Too Often, Power Means the Power to Do Stupid Things

By Pascal Dennis (bio)

Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown.
Henry 1V, Part 2

The past decade, I’ve been privileged to coach many senior executives. In my experience, most are caring, thoughtful and capable.

They understand and accept the burdens the come with the ‘crown’. They know they have the ability to foster opportunity, commitment and growth – or blight, stagnation and misery.

The very best senior executives accept that their job is to 1) get results, 2) create capability and 3) reinforce values. They understand that you achieve 1, by doing 2 and 3.

And 2 and 3 entail practicing, teaching and reinforcing fundamentals standards – standards of work, management and ethics or behavior.

A deep bow to these splendid leaders – long may you run!

But there another type of leader – shallow, selfish, and weak. Such leaders reject the responsibilities described above. They use their power to sidestep the fundamentals.

And so, they do stupid things. Why? Because they can, I suppose. “Harrumph, harrumph, harrumph!” they declare, “Blah-blah-blah!”

Team members are sickened, capable leaders, managers & specialists polish their resumes, and the organization rots. (Absent strong competition, e.g. a monopoly or oligopoly, this can go on for years.)

Eventually, though, the house collapses and the community is left to pick up the pieces. A pox upon such leaders!

A few decades ago, an elderly Japanese described for me a tidal wave that was engulfing more and more industries. The tidal wave expressed a fundamental shift of power – from organizations, to customers.

Price, would be fixed or falling, he told me, and the customer would expect more and more value, and be less and less tolerant of violations of safety, environment or simple decency.

I’ve seen & experienced the tidal wave rolling through industries like automotive, consumer goods, electronics, aviation and the process industries. (In my view, such industries have never been better, and we, the customers, are the beneficiaries.)

Now it’s rolling through hitherto ‘protected’ industries like financial services and healthcare. Financial services start-ups are offering checking account, credit card, mortgage and other services with less hassle, and at a fraction of the cost.

People no longer accept the medical mishaps that, in America alone, kill hundreds of thousands of people. (Every day in America, a jumbo jet full of people dies because of medical error)

The key to culture shift, I’ve learned, is the leader’s mindset. (Can we afford bozo leaders anymore? Could we ever?)

Company Boards, Recruiting Committees and equivalent, if I may, please recruit, monitor, reward and mentor capable ‘servant’ leaders. It’s your most important job.

And to all the splendid leaders, if I may, please teach others the right way to manage, the right way to lead. (It’s your most important job, no?)

Best regards,

Pascal




In case you missed our last few blogs... please feel free to have another look…

When You’re Convinced You’re Right, You’ve Lost Your Ability to Learn
On Labels – ‘Expert, Master, Sensei’ and the like
Fred Taylor & the Illusion of Top-Down Control - Part 2
Fred Taylor & Illusion of Top-Down Control - Part I

Lean Production Simplified – 3rd Edition by Pascal Dennis

by Pascal Dennis

The more I know, the more I realize I don’t know.
Socrates

I wrote the first edition of Lean Production Simplified hoping to share what I’d learned at Toyota. It had been my blind luck to work with patient senseis. I felt that if I could explain things simply, then perhaps I had gained a certain level of understanding.

The past twenty years, I’ve been the sensei, helping companies apply the Toyota system or ‘Lean’. My practice has taken me far from the Toyota shop floor – into hospitals, power plants, container terminals, and research laboratories.

I’m certain that I learn as much as I teach. And the more I learn, the more I think of Socrates.

Why did I write the 3rd edition?

We need to learn the Toyota system – and not just in manufacturing. Hospitals, banks, universities, software developers, government agencies and other service providers are also hungry for Lean thinking and methods. Customers will no longer accept substandard safety, quality, delivery or cost performance.

Who is the book written for?

Leaders and learners at all levels in manufacturing, and in the ‘undiscovered country’ – health-care, financial services, the process industries, software development, construction, universities and the public service.

What’s different about the 3rd edition?

I’ve added many more examples from outside the factory (e.g. design, engineering, administration etc.) and from the industry sectors mentioned above.

I’ve also included study questions at the end of each chapter. My hope is that Lean Simplified 3rd Edition will be a working book and that I’ll continue to find in the gemba, filled with highlights and notes in the margin.

My study of aikido had prepared me for the Toyota “way”. I understood that it was a ‘do’ or path, and that the Toyota shop floor was a dojo, a place where you practiced a profound art, working on your technique, and on yourself. Indeed, before stepping on to the shop floor, I felt like bowing, a sign of respect for my team, organization, and the art of management.

I still feel that way.

Pascal

Pascal Dennis Bio