

Mike Neiss,

But the hardest work is making yourself into
a better manager.
As long as you are less than excellent yourself,
your people are likely to return less than you
expect.
Well. . . . at least that's what my troubles
seemed to demonstrate to me.

John

Posted by Shakespeare's Fool at February 8, 2008 1:15 AM

A fascinating exchange between Mike, Judith and Dave ....

I am no expert about process and systems – I am a novice at that stuff. My opinion, based on years of practical management experience, is that executing to get effective results is through what I describe in an article I wrote by ‘Passion with a Side Salad of Process.’

The only useful contribution I can make to your debate is that all ‘execution’ is all about people. It's about flesh and blood. Which means it is - as Dave rightly reminds us about leadership and front line people.

My two cents as you guys say in the States ... we say my two pennyworth!

The sun is shining gloriously on Friday morning here in Shakespeare’s County in England – Life is wonderful - Have a great weekend all!

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 8, 2008 6:00 AM

This may be slightly off topic but I do wonder about change and the drive for new process etc- together with all the hard work that goes with it.

In management literature and on message boards (like this) there is an overwelming bias towards change - "Change or Die!". Managers seem to thrive on change - it's glamorous. In fact I think there is a problem here - it is actually very hard to argue against change in management circles - professional suicide in fact. But Change isn't always right or better! The number of times I have seen reorgs/new processes go back to what we had 3 years ago (but still driven as a new concept!) and produce poorer results is scary.

Sustaining is not glamorous. Sustaining won't get you promoted but in my experience in some circumstances would have delivered better results.

I guess the real problem is that as a discipline we are hopeless at evaluating if a change is the right thing to do or not.

Posted by PaulH at February 8, 2008 6:56 AM

I agree wholeheartedly Paul – well said.

Change is an addiction for some people. Like all addictions the first step to recovery is to accept you have the addiction.

As I read your comments I am creating an image in my mind of a group of 8 management consultants sitting nervously and anxiously in a circle with Dolores their group counsellor in support.

Eventually after a long silence one consultant plucks up the courage to speak. In a hesitating and breaking voice he lifts his head having been staring at the floor for half an hour. He eventually utters those immortal words Dolores has been waiting to hear after three one silent group sessions.

Nervously and quietly he says ...

‘I am Albert and I'm a change junkie‘

His colleagues applaud and there are hugs all round.

Dolores is delighted - this is a cathartic experience for all - and she gives Albert positive reinforcement. She tells him he has taken that important first step of acknowledging his addiction.

Dolores is pleased to think that – at last - her work has been effective and she believes Albert will now eventually return to a normal life with the other 98% of the population.

Ahhh … if only ….. There you go Trevor .. Dreaming again

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 8, 2008 8:12 AM

Paul . One of my clients has a principle I think says it well...The past is a valuable foundation but must not be an anchor. There is certainly value in foundations; we need some stability. However, if I was to err on the change argument, I would still come down on the side of more change. For instance, most auto assembly plants are still using the manufacturing techniques introduced by Henry Ford. Just my two cents ( or one euro?)

Posted by Michael Neiss at February 8, 2008 8:35 AM

Michael

My point is not that change or not change is better but just that as a profession we are woeful at assessing which to do.

In addition we tend to quote the changes that have caused revolution (Henry Ford is a great example) but those are a small % of the total number of changes that are attempted and actually cause problems. Generally the less than effective changes are swept under the carpet

My point is that as a management profession we need to move on from fairly high level arguments about change or not change and actually come up with effective ways/methodologies of assessing risk and implementing effective change only when it's going to work. One of the things I like about TP is his approach of prototyping to see if it works - that's one way but there must be others

Posted by PaulH at February 8, 2008 9:05 AM

Paul--Good to hear from you. I liked your biting talent comment which made me think about my own position. Where am I? I am most certainly not a lazy stupid person, a hardworking stupid person or a lazy intelligent person. I hope the fate of a hardworking intelligent person, whose very position includes the brilliance of others, is welcomed. (The acceptance of the influence of others upon us requires humility and respect.) It seems that it is always about how we do what we do when we do it. I like Richard King’s timely point about first determining the position of clients before great investment. This way we do not go in blindsided. We know what we are dealing with beforehand and our decision to continue can then be determined. Now, to the current discussion regarding change.

The most wonderful thing about the FSW is that it seems to have a built-in changeability. The foundation of the system is the talent, which is the rotor, allowing for various directions. Now, I AM NOT the best to argue this in that it is in all practicality, not mine…YET. But the concept is one that is applicable to my daily life. For those who are particularly adverse to concepts.... to ideas…. when applied they ARE actionable.

But to continue…the talent, the rotor, allows for various strategies that spin the axis toward any direction which in this case is ambition, brand, architecture, performance, experience, and execution to accomplish innovation. (There will probably be MANY prototypes before the finished product. So, there is action all along.) At any point the axis can spin with greater or lesser velocity based on the clients’ particulars at any given time.

The foundation is the talent. There is no fear of a system going array when the system allows for change. The key would be to get non-ego driven talent on the same page that see challenges as an opportunity for the whole to contribute, causing the axis to spin toward a particular direction, allowing each to contribute based on their particular strengths. There will be both discussion and action in this process. This is not change for change sake; it is changed based on necessity. Everything deteriorates overtime.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 8, 2008 12:17 PM

Dave--fine conclusions. Accountability is a most necessary component. And as always...your effort to nail things keeps me thinking.

Have a great weekend, all. It's a Winter Wonderland where I am. We've gotten 4 inches of lovely fluffy white stuff, blanketing everything.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 8, 2008 12:50 PM

In the 1920s, Graham Wallas described what he called "The Cycle of Innovation." He articulated it in several slight different forms, but the simplest has four stages. There is Preparation where you do general preparation (the work of a lifetime) and specific preparation (problem or challenge definition etc). Then there is Incubation, a time during which you don't work on the problem. It is followed by Illumination (or Inspiration), the Eureka moment, the big insight or idea. And finally there is Verification, the work of turning, twisting, massaging and morphing the original idea into a useful innovation.

Posted by Wally Bock at February 8, 2008 3:35 PM

Mike - A fine article indeed and timely too. As somebody said earlier, we are a society that is constantly challenged to make 48 hours out of a day that only has 24. The list of things that we need to do, everyday, keeps on growing. Unless one decides to give up all of their worldly possessions and head out to the Himalayas, things are only going to get more complicated.

I remember one of my managers (from the time when I was consulting at PwC) used to overuse the phrase "Work Smart, Not Hard". I used to love how it sounded back then but over the years, I have realized that what holds true in reality is "Work Smart AND Hard". No matter what I do during my waking hours, I am constantly thinking of how I can improve upon what I am doing or about to do. With two little ones at home and my B-school commitments and my day job, my life is right up there on the "craziness" index. But then I remember that life would not be as much fun if I did not have all of these on my plate, at the same time.

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Judith- Your thought "The acceptance of the influence of others upon us requires humility and respect" is powerful and eloquent. The ability to accept the influence of others is the perhaps the one charecteristic that all leaders have that all managers lack. Thank you so much for sharing that.

My greatest concern is that any comment I make would be taken as being disrespectful of anyone's chosen profession or line of work. It couldn't be further from the truth. I believe we all "see" the same challenges and barriers to excellence in the workplace but perhaps through a different lens. It is these types of discussions that help me see things from a perspective,,,,a different lens that is useful to me professionally and enjoyable to me personally.

Posted by Dave Wheeler at February 9, 2008 1:52 AM

Dave-thank you for your words. They matter. All leaders should have the ability to accept the influence of others and not all managers lack this very important quality. I, frankly, don't see the difference between leaders and managers. Yes, I understand the corporate determination for grades or levels and the fact that leaders are not traditionally on the frontline. But they should be in a real sense. BOTH leaders and manages should MBWA. BOTH should lead effectively with humility and respect. And let's be clear about what humility is and isn't and about what respect is and isn't. Humility is powerful, but inviting. It is knowledgeable, but not exclusive. Respect is appreciation, but not necessarily acceptance. It is deference, but not necessarily agreement. Humility and respect both require leading and following. They are altogether beautiful. I have not personally felt that any of your words are in the least disrespectful to others' profession. I so appreciate your effort to succintly and clearly define

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 9, 2008 5:17 AM

...what may appear ambigious to others. But there are levels of understanding and presuppositions inherent in language. This is often where misunderstanding and misreading occur. There is NO problem with ironing these things out. But I do see a problem with simplifying things for its very sake. Understanding has a process beyond words. But the beauty is that the process is open to all for experential knowledge. This is the road less travelled. Let's take it! The idea that we all understand the same challenges regarding excellence is debatable. We should, however, within our respective groups barriers to excellence, recognizing our challenges and coming to agreement about the process needed to address our challenges. Yes, we have difference lens. But systematically the process needs agreement. The FSW seems to manage this agreement process beautifully. The beauty in the system seems to be the rotating axis that requires various orientations, powered by talent, to bring about agreement, prototypes, and

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 9, 2008 5:58 AM

...accountability. This is the meeting place of humility and respect. Thank you, Dave, for your openess to concede to the possibilities of others' preceptions. This is both honorable and valuable indeed.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 9, 2008 6:10 AM

Dave...Your comments are always welcomed and never have any shade of disrespect. We blog because we invite different lenses. To be effective we must be able to broaden perspectives, not become ingrained in our own thoughts. To many of us living in the virtual world of work, this is our water cooler...so thanks again

Posted by Mike Neiss at February 9, 2008 10:28 AM

Mike....thanks for the reassurance. Being a relative rookie as a participant the world of virtual discussion you just never know how the words received and perceived. But comments's like yours and Trevor's "story" about change addicts...how terrific to be able to "poke at a little fun at yourself and vocation...convey a sense "hey pal, make yourself at home". It's appreciated

Judith...I read a book many years ago titled "It's What You Learn After You Know It All That Counts".... an autobiography of former Baltimore Orioles manager Earl Weaver. The title made sense to me and became a way I look at life.
Your comments on simplicity and "leaders vs managers" would make for an interesting discussion. To me, simplifying things is essential for teaching and training. As a survival instructor for example we trained folks on what bugs, plants etc were safe to eat. There is a huge list of charecteristics but I might position it by saying "watch what other animals and birds are eating or avoid bushes that you find a bunch of dead animals and birds underneath". before getting specific. If they didn't remember the details they would remember the example. Make a point, give an example to assign meaning....the essense of learning. Adjusting the message to the audience might require simplification. Quotes are a great tool for this....one that always stuck with me was "The problem with using simple language is that you have to know what you are talking about". Tom Peters knows what he is talking about in leadership and business to me because he excels at being able to break the concepts down into "simple" language and meaningful examples. The vast majority of the time simple enough for me to understand and agree, every now and then to disagree. Baldrige for example has "cycles of refinement". Each category and many items in the criteria asks the question "What process do you use to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of..." The criteria asks the question because evaluating and improving systems and processes is essential to continuous improvement. It does not say"do it this way"...it asks how do you do it Different words and labels, but same core concept. Trevor shared his thoughts and some research on the charecteristics of leaders versus managers framed not along the lines of titles/position but attitudes and skill set. I can't immediately recall the specific post/forum. It was great stuff and, on the frontlines, folks who had and use the skills under the leadership category are much more effective and procuce more than those in the "manager" category.

Posted by Dave Wheeler at February 9, 2008 1:52 PM

Thanks Dave. There is much to consider here. I agree with your notion of simplicity. You don't, for example, give fifth graders a Marcel Proust or Virginia Woolf novel. It would be completely lost on them. They do not have the language or life experience to grasp them. My reference is to the dumbing down of all things brilliant, of all that require thought. Simplicity, true simplicity, is brilliance. To arrive at this place of genuis one must wade through many complexities. It costs. Yes, the result is simple; the journey is not! (Void of the process, I question the result. And I am not referring here to dramatic wanna-be tortured personality types, but rather to the still endless curiousity seekers.) I am unsure if we all arrive at this place of true brilliance or even if it is necessary for all. But I too am thankful for the likes of TP who have waded through complexeties to arrive at such beautiful simplicity. But everyone waving a banner does not make it so.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 9, 2008 5:11 PM

I have not as of yet read Trevor's material. But I look forward to it. I got up pretty early to watch him live on Fox. He was great!

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 9, 2008 5:45 PM

Hey Judith and Dave - thank you - simplicity is catching on it seems :-)

Having had the pleasure of seeing Tom in action it is clear he is a genius in making complex stuff simple. One of the reasons he is so good at it is because he tells stories and people like stories. He also makes stuff relevant by grounding stories and anecdotes in the everyday experiences of all of us involved in business.

As I have said before on this Blog, the wonderful Professor Charles Handy is a master of simplifying too. I had the pleasure of seeing him 18 months ago in Birmingham. England. He never used one PowerPoint slide – he just strolled around the stage for 45 minutes telling the audience of 600 spellbound senior executives a whole load of stories.

'Genius is the ability to reduce the complicated to the simple' C W Ceran

Judith is so right - many proclaim they support simplicity but I still seriously wonder about that. My view is until the language of leader and front line is mutually understandable we will fail to simplify.

How many of us would be prepared to be marked out of ten by the car park attendant or the office cleaner or the desk clerk for comprehension of our use of English in the last 3 business reports we wrote?

Thanks Dave for the comment about the story of the change addicts. Glad you saw the funny side of it. It was meant to be amusing and not disrespectful to management consultants – AFTER ALL I AM ONE – we have to laugh at ourselves. This was meant to be just a personal reflection of how it often seems.

Change is great – I love change and change is desperately needed in the world I am most knowledgeable about – that is healthcare in the UK. My point is that there is change for good reason then there is another sort of change which is for no good reason but just because it is seen as the latest fad. People at the front line are wise to change that is not required.

I maintain the best change agents are our people at the front line. They know what needs to change. I suggest if we liberate more front line employees then the invoice for management consultancy would drop drastically because we would not need to buy in someone to tell us what you already know.

Sounds like I am doing myself out of business here but I rest assured that principles of liberation are more important than self interest protectionism of consultants

So a huge public apology to any management consultant reading my little theatrical aside who may get upset … Dolores will now retire gracefully :-)

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 9, 2008 5:46 PM

Thanks for that Judith - very kind - I enjoyed the Fox Interview.

Here is the link to it http://simplicityitk.blogspot.com/2008/01/fox-business-network-tv-interview.html

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 9, 2008 5:49 PM

Judith....I agree 10000 percent. Simplicity is brilliant. There is a vast amount of knowledge, wisdom, experience, imagination, curiosity, and courage to arrive at simplicity. I personally see the brilliance of simplicity in the message conveyed by Trevor's words and thoughts. Perhaps my favorite quote and my goal as a leader is Lao Tzu's "A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves." Simple words but how many, as measured by the "they's", truly achieve this destination?

Posted by Dave Wheeler at February 9, 2008 6:27 PM

Dave-The Lao Tzu quote is a familiar one. What a beautiful reminder. Thanks!

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 9, 2008 7:35 PM

Trevor-It was good to see you on Fox. And the London backdrop was great! I have lived in many places in the world and have travelled rather extensively. But I have never been to London. Would love to make it there some day.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 9, 2008 8:19 PM

Dave - I loved your "there is a vast amount of knowledge, wisdom, experience, imagination, curiosity, and courage to arrive at simpilicity." Great summation. I always like to couple wisdom with understanding with which leaders can operate more effectively. Wisdom is how things get done. Understanding is the process. Wisdom is passion. Understanding is compassion. Wisdom is creativity. Understanding is application. Wisdom is brillance. Understanding is operational. Wisdom is fortified by understanding; both are necessary for leadership. cheapest viagra online without prescription

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 10, 2008 4:13 AM

Can I just say, for the record, how much a really hate the phrase "work smarter, not harder". Especially when it is delivered by some idiot snr manager who has just dumped a load of work on your desk!

viagra with no prescription And while I am on the subject calling a problem a "challenge" also hacks me off - it's a problem - call it a problem and we go and fix it - simple.

That feels better!

There is a lot of value in using language to change perceptions and trigger new thinking - the moment someone is stressed upto their eyeballs in work is not the time and place to use those techniques!

One of the things I have learned through coaching managers and leaders is how valuable not working hard is! Taking time to reassess your life and work. I am with Trevor on simplicity. - a lot of leaders I coach are very much out of balance in terms of what is important. It's almost as if they reach a point where their brains have adopted management speak and the next aggressive challenge is all that matters - and they are fired up to meet that. Then when you start to explore their level of happiness in general and a whole different picture comes out.

Hard work is a problem as well as asset - it often leaves folks with no time to have a life to appreciate why they are here, the love and wonder around them and to have a purpose that is meaningful.

I don't want to work hard - there I have said it!

I want to work with meaning and simple elegance.

Posted by PaulH at February 10, 2008 4:40 AM

Beautiful, Paul. Well said. Our work is the summation of our efforts. It will reveal whether we have worked effectively and with "simple elegance." Your rant reminds me that it is how we do what we do when we do it. If the approach, process or timing is off the initiative will probably not fly. Hard work does matter. But it is first a mindset expressed in our actions individually through the value we bring collectively to accomplish a problem effectively.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 10, 2008 5:53 AM

Good night all. It is 6:00 Sunday morning for me and I have not slept a wink. I've gotta get some shut eye. I'm performing a collection of jazz standards and classic soul pieces later on today. But no worries! I'll get some needed rest and will be spot on. This isn't the Verdi Requiem.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 10, 2008 6:08 AM

Judith-I've never considered it but I see your point about "understanding" is the basis for action or application. Which might be why here are one heck of a lot more managers than leaders. Getting someone to do something you want done because they want to do it (think that Dwight Eisenhower said this or similar) is a heck of a lot of work. This is giving up power as Trevor puts it and the barriers range from fear, arrogance, ignorance, insecurity and ego to name just a few. It's easier for many to hide behind one's "positional" power or authority and tell them to do it. I just try to be the type of leader I always enjoyed working for.....simple? Yes! These types of leaders always got max effort from me and I had the priviledge of learning from a many great ones and one or two true "benchmarks". The General who had his Commanders go to the library "off base" with him was a true hero to us enlisted folks.....hey, they wanted to go off-site to brainstorm ideas didn't they and there are a whole bunch of great ones on the 658 shelves! The Commanders (my customers) and I shared the same boss (the General). How could I fail in my "consultants" role with the access I had to my clients boss. He removed more barriers and roadblocks by his involvement and "modelling the behaviors he expected than could be calculated. I couldn't help but excel because they knew I had as much access and input to the boss as they did, Great leadership is simply a beautiful thing.....

Posted by Dave Wheeler at February 10, 2008 5:27 PM

PaulH said 'calling a problem a "challenge" also hacks me off - it's a problem - call it a problem and we go and fix it - simple.'

I love that - Put another way - If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck it’s probably a duck :-)

Thanks also Paul for the vote of confidence in simplicity. Many people don’t get it do they? I recently concluded a short caching commitment with a doctor and his doctor boss e-mailed me 10 days ago with words to the effect I don't know what you and ‘Dr X’ did in those sessions but it worked for him – we are both very pleased with the outcome. I could say I worked through some complex jargon filled programme but actually all I did was to work on simplifying the muddle in his head about competing priorities and also told him how good he was at his job. No one had done that much for him in the past and surprise, surprise he enjoyed the positive stroke.

Surely nothing could be more simple in life than to say 'well done.'

Posted by Trevor Gay at February 10, 2008 5:31 PM

Dave - It is always great when both wisdom and understanding are applied in hard work. Your Commander seemed like he applied both. The matter with wisdom and understanding is that we are forever dealing with talent, people. While we may have wisdom (intellegence, knowledge, insight, perception); understanding (apprenhension, comprehension, empathy) is necessary for implementation. Many can relate to clearly seeing the solution to a problem and in the throes of explanation see glazed over eyes. You then adjust your presentation to apprehend the situation, even asking off the cuff questions to bring the other team members or seminar participants in. (Understanding is a action word.) Without the sense of apprehension and empathy, hard work will NOT matter. Wisdom is fortified by understanding, allowing for implementation. This is hard work that matters.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 11, 2008 7:15 AM

Great point, Dave, about the General modelling the behaviors he expected. I concur that this is important for execution and accoutability; road blocks and barriers are avoid. Equal access to the "General" in any industry also requires the full engagement of senior management.

Posted by Judith Ellis at February 11, 2008 7:55 AM

Hard work matters. Agreed. Smart work – Roxxxx! I believe it’s imperative to work hard at working smart.

Posted by Sriram at February 15, 2008 11:46 PM

Clearly, hard work is extremely important. There is a grave lack of practices of this work philosophy in the battlefield. Practicing, practicing and practicing is immeasurably relevant.

Experience accumulated throughout the years is also crucial, particularly when one is always seeking mind-expansion activities.
With it practical knowledge comes along. When consulting and training, yes, you’re offering ideas to PRESENT clients with CHOICES/OPTIONS to SOLUTIONS.

How to communicate with the client is extremely difficult. Nowadays, some technical solutions that the consultant or advisor must implement has a depth that will shock the client unless there is a careful and prudent preparation/orientation of the targeted audience.

Getting to know the company culture is another sine qua non. The personal cosmology of each executive or staff involved on behalf of the client is even more important. Likewise, the professional service expert must do likewise with the CEO, and Chairman.

In fact, in your notes, a serious consultant must have an unofficial, psychological profile of the client representatives. One has to communicate unambiguously, but sometimes helps to adapt your lexicon to that of the designated client.

From interview one –paying strong attention and listening up to the customer– the advisor must give choices while at always being EDUCATIONAL, INFORMATIVE, and, somehow, FORMATIVE/INDUCTIVE. That’s the problem.

These times are not those. When the third party possesses the knowledge, skill, know-how, technology, he/she now must work much more in ascertaining you lock in your customer’s mind and heart with yours.

Before starting the CONSULTING EFFORT, I personally like to have a couple of informal meetings just to listen up and listen up.
Then, I forewarn them that I will be making a great number of questions. Afterwards, I take extensive notes and start crafting the strategy to build up rapport with this customer.

Taking all the information given informally in advance by the client, I make an oral presentation to assure I understood what the problem is. I also take this opportunity to capture further information and to relax everyone, while trying to win them over legitimately and transparently.

Then, if I see, for instance, that they do not know how to call/express lucidly/with accurateness their problem, I ask questions. But I also offer real-life examples of these probable problems with others clients.

The opportunity is absolutely vital to gauge the level of competency of the customer and knowledge or lack of knowledge about the issue. Passing all of that over, I start, informally, speaking of options to get the customer involved in peaking out the CHOICE (the solution) to watch for initial client’s reactions.

In my case and in many times, I must not only transfer the approaches/skills/technologies, but also institute and sustain it to the 150% satisfaction of my clients.

Those of us, involved with Systems Risk Management(*) (“Transformative Risk Management”) and Corporate Strategy are obliged to scan around for problems, defects, process waste, failure, etc. WITH FORESIGHT.

Once that is done and still “on guard,” I can highlight the opportunity (upside risk) to the client.

Notwithstanding, once you already know your threats, vulnerabilities, hazards, and risks (and you have a master risk plan, equally contemplated in your business plan), YOU MUST BE CREATIVE SO THAT “HARD WORK” MAKES A UNIQUE DIFFERENCE IN YOUR INDUSTRY.

While at practicing, do so a zillion low-cost experiments. Do a universe of Trial and Errors. Commit to serendipity and/or pseudo-serendipity. In the mean time, and as former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair says: “EDUCATION, EDUCATION, EDUCATION.”

• It does not refer at all to insurance, co-insurance, reinsurance. It is more about the multidimensional, cross-functional management of business processes to be goals and objectives compliant.

Posted by Andres Agostini at February 23, 2008 4:56 PM