Reengineering Yourself and Your Company: From Engineer to Manager to Leader (Artech House Technology Management and Professional Development Library)

Reengineering Yourself and Your Company From Engineer to Manager to Leader

For a listing of recent titles in the Artech House Technology Management and Professional Development Library, turn to the back of this book.

Reengineering Yourself and Your Company From Engineer to Manager to Leader

Howard Eisner

Artech House Boston • London

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Eisner, Howard, 1935– Reengineering yourself and your company: from engineer to manager to leader / Howard Eisner. p. cm.—(Artech House technology management and professional development library) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-89006-353-2 (alk. paper) 1. High technology industries—Management. 2. Reengineering (Management) I. Title. II. Series. HD62.37. E38 2000 620’.0068’4—dc21 00-021295 CIP British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Eisner, Howard Reengineering yourself and your company: from engineer to manager to leader. —(Artech House technology management and professional development library) 1. Management 2. Executive ability I. Title 658.4’09 ISBN 1-58053-396-5 Cover by Igor Valdman © 2000 Artech House, Inc. 685 Canton Street Norwood, MA 02062 All rights reserved. Printed and bound in the United States of America. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. All terms mentioned in this book that are known to be trademarks or service marks have been appropriately capitalized. Artech House cannot attest to the accuracy of this information. Use of a term in this book should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark. International Standard Book Number: 0-89006-353-2 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 00-021295 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Contents Preface Acknowledgments Part 1 1

xiii xvi

Setting the Stage

1

Background and Premises 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Key questions 1.3 High-tech force fields ahead 1.4 Exploring the dimensions of change 1.5 Becoming a manager 1.6 Evolving to a leader 1.7 Reengineering the enterprise v

3 3 6 7 13 15 16 19

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1.8 Seven, plus or minus two References 2

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Once again with megatrends 2.3 Other trends 2.4 The workplace 2.5 The shifting of power 2.6 Two decades down the road 2.7 2025?! 2.8 Likely tomorrows 2.9 High-tech force fields 2.9.1 2.9.2 2.9.3 2.9.4 2.9.5

Force one—the information age Force two—speed and responsiveness Force three—competition Force four—new work patterns and environments Force five—loyalties and leverage

2.10 Summary—the top-five high-tech force fields References Part 2 3

Aspects of Change

The Nature of Personal Change 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Some perspectives on personal change 3.2.1 3.2.2 3.2.3 3.2.4 3.2.5 3.2.6

Renewal and change That long lonesome road Eupsychia Deep personal change Being stuck and getting unstuck The Aquarian communion

22 23 25 25 27 30 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 44 45 47 48

50 51 53 55 55 57 57 58 60 61 61 62

Contents vii 3.2.7 3.2.8 3.2.9

3.3 3.4

Some personal ideas for change Five mistakes

3.4.1 3.4.2 3.4.3 3.4.4 3.4.5

3.5

Seasons and cycles Turning points Some brief conclusions

In the hands of other people Negative thinking Massive versus singular change Conceptions that are too broad Start tomorrow

“Top Five” for personal change

3.5.1 3.5.2 3.5.3 3.5.4 3.5.5

Recognize a specific need area Focus on new positive behaviors Start today Monitor progress daily Positive reinforcement weekly

3.6 Summary—the “Top Fives” References 4

Themes for Corporate Change 4.1 Introduction 4.2 A couple of experiences and examples 4.3 Observers of the corporate scene 4.3.1 4.3.2 4.3.3 4.3.4 4.3.5 4.3.6 4.3.7 4.3.8 4.3.9

ISO excellence Theory Z The art of Japanese management Deming and total quality management (TQM) Business process reengineering (BPR) Why change efforts fail Five disciplines Managing at the speed of change Perestroika

63 65 66

68 70 70 71 71 72 73

73 74 74 75 76 76

77 78 79 79 80 85 86 87 88 90 91 92 93 94 95

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4.4

Corporate changes to consider

4.4.1 4.4.2

Problem-solving themes for corporate change Areas of focus for corporate change

4.5 Summary—the “Top Fives” References Part 3 5

96 97 99

102 103

Reengineering Yourself

105

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 5.1 Amidst the forces of change 5.2 Core competencies

107 107 109

5.2.1 Manager core competencies—view one: the grand master 5.2.2 Manager core competencies—view two: the project manager 5.2.3 Manager core competencies—view three: a U.K. perspective 5.2.4 Manager core competencies—view four: ESTJ? 5.2.5 Manager core competencies—view five: seven habits

5.3 5.4

Our hierarchy revisited Skill one—problem solver

5.4.1 5.4.2 5.4.3 5.4.4 5.4.5

5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 5.9 5.10

Surfacing a problem Articulating the problem Offering alternatives Evaluating alternatives Implementing a solution

Skill two—contingency planner Skill three—people-oriented communicator Skill four—team builder Skill five—technically competent decision maker Taking the next steps Summary—the “Top Fives”

110 111 112 113 114

116 118 119 120 122 123 126

128 129 131 133 135 137

Contents ix References 6

Leadership Themes 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Themes in the literature 6.2.1 6.2.2 6.2.3 6.2.4 6.2.5 6.2.6 6.2.7 6.2.8 6.2.9 6.2.10 6.2.11 6.2.12 6.2.13 6.2.14 6.2.15 6.2.16 6.2.17 6.2.18 6.2.19 6.2.20 6.2.21 6.2.22 6.2.23 6.2.24

6.3

Peter Drucker Stephen Covey John Gardner John Heider Warren Bennis Margaret Wheatley Diane Dreher Craig Hickman Burt Nanus Sun-Tzu—Ralph Sawyer Abraham Zaleznik Peter Block Michael Maccoby Harold Leavitt J. Kouzes and B. Posner William Safire and Leonard Safir Rosabeth Moss Kanter Max DePree Edgar Schein Wess Roberts R. White, P. Hodgson, and S. Crainer C. Manz and Henry Sims, Jr. Carol McCall Howard Eisner

Leadership attributes for the twenty-first century

6.3.1 6.3.2 6.3.3

Visionary Communicator Doer

138 141 141 142 142 143 144 145 145 146 147 147 148 149 150 150 151 152 152 153 154 154 155 156 157 157 158 159

159 160 160 160

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6.3.4 6.3.5

6.4

Facilitator Integrator

Expanded list of key qualities

6.4.1 6.4.2 6.4.3 6.4.4 6.4.5

Practical visionary Inclusive communicator Positive doer Renewing facilitator Principled integrator

6.5 A test 6.6 Summary—the Top Five References 7

From Manager to Leader 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Foundations for moving forward 7.3 Leadership attributes of American project managers 7.4 Differences between managers and leaders 7.5 Transitioning from manager to leader 7.5.1 7.5.2 7.5.3 7.5.4 7.5.5

Address leadership issues and questions Find and be a mentor Lead here and now Evaluate progress and make adjustments Learn, stretch, and grow

7.6 Summary—the Top Five References Part 4 8

161 161

162 162 162 163 163 163

164 164 166 169 169 173 176 179 181 183 185 186 187 188

189 190

Reengineering Your Company

191

Strategic Directions 8.1 What’s important in the enterprise? 8.2 Selected corporate perspectives

193 193 195

8.2.1

Boeing

195

Contents xi 8.2.2 8.2.3 8.2.4 8.2.5 8.2.6 8.2.7 8.2.8 8.2.9 8.2.10 8.2.11 8.2.12 8.2.13 8.2.14

8.3

Other models of what’s important

8.3.1 8.3.2 8.3.3 8.3.4

8.4

Motorola Kodak Hewlett-Packard (HP) AT&T Xerox Lucent AlliedSignal DuPont Enron Schlumberger General Electric (GE) Microsoft Summary of company thrusts Drucker The seven S’s The balanced scorecard Balance in our enterprises

Five strategic directions for any enterprise

8.4.1 8.4.2 8.4.3 8.4.4 8.4.5

Internal perspectives People Systems Differentiation and leverage External perspectives

8.5 Summary—Top Five strategic directions References 9

Enterprise Performance Levels 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Measurements 9.2.1 9.2.2

General notions of measurement Monthly measurements

195 196 197 197 198 198 199 200 200 201 201 202 203

203 204 205 206 207

208 209 211 212 213 214

215 216 219 219 221 222 223

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9.2.3 9.2.4 9.2.5

9.3

Other general measurement frameworks The Baldrige Award measurement framework The Capability Maturity Model (CMM)

The TEAM-SD measurement framework

9.3.1 9.3.2 9.3.3

10

TEAM-SD measurement structure Subordinate strategic directions Selected implementation matters

225 226 226

230 231 235 235

9.4 Summary References

238 241

Synthesis and Integration 10.1 Introduction 10.2 Reiterating the pieces

243 243 244

10.2.1 10.2.2 10.2.3 10.2.4 10.2.5 10.2.6 10.2.7 10.2.8

10.3

High-tech force fields The nature of change Themes for corporate change Skills for the high-tech manager Leadership themes From manager to leader Strategic directions Enterprise performance levels

A few closing comments

10.3.1 10.3.2 10.3.3

Reengineering and change A systems perspective Widening the circle

10.4 A final Top Five References

244 247 249 251 253 255 257 260

261 262 264 265

267 269

Appendix

271

About the Author

277

Index

279

Preface

M

OST BOOKS, it seems, flow essentially from the individual experiences of their authors. In that respect, this book is no different. Indeed, I have deliberately stressed these experiences in an attempt to make the text more personal and thereby more readable. At the same time, not paying attention to what others are saying surely opens the door to a variety of misadventures—going down roads that have been shown to be of little value. For this reason, I spend considerable time here looking at what other observers of the high-tech scene have concluded. My final reckoning seems to me to be a type of synthesis of the two—my own experiences and observations and those reported by others. With respect to the book’s specific content—which is the often difficult journey from individual contributor, to manager, to leader—I began as a research engineer and later migrated to various management

xiii

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positions, including serving as president of two systems and software engineering companies. The journey was both highly enjoyable as well as stressful for me. I learned a considerable number of my lessons about management, as well as leadership, from what is known as “OJT”—on-the-job training. That means that one makes just about all the mistakes possible, and I probably did exactly that. Perhaps this book, as your own personal primer, can help you to avoid potential errors and move you forward more surely and rapidly, whatever path you choose. One of the central themes of this book involves change—both personal and corporate. This is a simple word, and even a simple notion, but its achievement is quite elusive. Here again, I’ve tried to share in these pages what I’ve learned about change, at both the personal and the corporate levels. Part of the need for change will be coming at all of us from new and stronger forces as they gather and gain strength in the twenty-first century. To try to understand what this might mean, I’ve attempted to rely on what the professional futurists are telling us. But even these results are subject to change as we go down the road, and flexibility in the face of external changes will stand us in good stead as we proceed. I have reached these various conclusions through my many years of experience in engineering positions. I spent 30 years (1959–1989) in industry, starting as a research engineer, and I ended up becoming president of two high-tech companies and a board member of three. In 1989, I accepted a position as Distinguished Research Professor and Professor of Engineering Management in the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the George Washington University. I’ve been fortunate enough to have at least two careers, one in industry and the other in academia. Working in industry gave me hands-on experience as to how high-tech businesses function; my time in the academic world afforded me the opportunity to think more about what had happened, what seemed to be happening, and what was likely to be coming down the road in the days ahead. Over a 20-year period, I held a variety of manager positions. As president of two systems and software engineering companies, I certainly tried to lead the charge. I will say that there were lots of folks in

Preface xv the room with me as we developed our strategic plans at retreats well away from our offices around the country. During a little over a year I lived on both coasts, spending a week in Los Angeles at the headquarters of a company I ran, and a week in Rockville, Maryland, at the parent company and field office of the subsidiary. At the same time, I got a chance to write my first serious book, mostly while I was flying between Los Angeles and Washington, DC. During my tenure in industry, I like to say “I was sold twice,” and I also was involved in the two purchases of other companies that become subsidiaries. Experiencing the merger issue from both directions taught me a lot about what to do and what not to do on both sides. Being acquired can be a humbling experience. You may recall that Ross Perot did the same by selling his EDS to General Motors and then tried to humble GM. Yet another case of trying to “teach the elephant to dance.” All of that appeared not to work, but he walked away with the consolation prize of $700 million. Don’t expect that kind of treatment from your bosses as you become more and more of a troublemaker. It’s not likely to happen, perhaps ever again. Did I have the training to succeed in the world of building high-tech enterprises? Since almost all of what I learned was in the context of OJT (on-the-job training), I’d have to answer no to that question. My bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate were all in engineering, with not a single business course in any of the curricula. I attended several short courses that addressed management issues and migrated through a variety of management and executive jobs relying mainly on three things: 1. A lot of self-directed reading (which I hope this book might be

for you); 2. Paying attention, as best I could, to what was going on in front of me; 3. My natural tendencies to respond to the various challenges many kinds of customers presented to me. I like to think that I mostly grew into the jobs I found myself in and never thought a lot about the formality of building a career.

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The bottom line is that each of us, by and large, takes the journey that feels most comfortable in the sense that it’s closest to who we are. Although there are exceptions, we’re apt to proceed with a step-bystep approach, whether planned in advance or not. I’ve designed this book to help with that kind of approach, rather than one that claims there are only a couple of easy steps into management and leadership positions. I’ve tried to highlight what I consider to be a central fact in moving toward such positions—that it will take a fair amount of personal change, which can be most difficult and challenging. Along the pathways, we’re buffeted by lots of both internal and external forces. I try to touch upon the nature of these forces in the various chapters that follow.

Acknowledgments I’m most pleased to dedicate this book to my wife, June Linowitz, who encouraged me by her constant love, support, interest, and presence. I’ve been amazed at her intuitive understanding of the industrial and academic worlds that I’ve inhabited, even though they’ve not been part of her direct experience. I also wish to acknowledge the indirect help and support from my three children, Seth Eric, Susan Rachel, and Oren David, all of whom are now on their own and clustering around the 40-year-old mark and have extremely interesting stories of their own to tell. Howard Eisner Bethesda, Maryland

P a r t

1

Setting the Stage

This Page Intentionally Left Blank

1 Background and Premises 1.1

Introduction

This book is about three significant and interrelated journeys—one to reengineer yourself, the second to reengineer the enterprise of which you are a part, and the third, if you are so inclined, is the journey from individual contributor to manager to leader. All three journeys have steps that are suggested within them. A step at a time makes each journey possible. It also turns out to be the only practical way to get where we might wish to go. The first journey, reengineering yourself, is interconnected to your presumed interest in becoming a manager, or, if you already function in that capacity, to move on to becoming a leader. Both represent significant journeys within the context of reengineering oneself. We have a large number of excellent managers keeping industry and 3

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

government running, but a much smaller number of leaders. A leader is not just a mega-manager; a new and somewhat different set of skills, as well as points of view, come into play in a leadership role. The journey from individual contributor to manager to leader is intertwined with the journey to reengineer oneself and provides a key motivation for wanting to do so. Does this mean that if you’re committed to the simple life of having the pleasure of serving as an individual contributor, the remaining pages of this book are not of interest to you? The answer, I believe, is no. Even as a singular contributor you will find numerous challenges that will cause you to make changes in your work life. These can easily be envisioned in at least two important areas—improving your technical problem-solving skills and also your ability to interact positively with your coworkers and bosses. Being able to make the changes in yourself that will help you to navigate these often difficult waters will give you more satisfaction as an individual, and will increase the positive impact you will have in your organization. The second journey involves attempting to reengineer your enterprise. This journey is considered in the context of a set of desirable strategic directions for the enterprise. Obviously, if you are busy 8–10 hours a day writing the software for a “killer app” you’re not likely to also be in a position to reengineer your company. But times and contexts change as the years go by, as Bill Gates and lots of others have discovered. And, if you’re a manager or a leader in your company now, you may wish to take on that next journey of reengineering the enterprise. It’s a most difficult adventure, invariably involving lots of different people all of whom are active stakeholders. But it’s worth it in terms of both benefits to the enterprise as well as personal satisfaction. Teaching the elephant (or any large company) to dance [1, 2] is no small undertaking and is very noticeable when it happens. The third journey, already cited above, may have two parts to it: 1. Converting from individual contributor to manager; 2. Evolving from manager to leader.

Background and Premises

5

If you’re in the first category, as so many folks are, hopefully you will find many of the suggestions in this book useful. If you’ve been a manager for a while and now wish to try taking on a leadership role, there are specific ideas for you to consider that may be of assistance. The possible migration path is illustrated in Figure 1.1. In moving from individual contributor to manager to leader we will be systematically looking at the transition steps as well as the attributes of each of the entities shown. In a one-step-at-a-time approach we will attempt to examine the various dimensions of this journey that serves as a centerpiece and roadmap for this book. Before we move on to the next topic, I’m reminded of an article in the Washington Post [3] that talked to the matter of stepping up to that Transitions

Highperforming individual contributor

Manager

Leader

Attributes

Attributes

Attributes

Figure 1.1

Basic journeys to consider.

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

first management job. It was subtitled “Out of your comfort zone and into the uncertainties of management.” It also refers to the apparent fact that many young folks, in making this transition, don’t ask for help. The author suggests that you do so, and quotes some additional recommendations such as: ■

Leave your ego behind;

■

Admit your struggle;

■

Find support;

■

Adopt a learning mind-set.

All of these are worth noting and remembering. But the main point is that you may well be moving out of the familiar (the comfort zone) and into the anxiety-ridden uncertainties of being a manager. In doing so, you’ll probably need at least some help in order to be successful. This book, in part, is intended to provide some of that help. Following the suggestions here is designed to give you some new points to remember, in addition to the above, and to share with soulmates nearby as you proceed in your journey.

1.2

Key questions

This book addresses eight top-level questions, in terms of discussing various aspects or dimensions of these questions, and suggests specific answers that might assist the reader in moving forward in his or her work environment. These questions are: 1. What important forces will the high-tech enterprise have to

contend with in the twenty-first century? 2. What steps might need to be taken in moving from an individual contributor to a manager? 3. What additional steps should be considered in the continuing journey to becoming a leader?

Background and Premises

7

4. How might the individual do a better job of making appropriate

5. 6. 7.

8.

changes in his or her life with respect to navigating the above transitions? What are the key attributes of the high-tech manager? What are the major attributes of a leader? What are some key strategic directions that should be seriously considered by the high-tech enterprise in the twenty-first century? How might the enterprise establish and measure its performance levels of achievement in relation to the above-cited strategic directions?

In-depth discussions, as well as this author’s attempts to answer these important questions, can be found in the following nine chapters, as depicted in Figure 1.2. This figure, in effect, is a brief roadmap for the book. The “bullets” illustrate key issues related to the above questions. In addressing these as well as ancillary questions, about eight dozen specific inputs from other observers and authors are explored and commented on rather explicitly. Most of my own conclusions can be thought of as representing a synthesis of personal observations and experiences in conjunction with the suggestions of these hundred or so authors. The following sections in this chapter briefly comment upon the above-cited questions. More detailed discussions are provided, as you might expect, in the main chapters themselves, starting with Chapter 2.

1.3

High-tech force fields ahead

The twentieth century brought to all of us enormous changes, many of which are directly traceable to technology advances, and in many domains. One of the most dominant of these domains was that of transportation. With the railroad under our belts as a critical way to move people and goods in our westward expansion, we rather quickly added

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

Chapter Two High-tech force fields in the 21st century

Chapter Three The nature of personal change

●

●

● ● ● ●

Chapter Four Themes for corporate change

Chapter Five Skills for the high-tech manager

Chapter Six Leadership themes

Chapter Seven From manager to leader

Chapter Eight Strategic directions

Chapter Nine

● ● ●

● ● ●

● ● ●

● ● ●

● ● ●

● ●

Enterprise performance levels

Chapter Ten Synthesis and integration

Figure 1.2

An overview roadmap.

●

● ● ●

What the futurists (Toffler, Naisbitt, Cetron, etc.) are telling us Five high-tech force fields

Personal change Steps that lead to change Mistakes in attempting change Suggested approach for change Observers of the corporate scene Problem-solving themes for change Areas of focus for change

Skills for the high-tech manager Problem-solving steps Steps in transitioning to a manager

Themes in the literature A test Five critical leadership attributes

Foundations for moving forward Differences between managers and leaders Transition steps

Selected corporate perspectives Models of what’s important Top five strategic directions

Measurements and levels Subordinate strategic directions The enterprise assessment model for strategic directions Synthesizing into systems A final top five Widening the circle (3 C’s)

Background and Premises

9

automobiles and airplanes, as illustrated in Figure 1.3. From there, we figured out how to soar higher and higher, taking full command of the skies and then into nearby space. Of course, more powerful and exotic forms of warfare, including the bomb, helped to prime the pump. Delivering people, goods, and even weapons to the other side of the planet became commonplace in the twentieth century. So the next question might be—where is all this going as we move into the twenty-first century? Will the “transport domain” continue to be so dominant, or will it give way, if you will, to yet another domain? What could we expect to be seeing, and preparing for, in the twenty-first century? We obviously are not able to predict with certainty what lies ahead for us during the twenty-first century. I’ve taken a hard look, however, at what some six of our well-known futurists are telling us about what 21st century

?

20th century: 100 years of massive industralization

(in many domains)

Smart bombs

“The bomb“

Missiles Warfare

Interstate highway system

Jets Simple airplanes

Automobiles

19th century

?

?

Spacecraft National aviation system

National railroad system

Urban mass transit

Railroads

Horses

Figure 1.3 Selected technology-based developments in the important transportation domain.

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

to expect. Also, I’ve taken this view through a filter that is especially relevant to our high-tech enterprise. A unanimous view is that the information age, already unmistakably visible in the last two decades of the twentieth century, is likely to deepen and broaden in the next 100 years. More and more so-called conventional products, through the ubiquitous chip and related software, will have built-in layers of information and intelligence. Some insight into this matter may be gained by even a very brief look at selected statements made in three annual reports: ■

■

■

■

“A robust information infrastructure—systems, support and applications that are powerful, available, manageable and secure—is what customers expect from HP and our partners” (Hewlett-Packard). “Document technology is key to improving productivity through information and knowledge management. No one knows the document—paper to digital, digital to paper—better than we do” (Xerox). “Looking to the future, I believe that our company is poised to grow by taking on what I call knowledge-intensive projects that transform industries … we will be adding ‘knowledge’ components to our existing products” (DuPont). “New digital approaches enabled by our software will make knowledge workers far more efficient” (Microsoft).

Companies that fail to step up to the challenges of the information age will be candidates for the junk heap. Those that do, depending upon how far they push or extend the leading edge, and how well they market, will be candidates for becoming the new market pioneers, with billionaire executives and millionaires in middle management. And there’s certainly a lot of evidence as to the wealth that’s being created by our information age leaders. We can start, of course, with Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer of Microsoft, and then look at the likes of the folks running AOL (including Netscape), Yahoo, Oracle, PeopleSoft,

Background and Premises

11

and even Amazon.com. Embracing the Internet as a more-or-less standard way of doing business is the order of the day and it brings with it, at least for now, a new economics. For example, as I was gathering my thoughts as well as various materials for this book, I noticed an Internet-based company in the Washington, DC area that had posted annual revenues of $75,000 (not millions) and losses of about $4.7 million. Under the old rules, we might think of such an enterprise as about to go out of business. But no, they were ready to go out on an IPO (initial public offering) for about $30 million. “Let’s see what happens here,” I thought, wondering if they would be successful in this endeavor. A month or two later they pulled back the IPO and then, in effect, merged with another larger company. Shortly thereafter, the IPO was a done deal, and had yielded some $700 million. From $30 to $700 million in less than six months. How’s that for the new economics? Directly connected to the information age is the fact that companies will also be able to provide greater speed and responsiveness in essentially all of their transactions. Having that capability will translate into the will to use it in all domains—from internal support services to customers near and far. This powerful force will be aided by the advent of the new and required wideband and wireless communications (and embedded computer) technology. Here’s a brief sampling of what a few companies are talking about in this regard, again taken from selected annual reports: ■

■

■

“From product-based businesses to integrated communications solutions … exciting opportunities in satellite communications” (Motorola); “Invest for growth in five areas—local services, wireless services, Internet services, outsourcing and networking integration” (AT&T); “We are uniquely qualified to lead the communications revolution …”, areas of emphasis include “communications networking, data networking, optical networking, wireless, messaging and call centers, software” (Lucent Technologies);

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

■

■

“Anyway you slice the data, long distance, local and Internet sectors, WorldCom is there” (WorldCom); “Our core strategy here is to make investments that will accelerate the deployment of high-speed broadband networks and to collaborate on the technology that will make interactive services for consumers and businesses run seamlessly across these networks” (Microsoft).

The bottom line is that today’s pace will almost seem as if we’re standing still compared with the speed and responsiveness that will be commonplace tomorrow. Related to all of the above is the force of increasing competition. Enterprises will recognize that keeping ahead of the competition will be a constant and demanding challenge. Since new products will be appearing essentially overnight (e.g., the Netscape browser, the Palm Pilot, and so forth), causing a revolution in the way business is done, competition will intensify in both size and scope. Cycle times in just about all areas will shorten and companies will be playing leapfrog on a constant basis. The patterns reflected in the computer industry, for example, by Wang, Dell, Apple, HP, Apollo, Sun, Compaq, DEC, and even IBM, will continue to play out, so there will be no place to hide and lots of new winners and losers. So if you’re in the fray, as has been suggested, keep looking over your shoulder—they may be gaining on you. However, in the information age, just as you turn to the right to look, they may have scooted by you on the left. Another force of no small import has to do with new work patterns and environments. We are already seeing extremely informal workplaces, highly flexible hours, telecommuting, virtual corporations, and others. We are likely to see a continuation of the same, along with some new creative ideas for how to contribute to the corporate agenda and well-being. Facilitated by the information age technology, there will be less need to have everyone present at the same time and place, and more messaging and teleconferencing. People will be present in virtual offices that might be hundreds or even thousands of miles away. Work hours are likely to be affected, and it is easy to see how, as a result of the

Background and Premises 13 above two forces, companies will be forced into two and three shift operations as a standard way of being. If speed, responsiveness, and competition are the order of the day, making better use of the 24 hours of each day will be one of the challenges that will be considered by many. Many companies will be places at which you’ll be able to get a cup of coffee if you happen by at 4 o’clock in the morning. Finally, shifts will occur in regard to loyalties and leverage within the enterprise. To some extent, this is an age-old issue—who has got the power in the enterprise. We know the age-old answer is Management (with a deliberately capitalized “M”). But in the information age we can expect to see significant adjustments in the direction of those who can make important contributions to new information and knowledgebased products and services. The aftermath of downsizing, a favorite of the 1990s, will be a shift in loyalties, as a minimum. “If they’re not making a commitment to me,” many will reason, “then I’m going to make sure that I keep my options open.” Jumping to another company, or to your own company in your garage, will be much more viable options, if you’ve got the information age goods. This will give more leverage to the folks who get the information age ideas and engineer the resultant products and services. The above-cited forces are likely to be extremely important during the twenty-first century. The individual twists and turns are not predictable in their detailed variety, but the overall trends in those directions appear to be well supported. Now let’s turn to one of the consequences of new forces upon the scene, namely, the need for change.

1.4

Exploring the dimensions of change

The rather innocuous six-letter word change has tomes of writing to support and explain it. I’ve listed a sampling of some half dozen books (not to mention articles) in the reference list at the end of this chapter [4–9]. Giving change its due is appropriate since it’s necessary in several domains, and it also can be exceedingly difficult to do. Just think about all the New Year’s resolutions that are broken each year.

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

In addition to the referenced books, I was somewhat surprised to find change taking a rather dominant position in a Boeing Annual Report. The report identified a host of improvements that were planned for the next year, and then continued: “Is all that within our power? Absolutely. But only by embracing change.” There’s that unheralded little word again; a punch line, if you will, for what Boeing needs to do in order to execute its plans. If change is becoming mandatory in the boardrooms of our largest and most successful corporations, then its ripples (tidal waves?) are felt at all levels in the organization. Since people inhabit these enclaves, the requirements for change quickly become the province of the individual: ■

■

How do I need to change what I’m doing in order to be successful in this environment? How do I lead the charge for change in terms of what my people are doing, and need to be doing?

Before long, the corporate agenda for change is reflected in the agendas of the various individuals in the enterprise. Eventually, and usually operating against lots of inertia, changes of various shapes, sizes, and contexts begin to take hold. Those who resist can quickly find that they’re working for someone else. Of course, the forces for change can often come from the bottom-up instead of the top-down. This will occur in the dysfunctional organization and can be observed in just about any bureaucracy. In the latter, people seem to have lots of good ideas for making improvements that the bureaucratic forces quash on a regular basis. But it may be that even the bureaucratic enterprises will see, in the twenty-first century, that unless they embrace change they may not survive. As indicated above, even a company as large as Boeing, which is sure to have certain bureaucratic tendencies on the basis of size alone, is focused on the idea of embracing change. They see it as essential in moving forward from where they are to where they perceive they need to be. In this book, I explore various aspects of change, first from an individual perspective (Chapter 3) and then in terms of themes for changes

Background and Premises 15 in a corporate setting (Chapter 4). In the former, you will find several suggestions as to how to approach the matter of making various types of changes. These suggestions are derived from personal experience as well as what others who have studied this issue tell us. In the latter case, I’ve taken a similar approach. Themes for making changes in the enterprise are examined from the literature, and then synthesized into a handful of conclusions. Rather than try to reiterate these suggestions and conclusions here, I point you in the direction of these two chapters.

1.5

Becoming a manager

Moving from individual contributor to manager, as shown in Figure 1.1, requires a conscious decision to do so. This transition, carried out by probably hundreds of thousands of folks every year, is a nontrivial adventure. The job of being a manager carries with it a whole new set of dimensions, the most dominant of which is that the manager is responsible for other people. This shift of focus is often the most difficult of the adjustments. You can’t just accept the label of manager and continue to do exactly what you’ve done before. Invariably, that just won’t work. In Chapter 5 I take a hard look at two main areas that pertain to becoming a manager, namely: 1. Steps in transitioning to a manager; 2. Skills for the high-tech manager.

The five suggestions for the former are: 1. Make a conscious decision and commitment; 2. Obtain additional training and education; 3. Practice manager skills; 4. Study and talk to managers in your company or organization; 5. Seek and accept a manager position.

The five primary skills of the high-tech manager, explored in some detail in Chapter 5, can be expressed as:

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

1. Problem solver; 2. Contingency planner; 3. People-oriented communicator; 4. Team builder; 5. Technically competent decision maker.

Further discussion relative to the above points, of course, is found in Chapter 5. At this stage, I simply suggest that the reader think about the above in relation to his or her own life and position in the work environment. Have you made the transition? If you have, do you have the above-cited skills? If you lack these skills, are you ready to start thinking about how to obtain them?

1.6

Evolving to a leader

In the past decade or so, there has been an enormous interest in leaders and leadership. It’s as if these notions are being discovered again in enterprises all across the country, as well as overseas. They’re certainly being written about in new and novel ways. How about these titles for books on leadership? ■ ■

■ ■

■

Lincoln on Leadership: Executive Strategies for Tough Times (by Phillips); Churchill on Leadership: Executive Success in the Face of Adversity (by Hayward); The Leadership Wisdom of Jesus: Practical Lessons for Today (by Manz); A Higher Standard of Leadership: Lessons from the Life of Gandhi (by Nair); Attila the Hun (by Roberts—see also Chapter 6).

In somewhat more conventional circles, namely, the Marines, the well accepted argument is “that’s what we do, and have always done” in relation to making leaders. And there’s a fair amount of evidence that this claim is absolutely true and on point. Ross Perot, when building

Background and Premises 17 EDS, apparently populated his management ranks with exMarines. All of this was predicated on the leadership as well as the “take the beach” orientation of these folks. Nothing less than that would do. In this connection, when I was teaching a short course in project management at a local high-tech company, we got into a rather animated discussion of leadership, including the question of whether leaders were born as such or could be trained. One of the participants cited the Marine values and training program as evidence of the latter (with which, incidentally, I agreed). This person also offered a list of character traits of a Marine leader to support his theory (Table 1.1). Any arguments? The large number of managers in our current enterprises provides a substantial pool from which our future leaders are likely to be drawn. That is, our leaders tend to come through the ranks and earn their keep first as managers as they learn the skills necessary for leadership. Leaders also show their tendencies early so that, in relation to other managers, they move up the management hierarchy rapidly. Indeed, they usually demonstrate leadership qualities even as a project or program manager with relatively small numbers of people. They’re often pinpointed early by higher management as rising stars to both watch and nurture. It’s probably fair to say that today’s conventional wisdom can be expressed by the complaint “we’ve got plenty of good managers in our company—what we need are more leaders!”

Table 1.1 Possible Attributes of a Marine Leader [10] 1. Courage

7. Loyalty

2. Integrity

8. Knowledge

3. Decisiveness

9. Judgment

4. Dependability

10. Justice

5. Initiative

11. Unselfishness

6. Endurance

12. Enthusiasm

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

In Chapter 6, I explore in some detail the question raised earlier as well as that implied immediately above—what exactly is a leader? I do this by examining what some of my management colleagues are saying about this topic. In particular, I attempt to come to terms with the notion of common attributes or characteristics of a leader. My bottom line represents a synthesis of their statements on leadership as well as my own perspectives in this regard. These can be summarized by the following five key qualities: 1. Practical visionary; 2. Inclusive communicator; 3. Positive doer; 4. Renewing facilitator; 5. Principled integrator.

At this juncture I won’t elaborate upon these attributes, but rather move on to the next issue of the journey from manager to leader (Chapter 7). Many of our most competent managers try to make this journey and find that it’s a nontrivial adventure. Part of the reason for this is that the position is sometimes viewed as just another rung on the corporate ladder. This is distinctly not the case despite the fact that leaders do find themselves at the tops of these ladders. But they use and display their leadership qualities all along the way, and use the journey as a means of building and fine-tuning their skills as a leader. The prospective leader knows that new skills have to be brought into play and is usually aware of what they are and how to exercise them. The overall perspective is that becoming a leader is a process and that each step along the way adds to one’s capabilities as a leader. It’s not like passing an exam to be a leader, and it’s not waking up one day and saying from this point on, I’m going to be functioning as a leader. In Chapters 6 and 7, I mention two well-known people who started out as engineers and wound up ultimately as leaders in their companies, namely, Jack Welch and Norman Augustine. You can be sure that they displayed and improved their leadership skills all along the pathway from engineer to manager to leader. And in regard to this journey, and with due consideration of the

Background and Premises 19 steps that might need to be taken to become a competent manager (see Section 1.5 above), I offer the following five suggestions for focusing upon the transition to a leader: 1. Address leadership issues and questions; 2. Find and be a mentor; 3. Lead here and now; 4. Evaluate progress and make adjustments; 5. Learn, stretch, and grow.

These notions are discussed further in Chapter 7.

1.7

Reengineering the enterprise

At the beginning of this chapter I cited as the second journey of this book the matter of reengineering your enterprise. Later, as two of the eight key questions addressed here (Section 1.2), are the following: 1. What are some key strategic directions that should be seriously

considered by the high-tech enterprise in the twenty-first century? 2. How might the enterprise establish and measure performance levels of achievement in relation to the above-cited strategic directions? These questions to some extent presume that you might be in a position to influence the corporate agenda regarding strategic directions. If you are, then the suggestions presented here are offered for their potential immediate use. If you’re not, then perhaps some day down the road you may be motivated to go back and dust off this book. After all, we can assume that even Bill Gates, when he was at Harvard, had no idea he’d be running one of the world’s most successful and wealthy companies a couple of decades later (or did he?). There are a total of five key strategic directions recommended here, namely:

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1. Internal perspectives; 2. People; 3. Systems; 4. Differentiation and leverage; 5. External perspectives.

This simple “model,” selected from several available concepts and experiences, says that these are the areas to pay the most attention to in terms of an overall strategy for the enterprise. Internal perspectives deal mainly with establishing both a vision for the enterprise (where might we need to go?) as well as a culture that supports that vision. The second direction focuses on people, the obvious prime movers of any enterprise who either make it happen or fail to do so. Under this category, two subordinate areas are suggested, namely, high performance teams (HPTs) and accountability and rewards. Organizations of various kinds are supported by systems that are constructed to execute the processes considered necessary for the enterprise to do business. Such systems are subject to continuous improvement and reengineering and are built as the enterprise moves along the pathway of becoming a learning organization. The fourth area deals with differentiation and leverage which set the direction for the enterprise to be unique, effective, and efficient in the marketplace. Two main factors in achieving high levels of differentiation and leverage are the overall innovativeness and responsiveness of the enterprise. Finally, the fifth strategic direction involves external perspectives. Looking outward from the enterprise we must be concerned with both customers and competitors. Failure to understand the latter could easily lead to losing the former. Summarizing the above, the overall structure of this strategic directions presentation is shown in Table 1.2. A second aspect of these strategic directions is the second question above having to do with measuring performance levels of achievement in relation to these directions. Measurement allows the enterprise to keep score and thereby determine if it is improving or not. Various

Background and Premises 21 Table 1.2 Structure of Key Strategic Directions 1. Internal perspectives

Vision Culture

2. People

High performance teams (HPTs) Accountability and rewards

3. Systems

Continuous improvement and reengineering The learning organization

4. Differentiation and leverage

Innovation Responsiveness

5. External perspectives

Customers Competitors

scorecards for measuring enterprise performance exist and can be adapted to apply to this issue of the degree to which one is making progress in each of the five strategic directions as set forth here in Table 1.2. The presumption is that as the score improves over time, the enterprise is becoming more and more capable relative to these directions. As this occurs, the enterprise is likely to be a stronger force in its various marketplaces, as measured by a variety of somewhat more conventional and widespread approaches (e.g., the well-accepted monthly measurements process). The framework for defining and carrying out a measurement program in relation to the key strategic directions is presented in Chapter 9. This framework, called the Enterprise Assessment Model, sets forth various levels of achievement and scores that correspond to those levels. A summary of this structure is shown in Table 1.3. Additional aspects of this framework are described in Chapter 9, including suggestions for how to make the measurements that are based upon existing approaches, such as the Malcolm Baldrige award procedure. Whatever the specific measurement scheme, the important notion is that the enterprise be committed to the key strategic directions, and tracking performance versus these directions over time so that continuous progress can be maintained.

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Table 1.3 Structure for the Enterprise Assessment Model Every Strategic Direction Must Score at Least

To Achieve Level

With Corresponding Numerical Level

Which Has the Name

90

A

6

Optimizing

80

B

5

Leveraging

60

C

4

Learning

40

D

3

Managing

20

E

2

In process

10

F

1

Ad hoc

1.8

Seven, plus or minus two

Back in 1956, a well-known psychologist by the name of George A. Miller wrote a wonderful and provocative paper with the title “The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing Information” [11]. As the second part of the title suggests, he was exploring what appeared to be natural boundaries with respect to how well humans are able to process information. I knew about the existence of this article, and I was motivated to go back and re-read it as I began writing this book. Miller, based upon his own as well as the experimental results of others, basically suggests that “seven, plus or minus two” is in the ballpark of the “amount of information that we are able to receive, process and remember.” So that my results at the end of the various chapters are well within this boundary, I chose the lower limit of “seven minus two,” or five. That is, I decided to be respectful of what Miller is telling us by limiting my conclusions to “chunks” of five items. This took considerable restraint in several areas, but I adopted a mind-set of presenting a series of top five lists that you will encounter, starting as soon as the next chapter. So, if you the reader have no ready supply of three by five cards, but do have the fingers of each hand available, and also if you

Background and Premises 23 wish to remember the various chapter conclusions, you will be well within reasonable human capacity limits (at least a chapter at a time, with only minor violations). In any case, the grouping of five at a time has not been violated, an effort which I hope is appreciated. Armed with this rationale, I now send you off to the following chapters which I hope will prove to be interesting and informative.

References 1. Belasco, J., Teaching the Elephant to Dance, The Manager’s Guide to Empowering Change, New York: A Plume Book, 1991. 2. Kanter, R. M., When Giants Learn To Dance, New York: Touchstone, 1989. 3. Joyce, Amy, “Fear of Flying Higher,” The Washington Post, Business Section, Washington, D.C., November 23, 1998. 4. Harvard Business Review on Change, Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press, 1991. 5. Drucker, P., Managing in a Time of Great Change, New York: Truman Talley Books/Plume, 1995. 6. Katzenbach, J., Real Change Leaders, New York: Times Business/Random House, 1995. 7. Kotter, J., Leading Change, Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press, 1996. 8. Nadler, D., Champions of Change, San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1998. 9. Kanter, R. M., The Change Masters, New York: Touchstone, 1983. 10. Marine Corps Association Staff, Guidebook for Marines, 17th Ed., Quantico, VA: Marine Corps Association, March 1997. 11. Miller, G., “The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing Information,” Psychological Review, Vol. 63, No. 2, March 1956, pp. 81–96.

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2 High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 2.1

Introduction

The twenty-first century is almost certainly going to bring with it new forces that are virtually impossible to foresee at this time. In today’s world, 100 years is indeed a very long time, at least as measured by the rapidity of change and the impact of galloping technology. Just think for a moment about the world of 1900 as contrasted with the state of affairs some 100 years later. Think, as well, about the degree to which technology has formed the basis for incredible innovation that changed our way of life. In attempting to explore what people and enterprises are likely to become as we move into the twenty-first century, it struck me that 25

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various important forces are already evident. These forces are propelling us forward whether we like it or not. In this chapter, I will try to examine and briefly discuss these pressures as a set of force fields that are likely to strongly influence how we evolve. However, I’ll start with summarizing what some of our researchers into the future appear to be telling us. To some extent, my view regarding what the future might hold is tempered by a few experiences that I had some years ago. The company I was with, of which I was a vice president, found itself interacting with a sister company as we were both owned by The Reliance Group (of Saul Steinberg fame). The sister company was Yankelovich, Skelly, and White (YSW), a social science-oriented marketing and PR firm. They described themselves, in part, as providing services in marketing and strategic planning, including public opinion and behavioral science studies. What I remember most are two specialty products and services that they offered: The Yankelovich Monitor and Corporate Priorities. The former was a business product and related service that addressed social trends that were likely to be important to company “marketers of consumer products and services.” It was based upon tracking some 35 social trends, personal interviews with 2,500 consumers, and personalized presentations to individual sponsors. These measurable social trends, in the aggregate, allowed YSW to draw inferences about how the world was evolving and what this would mean to a variety of companies. In the case of Corporate Priorities, YSW took a look at new pressures that were imposing themselves upon business, such pressures coming “from government, consumerists, environmentalists, social critics” and also from the general public. The basic idea was that these pressures, in turn, were forcing businesses to modify their priorities. YSW, of course, helped to define these changing priorities and also to plan and execute specific programs that might be needed. Intensive personal interviews with important leadership groups as well as an annual study provided data from which to derive the priorities. YSW clearly was not alone in trying to provide guidance to business based upon real data rather than individual personal opinion. New folks continue to come upon the scene that look at such data and then try, at some level, to “predict” the future. In some cases, these predictions can

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 27 get to be rather specific (e.g., a serious resurgence of the Videophone, the coming of age of the electric car). Mostly, they tend to steer away from that level of specificity and look at broader issues and trends. Such individuals and their related enterprises are generally identified as “futurists.” For my purposes here, and in specific reference to key forces of the twenty-first century, I mostly rely upon what the futurists are telling us. From these I develop my own derivative set of five high-tech force fields that I believe we will have to contend with in a most serious manner in the twenty-first century. What we might do about it, at both personal and corporate levels, is the main body of this text, and follows in later chapters.

2.2

Once again with megatrends

The 1982 blockbuster book Megatrends [1] set forth a variety of trends that appeared to be shaping the 1980s. These included the movement from an industrial society to an Information Society, the shift from centralization to decentralization, and others. John Naisbitt, along with Patricia Aburdene, then focused on the “Millennial Megatrends” which to them represented “gateways to the twenty-first century” [2]. These new and overarching trends, of which 10 were specifically singled out, included two that appear to be of special importance, namely, a 10year booming economy (1990–2000) and the triumph of the individual. In effect, these set the stage for what I consider to be their five most significant points for our purposes: 1. Continuation of the information age; 2. Empowerment of the individual; 3. Shift of individual and company loyalties; 4. Accelerating change in the marketplace; 5. Movement from management to leadership.

There seems to be little doubt that the information age is here to stay for the indefinite future. The widespread use of the Internet has

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thoroughly infused just about all businesses. Indeed, everyone’s daily life at the office now starts with an hour or two (eventually even more?) sitting at the computer reading and answering e-mail. Although the notion of the paperless society has been a prediction and even a dream to many, it can be argued that the rapid access to new information and the reality of e-commerce, as well as other trends, will have the consequent effect of increasing the amount of paper we all have to deal with. So the overall picture might well be that more and more information will be coming at us, more and more rapidly, and in both electronic form as well as hard copy. The result may well be, as Naisbitt and Aburdene predict, a new challenge in that “the vast amount of data … will probably whiz right by you.” The resulting challenge will likely be trying to harvest from this rapid and relentless flow the true information that is relevant to the individual and the enterprise. The predicted empowerment of the individual is immediately related to the information age and what a single individual is able to do with just one really good idea and the ability to build a chunk of software (and even hardware) that people perceive they have a need for. We see numerous examples of this, from the folks that built Q-DOS that Microsoft used to build PC-DOS for IBM, to Dan Bricklin and his programmer that constructed VisiCalc, to Andreessen’s Netscape, to Linus Torvald’s Linux operating system. Our new information age sets forth the proposition that almost anyone can build the “killer app” or the “comm aid” that will be a real breakthrough, and lead to tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars as the prize. Building better ways to manage and manipulate information doesn’t require the vast investments in machines, tools, facilities, and everything else needed to build planes, trains and automobiles—just a good idea, computer knowhow, and a quiet room in which to generate lots of lines of code. Related to the above is the notion of a shift in loyalties between the individual and the company. In the information age, as suggested above, the individual doesn’t need vast amounts of resources to bring a new product to the marketplace. But the shift is actually deeper than that. I would claim that it’s related to the broken covenant between company and employee that was exemplified by IBM’s decision in the 1980s to break a long-standing policy of no layoffs. When IBM changed

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 29 its policy, it gave permission to lots of other companies to do the same. And so the downsizing actions and syndrome began. The employee was both disillusioned and also adjusting to the new facts of life. Lifetime employment was a thing of the past; being able to move on to the next company (and the next opportunity) was a reality of today and the future. Naisbitt and Aburdene call it the “Loyalty Factor” and frame it as a “have skills, will travel” mentality on the part of the employee. Whereas this is true, the view here is that much of the reason for this attitude is that companies have changed their positions and commitments relative to their employees. Naisbitt and Aburdene claim that change itself is accelerating, largely as a consequence of technology. In turn, this has forced enterprises to deal with speed as a competitive advantage, or disadvantage, depending upon your ability to innovate as well as skill at bashing bureaucracy. For some companies, it appears to be impossible to gain even a few hours in speeding up their fundamental processes. For others, it’s a way of life. I’m reminded of the story of IBM in regard to their decision to enter the PC market sometime around 1979. They knew that if they followed their normal product development cycle it would take some four years to get the PC into the market. So they set up a separate group in Boca Raton with exceptional freedom and authority to get the product out the door. Their approach was also by-and-large unconventional, at least for IBM. Instead of building their own operating system for the PC, in order to cut down on the timeline they went to Bill Gates to buy an existing operating system for the PC, as alluded to above. This decision had far-reaching consequences, but for our purposes here, we see IBM going to a “buy” rather than “make” decision due to the inordinate length of its standard processes. This singular speed-related choice turned out to be a far-reaching decision that ultimately cost them control of the PC market, opening the door for the likes of Microsoft, Compaq, Dell, and others. Speed, say Naisbitt and Aburdene, will be a dominant factor as we move through the twentyfirst century. The last of the five factors cited above is the shift from managing control to leadership of accelerated change. This is a part of the Naisbitt and Aburdene triumph of the individual. The world moves strongly

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toward accelerating change and it’s the individual that can leverage change far more effectively than most institutions. Bill Gates is perhaps the quintessential example of this perspective. And the shifting paradigm for the individual, in part, is the movement from manager to leader, a main theme for this book. For Naisbitt and Aburdene, they flatly stated that “recognition of the individual is the thread connecting every trend” that they foresaw as setting the stage for the twenty-first century. You’ll see a lot more about this important theme, and derivatives thereof, in future sections and chapters of this book.

2.3

Other trends

Seven years after the Megatrends 2000 book, Gerald Celente took his crack at predicting what might happen in the twenty-first century [3]. The more relevant issues that he raised, at least for our purposes, might be summarized as: ■

The digital revolution;

■

The pace of change;

■

Work at home;

■

New corporate cultures.

Whereas Naisbitt and Aburdene see the transformation from the industrial age to the information age, Celente’s view is that the latter is the global age. Both appear to be reasonable characterizations, with the Naisbitt and Aburdene view more satisfying to this author. In any case, the digital revolution is Celente’s version of the information age that has come upon us and is likely to be dominant during the twenty-first century. As with the purveyors of Megatrends 2000, Celente sees “the pace of change accelerating,” leading to changes in many sectors of our society. One of them is a lot more working at home, with concomitant increases in productivity as well as less time on the road and more hours available to actually get the work done. This will require a good deal more trust between employee and employer, which may be put to new tests. After all, it was estimated that the merger between Martin

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 31 Marietta and Lockheed led to the elimination of some 30,000 jobs while at the same time the executives were earning larger bonuses. In many industries, it was observed that while downsizing was becoming quite commonplace, executive pay was increasing, and at rather substantial rates. However this is resolved, Celente sees a bright future in terms of corporate cultures as well as their support of the arts, conservation of resources, and positive responses to an “enlightened consumer society.”

2.4

The workplace

Joseph and Jimmie Boyett took a shot at trying to predict what the workplace would look like beyond the year 2000 [4]. They see lots of change coming, both in corporate structures as well as the “new workforce.” Their main points can be articulated in the following five key areas: ■ ■

Pursuit of innovation; Speed;

■

The new type of enterprise;

■

A systems focus;

■

Patterns of leadership.

In the first area, the Boyetts envision enormous focus upon the “constant pursuit of innovation.” Achieving this will require being able to make adjustments and changes rapidly and adaptively. Indeed, the enterprises that succeed will be those that are able to literally turn on a dime. Highly bureaucratic companies will be in danger of becoming dinosaurs that will lose their edge and then their market share. Companies will establish high-performance workforces with upgraded skills that will justify premium wages never seen before. A natural consequence of the above is that companies will be moving more rapidly in order to remain competitive. This increased speed will be facilitated by the information systems that will link all parties in the supply-demand chain. Technology will be an enabler, but will also

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represent an increasingly powerful force in the marketplace. Not keeping up will not be an option if you want to stay in business. The pace will be lightning fast, which is likely to increase the error rate. A hard reality to face, with more stress rather than less. The new enterprise that will emerge, in order to be successful, must be the “learning organization” [5]. It must make a fetish out of becoming more intelligent every day and thus more capable of dealing with the rapid fire demands of the marketplace and competition. It must also understand and train for its core competencies that will allow it to keep pace (or push ahead, if possible) with the pack. Yet another ingredient for success is being able to take a “systems” approach. Although Peter Senge calls this his integrating “fifth discipline,” too many enterprises appear to have little to no idea as to what this means. This author, in teaching “systems engineering” would reinforce this finding at the level of gaps in our education processes. To the Boyetts, systems-focused companies that actively and effectively use multidisciplinary teams will emerge as leaders. The systems approach will be a critical core competency and it will facilitate more holistic solutions. The learning organization will make sure that this competency is home-grown and sustained. The ten selected elements of systems engineering include: [6] ■

Mission engineering;

■

Requirements analysis and allocation;

■

Functional decomposition;

■

Architecting the system;

■

Technical performance measurement;

■

Life cycle costing;

■

Risk analysis;

■

Concurrent engineering;

■

Preplanned product improvement;

■

Operations and maintenance.

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 33 Ten aspects of the systems approach are: P. Senge [5]: 1. Systems thinking; 2. An integrative and holistic discipline; 3. Supported by archetypes; 4. Contains three elements of essences, principles, and practices; 5. Facilitates the learning organization.

H. Eisner [6]: 1. Represents a systematic and repeatable process; 2. Consideration of alternatives; 3. Cost-effective solutions; 4. Satisfaction of user and customer needs and requirements; 5. Robustness of design and operation.

Finally, to make all of this happen, a generally new type of leadership style will have to be present. One perspective is that this style will be the “leader as servant,” a concept that is not new but may not be readily embraced by corporate America. Another dimension of the new leader is that he or she must be a facilitator of change, even though such a position is likely to create certain anxieties within a company. In addition, the Boyetts see the leader as a type of revolutionary that overturns the current and outmoded system by somewhat classical means. This overall issue of the new leadership will also be examined in considerable detail in Chapters 6 and 7.

2.5

The shifting of power

Alvin Toffler, known to all of us from his 1970 book, Future Shock [7], describes his 1990 treatise [8] in terms of issues of power as we approach the twenty-first century. This power is expressed most

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

vividly in the domains of violence, wealth, and knowledge. Examination of all three domains is beyond the current interest of this author, but it is clear from reading Toffler that he believes that knowledge will occupy a central position as we move forward into the twenty-first century. Along with knowledge, and partially facilitated by its presence in more and more advanced forms, will also come increased speed, more competition, a shift in power toward employees, and significant changes in the way corporations will do their business. His 1990 blockbuster “focuses on the crucially changed role of knowledge in relationship to power” [8]. In short, power is what is shifting, and knowledge is playing a pivotal position with respect to who wields this power and how this influences the creation of wealth. This is why, as Toffler puts it, “control of knowledge and the means of communication is heating up all over the world.” Toffler also comments strongly with respect to the matter of the U.S. decline in manufacturing. To him, this is essentially a nonissue as we move away from smokestack industries to knowledge-based enterprises. The former will be strengthened through knowledge engineering and new frontiers will be paved by means of electronic highways and commerce. These transitions will be rapid, representing a “leap to a higher level of diversity, speed, and complexity.” This, in turn, suggests that we will learn better how to manage and integrate with knowledge as the cornerstone of these advances and capabilities. For Toffler, violence also will play a more prominent role in the future. This violence will appear in several forms, ranging from information intrusion and theft, to industrial spying, to outright international terrorism. The general theory might well be that disruption of information utilization will modify the way in which power is exercised which, in turn, is itself a way of wielding power. Since this type of power intrudes upon what others have built, it can represent a penetrating form of violence. The stakes are also rather high when, as Toffler puts it, “whole industries mobilize to do battle” in a large-scale electronic war. In the new knowledge-based world, info-warriors are competing head-to-head for supremacy, and at speeds that are facilitated by the fact that technology is making more and more bandwidth available at lower and lower prices.

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 35 Toffler also makes a convincing argument that the power that goes along with rapid information flow and control will necessarily bring down bureaucratic companies while at the same time support flexfirms of the future. These firms will literally pulsate to respond to urgent needs of the marketplace. Indeed, they will be constructed so that they may adapt, almost in real time, to all external forces, including those represented by their competitors. In addition, the bosses and employees of these emerging flex-firms will have a relationship somewhat different from that characterized even by the last score of years of the twentieth century. In a chapter titled “The Autonomous Employee,” Toffler sees a great deal more power in the hands of the latter in the information age. Employees become less and less interchangeable as a single truly innovative idea can have enormous impacts. The old power hierarchies will continue to erode and be replaced by a more collegial employee-centered work environment.

2.6

Two decades down the road

In 1991, Davis and Davidson took us down the road a couple of decades into the twenty-first century to explore “how to survive and succeed in tomorrow’s economy” [9]. Their position, not surprisingly, was that computers and telecommunications have been reshaping the fundamental structure of American businesses. A key point is that it’s not merely a matter of doing the old things a little better. The advanced forms of computer and communications technology must be used to create entirely new products and services in order to be competitive. These new offerings will themselves force business structures to change. These changes will, in turn, propagate through society as a result of the central position that businesses take. A principle that Davis and Davidson articulate is: “informationbased enhancements have become the main avenue to revitalize mature businesses and to transform them into new ones.” This process is called “informationalizing,” which, when applied to a product, adds value and functionality that will be attractive to consumers. Many of these enhanced products will have embedded intelligence and special information content that previously was not present.

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

An example used by these authors is the case of TRW that is known by many in terms of their automotive parts as well as their aerospace engineering services business areas. In their Information Services Group, however, there existed a Credit Services Division that was based upon a database of people along with important credit-related facts and figures regarding these people. Access to and use of this information is itself extremely valuable to another group of folks who want to determine if they should provide credit or loan money. Through this source, high and low credit risks are quickly established, and soon the TRW Credit Services Division was providing critical information needed on a continuing basis. Not a bad business to be into, and one that typifies the world seen by this particular set of futurists, who, incidentally, did not predict that TRW would divest themselves of this division in order to refocus their main business areas, as they perceived was necessary. Davis and Davidson also postulate that when existing industries or companies “neglect the information dimensions of their business, … independent third parties emerge to fill this role.” We used to simply call this “finding and filling a vacuum.” Information-based enterprises will be constantly seeking these vacuums to fill, and will set up niche companies to do exactly that. The fact that writing and delivering workable software does not require enormous amounts of upfront cash will also support the finding and filling of such business opportunities. These authors also predict the coming to pass of a variant of the “80/20” rule. Their view is that “80% of business profits and market values will come from that part of the enterprise that is built around info-business.” If this turns out to be the case, this will also support the notion that the nerd who has business skills or who teams up with a businessman will be king. The path will be to find an information vacuum (niche), write some software that brings the appropriate information together, and then launch the business. If it doesn’t take off on its own, then try to sell it to one of the many existing larger enterprises that deals with the information in question but didn’t have the innovative technical spirit to conceive of your application. Several scenarios

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 37 support this notion (e.g., the sale of Netscape to America Online) which is likely to expand even more so in the twenty-first century.

2.7

2025?!

Joe Coates, a well-known futurist, led a team that examined trends in science and technology as well as the impacts that they were likely to have by the year 2025 [10]. Their methods were to build a total of 15 scenarios that were explored in significant detail. These scenarios were driven, to a large extent, by forecasts made in more than 50 science, technology, and engineering fields. These forecasts assisted in the construction of 107 assumptions that the team made about the future. Coates and his team clearly believe that the overall “influence of science and technology on our future is beneficial.” They point to obvious areas such as the telephone, the electric light, and the automobile to support this idea. They also delve into less obvious contributions and advances made in life-saving drugs, new fibers and fabrics, as well as expansions in the social sciences to further confirm their position. They come down squarely on the side of the positive value of science and technology with respect to advancing our overall quality of life. The scope of the 15 scenarios formulated by the Coates’ team is far-ranging and therefore can only be referred to here in terms of a few themes and related enabling technologies. Specific such technologies are: ■

Information technology;

■

Materials technology;

■

Genetics;

■

Energy technology.

The authors also cite a fifth driver of change which they call environmentalism and see more as a shifting of orientation rather than a new capability. In any case, major themes of interest to us, within the above context, are:

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

■

Information as the global commodity;

■

Predicted changes in the workplace.

No less than 16 of the 107 assumptions are devoted to “automation and infotech.” Clearly, massive improvements in these areas are foreseen, and consequences are almost always beneficial in terms of productivity and quality of life. Some of the impacted areas include: ■

Ubiquitous availability of computers;

■

Very high bandwith communications networks;

■

Smart robots to help with a myriad of tasks, at home and at work;

■

The true emergence of expert systems;

■

Transportation systems, from auto to rail to marine to air;

■

Electronic global villages.

Perhaps the strongest aspect of the theme of workplace influence lies in a comparison the authors make between 1990 mass production and their projected 2025 custom production. They see a clear evolution to customized products and services for the consumer. This will be experienced in such areas as: ■

Virtual organizations;

■

Competition on the basis of quality (rather than price);

■

Integration within the enterprise (versus separate departments and systems);

■

Multiskilled workers;

■

Rapid turnaround for the customer.

Information technology is a strong enabler, providing a technology push that businesses will have to either embrace or risk failure. As we have seen in the twentieth century, education will continue to be the key to corporate and career success. As new machines are

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 39 built that are both fast and smart, we will have more leisure time. Productivity based upon working smarter rather than longer hours will be the norm as the work week shrinks. In short, the Coates’ team sees a very positive future, both locally and globally, resulting in strong measure from the reshaping and enabling forces of science and technology.

2.8

Likely tomorrows

Our last formal examination of the results of what our futurists are telling us is the treatise of Cetron and Davies on “how science and technology will transform our lives in the next twenty years” [11]. Despite the fact that the subtitle of their book appears to limit the scope to the next twenty years, a table they present in an appendix takes us all the way to the year 2062! By way of illustration, a half dozen of the items in their table are reiterated below in Table 2.1. The chapters in the Cetron-Davies book more-or-less can be put into a one-to-one correspondence with the most important areas in which they see major technological advances. These are: ■

The digital world, led by the computer and microchip;

■

Interconnectivity through networks of all types; Table 2.1 Selected Technologies and Projected Year [11] Technology Area of Interest

Projected Year

Intelligent agents

2009

Fuel cell electric cars

2016

Fission power

2020

Personal rapid transit

2024

Intelligent materials

2026

Approach near-light speed

2062

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

■

Advanced and “smart” materials;

■

Nanotechnology;

■

Transportation;

■

Space applications and exploration;

■

Energy;

■

Environmental applications;

■

Medicine.

They also report upon a “consensus view of the future” in 12 areas related to the above by defining a projected set of events and, for each event: ■

The probability of the event’s occurrence;

■

The likely year it will occur;

■

The demand, as measured generally in billions of dollars;

■

The nation that will take the lead in producing the particular event.

For example, in the field of transportation, they examine hybrid vehicles (electric and internal combustion engines) and assign a probability of 69% by the year 2006, a demand of $87 billion, and the United States as the nation taking the lead. Some of the specific areas (selected from many) discussed in some detail include: ■

■ ■

■

Continued performance enhancements of the personal computer such as having the power of today’s supercomputers available on the desktop; Global high-speed inexpensive network services; Mass production of high-quality consumer goods at extremely low prices; Advanced high-speed railroading in the United States;

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 41 ■ ■

More dramatic space-based mission-to-planet-Earth applications; A resurgence of artificial intelligence along with smart machines as well as materials;

■

Ubiquitous satellite-based communications services;

■

More powerful genetic engineering;

■

2.9

A cure for a major disease such as AIDS or cancer (with a probability of 58% by the year 2013).

High-tech force fields

In the aggregate, the above futurists give us a most interesting view of what is likely to be part of our lives as we make our individual and corporate ways through the twenty-first century. They agree on one overall key point that has been at times somewhat controversial, that is, that science and technology will continue to have enormous impacts on all of us and these impacts, in the main, are almost always positive. To the extent that there are negative consequences, we tend to recognize that, and wish to mitigate such consequences. With respect to the latter, for example, we recognize that the automobile can have some negative effects such as polluting our environment and crashes on the road. However, it’s also clear that we’re determined to try to minimize these potential negatives through systematic programs and year-by-year expenditures of money. What we’re not prepared to do is to give up the benefits of the technological advances. It is fair to assume that this attitude will prevail in the twenty-first century as well. In the aggregate, the above futurists also provide examples of dozens of high-tech “forces” that will be with us in the twenty-first century. These forces impact upon us all at once and we experience them as force fields, as depicted in Figure 2.1. The figure symbolically shows both the individual and the enterprise under the influence of such composite fields. The fields are “everywhere,” much the same as a gravitational or electromagnetic field. We experience them each day, with varying intensity, but increasing as we get closer to a particular source

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

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High-tech force fields.

of the force. Immersed as we are, there will be no getting away from their influences unless we literally wish to be hermits. The bottom line is that we’re a whole lot better off understanding what’s likely to be in store, preparing for the force impacts that are sure to give us a bumpy ride from time-to-time, and look for and benefit from the opportunities, which will indeed be plentiful. Can you see some of the bumpy rides as well as the benefits from the ten technology areas listed below as well as others mentioned in this chapter? The ten selected technology areas include: ■

Very high bandwidth entry and interactive operation in the home;

■

Genetically produced food;

■

Commonplace telecommuting;

■

Hydrogen as an energy source;

■

Personal rapid transit systems;

■

Hydroponic produce;

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 43 ■

Robots;

■

Extensive use of synthetic body parts;

■

Automated operation of your automobile on intelligent highways;

■

Ubiquitous databases for checking on consumers and personal histories.

I’ve taken all of the inputs represented by the above as well as other literature sources and come up with my own short list of five key hightech force fields that are likely to be critical in terms of their influence in the twenty-first century. The final five are really not my own personal list, but rather a list that reflects the perspectives of those who have been studying this type of issue. These forces also form an important backdrop for the discussions of future chapters. The enterprises and the inhabitants thereof will have to live in the world impacted by these force fields, as described briefly in the remainder of this chapter. 2.9.1

Force one—the information age

There appears to be essentially 100% agreement that the twentyfirst century will represent the complete blossoming of the information age. Those with the right information, and the ability to do something constructive with it, will wield the power and accrue the wealth. Information will allow our enterprises to do what they do even better, and also to create completely new enterprises, in terms of both products and services. Increased bandwidth and reduced cost will characterize the information age, all facilitated by the ubiquitous microchip and the machines that they will drive. And even information will have a hierarchical structure as knowledge engineering and management threaten to become a “meta” form of just plain information. Whatever the perspective, we will be getting closer and closer to building the right information machines, and having these machines bring increasing amounts of intelligence to what they do. The promise of artificial intelligence (AI) may finally be realized in the twenty-first century. Perhaps that realization will take the form of smart this or that, or

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

knowledge this or that. However it evolves, it will lead to greater productivity and increasing parts of our gross national product. All of this will enhance the quality of life of our people, so long as we keep our destructive tendencies under appropriate control. No small challenge as we have seen from the two world wars of the twentieth century, along with dozens of local but deadly conflicts. On this global scene, it may well turn out that differences in location, time zones, languages, and background may not matter as much in that the information age will bring us closer together. At the same time, it is also possible that it will engender a deeper chasm between the “haves” and the “have-nots,” thereby supporting envy, anger, and further conflict. 2.9.2

Force two—speed and responsiveness

Force number two, in a very real sense, is a necessary companion to the information age. As we build the infrastructure and capabilities that will be part of the information age, increased bandwidth will allow increased speed. The demand for this speed will follow on the heels of the technology push, meaning that people and businesses will wish to pay real money for the speed and responsiveness that such a capability is able to provide. It will all fly because it will be available and affordable. As information finds it way to the right people more quickly, there will be pressure for the executives in business to speed up their operations in order to provide what their customers want in a more responsive manner, and make their decisions more quickly, which will be supported by having the right information available at the right time. All will be happening at increasing speeds, and compared with today, lots of new processes will be put into place that make today’s operations look like slow motion. A perhaps subtle concomitant of the above is the fact that people have natural limits on the speed with which they can deal with information. Further, since information comes in several forms, more attention will have to be paid to how to match the new high rates of information transmission with the more-or-less bounded rates at which men and women are able to cope with it. For example, in the process of reading, we are receiving information at a relatively low rate. This

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 45 may, in fact, turn out to have a profound impact on us, but the pure rate of information flow is relatively slow. Conversations, as an example, tend to come at higher rates, as reflected by the fact that voice transmission requires a greater bandwidth than does data. Moving into yet higher rates, images provide even more information per unit of time, although one can cite many cases in which a picture was not worth a thousand words. The point of this is that the human being is necessarily in the loop as the technology allows, indeed drives, our systems to move more and more quickly. So there would appear to be a natural limit as to how fast we can allow our human-based systems to operate, a type of overload or “saturation” effect. All of this is likely to have profound effects on the engineer, manager, and leader of tomorrow. He or she will be immersed in the faster and faster moving information and systems. Changes will have to be accommodated in order for it all to work. Individuals and companies will have to be prepared to embrace change for it all to work. And they will have to fundamentally learn how to deal with the new speed and responsiveness pressures and effects. If they can’t, for whatever reason, another dinosaur may be in the process of becoming extinct. Which brings us to the next major force. 2.9.3

Force three—competition

The fact that people and companies will have and utilize the capability to move with increasing speed in the marketplace leads to extremely strong competition. Although this may be seen as a derivative force, one that gets its energy from forces one and two, it seems to me to be of extreme importance due to the effects that it’s likely to have. If every business, in effect, sees more powerful competition coming from every direction, including globally, out of necessity this will have a most profound effect on the business itself and, of course, the people that inhabit therein. Thus, two opposing forces may be seen as working against one another. One force is that of increased productivity which might well allow us, in principle, to shorten our work week to perhaps under 30 hours. The other is increased competition from more competent

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

and agile enterprises. That could well mean that we must work even harder (longer?) to be able to survive in such an environment. No answer is forthcoming from this author with respect to this very sticky question. Suffice it to say that we may expect to see more competition and that its effects are very difficult, if not impossible, to predict. Another rationale for more, rather than less, competition, is the nature of the information age itself. Being able to produce and manipulate information is at the very core of future business enterprises. As we have seen, however, better ways to handle information can be conceived of by your local computer genius working in his or her bedroom (or garage). No major investments (e.g., tooling, heavy equipment, and so forth) are required. So we can expect to see more and more computer trained individuals going into business in search of the holy grail, that “killer app” or variations thereof. If your key business area can be made obsolete by a single individual that can develop a better software system, then all companies that rely on information (and most of them will in the twenty-first century) must be working as hard as they know how to make sure they remain at the leading edge. Those that don’t are candidates for the scrap heap. Those that don’t see the forces of change (e.g., Wang Labs in the 1980s) might find that the world is marching to a different drummer. So at one level it may well be easier to start up a new business. All you need is a computer, some software, and a better idea. On this basis, more and more small companies will come upon the scene with exactly that. All these new enterprises, in the aggregate, pose a threat to the established companies in that a new “killer app” very soon replaces the old one in a world in which market share can be reversed in very short periods of time by word of mouth. And these new companies heat up the competitive environment so that nothing is safe or sacred. This force may well give new meaning to the buzzwords faster, cheaper, better. This force may well have us working both smarter as well as longer. At this point in time, it’s hard to tell if the work environment will become more intense or evolve to the shorter work week. Maybe we’ll have both, with earlier burnouts and retirements.

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 47 2.9.4

Force four—new work patterns and environments

The above discussion began to touch upon the matter of new work patterns and environments. We are interested in this area, in distinction to, for example, the prediction that we are likely to have a resurgence of railroading in the United States, because of our primary focus in this book. That focus is the individual engineer and the migration path(s) of such a person within the business enterprise of the twenty-first century. So a serious question must be considered: What type of work pattern and environment are we likely to find as we move into that future world and work our way through it? The emphasis upon the information age and the power that knowledge engineering and management is likely to bring sets the stage for new work patterns as well as environments. The engineer of the twenty-first century will grapple with improved as well as new ways to develop and use information. Central to this perspective is software, the way in which we formulate as well as utilize information. And once we say software, we can see at least three new work patterns emerging: ■

■

■

Working highly irregular hours, often at home or at remote locations; Software engineers all looking for a way to build the new application that will bring them fame and fortune; A confusion of plenty, that gives us new ways of developing software (e.g., object-oriented approach, new languages) as well as new ways to fail to integrate them.

All companies will be searching for the best information warriors. There is likely to be a shortage of good ones just about all the time. The best ones will be in great demand and will have to be well taken care of in order to keep them. The really good ones will be able to work on their own schedules, and under tailored sets of conditions. Companies will continue on their search for people overseas and will “farm out” chunks of software just to be able to keep up with their needs. The true info-warrior will, as they say, have it made.

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As this is happening, the software engineers will become much more entrepreneurial. They will have maximum mobility and will be looking for opportunities that will make them wealthy, and the executives will accept much of this quest, given that it doesn’t get out of control. Does any of this sound familiar? How about the sports field during the 1990s? One can easily imagine that the superstar in the information arena will be much less visible to all, but within his or her environment, considerable wealth is a strong possibility, if you’ve got the ability to bring a new capability to the marketplace. In fact, it’s already happening. Just take another look at what happened to Netscape. The last work pattern is likely to be one in which we will have a confusion of plenty. Entrepreneurs, software architects, programmers, and combinations of the three will continue to dream up new ways of building systems. This will create advances, but it will also create confusion. When a single advance is made, everyone can rally around it. When new methods and capabilities become commonplace, fragmentation and confusion is a likely consequence. All of this points to a world in which the real top 2% of engineers (and others) will literally call the shots and will create a world that works for them, rather than having to live with or in an environment created for them by others. So what happened to the industrial revolution? The assembly line worker that solders a joint or inserts a part will still be with us, but he or she will be at the bottom of the heap. The industrial age will still be with us, but its importance will be muted. The individual as a plugcompatible and completely interchangeable cog in the system will be less and less important. The engineer that moves us forward in the information age will know how to make a computer sit up and spit nickles! And this engineer will be in the ascendancy such that the sky’s the limit. 2.9.5

Force five—loyalties and leverage

Back in the 1950s, when I was finishing my bachelor’s in “double-E,” I sought the opinions of my teachers and fellow students as to what to do next. Jobs for engineers were plentiful, as it turned out to be the Sputnik era. Many suggested IBM as a good place to work. The post-

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 49 depression perspective opted for security and IBM stood for financial stability and good management. A job with IBM meant that you could spend your entire career there without being under the gun as economic and job cycles went up and down. The unwritten agreement was a lifetime job and IBM’s behavior supported that belief. They wanted loyalty and continuity and they got them. Many employees wanted lifetime security and they too were not disappointed. At least until the 1980s rolled around when everyone learned that it was indeed possible to be laid off by IBM. The unthinkable (remember the THINK™ notepads) was happening. Instead of IBM meaning “I’ve Been Moved,” it had changed, to use a British phrase, to “I’ve Been Made Redundant.” And so the world was changing. Large-scale downsizings were becoming commonplace, probably spurred on by the IBM decision to change its long-standing policy. Double-sided loyalties were shattered and 50-year old middle managers who had been shown the door were holding their heads between their hands while asking the question “What do I do now?” Top management, not in the habit of firing themselves, looked around for ways to cut costs as profits were eroding or negative. The answer became a national pastime in which the euphemism was “right-sizing.” Middle management wasn’t hacking it. They were expensive and many had lost their technical edge. This might be considered the beginning of what may well be a steady and inexorable trend toward a mutual disaffection between the workers and top management. Not only was downsizing the order of the day, everyone noticed that the executives who failed to lead the company to good financials still got their bonuses and stock options. After all, the layoffs proved how responsible and effective the executives were. Cost cutting was necessary and the top brass rewarded themselves for taking the required actions. None of this, I believe, was lost on the workers, both the ones who were laid off and those that weren’t. Loyalties were seriously eroding. Trust was dissipating and disappearing. If the workers were ultimately only pawns in the game, then constant movement for the best deal was to be a kind of response. As we move into and through the twenty-first century, I believe that trend will continue. The information age, for reasons previously described, will support the high-tech

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employee who moves from A to B to C. The power will shift from employer to employee. This will make the task of middle and top management more difficult as they try to retain their best people and attract new ones. Talented workers will insist upon a bigger share of the rewards (how about sports?!) under threat of leaving or setting up a small competitive business. Top-five percenters will leverage their technical skills and innovation to create more wealth for themselves. Those who allow their skills to become obsolete will be serious candidates for the trash heap. Thus, it appears as if this last force in the new high-tech world amounts to a degradation of old loyalties between labor and management as well as increased leverage on the part of the employees. The ease with which new businesses can be formed by the info-warrior who is able to control the crucial world known as “software” will be a critical factor in the balance of power. So-called nerds will continue to become entrepreneurs and the Xerox PARC (Palo Alto Research Center) syndrome (not listening to your high-tech folks) will become a very highrisk course of action. The kingdom will be known as the “information age” and those who have up-to-date skills in terms of providing the right kinds of information (or knowledge) to the right place at the right time will become the new kings.

2.10 Summary—the top-five high-tech force fields Based upon all of the foregoing in this chapter, the top-five high-tech forces that we are likely to have to contend with appear to be: 1. Force one—the information age; 2. Force two—speed and responsiveness; 3. Force three—competition; 4. Force four—new work patterns and environments; 5. Force five—loyalties and leverage.

High-Tech Force Fields in the Twenty-First Century 51 These force fields will create powerful reasons for the individual and the enterprise to embrace the multidimensional aspects of change, discussions of which follow, especially in the next two chapters.

References 1. Naisbitt, J., Megatrends, New York: Warner Books, 1982. 2. Naisbitt, J. and P. Aburdene, Megatrends 2000, New York: Avon Books, 1990. 3. Celente, G., Trends 2000, New York: Warner Books, 1997. 4. Boyett, J., Beyond Workplace 2000, New York: A Plume Book, 1995. 5. Senge, P., The Fifth Discipline, New York: Doubleday Currency, 1990. 6. Eisner, H., Essentials of Project and Systems Engineering Management, New York: John Wiley, 1997. 7. Toffler, A. Future Shock, New York: Bantam Books, 1991 (Reissue edition). 8. Toffler, A., Powershift, New York: Bantam Books, 1990. 9. Davis, S. and B. Davidson, 2020 Vision, New York: Simon & Schuster, 1991. 10. Coates, J., J. Mahaffie, and A. Hines, 2025,Greensboro, NC: Oakhill Press, 1997. 11. Cetron, M. and O. Davies, Probable Tomorrows, New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1997.

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Aspects of Change

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3 The Nature of Personal Change 3.1

Introduction

Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 are devoted exclusively to notions of change. Change itself is both a very simple, yet complex, idea. The simplicity lies in the general ease with which it is understood by most people. For example, just about everyone will agree that a 300-pound person should seriously consider making some changes in his or her life to lose unwanted weight. At the same time, making the changes required to lose the necessary weight can be rather complicated, as evidenced by how hard it is for so many of us to do so. From knowing that a change is necessary to actually making the change is a topic of great density, import, and lack of clarity. The holy grail in this area would be worth many fortunes.

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Another aspect of change is that it’s all around us. Indeed, all we have to do is read the daily newspaper to see the evidence of it. Changes in companies are reported on all the time, as are the status and condition of those who labor therein. Our continuing interest is reflected in the fact that we continue to read and listen to the news. Often, however, changes are a lot more subtle. When was the last time you went for a neighborhood drive and noticed that one store has been replaced by another? It happens to me all the time and I often wonder about the story behind that simple observation. Why did it happen? Why were they not able to succeed, if that was the case? Did someone lose all of his or her savings? Could it have been prevented? In this chapter we will focus mainly on personal as opposed to corporate change. In principle, the two are clearly interrelated; in practice, however, there is a distinct shift of emphasis in moving from one to the other. The matter of corporate change will be considered in some detail in Chapter 4 so as not to neglect the larger view and context. For example, when IBM decided to change its longstanding policy of “no layoffs” it was a very profound change for the company and, some have argued, a precursor to the entire “downsizing” mentality and era. In some sense, it was the fall of the mighty and a signal of more difficult times ahead. This corporate change, however, was also immediately followed by the personal changes made by all the people who were forced to leave IBM. There was the reality of “what do I do now?” and likely, a feeling of betrayal. After all, the unthinkable had happened—IBM had broken its commitment of employment for life. Corporate change, then, can obviously lead to personal change. Can personal change lead to corporate change? It sometimes can if a CEO is motivated to make it happen. It’s usually easier, however, to envision the possible effects of corporate changes on the individual. Personal change is also the focus when there is movement from engineer to manager, and from manager to leader. These transitions, should they occur, represent change more-or-less by definition. When your boss first suggests that you take on the responsibility for managing a small project, and you agree to do so, you will also be taking a first step in what might turn out to be a profound change in your life. You’re responsible for what other folks are producing, and you begin looking

The Nature of Personal Change 57 at them in a different way. Some part of their success depends upon you, and vice versa. You’re on a new path, one that needs to be thought about every step of the way. Taking a new path, as well as related thoughts and ideas, has been explored in the literature by a large number of serious investigators. Next, we survey some of these notions.

3.2

Some perspectives on personal change

In this section we examine several of the more interesting and documented perspectives on personal change to see what we might wish to use for ourselves in making changes and understanding critical issues in that connection. 3.2.1

Renewal and change

Back in the 1960s, John Gardner wrote about the issue of self-renewal, relating in particular to the notion of innovation in society [1]. He points out that “renewal is not just innovation and change.” In order to absorb the inevitable changes that will occur, he argues that a society needs to encourage the self-developing and versatile nature of its people. His summation is particularly cogent: In a world of change, the versatile individual is a priceless asset.

The versatile, self-developing individual will also look for ways of moving from the status quo to a world that is somehow better through a constant process of searching for new ways of doing things and for new truths. This energy of constant discovery feeds upon itself, yielding rewards that refuel the engines of new searches and new discoveries. All of this places the individual in a better position to cope with all externally imposed change. In a way, Gardner starts with the age-old premise that change is inevitable and the issue then becomes what can both society and the individual do to grow rather than be buffeted about by these forces of change. His conclusion is that we must always be in a position to selfrenew—to have the strength and inclination such that positive change

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can be accomplished and the negative forces of change can be brought into submission. Although this is not the complete picture developed by Gardner, it is the central one and was in fact expanded upon by Waterman in his Renewal Factor exposition some 25 years later [2]. Old themes become new ones soon enough, especially if they’re wellgrounded in experience and truth. If we spend just a little time thinking about it, we are all able to recall cases where the “negative forces of change” have indeed been brought into submission. As I sit now and mull over past events, I can just about visualize the scene of Ronald Reagan being shot on the street, and his amazing grace, good humor, and recovery. I can admire the courage under stress that Senator McCain must have had when he was a POW during the war. I can see clearly that last “I have a dream” speech of Martin Luther King, Jr., when he also said, “I may not get there with you.” Can you bring back an image with special meaning to you that shows how powerful the force of recovery and renewal can be at the level of one person dealing with a situation of great difficulty? 3.2.2

That long lonesome road

Although M. Scott Peck uses the word change rather sparingly in his best-selling book [3], in fact the word could easily have been used as a subtitle. Implicit in Peck’s prescriptions for proceeding along “the road less traveled” is the notion that we must constantly be giving up old and inappropriate attitudes, ideas, and behaviors. This, of course, is the essence of change. We may put some of Peck’s ideas in context, especially those in his section on discipline, by setting up the sequence shown in Figure 3.1. The ever-present change from without imposes itself upon us at home, at work, in social relationships, and essentially every domain of our lives. We often perceive these impositions as problems in our lives that we must solve. Peck argues that we are able to successfully cope with these problems only through discipline, which itself has four elements: ■

Delay of gratification;

■

Acceptance of responsibility;

The Nature of Personal Change 59 External change

Creates problems for us Facing the problems with discipline Behavior changes to solve problems

Figure 3.1

A change sequence.

■

Dedication to truth;

■

Balancing.

Each of these, in turn, may be difficult in today’s fast-moving, high-pressure world. On the last item, practical responses to problems often require a balanced approach—giving up something that we value in order to get something that might ultimately be even more valuable. When I was growing up in a post-depression world, the mood of insecurity about money lay heavily over just about all the big cities. Many of us considered not going to college since there was an immediate need, in many families, to go out and earn a living. But many were able to give that up, under considerable stress, in order to get a college education that might indeed be more valuable later. But it required a lot of “giving up” now for a presumed benefit down the road. With respect to the notion of balance, its achievement requires that we be flexible, giving up old rigidities and ideas that are now inappropriate. This “giving up” is almost always a part of the painful process of change. However, when well executed, the reward is true problemsolving, a deeper sense of self, and growth. This growth can occur at the personal, corporate, and societal levels but is based upon people realizing that discipline and change are necessary to achieve a new state of well-being and balance.

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3.2.3

Eupsychia

Abraham Maslow, a very serious and down-to-earth psychologist, is perhaps best known for his definition of a hierarchy of needs and his research into the nature of self-actualization [4]. He was a free and creative thinker as well as a pioneer in various niches in the field of psychology. He also coined the word Eupsychia as “the culture that would be generated by 1,000 self-actualizing people on some sheltered island where they would not be interfered with” [5]. In a journal he wrote back in 1962 [5], he cited some 36 assumptions about Eupsychian economics and management, three of which are: ■ ■

■

People are improvable; People have a tendency to try to improve things, to do things better; People can be courageous enough for Eupsychian processes.

The two former items imply changes in people as reflected also in what they do. The latter suggests a tolerance for stress and anxiety, a factor also recognized by Scott Peck in terms of facing and trying to solve new hard problems. If people have the courage to move forward despite the fact that they’re under stress, they have an opportunity for growth and the achievement of a new position of balance. As he suggests: “everyone loves change and everybody fears change.” Those who are able to accept it and move through it have the potential to grow. Those who aren’t able to accept it may wind up limited and stagnant. A rather powerful example of making changes as a response to extreme stress is that reported by Norman Cousins [6], a long time editor of the Saturday Review. He called these changes “the ability to create and exercise new options.” He also was able to fight off a seriously lifethreatening condition with large doses of laughter, positive thinking, and love. His story is truly an inspiring one. Possibly you’ve known people who have been able to cope with great stress in their lives, and have come through it with flying colors and further growth.

The Nature of Personal Change 61 3.2.4

Deep personal change

The sequence is “suffering, insight, will, action, change.” So says Allen Wheelis, a psychiatrist who examined and put forth a set of steps that lead to change [7]. Suffering. The impetus for making changes lies in the discomfort one has with the status quo, which, in the extreme, is suffering. Few of us are willing to contemplate change if in fact we are having a good time and being successful with what we’re doing. Suffering is also the equivalent of the imposition of extreme outside forces that may, for example, be causing a company a lot of distress, leading to the flow of red ink. Insight. Some suffer in silence, possibly not aware of the degree to which they’re suffering. Some realize it, but don’t have the insight to precisely identify the causes of their suffering. On the other hand, with insight, one is able to focus on these causes and be prepared to take the next step. Will. Gathering the strength of mind and purpose leads to understanding that by some type of change, things may get better. You will have more fun in life, and you will be able to perform at higher levels in the real world. Action. Wheelis apparently believes that no amount of insight, by itself, constitutes change. Action, or experimentation in the world of reality, has at least some chance of success. So we have to try something new in our behavior, not just think about trying something new. We have to “act out,” within reasonable boundaries, the dreams and fantasies that we have for success. And we must be prepared to do this several times, perhaps not succeeding right away. Change. With all of the above “ingredients” in place, the process of change is able to occur. It always starts with us, with ourselves, trying something new. Is there another approach? Is there a better way? Is it possible to conceive of another option? 3.2.5

Being stuck and getting unstuck

In the face of strong external forces, will we move forward through creative action or will we literally be “stuck” in the old ways that simply

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have not worked? We all have had the experience of feeling “stuck.” Being stuck is simply not knowing what to do next. Or, if there’s some inkling as to what to do, fear of taking action and possibly incurring some type of loss can lead to indefinite analysis without useful action. It can also lead to extreme anxiety as well as considerable anger that, at times, is transferred to another person. Robert Pirsig, in a treatise that combines fiction and a philosophy of quality [8], gives us some advice about being stuck and how to get unstuck. He couches this discussion in the inconspicuous orneriness of a screw that’s stuck in a motorcycle maintenance problem, but the application is universal. You’re stuck and no amount of “rational” thinking or use of the “scientific method” seems to work. Reason? The problem is beyond the realm of the observer’s recallable experience. What do you do as the levels of anxiety and anger build? Pirsig sets forth several ideas, the least abstract of which are: ■

Accept the unifying nature of quality;

■

Accept being quiet, peaceful, calm … and stuck;

■

Accept that your acceptances will lead to peace of mind, which in turn will lead to the right thoughts, which in turn will lead to the right actions.

Pirsig’s main thesis is that quality is the unifying goal that allows us to reach for the best in ourselves and thereby achieve the ultimate fusion of the so-called dualities (opposites) in our lives. According to Pirsig, quality is the leading edge and “contains all the infinite possibilities of the future.” We are capable of change in response to the search for quality. Can you turn into your own inner calm, accept being stuck, and wait for the right answers to come? This is not easy to embrace as a course of action when we’re feeling stuck. 3.2.6

The Aquarian communion

At the start of the 1980s, Marilyn Ferguson told us about the groundswell of “conspiracy” that was taking place all over the world, and in all domains of our lives [9]. Certainly not a negative conspiracy, it

The Nature of Personal Change 63 was a communion of mind and spirit; like-minded people declaring (and feeling) that there was indeed a better way to live. And Ms. Ferguson articulated very well the essence of the conspiracy/communion, revealed in part through her subtitle, personal, and social transformation in the 1980s. She viewed the change as “an historic synthesis; social transformation resulting from personal transformation—change from the inside out.” Although Ms. Ferguson explores numerous domains of our lives, she pauses explicitly to examine the “conspiracy” in terms of our work worlds. Here she argues that the new paradigm of transformation is changing the individual’s relationship to work in profound ways. The new paradigm’s foundation is values, re-arranging the current system built largely upon economics. Furthermore, as people become more autonomous and free, both in mind and spirit, the values of the conspiracy become internal. Some of the attributes of the new value-based system are conserving, flexible, creative, self-actualizing, participative, cooperative, nonrisk aversive, ready for change, spiritual, rational, intuitive, healthy, holistic, transcending polarities, and quality. In conjunction with the above, Ferguson sees the emergence of a new breed of managers—businessmen-philosophers, broader and deeper, “more current, literate, articulate and open,” encouraging the integration of the new value system into a kind of collective social awareness. In her paradigm, work is one of the many vehicles for transformation. Indeed, as she puts it, “in responding to vocation … we create and discover meaning, unique to each of us and always changing.” In this context, work becomes an adventure, giving additional meaning to our lives and receiving meaning as well from a more holistic approach to life. Stresses at work are replaced by trust and patience and key managers are facilitators rather than power brokers. 3.2.7

Seasons and cycles

Another way to explore personal change is to look longitudinally at peoples’ lives to see if there are any tendencies toward change that are more-or-less predictable. Daniel Levinson has done this [10], coming to the conclusion that indeed there appear to be regular cycles in men’s

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lives (a woman’s view soon follows) and that they tend to replicate themselves. Levinson defined sets of “eras” and “periods” in men’s lives, as well as transitions within these sets. These form the basic foundation for his general theory of adult development. Three transition periods are especially noteworthy: ■

Age 30 Transition—lasting from 28–33;

■

Mid-Life Transition—lasting from 40–45;

■

Age 50 Transition—lasting from 50–55.

During the Age 30 Transition the first consideration is given to getting “serious” about one’s life. It represents a time for making changes that lead to a more satisfactory life structure. Levinson’s studies showed that for most men, this transition is quite stressful rather than being smooth and essentially without crisis. The bridge from early to late adulthood is the Mid-Life Transition. Key questions are raised regarding one’s relationship with a spouse, the work environment, children, friends, and community. Goals at the personal level are re-examined and redefined. The past is scrutinized and the task of mid-life individuation is undertaken through attempts to resolve key polarities: young versus old, destruction versus creation, masculine versus feminine and attachment versus separateness. Here again, results of these significant questions and related actions determine the essential character of middle adulthood. No small undertaking. During the Age 50 Transition, modifications are explored in relation to the life structure and results experienced in the 40s. Levinson’s opinion is that “it is not possible to get through middle adulthood without having at least a moderate crisis in either the Mid-Life Transition or the Age 50 Transition.” Levinson’s model apparently indicates patterns of change that are experienced by most people. Successes, or lack of them, are largely a matter of what each individual does during these life cycle events and time periods. Whatever the forces imposed on the individual, Levinson says that we will all basically have to reckon with his postulated life cycles.

The Nature of Personal Change 65 3.2.8

Turning points

Having briefly examined a view by a man (Levinson) about life cycles and transitions in men’s lives, we now explore the view of a woman concerning passages and changes in people’s lives. The woman is Ellen Goodman, and her book [11] is Turning Points: How and Why Do We Change? Her book is indeed a frontal assault on the issue of change, called by the author “a storybook of change.” Telling the story partly through the eyes and experiences of real people, Ms. Goodman pauses to interpret and try to explain what she’s learned and what it all means. According to Goodman, part of this meaning is expressed through the notion of a “scale of change” that has basically three points of clarity: ■

The lightweight end;

■

The middleground or range;

■

The heavy end.

At the light end, changes are made relatively easily since there is little to no risk. Thus the scale emerges as a kind of “risk” measure, with changes more and more difficult as the risk increases. In the midrange the changes addressed by the author are growth changes, such as graduations, promotions, and the like. These involve a small to moderate amount of risk but in general are perceived as carrying no heavy burden. Finally, there is the heavy end from the above list at which risk and discomfort are very high and the subject is either in or at the brink of a crisis. Such crises normally carry with them a sense of heavy loss, real or imagined. A type of summation by Ms. Goodman is straightforward—“On this scale of change, we are always more apt to make the alterations that ‘conserve’ meaning in our lives and to avoid those that threaten to disrupt it.” Another construct offered by Goodman is her Shuttle Zone. In this zone, ambivalence appears to be maximum in the center and at a minimum at either end where the “change innovators” and “change resisters” reside. The change innovators somehow leap over any dormant ambivalence and make changes in their lives rather quickly and easily.

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The change resisters, also not suffering from ambivalence, dig their heels in and refuse to make changes. In the center of the Shuttle Zone, where many of us seem to find ourselves, there is an equal balance between possible loss and possible gain from making a change. This creates a lot of ambivalence and anxiety. The bottom line for Goodman is that in the middle of her Shuttle Zone, “the fear of loss is clearly at the crux of change.” Looking to the future, Goodman believes that “the semitraditional life patterns of the middlegrounders will continue to be the dominant ones for some time.” Even though we all seem to have a lot of basic choices available to us, the fear of loss will modulate these choices so as to keep us, in the main, from making radical choices and changes. 3.2.9

Some brief conclusions

In these past several pages I’ve explored some notions of personal change, as viewed by others who have had special insights to convey. Change is clearly a theme of no small significance, and despite its apparent simplicity, it has many dimensions and an elusive quality about it. However, a very brief definition that we might consider is: changes are true and lasting modifications in thought processes and/or real-world behavior patterns of individuals, groups, organizations, and societies. Changes of substance can occur in thought processes in the way, for example, that Scott Peck talks about creating “maps” or views of the world and how it functions. A good part of mental illness is caused by misconceptions about the world—outdated, outmoded, and untrue versions of reality. Changes in thoughts can lead to changes in behavior (some claim it’s a prerequisite) and a consequent sense of well-being and growth. Whether or not the thought process is significantly modified, acting out new behaviors in the real world represents a critical part (some say the essence) of real change. In any case, such new behaviors are the test of change in the crucible of reality.

The Nature of Personal Change 67 Here are some further and rather short conclusions as to the dynamics of change: ■

■

■

■

■

■

■

Externally imposed pressures and forces are largely inevitable and in accord with what we should expect as part of the natural world around us. We may resist change and get stuck as a result of fear, anxiety, discomfort, and worry about possible losses. We can be moved to change when these same fears, anxieties and stresses become too great, and we perceive that something has to be done to return us to normalcy. If we can face and “go into and through” our fears, and if the external forces are not too great, we can change and grow. This usually requires stretching beyond current comfort levels and giving things up along the way. If we get beyond our fears and the external forces are too great for us to handle, then (at least temporary) destruction and/or stagnation may result. Ultimately, given the perturbation effects of the external forces, we change in order to quiet the anxiety and achieve a new level of balance and equilibrium in our lives. These changes can and do occur at both the individual as well as the corporate levels, and appropriate analogies can be drawn between the two in terms of the fundamental dynamics of change.

Traditional ways of doing things, as Goodman observes, allow us to keep our balance as “fiddlers on the roof.” But what happens when a massive gust of wind comes along? Balance is clearly what we’re seeking in order not to fall off that precarious perch. We’ll do a lot, even stop fiddling for a while, in order to maintain a new sense of stable equilibrium. The path to that place, however, can be a difficult one.

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3.3

Some personal ideas for change

The above theories of change help us understand various aspects of the process and dynamic of change. Theories, of course, need to be tried and tested in the real world. This might be attempted by going beyond the theory into what is important to you in your own life. Some areas of personal change that you may wish to consider are listed in the table following. Take a few moments to scan the items and also to fill in the blanks on both columns, as you find them relevant. Take some time to really mull them over. If you find it difficult to fill in the blanks, perhaps it will help if you scan the “simple” situations below, all of which are likely to call for change: ■

■

■

■

■

■

■

■

■

■

“I don’t feel well. I’ve got to lose some weight.” “I’m being too aggressive at these meetings. I need to tone myself down a bit.” “I’m not getting enough exercise. I’ll discipline myself by starting a program for 20 minutes each day.” “I’m just not getting along with my boss. Tomorrow I’ll tell him how I really feel about how he’s managing me.” “These cigarettes are no good for me. Next week it’s quits.” “I’ve tried getting to my boss’s meetings on time. I need to better motivate myself to do so.” “She told me that I rarely listen to her. I’ll try to do better from now on.” “I feel like a machine. I’ve got to find more time for myself.” “I can’t stand all these demands at home on top of those at work. I’ve got to find better ways of relating to my family.” “My boss makes me angry most of the time. I need to find some better ways of dealing with her.”

The Nature of Personal Change 69 Any of these sound familiar? Now go back and try to fill in some more of the blanks in Table 3.1.

Table 3.1 Areas of Potential Personal Change I Would Like to Be: More

Less

Empathetic

Argumentative

Straightforward

Prone to anger

Able to listen

Self-involved

Patient

Secretive

Punctual

Tentative

Loving

Skeptical

Family-connected

Fearful

Competent at …

Judgmental

Versatile

Gossipy

Thoughtful

Introverted

Action-oriented

Rigid

Flexible

Isolated

Trusting

Demanding

Team-oriented

Negative

Consistent

Stingy

_________________________

_________________________

_________________________

_________________________

_________________________

_________________________

_________________________

_________________________

_________________________

_________________________

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3.4

Five mistakes

Many people have come to the conclusion that some type of personal change in their lives is necessary but then start out on paths that are self-defeating. In effect, many of these paths represent mind-sets that operate to the detriment of making the perceived change. We pause here to briefly examine a few of these negative mind-sets so that if you’re considering some type of personal change, you might avoid falling into one of these particular traps. 3.4.1

In the hands of other people

One self-defeating mind-set is to hold onto the idea that you will be able to make a necessary change, but only if someone else makes a move first. This places your ability to change in the hands of other people, which clearly will not work. An example might be that John wishes to be a better manager and leader at his company but feels (and is) beaten down by his boss. John thinks about this as—“if only my boss would let me be who I really am.” John’s efforts at behaving more like who he wants to be are thwarted by his boss, or so he feels. Actually, John doesn’t need permission from his boss to behave in a different way. If new and more congruent behavior on John’s part has negative consequences on the part of his boss, there are still lots of options available to him, such as: ■

He can talk to his boss over a long, friendly, and frank lunch.

■

He can talk to the Human Resources people and seek their help.

■

He can request a transfer to another group (and boss).

■

He can leave the company and seek a better situation.

In other words, John needs to test himself by taking action rather than continuing to allow himself to be put down by a bad or overly aggressive boss. This boss cannot be used as an excuse for John to resist change. John needs to change his mind-set and face up to the real options that are available to him. The bottom line is that John’s ability

The Nature of Personal Change 71 to make a positive change is not in the hands of other people, but in his own hands. 3.4.2

Negative thinking

Related to the above, but worthy of a “category of mistake” on its own, is the overall notion of negative thinking. In its simplest form, it leads to the conclusion that “I can’t do it.” This type of negative mind-set fulfills its own prophesy. Whereas John, in the earlier example, believed that progress could be made only if it was initiated by someone else, this type of negativism sees failure as the result of one’s own actions. As a consequence, no attempt is made to succeed. Although this perspective may indeed be connected to old messages and old baggage, it is nevertheless quite powerful in keeping one stuck and not able to pursue positive courses. Negative thinking, of course, can be devastating in its impacts. Any notion of making a positive change is overcome almost immediately by all the reasons why one can’t do it. And in even a mildly competitive company setting, other more positive (but possibly less capable) people who rise to the challenge will quickly move ahead of the negative thinker. Another aspect of negative thinking is the fact that the person is not able to conceive of options that he or she has that might be less onerous or difficult in the course of pursuing a desirable goal. “I can’t do the work necessary to get a master’s degree,” might be the mind-set that George has, keeping him from pursuing such a degree. The option of taking the first class of the degree program to see what demands are made on his time never surfaces in a serious way, and therefore is dominated by the overall negative viewpoint. 3.4.3

Massive versus singular change

Another mistake is attempting to make massive changes all at once instead of focusing upon a single area of change. An example of this might be that Mary is frustrated by several aspects of her life including her weight, her smoking, and her position in her company as an

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administrative assistant to a vice president. Her deep frustration leads her finally to draw up a “game plan” as follows: ■

Lose 35 pounds.

■

Give up smoking.

■

Find a new and more responsible job as a program manager.

■

Be a more attentive mother to her three children.

Mary is able to visualize all the benefits to be gained from carrying out this game plan. She is pleased to be able to see an alternative future for herself. Indeed, this ability to visualize is itself quite positive. However, Mary’s game plan calls for doing all of the above at the same time, which is a daunting set of tasks. As such, changes on lots of simultaneous fronts are not likely to be achieved (by most people). By setting up a plan that is so difficult to execute, Mary is likely to sabotage herself. Clearly, a better plan is to begin the process of change in a more modest way, and build upon your successes, mostly one at a time. 3.4.4

Conceptions that are too broad

Yet another view that is likely to be a mistake is to think in very broad terms with respect to making changes. Here are some examples of thinking somewhat too broadly in the context of change: ■

I want to be a better person.

■

I want to upgrade my position in this firm.

■

I want to change my relationship with my girlfriend.

■

I want to be more successful.

Aside from being somewhat grandiose, the above wants are likely to be frustrated since they’re not specific enough in terms of how they will be achieved. Whereas wanting to be a better person may be an eventual goal in certain respects, the real question is “how?” What aspect of your behavior needs to be changed so that you’ll

The Nature of Personal Change 73 become a better person? Examples of possible answers to that question might be: ■

Give more of my time to worthwhile causes like …

■

Give more of my money to charities, such as …

■

Be a better teacher and mentor to Paul, my best employee.

■

Go to church every Sunday and become active in the Men’s Club.

■

Take my son to a special place (like the zoo) or event (like a crafts fair) every Saturday.

These much more specific cases of “how?” are more concrete and also more achievable. When they’re achieved, they’ll be appreciated and thereby will move one in the direction of the more abstract and broadly conceived change. 3.4.5

Start tomorrow

This mistake is self-evident. If we think in terms of starting tomorrow, then each day we have postponed our decision to make the change in question. A futuristic but more viable example is to make a promise to yourself to, for example, “start next Monday.” Of course, next Monday actually does come and you’re presumably off to the races. What does the race become when Monday arrives? Let’s take a look at the more positive approaches that are examined below.

3.5

“Top Five” for personal change

Earlier in this chapter we explored various aspects of change through the eyes of some nine authors who had important perspectives relative to change. That was followed by some of my brief conclusions as to the dynamics of change processes. I now would like to suggest the following as my “Top Five” in moving forward with making some type of personal change in your life.

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3.5.1

Recognize a specific need area

A specific need area for change lies in some old or negative patterns of behavior that are not serving you well. The first step, therefore, involves the explicit recognition of such a need area. To get you thinking along these lines, you may wish to go back to an earlier part of this chapter in which I discuss areas of potential personal change (see Table 3.1). Any and all of these are possible places to start in your thinking about an area of need for you. You can begin with either the “more” or “less” lists and circle the ones that have special meaning for you. Then go back over the circled items and rank them from 1 to 10 in terms of potential relevance as an important area in your life. Finally, focus on one of these (and one is sufficient) as the area in which you really wish to make a change. For that one, write a declarative sentence that articulates what you want, as per: ■

“I’m ready to become more family-connected.”

■

“I need to be more flexible in dealing with my boss.”

■

“I’m going to stop being so judgmental about my wife/husband.”

■

“I’ve got to stop being argumentative with the people at work.”

■

Any other statement that’s important to you.

Once the need area is articulated, you can go on to the next step. 3.5.2

Focus on new positive behaviors

The process of change cannot continue unless specific new and positive patterns of behavior are identified and committed to. It’s not sufficient to rely upon the statements themselves. As an example, one of the above statements refers to being more flexible in dealing with your boss. As a concept it’s easy to understand. But to bring concrete meaning to it, new specific behaviors need to be committed to; with respect to my interactions with my boss, for example, I’m going to: ■

Listen to his/her requests more carefully;

The Nature of Personal Change 75 ■

■

Ask for elaborations whenever I don’t fully understand what he/she wants; Show that I’m receptive to what he/she’s saying by means of how I respond as well as my body language;

■

Practice saying “yes” instead of “no”;

■

Completely avoid challenging him/her in an open meeting;

■

Suppress any anger that I might have until I can figure out where it’s coming from, and so forth.

These and other definitive behavior changes must be carefully written down and accepted. If you feel that you can’t commit to a particular change of behavior, look for perhaps a smaller step that you can embrace and accomplish. This is a crucial notion in making a change in that it moves you from an idea in your head to the concreteness of new behavior patterns in the real world. 3.5.3

Start today

The opposite side of the mistake described earlier as “start tomorrow” is obviously to start today. If you’re not ready for this type of immediate commitment as you rise in the morning then use the “I’ll start next Monday” approach, as long as you do exactly that when next Monday arrives. This is clearly a critical step in the process as it confirms the commitment you’ve made to making the behavior changes you believe are important in your life. Starting today faces the reality today and pushes against the inertia that’s kept you from making a needed change in the past. It’s where “the rubber meets the road” and can be extremely difficult to do, depending upon the nature of the change that you’re dealing with. My advice is that if your tendency is to keep delaying, each and every day that you fail to start, write down the negative consequences of not facing the area of change so that the case for starting now is cumulative and always in front of you.

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3.5.4

Monitor progress daily

One aspect of what we call “Management 101” is simply that progress toward a goal must be monitored on some periodic basis. This principle can and should be applied as well to the matter of making a lasting change in your personal life. If, for example, you’re determined to give up smoking, you need to pause for a few moments each day and ■

Confirm that you actually have gone another day without smoking.

■

Pat yourself on the back for having continued your “streak.”

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Experience the feelings associated with your success, which might include feeling better both physically and psychologically.

The rationale for the daily interval is that it enables one to establish rhythms on a daily basis. The idea is to bring the monitoring of your progress into these patterns so that they become as natural to you as brushing your teeth. You can clearly afford to set aside five minutes of your day to acknowledge the progress you’re making. It will also set a positive tone and mood for you with which to approach the rest of the day. 3.5.5

Positive reinforcement weekly

We know that positive reinforcement helps to keep a mode of behavior, new or otherwise, on track. Along with your daily monitoring and acknowledgment comes the notion of a more serious positive reinforcement on a weekly schedule. This is something you can look forward to each and every week as you maintain the new behavior patterns that constitute the change you’re making. The basic idea is to reward yourself for the accomplishment. Celebrate your success. How? That depends upon the area you’re making a change in, and what it is that represents a reward for you. If your change involves losing weight, then permission to eat a quart of ice cream is clearly not appropriate as a weekly reinforcement. If your change is to stop smoking, and your weight is normal, then the ice cream (hopefully less than a quart) may well be exactly what you need as reinforcement. The point is that the nature of your reward and celebration should be unique to you and

The Nature of Personal Change 77 your inclinations. The harder it is to make the change, the more you should celebrate your accomplishment. You’ll find, if you haven’t already, that such rewards work wonders in terms of sustaining positive behavior patterns. That’s the goal you want to establish and maintain in your life.

3.6

Summary—the “Top Fives”

Several “Top Fives” have been suggested in this chapter, all dealing with aspects of personal change. These are reiterated and summarized below for easy access and review. Wheelis’s steps that lead to change [7]: 1. Suffering; 2. Insight; 3. Will; 4. Action; 5. Change. Brief conclusions regarding change: 1. External world imposes forces and pressures on us; 2. Forces and pressures experienced as stress and anxiety; 3. If stress too great, we may stagnate and decay; 4. If stress not too great, we respond and grow; 5. Positive (4 above) or negative (3 above) change is a consequence. Mistakes made in attempting change: 1. In the hands of other people; 2. Negative thinking; 3. Massive versus singular change;

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4. Conceptions that are too broad; 5. Start tomorrow. Suggested approach to making changes: 1. Recognize a specific need area; 2. Focus on new positive behaviors; 3. Start today; 4. Monitor progress daily; 5. Positive reinforcement weekly.

References 1. Gardner, J., Self-Renewal, New York: Harper Colophon Books, 1963. 2. Waterman, R., The Renewal Factor, New York: Bantam, 1987. 3. Peck, M. Scott, The Road Less Traveled, New York: Touchstone, 1978. 4. Maslow, A., Toward a Psychology of Being, New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1968. 5. Maslow, A., Eupsychian Management, Homewood, IL: Richard D. Irwin and The Dorsey Press, 1965. 6. Cousins, N., Human Options, New York: Berkley Books, 1981. 7. Wheelis, A., How People Change, New York: Harper Colophon, 1973. 8. Pirsig, R., Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, New York: William Morrow, 1974. 9. Ferguson, M., The Aquarian Conspiracy, London, England: Granada Publishing Limited, 1982. 10. Levinson, D., The Seasons of a Man’s Life, New York: Ballantine, 1978. 11. Goodman, E., Turning Points, New York: Fawcett Columbine, 1979.

4 Themes for Corporate Change 4.1

Introduction

This chapter moves beyond the previous chapter’s focus on personal change to issues of corporate change. More specifically, we are interested here in broadly exploring the question, What are some of the major themes for change in a corporate setting that we might wish to apply to our own company? Even if your job isn’t the president of your company (as is the case for most of us), it is still likely that you can bring some of these issues to the fore in whatever position you do hold, from first-level manager to vice president. Our method for arriving at some themes for corporate change parallels that of the previous chapter. First we’ll look at these themes as articulated by some of the more important observers of the corporate scene. Then we’ll see how we can boil them down to some ten critical 79

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ideas that you might wish to implement in the real world. Finally, we point to Part 4 of this book, in particular Chapter 8, which focuses the discussion on a key set of strategic directions that, if followed, would likely constitute a rather complete reengineering of your enterprise. But first we’ll pause for a brief comment on a couple of experiences and examples relative to corporate themes for change.

4.2

A couple of experiences and examples

Some years ago, as my company was transitioning from the 1960s into the 1970s, we noticed that it was becoming more and more difficult to explain to potential customers what it was that we did. The name of the company was Operations Research, Inc. and, of course, when we presented ourselves, clients thought we did this thing called “operations research.” In point of fact we had done a fair amount of operations research, but as the client base grew and shifted, the company was doing a lot more systems engineering, software development, and technical assistance as well as project management for those that engaged us. Even as we explained the shift in what we were doing, the “operations research” in our name seemed to be telling a story that was different from the one we wanted to tell. After some gnashing of teeth, we decided to change the name of the company to ORI. Since that carried with it no a priori image, we were then in a position to explain what we did to folks without fighting against their preconceived notions. The point of this minor anecdote is simply that our business was changing under our feet and we hadn’t stopped to seriously acknowledge that until it hit us over the head. I don’t think a lot of damage was done, and we moved on to new business opportunities with our new name ablaze. Another corporate change that was going on at the same time, embedded in the above, is exemplified by a perspective held by one of my senior managers. His representation of the company at that time was that we were a loose affiliation of individual consultants that for matters of personal convenience had chosen to join this enterprise rather than hang out their own shingles. Indeed, there was some truth

Themes for Corporate Change 81 to this representation, but as the company kept changing, it became less and less accurate. Instead of a loose assemblage of individuals, we were more and more sets of teams with specialized expertise in a variety of technical disciplines, from antisubmarine warfare to computer information systems. These teams continued to build levels of business as well as expertise, all of which allowed them to be more competitive on larger and larger assignments and programs. After a while, these teams were solid, efficient, and cohesive entities that could tackle rather large problems, much larger than could be addressed by a set of consultants. And then we were in the systems and software engineering business with both feet, competing with some of the largest multibillion dollar companies in the country, at least on some programs. Even as all of this was happening, my senior manager never gave up on his concept of the company. We were, in his eyes, still a loose affiliation of individual consultants. The point in the above case? We had clearly changed over a 10-year period from one type of company to another, and my senior manager hadn’t really noticed it. In point of fact, from my perspective, the change occurred because we wanted it to. What were the themes for corporate change in these cases? Simply that companies change what they do and how they do it, and some people notice it and some do not, even from within the enterprise. If you want to be successful over the long haul, it’s useful to make your changes consciously and deliberately, and pay attention, lest you miss what’s actually happening. If you miss the story line enough times, you and your company might wind up in some difficulty, and be blind-sided in the bargain. Now for a couple of brief examples, beyond the realm of personal experience. One of the most startling examples of change, as well as lack of it, can be seen in the case of a company I like to discuss in my graduate courses in engineering management. Back in the 1980s, specifically from 1981 through 1984, this company’s revenues were dramatically increasing from less than $1 billion to more than $2 billion. Likewise, net income increased by close to a factor of four, from about $50 million to $200 million. Apparently, all was well and the company was booming. However, moving into 1985 and for the next

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four years, profits dropped precipitously and became erratic. All of this happened as revenues grew to about $3 billion by 1988. Within the year 1989, even revenues started to drop, after a steady increase every year since 1981. They continued to plunge, and profits became negative and as much as –$700 million by 1990. The story can be seen in the revenue and profit sketch in Figure 4.1. What had happened in this one time enormously successful company? The answer lies, for those who lived and worked through those years, in the name of the company—Wang Laboratories. Almost every office of any size in the country had Wang word processors on everyone’s desk. It was a world of

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Themes for Corporate Change 83 “closed” systems and Wang was there with the product and software of choice. As far as Wang was concerned, all was right with that type of world and their business was a great success story. But years later they had to file for bankruptcy, as the world changed around them. Personal computers came upon the scene along with word processing software that got better and better. The systems opened up and the software could be bought independent of the hardware, with many vendors offering excellent systems. Within that context, both the hardware and software evolved such that there was intense competition and lots of choices for the consumer. In word processors, we moved from WordStar to Multimate to Wordperfect to Word. In short, the world continued to change. In retrospect, we can see what happened to Wang that it, apparently, was not able to see for itself at that time. The external world was changing and they couldn’t adjust quickly enough. They were caught in the whirlpool of that external change and brought down by it. So even an enormously successful $3 billion company can find itself eventually bankrupt if it doesn’t see the external forces of change in their marketplace, or isn’t able to react quickly enough (make internal changes) to move through these forces to calmer and more lucrative times. The external force operating against Wang, as described above, was basically only one of five competitive forces set forth by Michael Porter in his classic development of competitive strategies [1]. Such forces can be articulated as: 1. The threat of new entrants; 2. The threat of substitute products or services; 3. The bargaining power of suppliers; 4. The bargaining power of buyers; 5. Rivalry among current competitors.

Although Porter’s book and ideas were available in 1980, we may assume that they did not help Dr. Wang see more clearly the threats on the horizon and cause him to change his competitive strategy in order to avoid bankruptcy.

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A second example is the enormously interesting case of the Xerox Corporation. This is a company that literally transformed the way offices were run with the familiar “now get me ten Xerox copies of that memo.” Xerox was there first, bringing together a unique combination of really new technology as well as marketing and distribution skills to create a new industry [2]. However, that’s just the beginning of the story of the “rise and fall and rise” of a very special enterprise [3]. Xerox moved out quickly from 1957 to a company whose income from continuing operations was over a half billion dollars by 1980. From that point forward, income started to drop as the company experienced severe competition as well as quality and price problems with its machines as shown in Figure 4.2. At the same time, and over about a fifteen year period, the once-darling of Wall Street had a flat stock price that hovered around 20 (see Figure 4.2b). How could all this happen to this landmark company? Once again the winds of change showed they could bring a multibillion dollar enterprise to its knees. After much experimentation and dabbling in businesses they knew nothing about (such as real estate and insurance where they took a billion dollar bath), they studied Japanese management successes (reviewing their own prior joint venture with Fuji) and renewed their approach to building their products. Quality as well as listening to and empowering their employees became key ingredients in their renewal as they began to regain market share as well as profit margin. Their president said “We’ve tried out lots of different things and thrown out what didn’t work,” [3] which, it can be argued, is a painful way to do business. Perhaps a more telling point was made by chairman and CEO Paul Allaire, “What makes the American economy so strong today is that business has been able to change, learn, adapt and shed old models that no longer apply” [3]. There, in a few simple words, is his interpretation of what brought Xerox back from its long decline—it was “able to change, learn, adapt and shed old models.” In a nutshell he was expressing his understanding of the Xerox theme for corporate change. The above experiences and examples provide some insight into the matter of corporate themes for change, which we will explore in greater detail in the following section.

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Themes for Corporate Change 85 1.4 1.2 1.0 .8 .6 .4 .2 0

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4.3

Income and stock prices for Xerox.

Observers of the corporate scene

In this section, I will briefly explore some of the key ideas of several important observers of what appears to be happening in our enterprises. These will provide insights into changes in the corporate scene that one might wish to consider. The last set of ideas will come from a key player who tackled the matter of making massive changes in his country, a leader on the global scene.

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4.3.1

ISO excellence

In 1982, Tom Peters and Robert Waterman, Jr. came upon the scene with some blockbusting new messages that captured corporate management attention as never before [4]. Their eight attributes of excellence, listed below, flowed into boardrooms and onto conference tables and became standard reading for managers across the country as well as abroad. Peters and Waterman’s eight attributes of excellence [4]: 1. A bias for action; 2. Close to the customer; 3. Autonomy and entrepreneurship; 4. Productivity through people; 5. Hands-on, value-driven; 6. Stick to the knitting; 7. Simple form, lean staff; 8. Simultaneous loose-tight properties.

These eight points of view and related activities are what excellent companies do, they said, nimbly leaping to the converse, namely, that if you do these things, you too can be excellent. Whatever the leap of logic, the message is and was quite powerful. It tuned in to what a lot of people were thinking and feeling, and was apparently congruent with many of their experiences. Of the eight attributes, I resonate especially with being close to the customer, autonomy and entrepreneurship, and productivity through people. Knowing what your customer wants, in all the dimensions so implied, is clearly critical to running a successful company. Autonomy and productivity through people carry similar messages—that is, give the corporate “masses” some elbow room and they’ll make it all happen. Nothing is more rooted in truth, but the way in which this is done makes the difference between productivity and anarchy. Entrepreneurship is another important notion. Only entrepreneurship,

Themes for Corporate Change 87 however, is like a world with a north pole but no south pole. It needs to be balanced with stability, a steady hand, and an interest in the people side of the business. Peters and Waterman make another point that, unfortunately, does not show up explicitly in their eight attributes. Talking about the corporate ivory towers, they articulately argue that we must keep away from over-reliance on analysis as well as the financial “sleight-ofhand” produced in the corporate head-sheds. They appropriately spear the built-in conservatism and action disorientation of the so-called “rationalist” school of management. Nothing is more frustrating to the folks who want to get something done (the champions!) than studying the problem to death and thereby creating the illusion (and it is an illusion) that all risk has been removed and profitability assured. Most of those who have labored over the years in the corporate trenches know when it’s time to stop studying and take some action. 4.3.2

Theory Z

A year before Peters and Waterman, William Ouchi set forth his blueprint for business success which he called “Theory Z.” Clearly modeled after and borrowing many of the precepts and principles of Japanese companies, Ouchi’s theory stressed a holistic and integrated approach to management [5]. Indeed, Ouchi’s exposition often contrasted Western versus Eastern styles of management and concluded that, as a minimum, we must attempt to integrate many (if not most) Western approaches with Eastern ones. A key area of contrast is not the generation and availability of numbers, but their dominance in decision-making. Ouchi argues for a shift toward subjective analysis based upon judgments that have their roots in wisdom, experience, and subtlety. This theme is also echoed by Peters and Waterman as they claim overdependence on and overuse of the “rational” model of management and decision-making. With respect to this topic, a most cogent treatment of decision-making for technology executives can be found in the work of Harold Linstone [6]. Along with collective decision-making and responsibility is a lot of mutual trust in order to make the entire process work. Trust,

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however, is not achieved overnight. It comes only with experiencing this holistic and integrated approach over an extended period of time. Participants who turn out not to be trustworthy are ejected from the management tribunals, one way or another. Within the collective approach, decision-making is normally consensual and participative. An egalitarian atmosphere is encouraged. Members do speak their minds, and often differ, and the voicing of differences is encouraged. But, through a process that allows alternative concepts to be fully explored, ultimately a consensus is reached that all participants will support in their actions. One important question is simply how it is that people become so uniformly accepting of this process. Essentially, there are two answers. First, it’s deeply engrained in the corporate culture. Second, individuals experience it continuously in what we would call OJT —on-the-job training. Ouchi points out that considerable change is required to move toward his Theory Z approach. These are almost cross-cultural changes, adopting Eastern thought patterns in the midst of a homegrown Western style of management. How to make this happen? Ouchi suggests that the “first spark of desire to change typically comes from a key person who cares sufficiently about the organization to invest the time, energy and risk in taking leadership.” Such a person often spends a lot more time listening than talking, and we’ll be looking at some of his or her attributes in a later chapter. 4.3.3

The art of Japanese management

Related to Theory Z in theme, and coming out about the same time, Pascale and Athos authored The Art of Japanese Management [7]. A centerpiece of this exposition is the 7-S Model, one that apparently was formulated by the authors in conjunction with the management consulting firm of McKinsey & Company. These seven S’s are: structure, strategy, systems, style, skills, staff, and superordinate goals. It is a contention of the authors that many companies do very well with the three hard S’s—structure, strategy, and systems. The excellent companies, however, find ways to do well with these as well as the

Themes for Corporate Change 89 soft S’s—style, skills, staff, and superordinate goals. In particular, Japanese firms tend to do very well with these latter four and thus we can learn a lot by examining how they do this. In exploring this model, Pascale and Athos spend a lot of time on Matsushita and ITT in the Harold Geneen era. Geneen, who was hired in 1959 as president and CEO of ITT, took it from a $766 million enterprise to $16.7 billion in 1977 when he stepped down [8]. He was well known for his rigorous measurements process as well as his disciplined monthly corporate jet visits to each and every important operating unit, all over the globe. Matsushita is viewed as a great company whereas, ITT, at least a very special company under Geneen, tumbled quickly when he was no longer on the scene. The reason? It could not sustain fully coordinated performance in all seven “S” areas. The authors address directly why it is (or was) that Japanese companies tend to do well with the soft S’s. They attribute this to two main capabilities—their exceptional handling of: 1. Ambiguity, uncertainty, and imperfection; 2. Interdependence.

In a chapter titled “Zen and the Art of Management,” the Japanese acceptance of ambiguity, uncertainty, and imperfection is related to the Japanese culture and some of its Zen underpinnings. In Zen, there is much waiting for the “fruit to fall” and providing time to just let things happen rather than pushing them to perhaps unnatural and incorrect conclusions. Westerners seem to have a difficult time with these notions and are impatient enough to try to force resolution, often prematurely. Particular attention is paid to the last “S” of the “7-S” model, namely, superordinate goals. These goals are embodied by the corporate culture and fundamental value system. They relate the company’s purposes to basic human values and provide an integrating element. The authors argue for the need to pay attention to all the aspects of the “7-S” model and to keep them in balance through skill, effort, wisdom, and a willingness to change.

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4.3.4

Deming and total quality management (TQM)

W. Edwards Deming was known as the father of statistical quality control and was singularly important in bringing such methods to Japan in the 1950s. Considering the extent to which Japanese style and management were held up as a model to be emulated over several decades, we can find a link between their success and Deming’s influence on how they carried out their business. In any case, in 1988, the Defense Department (DoD) asked Deming to consult with them in regard to finding better ways to do business here in the States. This apparently was based, at least in part, on a new Total Quality Management (TQM) program in the DoD, an initiative to improve quality and productivity. This, in turn, was based upon high-level executive determination to bring about positive change in the Department’s acquisition processes. Some of the messages that Deming conveyed in this new assignment dealt with: ■

Improvement of product and service;

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Building in quality;

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Leadership;

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Elimination of management by numbers;

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Doing away with slogans and quotas;

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Training, education, and self-improvement.

Constancy of purpose towards improving the company’s products and services was perhaps the top-level prescription. This implies an ever-present pressure to never let down, to never be satisfied with today’s quality. In this connection, Deming reinforced the need to build (rather than try to test or inspect) quality into the product in the first place. How is this to come about? Deming suggested a rejuvenation of and recommitment to leadership and all that this implies. Partly, it’s a breaking down of internal corporate barriers so that various departments work together as teams. It’s also a lot of attention to training (including OJT) and education/self-improvement programs.

Themes for Corporate Change 91 4.3.5

Business process reengineering (BPR)

In 1993, Hammer and Champy published a new manifesto, Business Process Reengineering (BPR) [9]. In its short form, the message of BPR is simply to identify all significant business processes in an enterprise and move forward in the direction of changing, improving, and reengineering these processes as they relate to both products and services. This placed enormous emphasis on the notion of “process, ”and that control over process is the ultimate key to what can make or break a company. Along with the focus on process, Hammer and Champy made it clear that they believed that changes “around the edges” were not recommended or acceptable. Their key words were “fundamental, radical, and dramatic.” In other words, they were looking for large changes and large impacts and apparently believed that the only way to achieve such impacts was to think in terms of revolutionary (versus evolutionary) approaches. Indeed, such approaches are difficult in most companies excepting those that may be in extremis. However, in showing some examples of BPR, Hammer and Champy took a somewhat more conservative stance. Some of the common changes that they explored included: ■

Combining several jobs into one;

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Reducing checks and controls, thus simplifying certain processes;

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Establishing single points of contact and responsibility.

I have seen many cases in which the federal government has fully subscribed to the basic notions of BPR. In most such cases, I believe this has led to improvements in the way the government approached its major tasks. At the same time, I have seen situations in which the machinery has come to a grinding halt, as for example, with respect to building new automated information systems. The logic was that it

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would be a serious mistake to construct a new information system that was based upon an incorrect, outmoded, or ineffective business process. Since the government tends to be more than slightly risk aversive, I would bet that, in the aggregate, BPR might just be one of those very good ideas that can be quite difficult to implement. Making changes in an enterprise is not a simple proposition. Making changes that are fundamental, radical, or dramatic makes it even more difficult. 4.3.6

Why change efforts fail

John Kotter examined over 100 companies during the approximate period from 1979 to 1994 as they attempted to make significant changes and came to several specific conclusions as to why and how such efforts failed [10]. One of Kotter’s key points is that many companies wish to make changes quickly, perhaps not realizing that change processes are involved that simply need to step through a series of phases that, by-and-large, cannot be accelerated. Another important observation is that there are a number of “critical mistakes” that companies make that range in their impacts from impeding progress to flatout disasters. According to Kotter, some mistakes are: 1. Not developing a sufficiently large sense of urgency; 2. Not forming a sufficiently powerful guiding coalition; 3. Not having a vision for the enterprise; 4. Not communicating the vision sufficiently well; 5. Not eliminating apparent obstacles to the stated vision; 6. Not focusing upon and achieving short-term gains; 7. Not having enough patience before declaring victory; 8. Not stabilizing changes through the enterprise’s culture.

These same errors are reframed as an 8-step prescription for transforming the enterprise. Turning potential negatives into pluses is a powerful idea, especially if the transformations are workable in the real world.

Themes for Corporate Change 93 We note that the positive version of error 6 above is to plan for and create short-term wins, despite the fact that the three previous errors all relate to vision, a longer term notion. Achieving these short-term successes provide demonstrable “proof ” that the company can be successful making the suggested changes. In my view, this has become increasingly important as tenure and performance timelines have shortened. In general, people will not wait for long periods of time to accept changes that imply new behavior patterns on their parts. 4.3.7

Five disciplines

One of the more important books of the 1990s is Peter Senge’s The Fifth Discipline [11]. In a nutshell, Senge sets forth five disciplines that are critical to the success of our modern corporation, namely: 1. Personal mastery; 2. Building a shared vision; 3. Mental models; 4. Team learning; 5. Systems thinking.

The first two of the above are mostly self-explanatory. With respect to mental models, Senge sees them as largely implicit ideas about how the company (and external world) operates that need to be surfaced and examined in terms of relevance to today’s issues and problems. Senge is even stronger in his position about “team learning,” arguing that most of our work gets done today in a team context, and it’s crucial that enterprises figure out how to become “learning organizations.” Indeed, he subtitles his book The Art & Practice of the Learning Organization. The companies that refuse to subscribe to this discipline will find themselves running hard to try to catch up to its ever-learning and increasingly capable competitors. Senge’s punch line, however, lies in the fifth discipline, namely, systems thinking. This requires an organization to “see the bigger picture” and think in terms of the interconnections and relationships

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between all aspects of what it does and what it builds. Systems thinking is a piece of “systems engineering,” a topic that I teach in graduate courses [12] that is also gaining in its appeal and understanding. Systems thinking, appropriately applied, will definitely lead to improvements in how an enterprise develops and delivers its products and services. Many of the large systems integration companies that I’ve had the pleasure of doing business with over the years consider that “systems engineering” is one of their critical “core competencies.” 4.3.8 Managing at the speed of change

We come now to perhaps our number one observer of the corporate scene, Peter Drucker. Some 25 books down the road, Drucker explored a variety of important issues related to managing in a time of great change [13], only a few of which I can touch upon here. In a vein similar to Kotter, who talked about eight business errors, Drucker examines what he calls the “five deadly business sins,” as listed below: 1. Worship of high profit margins and “premium pricing”; 2. Charging what the market will accept; 3. Cost-driven pricing; 4. Killing future opportunity on the basis of yesterday’s market; 5. Feeding problems and starving opportunities.

The first three all have to do with the issue of how to arrive at one’s basic price structure. The last two have a common theme—how to make sure that new opportunities are both created and exploited. We either do not recognize new opportunities or we assign our best people to solve old problems rather than to the opportunity side of the business. This behavior pattern leads to what Pogo once declared in an old Walt Kelly cartoon, namely “we are faced with insurmountable opportunities.” It’s a phrase I’ve used many times in my companies to try to shine a special light on how we might be inadvertently sabotaging ourselves.

Themes for Corporate Change 95 Another important point made by Drucker is his articulation of three systematic practices that every enterprise must pay special attention to, namely: 1. Continuous improvement; 2. Developing the next generation of its (product/service)

applications; 3. Innovation.

These may be rephrased in two simple ways: to enhance what we already have, and to keep creating something new. Here we see a coupling with the above five business sins. Innovation creates opportunities, and opportunities can be thought of in a context that creates innovation. These few words encapsulate important themes for success in the twenty-first century. If you have it in your enterprise, then make sure it flourishes. If you don’t have it, it’s time for some changes. 4.3.9

Perestroika

Now let’s take a brief look at change in a national, and even global, context. This change required enormous conviction as well as courage, and was conceived by Mikhail Gorbachev in his theme of Perestroika. To Gorbachev: Perestroika is a revolution … a decisive acceleration of the socioeconomic and cultural development of Soviet society which involves radical changes on the way to a qualitatively new state. [14]

Gorbachev believed that the change processes that he set in motion with Perestroika had to happen because, he said, “the people demonstrate a remarkable ability to listen, understand and respond if they are told the truth.” And he also believed that it was not a real departure from socialism, but that it would strengthen socialism and “make it more dynamic and meaningful,” and, “as a result of Perestroika and democratization the country would become richer and stronger.”

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Clearly, Gorbachev was a visionary who knew that change was needed and, as it turned out, the sweeping changes that he set in motion also left him behind. The forces ultimately were too strong for him to control. Indeed, they were revolutionary. Considering what has been happening in the former Soviet Union, and the uncertainty that seems to remain, one needs to have enormous amounts of courage and conviction, and ferociously believe in one’s cause, before undertaking changes that are revolutionary in nature. Perhaps Gorbachev’s story of Perestroika, and its consequences, should be required reading before one wishes to fully embrace what might be considered revolutionary changes in the enterprise.

4.4

Corporate changes to consider

We have seen in the previous section of this chapter a variety of noteworthy suggestions as to how to encourage and cope with changes in our enterprises. These all fall within the overall category of “themes for corporate change.” My experience in this respect is somewhat bipolar—either you proactively create the changes necessary for success, or you get caught somewhat unawares and find yourself trying to recover from negative events that push you from pillar to post (note the previous Wang and Xerox examples). In the former, you’ve got a feeling of excitement that you’re in control and good things are happening. For the latter, the sense of being controlled by others is a downer that makes each new day difficult. Large and complicated businesses often have both co-existing simultaneously in different areas of the enterprise, supporting the notion that being able to tolerate ambiguity and uncertainty is an important attribute for managers. Sorting through all these thoughts and issues, I have come away with a couple of relatively simple prescriptions of my own. The first has to do with problem solving and the second with specific corporate changes to consider. These two themes for change are set forth in the following sections.

Themes for Corporate Change 97 4.4.1

Problem-solving themes for corporate change

In my view, real problem-solving skills are critical to an organization’s ability to both create and cope with change. For this reason, this topic is discussed here as well as in the context of the necessary skills of a manager as described in Chapter 5. My five corporate problem-solving steps are listed and discussed below: 1. Formally embrace continuous reengineering for improvement; 2. Determine and prioritize fixes; 3. Implement the fixes; 4. Monitor results and make adjustments; 5. Assure support from the top.

Let’s examine these: 1. Embrace continuous reengineering. If reengineering principles

(from BPR) are coupled with notions of continuous improvement (from TQM), we have continuous reengineering. Fully embracing this idea will assure that problem-solving processes have places to start. This means that at all levels of management it should be possible to see one or more projects underway, and new ones being created that involve reengineering how we do business. All the precepts of reengineering [9] can be brought to bear in this endeavor. However, I would stop short of insisting that reengineered change needs to be revolutionary instead of evolutionary. Managers who appear to believe that there are no ways to improve their operations should be eligible for negative bonuses and free trips to a different company. To embrace change means to do it, not just to think about it.

2. Determine and prioritize fixes. Once we are up and running in the

direction of continuous reengineering for problem solving, we need to find problem solutions and put them in some type of

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priority context. The scenario is that each manager gets his or her people together and they define a list of problems and then place them in a priority order. Depending upon budgets, loads, problem severity, and so forth, the group decides which problems can be tackled this year. Ideally, this is a consensusseeking process so that all members of the group will support both problem identification as well as the suggested solutions. In any case, a clear articulation of the “top X” problems that we are determined to solve sets in motion the search for good solutions. Some methods for carrying out such a search can be found in the next chapter of this book. 3. Implement the fixes. Surprisingly, some enterprises behave as

if true problem solving is happening even if this crucial step is absent. When talking about the problem is generally accepted as a reasonable solution to the problem, then we either have a thoroughly dysfunctional group, or a situation where indeed a major problem is that folks have not been able, for whatever reason, to sit down together to define the problems that need to be addressed. Implementing the suggested fixes means taking action in the real world. This becomes the touchstone for change in the group or the organization. If both the problem definitions and suggested solutions are on target, then good things start to happen. These good things can be thought of as Kotter’s “short-term successes,” as discussed earlier. As these are observed and experienced, people see how it’s actually possible to proactively create positive change, even if it’s only in small bites. These successes breed more observers and believers, and the process gathers momentum.

4. Monitor results and make adjustments. More often than not, real

problem solving requires careful monitoring of the fixes that are being tried, followed by fine-tuning. This was accepted as an axiom in my old companies. Despite the DIRFT admonition (do it right the first time [15]), circumstances conspire against that perspective. Everyone, as far as I can tell, tries to do it right

Themes for Corporate Change 99 from the beginning. But solutions get off course much of the time. So my response to DIRFT is MRAMA—monitor results and make adjustments. If DIRFT were true most of the time we would likely not need any books on project management and related fields, which is clearly not the case (for example, see [12]). 5. Assure support from the top. My experience is that true problem solving of importance in an enterprise needs to be surfaced to and supported by the folks at the top (e.g., VPs, COO, CEO). In a very large organization, of course, this is not always feasible, but the principle still holds—the boss needs to know it’s going on, consider it important, help if necessary in terms of needed resources, and be part of the celebration of the successes that are achieved. On the other side of that equation, if people sense that the boss doesn’t care, then problem-solving efforts can often degrade and ultimately disappear. This may not be true all the time in every circumstance. Just as an IBM executive once said to me around 1970, “don’t expect what you don’t inspect,” speaking from the perspective of the boss. The corollary might be “if the boss doesn’t seem to care, the workers are likely to follow suit.” 4.4.2

Areas of focus for corporate change

The above discussion considered, in summary form, the critical aspects of problem-solving skills in an enterprise. Such skills are fundamental, like having food for one’s essential sustenance. These skills apply to just about every type of problem which is their strength as well as their weakness. If I look back and try to find more specific areas of focus that can lead to significant positive change, I am able to set forth the following five additional notions: 1. Look backward and forward (they may be gaining on you). 2. Re-examine your strategic and tactical priorities every year

(you probably need some adjustments in your New Year’s resolutions).

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3. Search for new opportunities and innovation (think outside

the box).

4. Positively differentiate through performance and price (offer

your customers something special).

5. Support your high performers (contribute to your contributors).

Let’s examine these one at a time. 1. Look backward and forward. This is a variation, if you will, on the

Satchell Paige reminder to be careful about looking back since they may be gaining on you. In any case, I’m suggesting a systematic look both at history as well as what you think the future might look like. Looking back reminds you that lessons learned from the past might be applicable to where you are now. And there are dozens of examples that we can count on in this regard (for eight of them, see Section 4.3.6). At the same time, you need to temper your ultimate strategy in relation to today’s world and how it seems to be evolving in the twenty-first century (see Chapter 2). You don’t want to replicate the mistakes made by Wang, or IBM, or Xerox (as well as a large number of others). But the world is also not likely to be the same as it was when they (and others) made their mistakes.

2. Re-examine your strategic and tactical priorities every year. Most

companies draw up a strategic plan (5–10 year planning horizon) and an operating plan for the coming year. The latter is often tactical in nature with its sharp focus on meeting specific goals over the next 12 months. With today’s world moving “at the speed of change” (see Section 4.3.8), a lot can (and will) happen in these 12 months. As a result, enterprises need to be prepared to re-examine, and change if necessary, even strategic plans if the circumstances so warrant. Time lines that have dramatically shortened make it imperative that management be open to changing direction, even on the basis of information that may be less than a year old. This perspective places special burdens on the enterprise to watch what’s going on, especially

Themes for Corporate Change 101 in the world outside the company, with great intensity and rigor. Forget the idea of blind adherence to year five of your strategic plan and embrace the notion that year five never shows up the same way twice. 3. Search for new opportunities and innovate. Peter Drucker told us

that one of the “five deadly sins” (see Section 4.3.8) is “feeding problems and starving opportunities.” If your problem-solving skills are efficient and effective (Section 4.4.1), there should be lots of energy and resources left over for searching out and finding new opportunities. As they’re identified, innovative approaches to mining the depths of these opportunities are required to stay ahead of the power curve as well as your competitors. Our most progressive companies today virtually worship their innovators, recognizing that they’re creating tomorrow’s business lines by “thinking outside the box.” Creating new opportunities and innovating also go hand-inhand with being flexible with your strategic and tactical priorities. Once real opportunities and innovative approaches are identified, you should be prepared to change your priorities, overnight if necessary.

4. Positively differentiate through performance and price. This one sen-

tence has four underlying ideas, each of which is important in its own right. The first is to relentlessly seek ways and means of positively differentiating your products and services. Your customers should be interested in (perhaps even compelled to) doing business with you because what you offer is “something special,” something above and beyond the others. The second and third ideas simply convey two well-known ways to approach the matter of positive differentiation. Some customers will respond well to clearly superior performance (a better mousetrap) and others are more prone to look for lower price, given that their performance needs are satisfied. My suggestion here is the fourth idea, namely, to positively differentiate through both better performance and lower price. Too many companies aren’t able to achieve this, especially pure services

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enterprises. In the products domain, however, it should be possible to take a very good shot at both. Take another and deeper look at Drucker’s five deadly business sins and get those “innovation” juices flowing. 5. Support your high performers. Inevitably, of course, the crucial di-

mension in your business is your people. If you want to be able to “manage at the speed of change,” you’ve got to recognize it’s likely to be your “top ten percent” that’ll get you there, where the top are defined by performance, not years of tenure, not size of operation, and not lots of other mostly very inconsequential measures. Give the hard jobs to your high performers, your champions, and then give them the resources to get the job done. Listen to them very carefully, and support what they are determined to do. Bring in new people when you must, but make sure they can perform at the top 10% level in your environment before you give them the keys to the kingdom. Adopt a philosophy of growing your own except when you’ve acquired another company. Reward these home-grown highperformers disproportionately. Giving everyone the standard “X%” doesn’t do it for the high performers. If you can’t or won’t support the folks that can make the critical difference in your company, the ultimate conclusion is inevitable. They will go elsewhere. Remember Ross Perot and IBM. He met his yearly goal at IBM by the end of January and, under their system, could not renegotiate a new goal-reward combination. So he left and went off to build the highly successful Electronic Data Systems (EDS) which he later sold to General Motors for a bundle. Why is it that so few companies appear to truly understand this?

4.5

Summary—the “Top Fives”

In this chapter I’ve tried to explore several perspectives for corporate change. In coming to the themes that I find most relevant for our journeys through the twenty-first century, I’ve attempted to take my own

Themes for Corporate Change 103 advice by trying to “look both backward and forward.” My “Top Fives” in terms of moving proactively forward are reiterated below. Problem-solving themes for corporate change 1. Formally embrace continuous reengineering for improvement. 2. Determine and prioritize fixes. 3. Implement the fixes. 4. Monitor results and make adjustments. 5. Assure support from the top. Areas of focus for corporate change: 1. Look backward and forward. 2. Re-examine your strategic and tactical priorities every year. 3. Search for new opportunities and innovation. 4. Positively differentiate through performance and price. 5. Support your high performers.

References 1. Porter, M., Competitive Strategy, New York: The Free Press, 1980. 2. Linowitz, S., The Making of a Public Man, Boston: Little Brown, 1985. 3. Pearlstein, S. “Reinventing Xerox Corp.,” The Washington Post, 29 June 1998. 4. Peters, T., and R. Waterman, Jr., In Search of Excellence, New York: Warner Books, 1982. 5. Ouchi, W., Theory Z, New York: Avon Books, 1981. 6. Linstone, H., Decision Making for Technology Executives, Norwood, MA: Artech House, 1999. 7. Pascale, R. and A. Athos, The Art of Japanese Management, New York: Warner Books, 1981. 8. Geneen, H. with A. Moscow, Managing, New York: Avon Books, 1984.

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9. Hammer, M. and J. Champy, Reengineering the Corporation, New York: HarperCollins, 1993. 10. Kotter, J., Leading Change, Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1996. 11. Senge, P., The Fifth Discipline, New York: Doubleday/Currency, 1990. 12. Eisner, H., Essentials of Project and Systems Engineering Management, New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1997. 13. Drucker, P., Managing in a Time of Great Change, New York: Truman Talley Books/Plume, 1995. 14. Gorbachev, M., Perestroika, New York: Harper & Row, 1987. 15. Crosby, P., Quality Without Tears, New York: A Plume Book, New American Library, 1984.

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5 Skills for the High-Tech Manager 5.1

Amidst the forces of change

A number of years ago, when I was a fledgling project manager, I had an experience that caused me to change my perspective on management. I was running a rather small project and having a meeting with my customer, a middle manager in a much larger company known for its defense as well as its consumer electronics. My company was engaged in building a complicated simulation for them and I had carefully worked with my team to develop a few ideas as to how to expand our scope of work. At the right moment I put these new ideas to my customer. He listened carefully and finally responded, “Sounds good to

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me … what I’d like to do is to check it out with my manglement.” Not exactly sure that I had heard correctly, I leaned forward and asked, “What was that again?” “I think it makes sense, but I need to pass it by my manglement,” he replied, without even losing a beat or a hint of a smile. “Oh, okay … that’s fine with us,” I said, emphasizing the point with “We’re with you on that.” “Enough said,” I thought, and we proceeded on with our business as if the incident had never happened. But, of course, it had happened, and a simple few words to a young project manager had a long-lasting impression. I think those few words to me that day forever changed the way I viewed management. Management could indeed be “manglement,” and that’s the way it was. Management could be the problem instead of the solution. Management could be the reason why things don’t work instead of improve. A small “force of change” represented by a simple singular experience can change one’s view of the world. The force doesn’t have to be a sledge hammer to the top of the head; sometimes just a few well-chosen words in an otherwise innocuous setting can do it. What, then, is likely to happen when the sledge hammer known as the twenty-first century is fully upon us? In Chapter 2, we explored the various forces that the high-tech manager will be subjected to during the twenty-first century. These included the information age, increased competition, a need for greater speed in the delivery of both products and services, new employee work patterns and environments, and major shifts in the loyalties and leverages that characterized most of the last half of the twentieth century. The existence of these forces implicitly raised, but did not answer, a key question—What kind of manager is needed in order to effectively cope with these types of forces and pressures? And right behind that is the question, How do we get from today’s manager to tomorrow’s? In all cases, we are referring largely to the manager that inhabits the high-tech world, recognizing that a greater proportion of our companies rely on high-tech systems and people in order to survive. These two questions are examined in some detail in this chapter.

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 109

5.2

Core competencies

One of today’s important themes is that a crucial aspect of the responsibilities within today’s enterprises is to define, with some precision and care, the core competencies that are needed today and will be needed in the future [1]. Several of these competencies will be drawn from the field of information technology as it continues to strengthen its already dominant position in our enterprises. These include the seriously technical domains of networking, databases, communications, information security, and numerous others. The presumption is that the new CIO, the corporate information officer, will assure the availability and skill sets of employees in these critical domains. Another set of words has been suggested that reflect more-or-less the same concept as core competencies. These are “personal mastery,” as documented by Peter Senge [2]. Senge’s view is oriented toward a “special level of proficiency” in whatever domain one is considering. From the perspective of this author, both core competency and personal mastery are excellent terms to be advanced in terms of critically needed skills. However, and notwithstanding the above, perhaps the most important core competency is that of the high-tech manager, at all levels in a company. The high-tech manager is the backbone of the enterprise, keeping all the machinery running and in good order. In my old companies, I regarded my high-tech managers as the folks who made the day-to-day contacts with our various customers and made sure that they were happy. They also, as the occasion arose, put their shoulders to the wheel when it came time to write proposals to new customers. My high-tech managers served as project leaders of small and large projects, and up the chain of command to vice president positions. This usually spanned no more than about three layers of management. But make no mistake about it, the high-tech managers were the backbone of my company, and they remain so today for numerous companies across the country. Given this central position, let us examine what some observers of the scene are saying about what the

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mmanager needs to be and do. This will be followed by the views of this author, as drawn from a combination of direct experience working in industry as well as studies of the matter while in academia and what might be called an abiding personal as well as professional interest. 5.2.1 Manager core competencies—view one: the grand master

A good place to start in the exploration of the core competencies of a manager is by looking again at what the grand master of management, Peter Drucker, has to say. Whether it be his examination of “the effective executive” [3] or the “new realities” [4], Drucker is the natural touchstone for basic thinking about the theory and practice of management. The latter, being the more recent, reiterates Drucker’s views of what management is and does, especially under the new realities of the latter part of the twentieth century. Key themes and principles include: ■

A focus on people;

■

The importance of culture;

■

The need for continuous learning and development;

■

The commitment to common goals and shared values;

■

■

Individual responsibility and communication; performance needs to be measured, not by one “bottom line,” but by a multitude of relevant measures; The critical results of the enterprise are in terms of delivery to the customer.

If we accept the above, then it is a relatively straightforward matter to derive a list of core competencies for the manager. Here’s what the transformation looks like in that the manager must: ■

Be people-oriented;

■

Fit into and reflect the culture of the enterprise;

■

Be a learner and support the same for his/her people;

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 111 ■

Be committed to a set of common goals and shared values;

■

Take responsibility for his/her actions and results;

■

Be a good communicator;

■

■

Understand how to measure the performance of his/her part of the enterprise; Assure satisfaction in terms of what is delivered to the customer.

Now we shall store the above results and move on to another description of the necessary core competencies of the manager. 5.2.2 Manager core competencies—view two: the project manager

There are many books that are oriented to the topic of management of a project [5–7], based largely upon the idea that project management involves a set of inherently fundamental skills and also that such a job is normally the transition point for a person from individual technical contributor to manager. A composite list of some dozen of the skills cited as being important to the project manager shows the following: ■

Have the appropriate technical expertise;

■

Be able to organize;

■

Be a problem solver;

■

Communicate well with all people in the enterprise;

■

Be adept at conflict resolution and negotiation;

■

Be a team builder and player;

■

Understand and be able to implement cost and schedule control;

■

Be flexible and adaptable;

■

Take the initiative;

■

Be able to delegate appropriately;

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■

Be disciplined and dedicated;

■

Serve as an integrator.

Here again we will accept these as useful inputs to the development of our own list of critical skills for the high-tech manager, considering at the same time some of the new forces and pressures of the twentyfirst century. 5.2.3 Manager core competencies—view three: a U.K. perspective

We move now to a perspective not represented by the above, namely, a couple of practitioners in the United Kingdom (U.K.) [8]. Their six rules, or fundamentals, include: 1. Profit awareness; 2. Technical literacy; 3. Change dynamics; 4. Policy and procedure; 5. Decision theory; 6. Duality.

We see some differences between this view of the world and some of the others expressed earlier. The conjecture here is that there are significant cultural differences between the United States and the United Kingdom that are reflected in the different emphases. For example, the phrase “decision theory” is quite unlikely to be the way a critical success skill would be represented in other than the academic world. In academia, decision theory is a legitimate topic taught in technical management or business schools, with the implicit idea being that if the manager knows the theory, he or she is then in a position to apply it as needed. On the other hand, in the United States, the hard-nosed style of management is more likely to regard decision theory (or any kind of theory, for that matter) as too distant from the realities of the business world.

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 113 5.2.4

Manager core competencies—view four: ESTJ?

From time to time I have taught a course in project management in which we discuss, at considerable length, the attributes of a good project manager. As part of that discussion, I have asked the students, all in graduate programs, to look at four such attributes, namely, orientations toward action, people, process, or idea. A test is constructed such that a score of 40 points is distributed among these four attributes whereby the maximum score that each can accrue is 20. A completely balanced score is therefore 10 for each of the four attributes. I have also asked the classes what they think would be the scores for an ideal manager. An example of one of the answers from a group of some 25 of my students is: ■

Action … 11.4;

■

People … 11.6;

■

Process … 9.9;

■

Idea … 7.1.

What we see from these scores is a clear tendency to believe that a manager should be action-oriented and also be a people-person. The two high scores in this regard are offset mostly by the low score for idea. This means that the manager need not be the person with the best ideas. Indeed, some folks believed that this could be more of a detriment than an asset. “It is more important for the manager to elicit the ideas of others rather than promote or push his or her own ideas,” seemed to be a dominant theme. In an exercise such as that described above, of course, the four attributes are fixed and the question has to do with how much of each is the most desirable mix. This is yet another way to explore the issue of what constitutes the core competencies of a successful manager. Another scoring test that has been used in this same connection is the very well-known Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). This indicator is based upon four polarities, namely:

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1. Extrovert (E) versus Introvert (I); 2. Sensing (S) versus Intuition (N); 3. Thinking (T) versus Feeling (F); 4. Perceiving (P) versus Judging (J).

The theory and data behind the MBTI is rather deep and wellstudied. From our perspective, however, the question might well be—“What kind of MBTI should we expect from our most successful managers?” or—“Is one’s MBTI score a good predictor of success for a person who is at the threshold of taking on a manager position?” It is not my intention to definitively try to answer that question. I would prefer to leave it as a question for the reader to puzzle through. However, I will add just one piece of additional data in this regard. A familiar teacher of management principles comes to the conclusion that the most desirable profile would be ESTJ [9]. Would you agree or disagree? And your reasons are? 5.2.5

Manager core competencies—view five: seven habits

Finally, we will briefly cite a well-known author, Stephen Covey [10], in terms of his exposition of the seven habits of highly effective people. Although Covey does not specifically define these habits for the current or future populations of managers, they would appear to be of general relevance to the topic at hand. We also give some additional credit to Covey’s ideas since they seem to have struck a resonant chord with the public at large. Covey actually expresses his habits at the mutual intersection of skills, knowledge, and desire. That is, habits may become ingrained as basic behavior, but only if the other three ingredients are present. In any case, Covey’s seven habits are: 1. Be proactive; 2. Begin with the end in mind; 3. Put first things first; 4. Think win/win;

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 115 5. Seek first to understand, then to be understood; 6. Synergize; 7. Sharpen the saw.

Most of Covey’s points are self explanatory, but the last two require some comment. In the case of synergy, the desirable habit is to be able to put pieces together such that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. It is a creative and integrative endeavor in that something new is constructed that was not at all obvious by viewing only the parts. An example drawn from the physical world is the building of a house from lumber, bricks, concrete, screws, and nails. The parts are familiar to all of us, but what exciting things can be done in the hands of a master architect or builder! In the less obvious domain of interactions between people, the team leader, for example, is able to obtain results that were not achievable without applying integrative or synergistic skills to the mix. Covey introduces the notion of “sharpening the saw ” by the simple story of the person who has been sawing a tree for more than five hours and is not making much progress. A man comes over and suggests that he stop for a moment to sharpen the saw. The answer is predictable—“I don’t have time to do that; I’m too busy sawing!” Covey goes on to explain the scope of “sharpening the saw” in terms of renewing the four dimensions of one’s nature. 1. The physical; 2. The mental; 3. The social/emotional; 4. The spiritual.

Who would not agree that if these dimensions were tended to the way each of us would like, only good things would likely follow. Just a few words (sharpen the saw), with lots of power and influence! We have taken a very brief look at what some of our observers have said about being a manager and about being a successful person. What we are looking for now is the most concise set of skills that describe

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what one should focus upon in the job of manager. In keeping with some of the themes of this book, this author offers a set of only five key skills that one must have, or that one needs to develop, in order to be an effective manager. These five skills are presented and discussed below, after a brief perspective about our model hierarchy.

5.3

Our hierarchy revisited

In Chapter 1, I introduced the simple hierarchy shown in Figure 5.1. Here we take another look at it in the context of this chapter’s emphasis. In this model there are three basic jobs, each of which has a natural place in the enterprise. 1. Individual contributor; 2. Manager; 3. Leader.

Aspiring to move from one job to another is ultimately a matter of personal choice. Opportunities at these various levels tend to shrink as

Manager

Individual contributor (* See Chapters 7 and 10)

Figure 5.1

The simple job hierarchy.

A ttributes*

Transitions*

Leader

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 117 one moves, or tries to move, from individual contributor to leader. Each level has its pros and cons, its advantages and disadvantages, as differently perceived by different people. Some folks are committed to a life of individual contribution and have no interest at all in becoming a boss. Others seem to be inexorably driven to climb that ladder of success. In this chapter I focus especially on what it takes to be a successful manager, and what the individual contributor who wishes to transition to becoming a manager needs to think about, and needs to do, in order to make such a transition. However, it is stressed that such a transition should be a conscious choice based upon at least a preliminary judgment about the pluses and minuses in undertaking such a journey. Further, the pathway toward the high-tech manager job in the presence of new forces of the twenty-first century is beset with numerous thorns and hurdles. Is it worth it? The answer to that question must lie in the mind-set and experiences of each individual. I can only report to you (which I do, from time to time) on what I discovered as I accepted, some years ago, the challenge of that journey. It is also worth noting that the three levels in Figure 5.1 exist at a variety of places within the enterprise. Leader jobs, for example, are not confined to vice presidents and above. At the same time, many vice president jobs are best performed, under a given set of circumstances, by a solid manager rather than a leader. Hopefully, top management is seeking leadership at many levels within the enterprise, from shop foreman to vice president. So it should not be assumed that there are only two leader jobs, namely, the president/CEO and the chairman of the board. It should also not be assumed that a key individual contributor cannot rise to become an officer of a company. The point is that the model is valid throughout the enterprise which makes more realistic the issues of aspiring to migrate from individual contributor to manager to leader. Having said that, I turn now to the specifics of the set of skills necessary to become a successful manager. The matter of transitioning from manager to leader is considered in some detail in Chapters 6 and 7. All of it is much more easily said than done.

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Skill one—problem solver

Several times over the last decade, during my tenure as a professor, I’ve commented to fellow committee members and colleagues that I’d seen very little problem solving going on. My statement is designed, of course, to make some type of declaration but also to invite a contrary view. I’ve yet to have an opposing view expressed, and most of the time I receive a kind of inquisitive look, as if to ask me to elaborate. When this happens I try to explain myself, but often I feel that I am inadequate to the task. I spoke to my son about all this, and he had a story to tell me that reinforced my own experience as well as my ever-hardening bias on this matter. He was serving on a university committee as an invitee from industry (Microsoft, in particular) on the topic of how to increase the job opportunities for graduates from the School of Arts and Sciences. First, the discussion took place over a period of many months, and since committees that are partially composed of outsiders are difficult to convene, progress was extremely slow. Second, when each new meeting occurred, the administrators were asked what they had accomplished since the last meeting and the answer was almost nothing. As a result, the meetings tended to cover the same ground over and over again. In addition, it appeared that only the dean and my son were concerned about the slow pace and general lack of substantive progress. The remaining details aren’t as important, but it seemed as though once the cloak of academia had been drawn across the problem, progress was hard to come by. My own experience tends to reinforce the above story. In particular, I see an ever-increasing number of administrative people, in distinction to faculty, who are supposed to solve problems and support the professors in their various endeavors. Instead, they have a tendency to create more work for the faculty by making two errors: (1) developing new tasks for the faculty and creating unnecessary paperwork, and (2) failing to move forward on issues that the faculty has deemed important. These errors build up tension between faculty and administrators that does not lead to good problem solving.

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 119 Okay, so that’s a bias of the academic world. Happily, that’s not what’s going on in industry, at least as far as most of my experience is concerned. What I have seen, in the main, is a finely tuned, highly valued core competency known as problem solving. I offer this as the first such fundamental characteristic of the solid and successful manager. What can we say about this problem solving skill? Let’s look in some detail at the following five aspects: 1. Surfacing a problem; 2. Articulating the problem; 3. Offering alternatives; 4. Evaluating alternatives; 5. Implementing a solution. 5.4.1

Surfacing a problem

The reason this is important is that problem solving, in part, depends upon where a problem is surfaced, and also when and by whom. This is perhaps best illustrated by going back into some of my history. I was the president of a $50 million-plus enterprise when my controller (now called a CFO) came to me with the problem that our financial management system (FMS) needed to be overhauled. At the same time, two major contract bids for new business were on my agenda, and would be for the next six months. After some discussion back and forth, I determined that the FMS problem was not a crisis. I asked my controller to collect some additional operating data and also to get my VP for administration involved in looking at the problem. The bottom line was that I postponed the matter of serious problem solving regarding the FMS for about six months. As far as I was concerned at the time, the when and by whom had a lot to do with whether or not the problem actually reached the point of detailed consideration. On the “when” matter, the company had other line management issues (the re-competes) that were dominating the corporate agenda. It was my judgment that I couldn’t back away from

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these other “problems” at that time. So my instincts, if you will, were to postpone. On the other hand, my controller was a key person (the “by whom”) and if he said we had a problem, it was very likely to be true. The brief discussion that I had with him, however, convinced me that the FMS issue could wait, and also that the waiting time could be fruitfully used to collect some information that would be helpful in ultimately solving the problem. I also had great respect for my VP for administration and wanted another (third) view of the overall matter. So the problem did in fact surface but it took another six months before it was actually put on the corporate agenda for more serious analysis and true problem solving (the ultimate result was that we eventually upgraded the FMS). The “surfacing of a problem” issue is important since there are numerous problems that never get put on the corporate agenda and are also not solved. Consider, for example, a situation whereby a program manager has a significant problem and he/she reports to a vice president who in turn reports to the president. The vice president may decide that he/she will handle the problem and therefore it may never come to the attention of the president. This may be fine, but occasionally the problem needs to be worked in conjunction with or with the awareness of the president. The bottom line is that enterprises need to be aware of and at times mitigate the errors of both kinds, that is, when choke-points keep important problems from surfacing, and when the floodgates are too far open so that essentially all problems are kicked upstairs for resolution. As a generality, at least two types of problems are worthy of a serious look at sharing with your boss (and there are likely to be several others), namely, when a key person is at the brink of resigning, and when a key customer is at the edge of moving his or her business to another company. Indeed, these issues may warrant the president’s attention, depending upon the size of the enterprise. 5.4.2

Articulating the problem

A critical aspect of problem solving is the clear articulation of the problem itself. One reason for this is simply that it is often the case that the

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 121 first statement of the problem is more of a symptom than the core problem. Another way to express this is to recognize that different observers see different manifestations, much like the well-known issue of many blind men feeling an elephant to try to figure out what kind of creature is at hand. To further illustrate this point, consider the following situation. A couple of project managers have overspent their budgets. Is that a problem? Indeed it is. Does this mean we have a couple of managers who don’t pay attention to their budgets? Not necessarily. Upon further investigation we discover that the cost reports these folks are working with have errors in them. In both cases, the reports have incorrect numbers for dollars remaining, showing larger values than is the case. Thinking they had more funds available than they actually had, both project managers inadvertently overspent their budgets. So, after some exploration, the next problem (symptom?) was bad numbers on a cost report. Upon further investigation it was discovered that two numbers were entered incorrectly into the cost reporting system. A digit had been slipped in both cases, resulting in an overstatement of funds remaining. When that “problem” was traced backward, it was determined that data entry into the cost reporting system was not doublechecked. Aha—we’re finally back to the root cause of several evident problems. In this example, moving forward to a solution, or a couple of solutions, becomes rather straightforward. Often, the tracing of a problem to its source is by no means as clear as the above example. Consider a group of executives at a meeting where the item on the agenda is a significant drop in last month’s sales in two stores, both of which had been steady or slightly increasing for more than two years. Is it fair to state the problem as the drop in sales in these two stores? It most definitely is. Do we know the root cause(s) of the problem? Let’s find out. The senior executive at the meeting asks precisely that question. One answer offered is—both stores, within the past six months, had new managers installed, and we can very likely infer that these two managers aren’t making it. Is that the problem? It might be, but we still don’t know. Another executive has a different view—unusually long and harsh snowstorms in both cases probably kept the customers at home. Is that the right answer? Still don’t know.

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So a third executive pipes up—I think we were slow to replenish supplies in these two stores which means they probably lost customers who went elsewhere to get what they needed. Was that the true problem? Another executive says—it seems to me that for both of these stores, a competitive superstore opened up just about in the same block. Perhaps that’s the true problem. Possibly several of the above are contributing to the “true problem.” Stating the problem, or finding the core problem, is thus seen as possibly both murky and uncertain. Hopefully, when the “onion is peeled,” the real problem is able to be seen. If the appropriate time is not taken to find out and articulate the problem, it seems evident that much good time and energy can be wasted in offering solutions to problems that might not exist. A good manager has the patience and insight to know, most of the time, when the true problem has finally been found. 5.4.3

Offering alternatives

The next step in problem solving is the offering of alternative solutions. When this step is reached, it is especially important to place the overall problem-solving process in a “team” context. This is not to say that these steps cannot be taken solely by the manager, rather, to strongly suggest that problem solving with the manager as head of a team is normally much more effective. Indeed, many believe that team problem solving, for a variety of reasons, is the only way to go. I would not go quite that far, but the exceptions probably constitute no more than 5% of the cases. So we can imagine the core team members sitting around the table as they explore the dimensions of an important problem. After the true problem has been articulated, the team manager goes around the table seeking approaches to its solution. Team members are encouraged to speak up, even if the suggestion appears to be a bit far-fetched. Here’s where the recently encouraged “think outside the box” notion is able to be expressed. But only if the manager is open to such thinking. In the aggregate, the process leads to a set (more than one) of alternative solutions which is a powerful and critical part of the overall

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 123 process. Further, with all members of the team participating, we have an excellent chance of having one or more good solutions in front of us. The team manager, of course, does not have to be the person with the best alternative. It’s the aim of the manager to assure that the best alternative is among those that are preferred. Since we don’t know in advance which is the best, an open and encouraging position by the manager becomes crucial. It’s also a good idea, when there appear to be no new alternatives coming from the team for the manager to summarize the alternatives that are on the table for the next step in the process. 5.4.4

Evaluating alternatives

For this step, I would suggest a process that is perhaps a bit more formal than lots of people are used to. I’ve been able to use it many times for particularly difficult problems; “short form” versions are more-or-less left to the comfort level of the manager and the team. Part one of the evaluation process is to write the alternatives down on a whiteboard or flip chart, giving each a letter (A, B, C, … ). Then these letters are listed as the columns of a table. Part 2 involves asking the team for the evaluation criteria that are important in choosing appropriate alternatives (see Figure 5.2). These criteria (numbered 1, 2, … ) then

Alternatives

Figure 5.2

Evaluation criteria

A

B

C

1

6

7

8

2

7

8

8

3

7

7

9

4

7

6

8

Average of total scores

6.75

7

8.25

Evaluating alternatives.

…

…

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become the rows of the table that’s being constructed. Depending upon the problem at hand, typical criteria might be: ■

Effectiveness in solving the problem;

■

Short-term cost of solution;

■

Long-term cost;

■

Ease of implementation;

■

Consistency with company values and culture.

At this point it is useful to have the team discuss each alternative with respect to each criterion. New criteria may be added, or even deleted, from the initial list during this discussion. Then the manager asks that all team members do a scoring of the alternatives against the criteria. A scale of 1–10 is illustrated in Figure 5.2, which also shows a total scorecard for any one person on the team. Given these results, a composite scorecard can be easily constructed, an example of which is provided in Figure 5.3. This table illustrates the diversity of views (or lack thereof) among the various team members. It also provides a basis for selecting the preferred alternative [7]. Lots of variations on the above theme and procedure are possible and effective. For example, a team member will invariably notice

Alternatives

Figure 5.3

Evaluators

A

B

C

1

6.75

7

8.25

2

7

7.25

8

3

8

6.75

7.75

Average of scores

7.25

7

8

A composite scorecard.

…

…

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 125 that the answers will change if the evaluation criteria are not of equal importance. This can lead to an exercise whereby the group tries to “weight” the criteria (Figure 5.4), and then factor the new weights into the evaluation process (Figure 5.5). It may or may not change the ultimate answer, but going through the exercise is almost always useful [11]. This author has overseen this procedure hundreds of times with graduate courses having to do with the architecting of large-scale systems. Ultimately, with the guidance and facilitation of the manager, a preferred alternative will be selected, most of the time. If two alternatives are close, and supported equally around the table, maybe it’s time for an “executive decision” based upon long-term impacts, or possibly temporizing to obtain some missing data. Here again, lots of variations are possible in the attempt to converge. Responsibility for that convergence lies in the hands of the manager. The matter of evaluating alternatives, only touched upon here, is a rather dense subject, sometimes also called decision-making under uncertainty, multiattribute decision-making (MADM), use of the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), and others. The reader with a further interest should consult the literature on these topics [12, 13].

Alternatives Evaluation criteria

Weights

A

B

C

1

.3

6

7

8

2

.25

7

8

8

3

.25

7

7

9

4

.2

7

6

8

1

6.7

7.05

8.25

Average of scores (weighted)

Figure 5.4

Adding weights to the criteria.

…

…

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Alternatives

Figure 5.5

5.4.5

Evaluators

A

B

C

1

6.7

7.05

8.25

2

7.2

7.5

7.75

3

8

7

8

Average of scores

7.3

7.18

8

…

…

A composite scorecard with weights.

Implementing a solution

Although the above steps are critical parts of problem solving, they are all basically a prelude to the step of implementation. This, of course, means actually executing the preferred alternative in the real world. Most of the time, it is also the most difficult step since there may indeed be several hurdles to jump over. A few of them are: ■

An intransigent person in the chain-of-command;

■

Insufficient resources (time, dollars, etc.);

■

External conditions (competitors, inability to hire, etc.).

Although the team may agree on a course of action, another influential person in the chain-of-command, but not part of the immediate team, may disagree with the solution. He or she may, therefore, simply refuse to carry out the necessary steps or may try more subtle forms of sand-bagging the system. Another special hurdle to be overcome is where the boss of the manager disagrees with the selected solution. This could lead to a stalemate, going back to the drawing-board to seek a different solution, or other generally difficult actions. On the former situation, I tend to believe that too much is made over the matter of obtaining “buy-in.” If the team has truly come to a

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 127 decision in a participative process, then all members of the team will have, by definition, “bought in.” If another person (not the boss) in the chain-of-command persists in not accepting the team’s decision, then it is time to talk about finding another position for that person, in the company or out of it. Although this sounds somewhat authoritarian, the behavior of the individual is actually obstructionism. The dissident or intransigent person has an obligation to prove that the solution is a bad one, or that he or she has a clearly better one. Simply digging in one’s territorial heels is a behavior that, most of the time, should not be accepted. If it is, the organization may well become at least partially dysfunctional. Having insufficient resources in the forms of not enough time or enough money can also be significant hurdles. However, the team should have carefully studied these critically important factors when deliberating about alternative solutions. However, even after such actions, the possibility of inadequate resources may ultimately need to be raised. In addition to the above, it may be that “external conditions” are ultimately determined to be insurmountable obstacles. For example, a competitor may actually beat you in the marketplace or win a contract that you were counting on. Or it may turn out that hiring conditions are such that you are unable to fill some crucial positions from outside the company. These are both especially frustrating since one often feels like a winning solution is on the table, but the outside world is conspiring against you. It’s a bit like the “my Kingdom for a horse” plea made by Richard III. Whatever the obstacle, however, it’s still a good idea for the decision team to develop a “Plan B” (further explored in the next section). In any case, the bottom line is that a solution is not in place until it has been executed in the crucible of real-world conditions. From my experience, only academicians seem to be willing to forego this last crucial step, possibly feeling that it is sufficient to determine the existence of a handsome and elegant solution without necessarily having to struggle with the vagaries of implementation. It’s a bit like an existence theorem and the difference between theory and practice.

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Skill two—contingency planner

When I was considering the core competency issue for the twenty-first century manager, I asked myself these two questions: 1. Does the high-tech manager need to be a solid, serious planner? 2. If the manager has the “problem-solving” core competency,

does that also imply the planner competency?

My answers to these questions turned out to be “yes” and “no” respectively. Starting with the second question, it seemed to me that I had seen several managers that were very good at problem solving but were blind-sided by problems they didn’t anticipate. These folks were also viewed as fire-fighters par excellence, in that once a problem jumped up and bit them, they would beat the heck out of it until it was literally wrestled to the ground. They were good problem solvers, but bad anticipators. The former is possible while the latter may be woefully inadequate. So we come now to the first question, and my answer turns out to be “yes,” but only if we add the word contingency in front of planner. This gives to the individual the special dimension that I believe is crucial—that of being able to anticipate problems and figuring out what to do in several eventualities. A contingency planner is that special type of planner that consistently knows how to ask “what if” and then comes up with plans A, B, C, and D. A contingency planner is thinking “in front of the box,” if I may be allowed some new license with some old words. A contingency planner worries about what might go wrong with the preferred solution and puts alternative solutions in place, but on the back burner. In a word, a contingency planner not only understands the notion of risk, but goes beyond simple recognition to a set of mitigation strategies and tactics. All of the above are a tall order and worthy of separate consideration and focus in the form of one of our five core competencies. It also implies that the manager must go beyond the clearly observable to the imaginable. This can be quite difficult since many people will not

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 129 engage in, or support, problem-solving when there is no evident problem. Arguments like “let’s not fix something that ain’t broke” may be reasonable responses. So the contingency planner needs to be someone who is comfortable with thinking the unthinkable and doing so perhaps in a solitary manner. This attribute has special meaning when we explicitly take account of the rapid advances that we can expect with respect to future technology, and the pressures for change that come at us, often in a highly unpredictable and chaotic way. In these environments, getting into the habit of asking “what if ” appears to me to be a critical part of being a successful manager in the twenty-first century. Another set of words for this orientation is risk assessment and mitigation. The contingency planner is anticipating and dealing with risk issues hopefully before they have a chance to do damage.

5.6 Skill three—people-oriented communicator Looking back at Section 5.2.4 we find the action-people-process-idea test and the high score of the people attribute for a manager. Indeed, in the example, people got the highest score of 11.6. In that context, it meant that it was most important for the manager to be “peopleoriented.” Now what, more precisely, might that mean? Here are a few words that expand upon that meaning: ■

Interested in people;

■

Sympathetic;

■

A good listener;

■

Enjoys interacting with people;

■

Tends to trust;

■

Empathetic.

Our third critical skill requires all of the above, and then some. Our third skill requires that the manager be an effective communicator.

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The people-orientation and the communicator attributes often go together. We are able to imagine situations or people that we know such that they do not go together, but for our purposes we require the manager to be both. Although being an effective communicator is a deep subject that can easily be the focus of a whole chapter or even a book, we are able to ask the question—what do we see or expect good communications to be? Here are some of the notions that arise from this question: ■

Honest, truthful;

■

Sufficiently frequent;

■

Used to resolve uncertainties;

■

Establishes areas of agreement;

■

Conveys important information;

■

Shows respect;

■

Enlightens;

■

Provides a forum for problem solving.

Although I’m sure there are a large number of other features of good communications, the above list demonstrates the very important role that good, solid communications plays in the life of a manager and his/her people. This is especially true if you try to think about what happens when it is removed or nonexistent. A quote probably comes in handy here, one from Dostoyevsky—“much unhappiness has come into the world because of bewilderment and things left unsaid.” In short, if the boss doesn’t take the time to really communicate with his or her people, bad things start to happen. I’ve also seen situations in which a manager knows that frequent contact and communications is important, but it seemed as if these contacts only made things worse. This can happen, in which case some real hands-on training is likely to be necessary. There are ways to say things and ways not to. Some people have an instinct for doing it right while others seem to always have their feet in their mouths. If you’re one of

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 131 those individuals who is trying very hard, but is getting negative results, the suggestion here is to look for a well-recommended training program, seminar, or workshop in which you’re able to get immediate feedback on how you tend to express yourself. A well-meaning but ineffective communicator can do more harm than good. The bottom line is that the people-oriented communications skill definitely belongs among the top five of the necessary skills of the manager. It is reinforced by the expectation that timelines and schedules in the future are likely to become more compressed rather than more forgiving. We have no trouble remembering how important communications skills were to someone by the name of Ronald Reagan, the “great communicator.” Whether or not you agree with his policies or what he tried to do, there is widespread agreement that he knew how to communicate. And look how important that skill was to him in creating new supporters as well as muting his detractors. These are some of the benefits that accrue to the manager who is able to be an effective people-oriented communicator.

5.7

Skill four—team builder

In today’s world, process and product appear to be developed mostly by teams. The efficacy of that approach is also reinforced by the considerable literature on the subject of teams [14 –16]. Just looking at the titles of some of this literature makes one sit up and take special notice: ■

Effective Team Building;

■

The Wisdom of Teams;

■

Building the Executive Team.

Three reasons come to mind with respect to the value and dominance of the team approach. The first is that it’s proven to be effective. Second, systems seem to have become more complex and imbued with that mysterious ingredient known as software. Software pieces need to fit together and for large systems replete with software, effective teams improve the likelihood that they will. Finally, we’ve

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come to understand and embrace the notions of “concurrent engineering” in which we require and rely upon a broad range of skills in order to formulate a process or product that really works [7]. An effective team, however, does not necessarily come about by putting a variety of parties with a common interest in a room together. A team does not magically appear from an assemblage of people. It has to be built, and it takes considerable skill to do that. By way of example, let’s take a look at the perspectives of a team builder that lots of people know, namely Joe Gibbs, previously the very successful coach of the Washington Redskins. Here’s what the Washington Post reported in terms of specific areas of focus that Joe Gibbs relied upon in order to literally build his team: ■

Work hard, but know how to take a short break;

■

Hire good people and delegate authority;

■

Set goals, manage expectations, and communicate well;

■

Be prepared and stay focused;

■

Be flexible;

■

Lead by example and encouragement.

This list of six lessons are as good as any and better than most. In fact, if you think about not being able to do one or more of the above, it is easy to see how that lack would detract from the process of team building. The last item on the list seems especially important in that people are normally very good at noticing discrepancies between what a person says and what he or she does. If they are not congruent, there’s some erosion, however difficult it might be to detect that erosion. I’m reminded of an incident in this connection that happened more than 30 years ago. Such is the power of an erosion of confidence. As the leader of a proposal activity that was very important to our company, I made my way to the president’s office, with a couple of my key people, to get a few questions resolved. The secretary must have been absent for some reason, and I can remember knocking and then opening the door to the president’s office. As we entered, the president emerged

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 133 from the private bathroom in full tennis garb. He said hello and in a very matter of fact way asked what was up, as he tied the shoelaces of his tennis shoes. We asked and he answered a few questions, but it was clear that he was on his way out the door to play tennis sometime in the middle of the afternoon. So the team was deeply into the proposal, working lots of extra time, and the boss was out there on the tennis court. We continued on with the proposal, but we all noticed what had happened and what had not happened, and I can recall the incident with considerable clarity even after the passage of more than 30 years. I don’t think any of us were anxious to put out extra efforts for that boss from that time forward. Mercifully for all involved, he was gone within the year. By the way, we didn’t win the contract that we were bidding at the time. So what then is this author’s list of what to focus upon in building a team? Here are five areas to pay special attention to: 1. Show respect for each and every member of the team; 2. Encourage inputs from all team members; 3. Engage all in the complex problem-solving process (see

Section 5.4); 4. Set a good example (see the Gibbs list); 5. Move chronic nonteam players to a different part of the enterprise (or out the door). Additional discussion of the above and other factors with respect to team building will be reserved for Chapter 8. For now, suffice it to say that team building is one of the five key skills of the effective manager, now and into the future.

5.8 Skill five—technically competent decision maker I’ve thought long and hard about the matter of the technical competence of the manager of the twenty-first century and come to the

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conclusion that technical ability will be even more important in the future than it has been in the past. There has been a mode of thinking, perhaps fostered by the “B-Schools,” that a good manager is able to manage any kind of business, independent of the technical skills of the manager with relation to the products and services of the business. Translated, this means that a good manager is able to do as well with a computer products company or a retail supermarket chain or a group of hotels. I have always had difficulty believing this notion, perhaps because I’ve been trained as an engineer and it’s difficult for me to see how a nontechnical person could have handled the technical issues I’ve seen in my various executive roles. My bottom line as I look at the twenty-first century is that the depth and pace of technology is likely to at least continue to be very rapid, and possibly accelerate, and the software component, in terms of a broad range of products and services, will almost certainly accelerate. As it stands today, even the very large systems integration companies have broken their picks on software, a strange image to be sure. So my conclusion is simply that the manager of the twenty-first century will have to be technically competent in the business areas of the company in order to be able to execute the full dimensions of the job. The manager we are talking about is not necessarily the CEO or COO of the company, but rather the hundreds of midmanagers that have the direct line responsibility for providing the company’s products and services. This does not mean, however, that if a company is producing software, the manager of necessity must be the most competent software developer in the enterprise. Indeed, there are reasons why such a person may not be the best choice as manager. However, an understanding and appreciation for the manifold aspects of software development is a requirement in perhaps the same way as the shop foreman needs to know what all the shop jobs involve. To have it otherwise is to run the risk that the workers wind up having no respect for the contribution made by the manager. A manager that cannot capture the confidence of the workers is very likely to end up without any authority and therefore without a job. This single requirement for technical competence on the part of the manager of the twenty-first century places new demands upon how we

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 135 carry out the tasks of education and training. It can safely be predicted that training companies will flourish as current and would-be managers attempt to deepen their understanding, especially of technical matters. How universities respond to this challenge is a question since many, perhaps most, see themselves in the education business and not in the training business. The response (or possible lack of it) on the part of universities, however, moves beyond our most immediate concerns in this book. We now move to the second aspect of this skill, namely, decision maker. This ability is closely related to the first-named skill of problem solver. For example, it can be argued that problems cannot ultimately be solved unless a variety of decisions are made. I accept that line of reasoning as thoroughly valid. However, it also seemed important to emphasize the notion of moving to the point at which a true decision is made. Many managers I have known are quite fearful of making a mistake. As a consequence, they have tended to delay in their decision making by indefinite analysis and massaging of the problem. The paralysis by analysis syndrome is alive and well in many quarters. So we now add to the technical competence the idea that the manager must also know when and how to bring a problem to closure by making a decision. Hopefully, if the decision turns out to be incorrect, then everyone will have learned something without some disaster having befallen the company. Finally, and related to the matter of decision maker, is the notion alluded to earlier that the pace of almost everything is likely to be more rapid. In general terms, failing to make a decision when it is appropriate to do so may well place a manager, and his or her company, behind one or more of the competitors. So the pure speed of activity that we are expecting in the future places additional demands upon the enterprise. These demands, in turn, will force us to come to terms with making decisions in a timely manner.

5.9

Taking the next steps

In earlier chapters, I have considered the rather complex and multidimensional matter of “change.” This subject becomes especially relevant

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when and if the individual contributor decides to take on the challenge of serving as a manager. Various aspects of the complexities of change will not be reexamined here except to say that the reader is urged to go back to those issues if he or she wishes to make the shift cited above. Rather, the approach here is the pragmatic one of suggesting the five next steps that can be taken to become a manager, namely: 1. Make a conscious decision and commitment; 2. Obtain additional training and education; 3. Practice manager skills; 4. Study and talk to managers in your company or organization; 5. Seek and accept a manager position.

First on the above list is the issue of making the decision to make the change. Since we already know that change in itself is a difficult matter, moving forward means that a conscious decision must be made, along with a commitment to follow through. This usually means that the decision goes into effect on a particular well-defined day, and that no excuse barring some major calamity will cause a postponement beyond that day. It also means committing to take the next four steps on a well-defined timetable. Second, it is almost always necessary to obtain some additional training and education. The former may consist of specialized short courses (e.g., 3–5 days) in both technical and management topics. The latter refers to university-based courses in management that are found, for example, in engineering management and MBA programs. When well chosen, these types of programs are a necessary and possibly critical adjunct to just on-the-job training (OJT). Third, you should practice being a manager by finding opportunities to develop and use the five skills cited here. Fill a management vacuum and demonstrate that you have the requisite skills, such demonstration being both to yourself as well as the people around you. Think through what you would do if you were in charge. See how much of that you actually can do now. See what kinds of reactions you get

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 137 when you step up to new patterns of behavior, especially with respect to problem solving. Use that forum as a crucible in which you can test your skill in that and other related domains. Fourth, take a closer look at the managers that you respect within your organization. They need to be close to you (not the chairman of the board or CEO) so that you can observe their behavior in some detail. See what it is that makes them successful. Write down what you think they’re doing well and what you believe is not working too well. Find opportunities to talk to them candidly about what they do and how they do it. People that can play this role for you are more likely not to be your boss. For a variety of reasons, it’s for the best, most of the time, if they’re not your immediate supervisor. Finally, take that fateful step! Seek, apply for, find, and accept a managerial position, hopefully in your current company or organization. Transitioning to a manager position in an enterprise with which you’re familiar probably increases your chance of succeeding. You can use your existing knowledge of the people and how they behave to great advantage. On the other hand, it may be that others may not readily accept you in your new manager role. All in all, transitioning within the company is still my recommended approach. However, if there are formidable obstacles to making that type of transition, and you’re really committed to it (step 1), then it’s time to move on. Knowing when to move on is part of the battle for all of us, no matter how seasoned.

5.10

Summary—the “Top Fives”

This chapter has suggested a variety of “Top Fives”: Skills for the high-tech manager 1. Problem solver; 2. Contingency planner; 3. People-oriented communicator; 4. Team builder;

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5. Technically competent decision maker. Problem-solving steps 1. Surfacing a problem; 2. Articulating the problem; 3. Offering alternatives; 4. Evaluating alternatives; 5. Implementing a solution. Steps in transitioning to a manager 1. Make a conscious decision and commitment; 2. Obtain additional training and education; 3. Practice manager skills; 4. Study and talk to managers in your company or organization; 5. Seek and accept a manager position.

References 1. Hamel, G. and C. K. Prahalad, Competing for the Future, Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1994. 2. Senge, P., The Fifth Discipline, New York: Doubleday Currency, 1990. 3. Drucker, P., The Effective Executive, New York: Harper & Row, 1966. 4. Drucker, P., The New Realities, New York: HarperCollins, 1989. 5. Kerzner, H., Project Management, New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1989. 6. Kezsbom, D., D. Schilling, and K. Edward, Dynamic Project Management, New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1989. 7. Eisner, H., Essentials of Project and Systems Engineering Management, New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1997. 8. Durham, K. and B. Kennedy, The New High-Tech Manager—Six Rules for Success in Changing Times, Norwood, MA: Artech House, 1997.

Skills for the High-Tech Manager 139 9. Frame, J. D., Managing Projects in Organizations, San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass, 1987. 10. Covey, S., The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, New York: Fireside, 1989. 11. Eisner, H., Computer-Aided Systems Engineering, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1988. 12. Holloway, C., Decision Making Under Uncertainty, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1979. 13. Saaty, T., The Analytic Hierarchy Process, New York: McGraw-Hill, 1980. 14. Goldsmith, V., Effective Team Building, New York: AMACOM, 1980. 15. Katzenbach, J. and D. Smith, The Wisdom of Teams, New York: HarperCollins, 1994. 16. Mahoney, T., Building the Executive Team, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1961.

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6 Leadership Themes 6.1

Introduction

This chapter examines a number of leadership themes that are described in the rather vast literature on this topic and then comes to a conclusion as to the five themes that appear to be the most important. Since it’s not a simple matter of boiling everything down to just five key attributes of a leader, I use an enhanced set of basic attributes that attempts to expand upon a strictly linear citation. The leader, of course, is complex and multidimensional. Just a brief scan of the books dealing with this topic confirms that there are almost as many different views as there are observers. All this despite the apparent fact that most of us will likely agree upon a cast of characters that have been leaders in the twentieth century. Ultimately, our interest here is to set the stage for thinking in a more focused way about building leadership and also about how to 141

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learn to move from performing first as an engineer or scientist, then as a manager, and finally as leader. Several folks have shown us how, and their stories are powerful ones. I would cite just two here—Jack Welch at GE and Norman Augustine at Lockheed-Martin. Both started as engineers and migrated through various management assignments and then emerged as recognized leaders. We can learn quite a bit from watching what these two, and others like them, have done. We can also look at leadership through the prisms of those who have studied leaders and leadership and then written about them. A few glimpses through these prisms follow here and form the basis for our own articulation of what appears to count most in the complicated world of leadership.

6.2

Themes in the literature

The format I will use here is to summarize critical features of a leader, as defined by several writers on this topic, followed by a short commentary. By several, I refer to about two dozen views with respect to this tantalizing subject. Let’s take it now from the top, as represented by Peter Drucker, arguably our most accomplished observer of the scene. 6.2.1

Peter Drucker

Peter Drucker is clearly the grand master of management, having written more than 20 books of unusual quality and import on the subject. This book, The Leader of the Future [1], is part of the Drucker Foundation Future Series and contains several articles written by authors referred to in this chapter. His foreword is subtitled “Not Enough Generals Were Killed,” which by itself should induce you to go out and retrieve a copy. A list of attributes and characteristics of leaders according to Drucker includes: ■

Someone who has followers;

■

Someone who does the right things;

■

Someone who is visible and thereby sets examples;

Leadership Themes 143 ■

Someone who takes responsibility.

Drucker has a way of cutting to the core rather quickly, as suggested by the first item. There’s no disagreement here, but do these either tell the whole story or are some important attributes left out? We’ll see others that are worthy of serious consideration as we go through our list of observers. 6.2.2

Stephen Covey

Stephen Covey wrote the best-selling book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People and serves as founder and chairman of the Covey Leadership Center. He helps as well as challenges his clients to “bridge the gap between the theoretical and the practical.” [2] A list of Covey’s attributes and characteristics of highly effective people includes: ■

Continually learning;

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Service-oriented;

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Radiate positive energy;

■

Believe in other people;

■

Lead balanced lives;

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See life as an adventure;

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Synergistic;

■

Exercise for self-renewal.

This is certainly a powerful and inclusive list. I’m particularly struck by the energy, balance, and synergy considerations. Clearly, Covey believes that a leader is able to put pieces together. He also stresses personal learning and self-renewal. This says volumes about moving forward, even when confronted with obstacles and losses. Here’s another perspective registered by the same person [3], noting that leaders should also be: ■

Principle-centered;

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■

Pathfinding;

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Aligning;

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Empowering.

Operate on the basis of a set of positive principles is one of Covey’s main themes. He thereby excludes various “leaders” who have done considerable damage in their styles of destructive leadership (e.g., Hitler, Stalin). This is a feature worth noting and also having on one’s list. The third-listed, aligning, refers to making sure that all plans and actions in the enterprise are congruent with its mission as well as the interests of the various stakeholders and employees. 6.2.3

John Gardner

John Gardner served several U. S. presidents, and held, among others, the following positions: Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW); founding chairman of Common Cause; chairman of the National Coalition; and president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Among his most well-known works are On Leadership [4], “Self-Renewal,” and “Excellence.” According to Gardner, the attributes and characteristics of leadership are: ■

Physical vitality and stamina;

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Intelligence and judgment-in-action;

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Accepting of responsibility;

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Task competence;

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Understands needs of followers;

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Skilled in dealing with people;

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Needs to achieve;

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Able to motivate;

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Has courage, resolution, and steadiness;

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Capacity to hold trust;

Leadership Themes 145 ■

Can manage, set priorities, and make decisions;

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Confident;

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Dominant and assertive;

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Flexible.

This list of 14 can be said to cover the waterfront, especially since some of them are compound statements. It’s difficult to think of any that Gardner has left out, except possibly the principle-centered notion that is so strong in Covey’s writings. 6.2.4

John Heider

John Heider, a psychologist, studied Lao Tzu’s Tao Te Ching, a popular book of wisdom from China. As a leader and writer, he has applied these principles and precepts to management and leadership [5]: ■

Being oneself;

■

Selfless;

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Open and receptive;

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Unbiased;

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Centered and grounded;

■

A warrior and healer.

Heider’s work, by his own reference, is directly connected to Lao Tzu’s Tao Te Ching, a landmark Chinese exposition, as adapted for a New Age. Heider has some 81 chapters, each of which reveals another dimension of the nature of a leader. The above list is therefore only a small sampling of what appear to be central themes. 6.2.5

Warren Bennis

Warren Bennis served as president of the University of Cincinnati and currently as distinguished professor of business administration at the University of Southern California. He has been described by a magazine

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as “the poet-philosopher-scholar of organizational life, a business theorist, and a management guru” [6]. He also wrote Leaders: Strategies for Taking Charge. Bennis’s attributes and characteristics of a leader include: ■

Has a guiding vision;

■

Passion;

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Integrity;

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Curiosity and daring;

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Knows himself or herself;

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A leader, not a manager (*).

Bennis has studied leadership in several of his writings. The last item listed above is asterisked (*) to point out that Bennis sees a great deal of difference between a leader and a manager. His apparently strong feelings on this matter are reflected in his lists of the differences between the two as well as the following wonderful quote in this book [6, pp. 44–46] namely, “managers wear square hats and learn through training; leaders wear sombreros and opt for education.” 6.2.6

Margaret Wheatley

Margaret Wheatley is president of the Berkana Institute and principal in Kellner-Rogers Wheatley, Inc. She also served as a professor of management at Brigham Young University. She has had a special interest in leadership and a variety of scientific issues, including chaos, order, control, information, and structure. Her introduction is subtitled “Searching for a Simpler Way to Lead Organizations” [7] and includes the following attributes of leadership: ■

Being comfortable with uncertainty;

■

Searching for a simpler way;

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Open to new discovery;

■

Participative;

Leadership Themes 147 ■

Unifying.

Margaret Wheatley argues for stronger connections between management, leadership, and the methods as well as precepts of science. In effect, part of her message is that science has taught us many lessons that need to be absorbed in regard to how we lead, or fail to do so. Her general view is holistic and unifying, as is the view of several of these observers who tend to view leadership through somewhat less conventional prisms, as continued below. 6.2.7

Diane Dreher

Diane Dreher is a writer, consultant, and educator, serving as chairperson of the English Department at Santa Clara University. Her books include The Fourfold Pilgrimage, Domination and Defiance, and The Tao of Inner Peace. In her writing, Dreher discusses the following attributes and characteristics of a leader [8]: ■

Able to flow with change, is flexible;

■

Centered and detached;

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Able to stretch;

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Harmonizing;

■

Courageous, faces fears and the unknown.

An interesting perspective of Ms. Dreher is revealed through the names of the two parts of her excellent book, namely, “The Yin of Inner Leadership” and “The Yang of Leadership in Action.” The titles of the chapters in these two parts reflect the above list, as well as others, such as building community, having a vision, empowering, growth, communication, transcending ego, and resolving conflict. 6.2.8

Craig Hickman

Craig Hickman is president and CEO of Management Perspectives Group, a management consulting firm that focuses on strategic and leadership issues. He coauthored Creating Excellence as well as Future

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500. This book takes special aim at the matter of tapping “the natural tension between managers and leaders” [9] and includes the following attributes: ■

Empowering;

■

Accurate self-awareness;

■

Understanding various perspectives;

■

Values attitudes;

■

Candid communications;

■

Common purposes.

Mr. Hickman’s book has a most interesting perspective. It argues that there is a natural tension between managers and leaders that can be tapped in order to achieve a balanced, integrated organization that will be an excellent performer. In line with this point of view, the author demonstrates this tension in about 50 specific cases, showing that a balance between manager and leader represents a better solution. For example, one chapter suggests that, in general, managers are skeptical whereas leaders tend to be optimistic. He then proceeds to show how the two, operating in harmony (see “common purposes” in the list above), will likely lead to beneficial results. 6.2.9

Burt Nanus

Burt Nanus is professor of management at the Business School of the University of Southern California. He served also as director of the Center for Futures Research for 16 years. According to Nanus, the seven critical megaskills are [10]: 1. Farsightedness; 2. Mastery of change; 3. High standards of integrity; 4. Anticipatory learning;

Leadership Themes 149 5. Initiative; 6. Mastery of interdependence; 7. Organization design.

Nanus describes the leader as one who has mastered the above seven “megaskills,” as he calls them. The first four of the above skills are placed in a category called conceptual skills and the last three are action-oriented skills. He also explores their interconnection through a series of roles, including those of direction-setter, spokesman, change agent, and coach. These, in turn, are placed in the context of a turbulent world. 6.2.10

Sun-Tzu—Ralph Sawyer

Ralph Sawyer translates and ably demonstrates Sun-Tzu’s classic work on war, thought to have eclipsed all other military writings. Sawyer separates the core of knowledge about Sun-Tzu and various legends, and reviews battles that significantly influenced his thinking [11]. Sawyer’s list of attributes and characteristics of a leader include: ■

Rational;

■

Self-controlled;

■

Analytical;

■

Subjugates anger and frustration;

■

Determined.

Selected commander’s qualifications include such strengths as: ■

Wisdom;

■

Knowledge;

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Credibility;

■

Courage;

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Unconcerned by fame or punishment.

We are told that this text is in fact China’s oldest and most profound military treatise. As such, it mostly looks at warfare principles. However, reading carefully one is able to draw from it some of the leader attributes and qualifications that are held very highly. Considering the history of this treatise, it is interesting that so many of the principles, as well as attributes, apply to today’s world. 6.2.11

Abraham Zaleznik

Abraham Zaleznik is professor of leadership at the Harvard Business School. He has written some dozen books on various aspects of management and is certified as a clinical psychologist. Zaleznik’s list of attributes and characteristics of leadership include [12]: ■

Imagination;

■

Substance;

■

Humanity;

■

Morality;

■

Vision;

■

Inspiration;

■

Personal influence.

By now, Abraham Zaleznik qualifies as one of the graybeards of the profession. This means that his list of attributes will make lots of sense and will be supported by many years of observing the fine art of management and leadership. I’m particularly pleased to see his two important features of “humanity” and “morality,” too often forgotten in our attempts to understand the leader and his or her essence. 6.2.12

Peter Block

Peter Block is an organization development consultant and a charter member of Certified Consultants International. He also wrote

Leadership Themes 151 the praise-worthy book Flawless Consulting. His view of leadership includes [13]: ■

Creates a vision;

■

Communicates;

■

Negotiates agreement and trust;

■

Balances autonomy and dependence;

■

Courageous;

■

Empowering.

This early book by Block gives us an idea as to his fundamental thinking, especially as reflected in his title adjective empowering. Block clearly values interpersonal skills and the interconnections between people. Block also supports the growing notion of leader as servant in terms of his empowering theme. 6.2.13

Michael Maccoby

Michael Maccoby has a private practice in psychoanalysis and psychotherapy and serves on the faculty of the Washington School of Psychiatry. He also wrote the best-selling book The Gamesman. Maccoby cites the following characteristics of a leader [14]: ■

Caring, respectful, and responsible attitude;

■

Flexible regarding organizational structure and people;

■

Participative approach;

■

Self-aware;

■

Perceives their weaknesses and strengths;

■

Developer (themselves and others).

Maccoby’s book, as he indicated, was based upon dialogues with leaders in business and government. He spends considerable time with six specific leaders from different work arenas, devoting a separate

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chapter to each. He concludes that all six share in the top three abovementioned features, but they do not represent a single model. He also appears to believe that today’s leaders need to find allies and established coalitions. We note how this might apply increasingly in the world of international relations as we move through the twenty-first century. 6.2.14

Harold Leavitt

Harold Leavitt is professor of organizational behavior at the Stanford Business School where he has also held the position of director of the executive program. He is the author of the bestselling book Managerial Psychology. He emphasizes the following features of a leader [15]: ■

A pathfinder;

■

Problem solver;

■

Implementor;

■

Has a vision;

■

Exhibits clear value systems;

■

Is determined.

Professor Leavitt believes that leaders need to take a balanced perspective while integrating the three key activities of pathfinding, problem solving, and implementing, the top three cited above. He further explains that pathfinding is about “mission, purpose, and vision,” problem solving is about “analysis, planning, and reasoning,” and implementing is about “doing, changing, and influencing.” A very attractive and compact model of leadership. 6.2.15

J. Kouzes and B. Posner

James Kouzes directs the Executive Development Center at Santa Clara University. Barry Posner is professor of management at the Leavey School of Business and Administration at the same university. They consider the following as important attributes and characteristics of leadership [16]:

Leadership Themes 153 ■

Challenges the process;

■

Inspires a shared vision;

■

Enables others to act;

■

Models the way;

■

Encourages the heart.

Kouzes and Posner talk about five practices (named above) and ten commitments. The latter are related specifically to the former, and involve such activities as (1) running possibly risky experiments, (2) enlisting others to move toward a vision, (3) encouraging cooperation and collaboration, (4) setting an example, and (5) recognizing and celebrating accomplishments. These authors also describe research they have carried out with respect to a “Leadership Practices Inventory” that focuses on personal best experiences as a leader. 6.2.16

William Safire and Leonard Safir

William Safire is a Pulitzer Prize winning columnist for the New York Times with many books to his credit. Leonard Safir is a pioneer television producer and has written two other books with his brother William. They view the following as aspects of being a leader [17]: ■

Focus on the challenge at hand;

■

Detach from involvement;

■

Don’t lose the common touch;

■

Be authentic;

■

Generate loyalty;

■

Take charge;

■

Discipline your thinking;

■

Temper your vengeance.

This is basically a “collection of hundreds of great and inspirational quotations,” all of which are related to leadership. The introduction

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(with the provocative title of “prolegomenon”) cites the abovementioned attributes as well as additional perspectives of the brotherauthors. The large number of items in the compilation (mostly by the brother without the “e” at the end of his name) make it fascinating reading and difficult to put down. 6.2.17

Rosabeth Moss Kanter

Rosabeth Moss Kanter is professor of management at the Harvard Business School and has written best-selling, award-winning books, including The Change Masters and When Giants Learn to Dance. She has been a consultant to many leading worldwide organizations on issues dealing with the management of change, and offers the following as important attributes and characteristics of a leader [18]: ■

Cosmopolitan;

■

Integrator;

■

Diplomat;

■

Cross-fertilizer;

■

Deep thinker.

Professor Kanter is well known for her observations regarding a variety of topics in management, including processes of change, women’s perspectives, and leadership. She claims the above set of attributes for a leader, stressing that the intellectual capability (deep thinker) has often been neglected in analyses of leadership. She concludes that those without the required mental capacity and agility are not likely to prosper as we move into more complex times. 6.2.18

Max DePree

Max DePree is president of Herman Miller, a large, innovative, and very successful furniture company that is well-known for its progressive attitudes and excellent management. The company was founded in 1923 by his father. DePree believes the following attributes and characteristics are important for leadership [19]:

Leadership Themes 155 ■

Stewardship;

■

Leave assets and a legacy;

■

Nurture future leaders;

■

Provide momentum;

■

Be responsible for effectiveness;

■

Define civility and values.

Max DePree suggests that “leadership is an art.” He also views the leader as a person who services, a leader-as-steward. In selecting vice presidents for his company, he looks for current and future leaders, defining the latter by means of about a dozen key attributes, in addition to those cited above. His bottom line remains that it is more “a condition of the heart, than a set of things to do.” 6.2.19

Edgar Schein

Edgar Schein is professor of management at MIT’s (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Sloan School of Management. He is viewed as one of the founders of the field of organizational psychology, and emphasizes the following attributes of a leader [20]: ■

Animator;

■

Emotionally strong;

■

Creator and sustainer of culture;

■

Ability to analyze culture;

■

Change agent;

■

Involving others to participate;

■

Perceptive and insightful;

■

Highly motivated;

■

Share power and control.

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Professor Schein is, of course, one of the foremost authorities in several management-related fields. He is perhaps most well known for his work in organizational development and psychology. He cites the above features of today’s leaders as well as leaders of the future. His view of the latter is that more people will have to become leaders, and the attributes will likely have to be shared among lots of people, especially as circumstances change. 6.2.20

Wess Roberts

Wess Roberts gathered material on Attila the Hun and, after considerable rejection, had a limited first printing that captured the attention of Ross Perot. This was ultimately followed by a contract with Warner Books, and best-selling status [21]. Ten attributes are: 1. Loyalty; 2. Decisiveness; 3. Courage; 4. Timing; 5. Desire; 6. Responsibility; 7. Emotional and physical stamina; 8. Credibility; 9. Empathy; 10. Stewardship.

This treatise on Attila the Hun, as interpreted by Dr. Roberts, represents an interesting way to explore the popular as well as deep subject of leadership. Roberts briefly traces the life of Attila from his birth around A.D. 395 near the valley of the Danube. As indicated, 10 of the 17 cited attributes of a leader (chieftain Huns only need apply) are listed above. If these qualities are well taught and absorbed, then the Huns

Leadership Themes 157 were to be in a good position to pursue world conquest. Where have we seen that before? 6.2.21

R. White, P. Hodgson, and S. Crainer

Randall White is president of RPW Executive Development, Inc. in Greensboro, NC. Philip Hodgson is Client and Programme Director for Action Learning at the Ashridge Management College in the United Kingdom. Stuart Crainer is a writer and commentator, specializing in management issues. Their emphasis is on the following characteristics of a leader [22]: ■

Difficult learning;

■

Maximizing energy;

■

Resonant simplicity;

■

Multiple focus;

■

Mastering inner sense.

These authors use a “white water” metaphor as the arena in which leaders have to express the five skills noted above. Difficult learning takes on challenging tasks and, in part, is an enabler for the other skills. Being able to work one’s way through uncertainty requires lots of energy (second item above). Resonant simplicity refers mainly to being able to communicate in a sincere and effective manner with relatively few words. Keeping your eye on several objectives and not becoming unduly obsessive is the essence of multiple focus. Finally, mastering one’s inner sense means listening to your gut feelings as well as tacit knowledge. 6.2.22

C. Manz and Henry Sims, Jr.

Charles Manz and Henry Sims, Jr. carried out leadership research supported by the Operations Management Center at the University of Minnesota and the Business School at Penn State University. Charles Manz serves now as a Fellow at the Harvard Business School. According

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to Manz and Sims, a superleader leads others to lead themselves, and in doing so needs to demonstrate and create self-leadership through the following [23]: ■

Modeling self-leadership;

■

Facilitating self-goals and thought patterns;

■

Reinforcing self-leadership;

■

Constructive reprimanding;

■

Developing cultures;

■

Designing sociotechnical systems and teams.

The above represent the essence of empowerment, but taken to and through the specific steps necessary to achieve it. These authors see superleadership as not only a way to achieve self-leadership, but also as a framework for “tapping the intelligent and ... unique potential of each individual” in the enterprise. This multiplier effect creates enormous leverage and productivity as well as lots of excitement. 6.2.23

Carol McCall

Carol McCall is cofounder of the World Institute for Life Planning Group. She has more than 25 years experience as an educator, manager, entrepreneur, and therapist. She believes that the following attributes and characteristics demonstrate good leadership [24]: ■

Takes reasonable risks;

■

Listens;

■

Has integrity;

■

Is accountable;

■

Provides service;

■

Has vitality.

Leadership Themes 159 Carol McCall cites the above as premises in relation to a set of values that the leader must have. She also stresses the need to empower so as to go beyond constraints that people often impose upon themselves. 6.2.24

Howard Eisner

Back in 1993 I carried out a survey of leadership ideas and principles not unlike the one represented by this part of this chapter. I looked at about two dozen representations of the attributes of leaders and scored them so as to produce a list of such attributes in rank order. These were ultimately documented in my book referenced here, with the top seven ranked attributes as listed below [25]: 1. Empowering and motivating; 2. Having a vision; 3. Cooperating; 4. Renewing and learning; 5. Communicative; 6. Serving as a role model; 7. Productive and efficient.

6.3 Leadership attributes for the twenty-first century Based upon the extensive studies and literature on the topic of leadership, some of which have been briefly described in the previous section of this chapter, I offer the following five key attributes as my initial list of the most significant: 1. Visionary; 2. Communicator; 3. Doer;

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4. Facilitator; 5. Integrator.

For reasons to be cited, the scope of each of the above will be expanded shortly. 6.3.1

Visionary

It seems to me that the leader must be able and inclined to conjure up a seriously compelling view of the future of the enterprise. This view must be attractive to most of the folks who make up the enterprise, from top management on down. If this is generally not the case, then the leader will ultimately be without followers, a contradiction in terms. Think about the leaders you have seen or read about—do any violate this notion? What about Gandhi, for example? Can you reconstruct the vision (or visions) he put forth for his people? How about Martin Luther King? 6.3.2

Communicator

Think about the leader with a clear and compelling vision and add the notion that such a person has poor communication skills. Not much, you will probably agree, is likely to happen. Indeed, if the communication skills are sufficiently poor, failure is almost certainly a consequence. Just as communications made my top-five list with respect to the necessary skills of a high-tech manager, it similarly occupies a central position for the leader. Can you remember the special communication style of John F. Kennedy? How about the conventional wisdom about Ronald Reagan as “the great communicator?” In this connection, how do the names Steve Jobs, Ross Perot, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt register in your mind? 6.3.3

Doer

I believe that the leader needs to be able to take action when the situation calls for it. Indeed, we would expect such a person to lead the action, after obtaining appropriate counsel. I’m reminded, in this

Leadership Themes 161 context, of Peters and Waterman’s “A Bias for Action” as one of their eight attributes of excellence [26]. Doers don’t wait around for something to happen to them or their enterprise; they’re out there making it happen. This also makes them visible enough so that others are able to follow. Do you see Theodore Roosevelt as a doer? How about Margaret Thatcher? Whom would you put on your list of extraordinary “doers?” Whom do you see as a “doer” at Microsoft? Is it Bill Gates or Steve Ballmer, or both? How about Donald Trump or Richard Branson (Virgin)? 6.3.4

Facilitator

This attribute seems to have gained significant ground and stature over the past generation or so. In this connection, the leader is a supporter or one who empowers other people. When others cannot get past a particular hurdle, the leader finds a way to lower the bar or shows how to jump just a little higher, or both. This wonderful attribute specifically engenders loyalty and trust, both of which we will need a lot more of in the twenty-first century. This leader knows how to oil the machine. This leader finds solutions to the problems facing his or her followers. This leader is thoroughly “connected” to his or her followers. Do the names Jack Welch or General Schwartzkopf work for you in this regard? Why and why not? Can you think of others with a facilitating style? 6.3.5

Integrator

This leader has the ability to bring apparently disparate and disjointed pieces together to form a more highly functioning whole. He or she is able to perceive relationships and connectedness that others might not. This leader follows the systems approach set forth by Senge [27], this author [25], and others. As a consequence of this ability, this type of leader knows how and when to build bridges between people and organizations. He or she will know how to put parts and pieces together so that the total effect is greater than the simple linear sum. Merger and acquisition leaders such as Harold Geneen, Bernard Schwartz (Loral), and Norman Augustine have demonstrated these abilities. Can you

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think of others? Can you think of people in your company that consistently are able to use a systems perspective?

6.4

Expanded list of key qualities

The above discussion conveys several important ideas about what we might wish our twenty-first century leader to be. Now I’m going to cheat a bit and add an adjective to the above five attributes, thus adding to the meaning of each. These make up my expanded list of five, and consist of: 1. Practical visionary; 2. Inclusive communicator; 3. Positive doer; 4. Renewing facilitator; 5. Principled integrator.

Let’s take a look now at the effects of these modifiers and how they enhance the leadership qualities already suggested. 6.4.1

Practical visionary

Just to make sure that the visionary is not someone whose head is in the clouds, I would add no small measure of practicality. This allows the path to the vision to be at least somewhat clearer to others. The vision normally represents a stretch, but one that is attainable. An impractical vision is likely to be viewed as too far and distant, so that followers begin to move elsewhere. The paradox of the practical visionary, I believe, should be thoroughly acceptable as we approach and address the uncertainties of the twenty-first century. 6.4.2

Inclusive communicator

I add this capability since in the future world of global villages the leader must be knowingly inclusive rather than exclusive. This leader must know how to talk to all the people in a multinational and multicultural

Leadership Themes 163 enterprise, and to a greater degree than in the past. The voice of this leader, with enhanced forms of electronic commerce, will be conveyed globally and instantaneously and it had better make sense to everyone. This will not be an easy skill to master, although many say that you either have it or you don’t. 6.4.3

Positive doer

This modifier suggests that the “doing” is performed in a positive and upbeat manner. If we recognize that many messages, both positive and negative, are conveyed by how people execute their various tasks, we want our leader to encourage by an appropriately positive stance. This tends to achieve better results and also provides a solid role model for the behavior of others. Several students of leadership have reinforced the position of leader as “role model.” The attitude of the leader will be observed and copied by the followers. 6.4.4

Renewing facilitator

This added dimension indicates that the facilitator’s support serves as an important force for renewal in the enterprise. Renewal is a critical growth factor in the learning organization and allows an enterprise to recover after one or more seriously negative events have occurred. Without this type of inner strength and resilience, an enterprise may well be on its way to extinction in the rapidly changing climate of the twenty-first century. Without quick response and rapid turnaround, as necessary, adaptation skills may be insufficient for healthy survival. Renewal adds a capability to the facilitator that truly expands this type of leader’s short as well as long-term positive impacts on the enterprise. 6.4.5

Principled integrator

We have indeed had many people come upon the scene as leaders who seem to lack principles, expressible in terms of basic human values. For example, most of the world would recognize Hitler and Stalin in this category, and there are certainly many others. It is my purpose with this modifier to exclude such persons even though they may otherwise qualify as leaders. My bending of the conventional language in

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identifying a leader is to specifically exclude those of deficient character. Let’s find a better word for the evil folks who bring disaster wherever they go. Perhaps “evil despot” is a more appropriate term. It’s certainly a whole lot better than leader, which should be reserved, I believe, for those who are able to make positive contributions.

6.5

A test

In view of the above, I’ve constructed a “test” (see Table 6.1) to get a better handle on whether or not you, or anyone else you might wish to consider, possesses the five attributes of leadership, as developed here. Score it as follows: [5] almost always true, [4] more true than not, [3] equally true as not true, [2] more false than true, [1] almost always not true. A score of 81–100 (with obvious variations within) indicates a very high leadership performance level. A score of 66–83 is also high, but can stand some improvements. A score of 48–65 suggests that a variety of areas need improvement. A score of 30– 47 exhibits serious leadership deficiencies. If the score is 29 or less, a major overhaul would be needed to begin to move in the direction of positive leadership qualities.

6.6 Summary—the Top Five My final synthesis of the manifold nature of leadership is described below by my top five list of expanded attributes: 1. Practical visionary; 2. Inclusive communicator; 3. Positive doer; 4. Renewing facilitator; 5. Principled integrator.

Leadership Themes 165 Table 6.1 A Leadership “Test” Score 1. Envisions an attractive future for the enterprise

[ ]

2. Articulates ideas and plans with ease

[ ]

3. Gets things done in a constructive manner

[ ]

4. Helps people get their jobs completed

[ ]

5. Sees interconnecting relationships

[ ]

6. Formulates long-range goals easily and naturally

[ ]

7. Able to communicate with a wide variety of people

[ ]

8. Has a terrific attitude while problem solving

[ ]

9. Assists others in working through problems

[ ]

10. Is firmly grounded in positive values

[ ]

11. Seems to have a gift for strategic thinking

[ ]

12. Likes to exchange ideas with people

[ ]

13. Moves forward through “thick and thin”

[ ]

14. Able to help others through adversity

[ ]

15. Has solid principles and lives by them

[ ]

16. Combines practical with visionary thinking

[ ]

17. Works hard at making sure he/she is understood

[ ]

18. Shows energy and courage in “bashing bureaucracy”

[ ]

19. Helps with personal and corporate growth

[ ]

20. Clearly demonstrates a broad “systems” perspective

[ ] Total

[

]

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References 1. Drucker, P., “Foreword,” In The Leader of the Future, F. Hesselbein, M. Goldsmith, and R. Beckhard (eds.), San Francisco, CA; Jossey-Bass, 1996. 2. Covey, S., Principle-Centered Leadership, New York: A Fireside Book, Simon & Schuster, 1990. 3. Covey, S., “Three Roles of the Leader in the New Paradigm,” In The Leader of the Future, F. Hesselbein, M. Goldsmith, and R. Beckhard (eds.), San Francisco, CA; Jossey-Bass, 1996. 4. Gardner, J., On Leadership, New York: The Free Press, Macmillan, Inc., 1990. 5. Heider, J., The Tao of Leadership, New York: Bantam, 1985. 6. Bennis, W., On Becoming A Leader, New York: Addison-Wesley, 1989. 7. Wheatley, M., Leadership and the New Science, San Francisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler, 1992. 8. Dreher, D., The Tao of Personal Leadership, New York: HarperBusiness, 1996. 9. Hickman, C., Mind of a Manager, Soul of a Leader, New York: John Wiley, 1990. 10. Nanus, B., The Leader’s Edge, Chicago, IL: Contemporary Books, 1989. 11. Sawyer, R., Sun-Tzu—The Art of War, New York: Barnes & Noble, 1994. 12. Zaleznik, A., The Managerial Mystique, New York: Harper & Row, 1989. 13. Block, P., The Empowered Manager, San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1990. 14. Maccoby, M., The Leader, New York: Simon & Schuster, 1981. 15. Leavitt, H., Corporate Pathfinders, New York: Penguin Books, 1986. 16. Kouzes, J. and B. Posner, The Leadership Challenge, San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1987. 17. Safire, W., and L. Safir, Leadership, New York: A Fireside Book, Simon & Schuster, 1990. 18. Kanter, E. M., “World-Class Leaders: The Power of Partnering,” In The Leader of the Future, F. Hesselbein, M. Goldsmith, and R. Beckhard (eds.), San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1996. 19. DePree, M., Leadership is an Art, New York: Dell Trade, 1989.

Leadership Themes 167 20. Schein, E., “Leadership and Organizational Culture,” In The Leader of the Future, F. Hesselbein, M. Goldsmith, and R. Beckhard (eds.), San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1996. 21. Roberts, W., Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun, New York: Warner Books, 1985. 22. White, R., P. Hodgson, and S. Crainer, The Future of Leadership, Lanham, MD: Pitman Publishing, 1996. 23. Manz, C. and H. Sims, Jr., Super-Leadership, New York: Berkley Books, 1989. 24. McCall, C., “Leadership: The Values Game,” In Leadership in a New Era,” J. Renesch (ed.), San Francisco, CA: Sterling & Stone, Inc., 1994. 25. Eisner, H., Essentials of Project and Systems Engineering Management, New York: John Wiley, 1997. 26. Peters, T. and R. Waterman, Jr., In Search of Excellence, New York: Harper & Row, 1982. 27. Senge, P., The Fifth Discipline, New York: Doubleday/Currency, 1990.

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7 From Manager to Leader 7.1

Introduction

In the previous chapter I referred to Jack Welch of GE and Norman Augustine of Lockheed Martin as acknowledged leaders. Both were trained as engineers, Welch in chemical engineering, and Augustine in aeronautical engineering. Based upon what they’ve written and what’s been written about them, I’d like to start this chapter with a story about each of them—first, Norman Augustine. Augustine’s second book [1] focused mainly on his personal experiences and perspectives as a manager and leader. He tells the story about how he became an engineer, despite his early interest in becoming a forest ranger. (A good choice for everyone, I thought, when I first read about this.) In any case, Augustine has his own list of the attributes of a leader, which are: 169

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■

Inspirational;

■

Perseverant;

■

Courageous;

■

Selfless;

■

Has integrity.

His commentary regarding the above is certainly excellent reading, but what struck me was his introduction to these attributes in his chapter on “leadership.” Apparently, he had gotten an award for leadership which he said had surprised him. His next explanation began with “as an engineer who had descended into management.” It stopped me for a moment. It raised the question in my mind as to what he truly believes (see Figure 7.1). Is it an ascent, a descent, or is the metaphor just plain inappropriate? Something to think about. The stories about Jack Welch are numerous as well as enormously interesting, and range from examining his behavior from “Old Neutron Jack” to the “Savior of General Electric.” In a highly credible treatise on the “31 Leadership Secrets from GE’s Jack Welch” [2], the author walks us through the principles that he believed Jack Welch enunciated as he moved from engineer (doctorate in engineering from the University of Illinois) to manager to leader. Dr. Welch accepted the position of chairman and CEO of GE in April 1981 when he was but 45 years old. His understanding of the company as well as his rise within the company can be described succinctly as deep and meteoric. Of the list of 31 leadership secrets, I cite the following five as being of particular importance; others will be examined in Chapter 8 which deals with focus areas for improving the enterprise: 1. Managing less is managing better; 2. Empower your workers; 3. Face reality; 4. Create a culture and then spread it; 5. Change before it’s too late.

From Manager to Leader 171

This way to management

Figure 7.1

Ascent or descent?

The first “secret” is partly a consequence of creating more horizontal, leaner, faster moving companies. As the “span of control” in the new environment has increased, we’re really not in a position to manage the way we used to, sometimes called micromanaging. Just not enough time and energy to do that with 5–10 people! The blessing in disguise is that we’re forced to manage less, the result of which is that we’re likely to be managing better—less direct control, less micromanaging, less looking over peoples’ shoulders, more freedom. Which leads into the second-listed “secret.” Empowerment goes along with less direct management in that people are given a lot more leeway to figure out what to do and how to do it. In the context of the MBO (management by objectives) world, still by no means abandoned, agree on a set of objectives and let your direct reports figure out how to meet them. You’re always ready to discuss and consult as well as guide and provide feedback. But give up much of the control so that everyone gets a chance to become a true problem solver and solution implementor.

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The admonition to face reality seems both trite and obvious, but its deeper meaning is just the reverse. Realities come in various shapes and sizes, but the least complicated is to recognize when some action needs to be taken and then have the will to move forward. Reality is often put on the back burner when it’s necessary to close a plant, or a department, or move old Harry on to another job, or cut out the fat, or start making a profit, or sell a subsidiary, or change the way you’re doing business in one area or another. We like to procrastinate when an action is difficult; when we perceive that we might be doing harm to someone. These can be tough calls, but remember your overall charter—to make the company better for those that are in it for the long haul (hopefully that includes you). Creating a culture has a lot to do with identifying what works and diligently supporting that position. We’ve mentioned some of the cultures that have appeared (to the outsider) to be distinctive—Microsoft, IBM, EDS, GM, Intel, 3M, and lots more. Some of the cultures are reflections of the top person; some carry forward even when he or she has long departed (as with EDS and Ross Perot). In the case of GE, all of the messages that Welch has constructed, in the aggregate, define the culture that he wants for the company. All of the 31 secrets, as interpreted by Slater [2], combine to reflect the culture that Welch has been able to articulate. And he’s done so brilliantly. We finally come to the last item on the list, namely, embracing the necessary changes to make it all happen. That brings us back to earlier chapters in this book, with particular reference to Chapter 3 on the subject of personal change. That is, if one is determined to make the transition—the journey if you will—from manager to leader, then all of the notions discussed in Chapter 3 need to be truly evaluated and embraced. Without that personal commitment—it all starts with the personal level—nothing much is likely to happen. Just wishing won’t do it. Just waiting will likewise not do it. The requisite skills as a manager have to be in place although some will dispute that assertion. So our model is that once one has spent some time mastering the fine art of being a manager (whether or not, as Augustine suggested, it represented a descension), the conscious decision has to be made to take the next several steps on the road to leadership. This author believes that

From Manager to Leader 173 leaders are made, not born. If you’ve succeeded in transitioning from an individual contributor to a manager, and you like just about everything in that position, you may be ready to take on that next challenge.

7.2

Foundations for moving forward

In order to seriously think about making the journey from manager to leader, we need to go back and consider the challenges that you may have already accepted in transitioning to the form and function of a manager. Basically, they’ve already been articulated here in several of the previous chapters. By re-examining these suggestions, we can better understand where we’re planning to go, and also some of the steps in order to get there. In Chapter 3, I set forth a basic definition of what constitutes change: changes are true and lasting modifications in thought processes or real-world behavior patterns of individuals, groups, organizations, and societies.

As applied to the topic at hand, this means that the manager who is committed to transition to a leader needs to try to identify and understand: ■

■

What new thought processes might need to be brought upon the scene, and what old thought processes may need to be modified; What new behavior patterns may need to be adopted, and what old behavior patterns may require adjustment.

In addition to this more general perspective regarding personal change, I described in Chapter 3 my “Top Five” list for moving forward with any significant change as: 1. Recognize a specific need area. 2. Focus on new positive behaviors. 3. Start today.

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4. Monitor progress daily. 5. Positive reinforcement weekly.

The above two lists form part of the basis for considering what to do in the transition from manager to leader. They’re necessary, but still insufficient, to tell the story. We continue on with some of the other pieces, as articulated in Chapter 5—skills for the high-tech manager. My “Top Five” skills list in that connection were: 1. Problem solver; 2. Contingency planner; 3. People-oriented communicator; 4. Team builder; 5. Technically competent decision maker.

In considering the transition from individual contributor to manager, I defined the “Top Five” steps to be: 1. Make a conscious decision and commitment. 2. Obtain additional training and education. 3. Practice manager skills. 4. Study and talk to managers in your company or organization. 5. Seek and accept a manager position.

So now we have 17 items from the above lists to think about as representing the platform from which to launch our next journey. But we’re not quite ready to take on the elements of the journey itself without yet another consideration, namely, what should the leader of the twenty-first century look like? For that answer, I turn now to my “Top Five” list in Chapter 6 regarding general leadership themes and suggested specific attributes of a leader. The attributes from Chapter 6 are: 1. Practical visionary; 2. Inclusive communicator;

From Manager to Leader 175 3. Positive doer; 4. Renewing facilitator; 5. Principled integrator.

Figure 7.2 shows all of the 22 elements that form the foundation for moving forward. That movement is in the direction of thinking and behaving like a leader. We leave as a question for now (as shown in the figure) the precise areas to focus upon in the transition from manager to leader. That issue will be dealt with directly after we take a brief look at what some project managers look like in terms of their leadership qualities and lack thereof, and views of explicit differences between managers and leaders. 1. Make a conscious decision and commitment 2. Obtain additional training and education 3. Practice manager skills 4. Study/talk to managers 5. Seek/accept a manager position

Highperforming individual contributor

1. Recognize need area 2. Focus on new positive behaviors 3. Start today 4. Monitor progress daily 5. Positive reinforcement weekly

Attributes 1. Strong technical skills 2. Enjoys making individual contributions 3. Innovative 4. Dedicated 5. Highly intelligent

Figure 7.2

?

(Answered in this chapter, Section 7.5)

Manager

Leader a. New thought processes b. New behavior patterns

Attributes

Attributes

1. Problem solver 2. Contingency planner 3. People-oriented communicator 4. Team builder 5. Technically competent decision maker

1. Practical visionary 2. Inclusive communicator 3. Positive doer 4. Renewing facilitator 5. Principled integrator

Transitions and attributes.

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7.3 Leadership attributes of American project managers This brief detour will give us some insights into some of the leadership attributes that are possessed by a particular type of manager, that is, one that is devoted to the challenging position of managing a project. Projects, in general, can be rather small (i.e., a few people) or large (i.e., hundreds of people). The latter, of course, can be extremely demanding. Many project manager responsibilities represent the first elevation (descension?) to a manager position. In that sense, it can be the first transition from individual contributor to manager. Many stop at that point and decide to return to the ranks of the individual contributor. However, perhaps a greater number see it as an entry point into management (which it is), although it may be a seriously difficult trial by fire if the project itself has severe technical, budget, and schedule challenges [3]. Many see the project manager’s job as the place where the rubber meets the road since lots of companies are basically made up of literally hundreds of projects, each of which needs to produce the best that it can for its particular customer. If a project manager fails in this endeavor, many other successful project managers are ready, willing, and able to take on the next management position in the hierarchy, leaving the failed project manager to climb what amounts to, at that time, an even steeper incline to rise in the management chain. In a most interesting study of some 76 project managers, we can observe some profiles that relate to both management and leadership attributes [4]. All of the respondents to the survey of 76 had more than 10 years of experience as a project manager, and all worked in large architecture and engineering (A&E) firms. The first aspect we will examine from the study is the resulting list of the most significant characteristics of an effective project manager, as shown in Table 7.1, in rank order on the left side of the list. The notations of leader or manager on the right shows which of the cited positive characteristics correlate with the attributes that I’ve suggested in this book. We start out with five out of nine. Not a surprise,

From Manager to Leader 177 Table 7.1 Most Significant Characteristics of an Effective Project Manager [4] 1. Leads by example 2. A visionary

Leader (see Figure 7.2)

3. Technically competent

Manager (see Figure 7.2)

4. Decisive

Manager (see Figure 7.2)

5. A communicator

Leader and manager (see Figure 7.2)

6. A motivator 7. Stands up to upper management when necessary 8. Supports team members

Leader (see Figure 7.2)

9. Encourages new ideas

but pleased to see it. However, I found it interesting that the second rank went to a visionary. I would think that most project managers are so sharply focused on the numerous tasks at hand that they would not value too highly the notion of being a visionary. Nevertheless, the study clearly showed that result. Now we move on to another set of answers, this one showing the 12 highest rated behaviors (of our best project managers). The original study had a mean value out of a maximum of 5 listed for each of the 12. A value of 5 was defined as “absolutely essential for effectiveness.” I’ve converted them to a percent by dividing by 5. That is, the maximum possible score is now 100% and the others scale to that maximum value by a percent comparison, as in Table 7.2. Finally, at least with respect to this investigation of project managers, we come to the opposite end of the scale, namely, the lowest rated behaviors. The lowest score was “desires power”; the next lowest was “oriented to details”, and so forth, as listed in Table 7.3. Recall that all items in the above tables are evaluated with respect to the degree to which the characteristics and behavior are important in terms of the effectiveness of the project manager.

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Table 7.2 Twelve Highest Rated Behaviors [4] Score 1. Team builder

92.7%

2. Communicator

92.7%

3. High self-esteem

91.8%

4. Focuses on results

90.5%

5. Demonstrates trust

90.3%

6. Sets goals

90.1%

7. Gives respect

89.5%

8. Flexible in response to change

89.3%

9. A team player

89.1%

10. Develops employees

87.6%

11. Superior interpersonal skills

87.6%

12. Empowers subordinates

87.0%

Table 7.3 Twelve Lowest Rated Behaviors [4] 1. Desires power 2. Oriented to details 3. Thinks strategically 4. Highly structured behavior 5. Charismatic personality 6. Accepts flaws in others 7. Effective politician 8. Role model 9. Has a network of contacts 10. Accepts responsibility 11. A technical expert 12. Strong administrative skills

From Manager to Leader 179 A curiosity in these results is that being a “visionary,” even as a project manager, is the second-ranked characteristic of an effective project manager (Table 7.1). At the same time, however, “thinking strategically” has the third lowest score on the list of behavior in Table 7.3. Also, being “technically competent” is third ranked on the high side (Table 7.1) whereas in Table 7.3 the “technical expert” is 11th from the bottom. Despite these few anomalies, the study results reveal what’s important about being a project manager, in the minds of a group of project managers. The authors of this paper refer to these results, in the aggregate, as a “leadership profile.” They also state that “project managers are being viewed as pivotal leaders in … both operational and behavioral managerial changes.” There’s that word again—changes. Now let’s look at some differences between managers and leaders, and then explore what it might take to make the changes necessary to transition from a manager to a leader.

7.4 Differences between managers and leaders Perhaps the simplest and most succinct description of the difference between a manager and a leader has been expressed in the idea that managers do things right, and leaders do the right thing [5, 6]. In the latter reference, however, Warren Bennis is able to articulate many of the other ways in which managers and leaders might differ in their approach to what they do. A brief sampling of his discussion in this regard is listed in Table 7.4 [6]. Yet another view of differences is expressed in Hickman’s treatise [7] in which one of his major themes is that managers and leaders are indeed quite different, and a key challenge is to find ways to integrate the strengths of each into a more powerful, highly functioning whole. In an expansive and far-reaching discussion, Hickman explores such differences in terms of some of the items listed in Table 7.5. To Hickman, the alternative perspectives in an organization, as represented by the above, creates a tension that can be harnessed for the overall good of the enterprise.

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Table 7.4 Differences Between Managers and Leaders Managers Tend to

While Leaders Focus More on

Administer

How to innovate

Maintain

Developing something new

Rely on systems/structure

People (rather than “machines”)

Imitate

Originate (start fresh)

Rely on control

Inspiring trust

Have a shorter range view

A long-term perspective

Finally, in terms of examining some explicit differences, I can put my top five list of key attributes for a manager and a leader side-by-side (see Figure 7.2), constructing Table 7.6. These ways of describing managers and leaders, of course, suggest the question— are managers and leaders truly different people, or is it Table 7.5 Orientations of Managers and Leaders Orientation of Managers

Orientation of Leaders

Consistency

Commitment

Stability

Gets energy from a crisis

Duplicate

Originate

See complexity

See simplicity

Plan

Experiment

Fasten down

Unfasten

Refine

Revolutionize

React

Proact

From Manager to Leader 181 Table 7.6 Key Attributes of a Manager and a Leader Manager Attributes

Leader Attributes

1. Problem solver

1. Practical visionary

2. Contingency planner

2. Inclusive communicator

3. People-oriented communicator

3. Positive doer

4. Team builder

4. Renewing facilitator

5. Technically competent decision maker

5. Principled integrator

possible for the manager to grow into a leader? My answer to that question is clearly the latter, and there’s plenty of evidence that such transitions take place with great consistency and regularity as people change their perspectives. The references in this chapter to Norman Augustine and Jack Welch are two specifics at hand. So let’s now move directly into the matter of how one might specifically orchestrate the transition from manager to leader.

7.5

Transitioning from manager to leader

One of our well-known advisors in the field of management, Stephen Covey, has made the following observations [8]: ■ ■

“The main source of personal change is pain.” “If you aren’t feeling pain, there is rarely enough motivation … to change.”

In other words, the motivation to change often comes from experiencing pain on a more-or-less regular basis. In Chapter 3 here on the topic of change, this point is reinforced by: ■

The sequence “suffering, insight, will, action, change”;

182 ■

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

We can be moved to change when fears, anxieties, and stresses become too great; We change in order to quiet the anxiety and achieve a new level of balance.

Another way of looking at the same issue is to say that our investment in refusing to change (holding on to the status quo) can be so strong that we will often endure incredible levels of pain before we simply can’t stand it anymore. And why do we allow this to happen? Possibly two reasons: 1. Can’t mobilize to make some changes (insufficient discipline or

what’s commonly known as will power); 2. Fear of the unknown consequences of making these changes.

In this latter connection I’ve heard people say—what if it all gets worse rather than better if I make this or that change? These sticky matters, to a great extent, can be circumvented when addressing the issue of transitioning from manager to leader. I believe that the motivational factors, in this case, are different, that is, not rooted in the pain notion. Rather, judging from my own journeys as well as those of others that I’ve seen up close and read about, exploring the transition is viewed as a positive growth experience, with essentially no downside to worry about. The successful managers with leadership proclivities tend to flow into leadership patterns and styles. They’re motivated to move on to the next achievement, or success, or challenge, which is based, in part, upon the successes they’ve already experienced in the transition from individual contributor to manager. Many such managers find that despite their tendencies and strong motivation, they’re not able to become leaders. Either they don’t have what it takes, or they can’t get past some blockages and hurdles that can be largely circumstantial. The latter can occur, for example, with a repressive boss who maintains high levels of control. In summary, I see traveling the pathway from manager to leader as one that can be viewed distinctively and positively as a growth experience. Even if it isn’t ultimately successful, there’s much to be gained by

From Manager to Leader 183 the journey. I call your attention now to the question mark box in Figure 7.2 having to do with the matter of evolving from a manager to a leader. The specific steps that I would like to suggest in this connection are described and discussed below. 7.5.1

Address leadership issues and questions

The issues and questions to be addressed directly are revealed, in large measure, by examining and comparing the key manager attributes to the leader attributes. As a first approximation, the manager should be solid with respect to all five of the former, as shown in Table 7.6. The issues and questions that are of interest are embedded in the leader attributes (also listed in Table 7.6) as well as the movement from manager to leader attributes. An overview of some of the questions that might be of greatest importance is provided below: Practical visionary ■

Do I spend time thinking about where the enterprise should be going?

■

Am I able to articulate my vision in words?

■

Can I write down the steps necessary to get to my “vision?”

■

Are these steps achievable?

■

What adjustments need to be made to develop a balance between my vision and the various practical matters that surround the problem?

Inclusive communicator ■

Are my people-oriented communications skills that I developed as a manager sufficient to carry the day as I test my wings as a leader?

■

If not, what areas do I need to improve?

■

How can I make these improvements?

■

What are the differences between communicating as a manager and doing so as a leader?

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Am I sufficiently inclusive in my approach to communications, reaching the right people at the right time?

Positive doer ■

■ ■

■

■

Will my refocused attention on our vision and strategic position keep me from being active as a doer? If so, what must I do to make the necessary adjustments? Do I truly understand how to continue to be a “doer,” but in the new context of assuring that others are playing their proper roles as implementers? Is my approach sufficiently positive so as to motivate and serve as an appropriate role model? If not, how do I fine tune this aspect of doing?

Renewing facilitator ■

Do I consistently help my key people by removing internal barriers (as best I can) to their success?

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Do I “teach my people how to fish” or do I do the fishing for them?

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Do my people come to me for help or am I difficult to approach?

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■

If “no” to any of the above, what should I be doing to make adjustments? Am I able to inject renewing energy into my people as well as the overall enterprise when it’s necessary to do so?

Principled integrator ■

■

■

What three principles of personal and corporate behavior do I hold in the greatest regard, and also live by? Am I able to insist that my people adhere to the highest standards of behavior? Am I able to admit that I’ve made a mistake and then move on in a positive manner?

From Manager to Leader 185 ■

■

Am I able to see the company as a true interactive system of interrelated people and processes? If the answer is “no” for any of the above three, what adjustments must I make, and how do I make them?

Addressing the above and other related issues and questions will help assure that, in the journey from manager to leader, sufficient intellectual energy is put forth to make the transition truly meaningful as well as successful. 7.5.2

Find and be a mentor

As we read about leaders like Norman Augustine, Jack Welch, and others, we find that they invariably give credit to people that had great influences on them as they were developing the tools of the trade and the insights to lead large enterprises. If you trace their histories and comments, you note the impacts that mentors had upon their coming of age in the corporate world. One might even go so far as to say that without a mentor, even competent people won’t get the opportunity to show their abilities as leaders. So as you move consciously from manager to leader, I strongly recommend that you take a hard and serious look at who might serve as your mentor, helping to guide you in this often precarious journey. Such a person might well be your current boss, or in your chain of command several layers higher. Such a person should be known to you now, and you should feel as if both of you have some type of special understanding or common view of the world. This transcendent perspective is often what makes a mentor-protegé combination work—the two people have a feeling of connectedness and comfort with each other in their professional lives. At the same time as you’re looking upward for a mentor, you should also be taking someone under your wing, showing him or her the ropes, and providing the benefit of the lessons you’ve learned. This will have the positive effect of relating and reinforcing in both dimensions, that is, you as mentor and as being mentored. If you truly wish to understand this type of relationship, the best way is to be playing both

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roles simultaneously. As these roles become more beneficial and successful, you may also be able to handle a few protegés, and similarly seek more than one mentor. These relationships are likely to serve you in good stead as you develop and apply new leadership skills. Why? Because you’ll be in a better position to get good honest feedback from folks that you trust. It doesn’t, as they say, get a whole lot better than that. 7.5.3

Lead here and now

This is a suggestion designed to avoid procrastination, and help you in facing some fears you might have. If you’re a midlevel manager in some enterprise, and you’ve been successful up to now, you may well have some trepidation about taking the next step(s) toward leadership. You might well be thinking—“I’ll step up to being the leader of this group or team or division or whatever, but only after I’ve got steps 1 and 2 under my belt.” Or, “I’m not too secure about people actually taking me seriously as their leader, so I’d like to wait until I’ve … ,” you might well be thinking. “True leaders do it so effortlessly, and I feel so self-conscious about it all,” you continue to ruminate. All of the above is natural and par for the course for the person who is taking the first steps in the transition from manager to leader. After your comfort level as a manager has been established, you’re now moving to create new anxieties that you may not have experienced in some time. Reaction to anxiety? Back up a few steps. We all do it. But don’t back up out of the ball game; that won’t make it happen. So my suggestion is quite simple and follows the straightforward formula for mastering new behaviors—you get out there and try them. Like learning to ride a bicycle, it’ll take a few bumps and bruises, but no one’s yet found a substitute for being in the fray. Just don’t get up there and start flying at 200 miles per hour. Volunteer for a couple of leadership-oriented roles, or begin to show your leadership skills even as you have the security of being just a member of the group. Start with your strengths, and move slowly into new territories. If you’re having trouble, talk about it with someone you trust. Maybe that mentor has some ideas and perspectives that you haven’t yet come upon. Expect to falter a couple of times as you proceed. Watch yourself as you recover,

From Manager to Leader 187 and learn. Treat yourself with respect for your courage in moving forward. 7.5.4

Evaluate progress and make adjustments

As you move down the road, you’ll be making progress in each of the above three areas. The next natural step is to take note of this progress on a regular schedule. The suggestion here is to sit back, as the first of the month rolls around, and take the time to review what’s been happening. If what you’re doing seems to be working, keep it up. Otherwise, do some fine-tuning and adjusting. In all cases, try not to beat up on yourself about incidents that might not have gone as well as you would have liked. To make this notion somewhat more concrete, let us suppose that you’ve been working as a team member on an important project that involved several midlevel managers. The issue of the long-term future and viability of a product line has come up. You decided to use this real-world occasion to try to move forward on your leadership journey. You did this by volunteering to take on the challenge of taking the lead in trying to articulate the strategic positioning of the product line in question. You began to “lead the charge” by framing the relevant issues and forming a subset of the overall team to work the problem with you. This subteam appeared to make a lot of progress under your direction and leadership, and a couple of months down the road you made a presentation to the overall team as to your results. They were accepted by most of the team, but you noticed some distinctly negative feedback from two persons. One (Charlie) was a member of the overall team, and the other (Tom) was from your subteam. Both negative inputs were difficult to hear and felt hurtful to you. After thinking about it, you were able to put Charlie’s input into perspective. After all, with that one exception, all of the feedback from the team was positive. On the other hand, Tom’s input felt like a betrayal. As a member of your subteam, Tom gave you no prior negatives about the position you were taking. He seemed to completely support the subteam’s position and therefore his negative stance at the overall team’s meeting was a great surprise.

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This hypothetical experience shows how it’s possible to “step up” to even relatively minor leadership challenges and find that negative incidents are happening along the way. Such is the way of all flesh. In terms of this step of the transition process, it’s up to you to deal, in a hopefully balanced way, with the experience. In this case, your ultimate conclusions might be: ■

■

■

■

■

7.5.5

The leadership challenge that you undertook was mostly successful since the dominant feedback was distinctly positive. Charlie’s negative input could be taken at face value and a good follow-up action would be to talk to him, one-on-one. The fact that Charlie didn’t agree with all your results was not a statement about how poorly you were taking to the new “leadership” challenge. The fact that Tom blindsided you, and others didn’t, is probably more of a statement about Tom. You probably want to talk to him off line, and also be somewhat wary about trusting him in the future. The leadership challenge was proceeding well, and perturbations (including some negative feedback) were part of the equation. Learn, stretch, and grow

The most important part of the above “experiment” was to see that you are able to move ahead in the crucible of real-world experience and learn some lessons as you proceed. The transition from manager to leader, like just about any change process, is a learning experience. Each incident is a part of that learning activity, and needs to be thought about and acknowledged. “I’m learning how to take on the new challenges of behaving more like a leader” is the mind-set that is likely to see you through even difficult interactions. With respect to this last step, I’m reminded of a brief phrase in Chapter 3 that applies in this situation: “If we can face and ‘go into and through’ our fears, and the external forces are not too great, we can

From Manager to Leader 189 change and grow. This usually requires stretching beyond current comfort levels and giving things up along the way.” In this step we’re able to learn, to stretch, and to grow. As we stretch, and are largely successful, we learn that it’s all right to be somewhat out on a limb. The positive outcome of the stretch is to expand our horizons and capabilities, that is, to grow. In this case, growth is into the domain of the leader. Even if we experience some setbacks from time to time, it’s all worth it. Even if we aren’t able to become the leader that’s conceived of and pictured in our mind’s eye, it’s still worth it. If we now return to Figure 7.2, we’re able to fill in the question mark shown as the pathway from manager to leader. The missing pieces are the five steps I’ve just discussed. In addition, the figure shows two generic aspects of transitioning from manager to leader, namely, 1. New thought processes; 2. New behavior patterns.

The five steps discussed above will bring you through new patterns and processes in both thoughts and behaviors.

7.6

Summary—the Top Five

The transition steps in moving from the domain of a manager to that of a leader are: 1. Address leadership issues and questions; 2. Find and be a mentor; 3. Lead here and now; 4. Evaluate progress and make adjustments; 5. Learn, stretch, and grow.

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References 1. Augustine, N., Augustine’s Travels, New York: AMACOM, American Management Association, 1998. 2. Slater, R., Get Better or Get Beaten!, 31 Leadership Secrets from GE’s Jack Welch, New York: McGraw-Hill, 1994. 3. Eisner, H., Essentials of Project and Systems Engineering Management, New York: John Wiley, 1997. 4. Zimmerman, T. and Yasin, M., “A Leadership Profile of American Project Managers,” IEEE Engineering Management Review, Vol. 26, No. 4, Winter 1998, pp. 5–11. 5. Blanchard, K., “Turning the Organizational Pyramid Upside Down,” In The Leader of the Future, F. Hesselbein, M. Goldsmith, and R. Beckhard (eds), San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1996, p. 81. 6. Bennis, W., On Becoming a Leader, New York: Addison-Wesley, 1989, p. 45. 7. Hickman, C., Mind of a Manager, Soul of a Leader, New York: John Wiley, 1990. 8. Covey, S., “Three Roles of the Leader in the New Paradigm,” In The Leader of the Future, F. Hesselbein, M. Goldsmith and R. Beckhard (eds), San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1996, p. 155.

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8 Strategic Directions 8.1

What’s important in the enterprise?

The title of this section, as cited immediately above, is arguably the most important question in the entire field of management. All the observers of the corporate scene, it seems to me, come across this question at one time or another and try to grapple with the answers. This author, in this respect, is no different, although the answers are certainly different. In Chapter 4 I took a brief look at themes for corporate change, emphasizing issues and matters of change. As part of that process, I cited and explored the following: ■

Peters and Waterman’s Eight Attributes of Excellence [1];

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Ouchi’s Theory Z [2]; 193

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Pascale and Athos’ The Art of Japanese Management [3];

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Deming’s Total Quality Management [4];

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Hammer and Champy’s Business Process Reengineering [5];

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Kotter’s Why Change Efforts Fail [6];

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Senge’s Five Disciplines [7];

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Drucker’s Sins and Systematic Practices [8];

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Gorbachev’s Perestroika [9];

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Porter’s Competitive Strategy [10].

Reviewing all of the above in the context of change, I suggested two sets of results, as reiterated below: Problem solving themes for corporate change: 1. Formally embrace continuous reengineering for improvement. 2. Determine and prioritize fixes. 3. Implement the fixes. 4. Monitor results and make adjustments. 5. Assure support from the top.

Areas of focus for corporate change: 1. Look backward and forward. 2. Reexamine your strategic and tactical priorities every year. 3. Search for new opportunities and innovate. 4. Positively differentiate through performance and price. 5. Support your high performers.

Having taken these steps, it now seems important to back up and try to formally address the top-level question—What’s important

Strategic Directions 195 in the enterprise?—and to approach that matter from a strategic perspective. Translation—What are the most important strategic directions for the enterprise?

8.2

Selected corporate perspectives

Some insights into possible top-level corporate directions may be achieved by examining what several high-tech companies say about themselves. I’ve taken a look at the annual reports of the following companies (a baker’s dozen) and here are some of the perspectives they have wanted to present to their stockholders. 8.2.1

Boeing

Boeing was looking to improve profitability and claimed that it could do so “only by embracing change.” They stressed operating as a team and the importance of leadership in building a high-performance team. Part of this was reinforced by the fact that they put 22,000 people through a financial management course during that one year. The teamwork theme was also supported by their core competencies, namely: ■

Detailed customer knowledge and support;

■

Large-scale integration;

■

Lean design and manufacture.

These competencies are applied specifically in their three principal business groups of space and communications, military aircraft and missiles, and commercial airplanes. 8.2.2

Motorola

Motorola’s top-level theme was “positioning for the future” by managing change. Interestingly, both Boeing and Motorola decided to feature the notion of change, and how important it is in terms of looking to the future.

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For the year 1998, they had taken some hits and earnings went negative for the first time in five years. Nonetheless, they stressed renewal programs based upon the following four key objectives: 1. Global leadership in core businesses; 2. Total solutions through partnerships; 3. Platforms for future leadership; 4. Performance excellence.

The above are applied to their three main lines of business: communications, semiconductor products, and integrated electronic systems. 8.2.3

Kodak

I particularly liked Kodak’s one-liner on their mission, “Take Pictures. FurtherTM.” In addition, they wished to concentrate on a combination of initiatives in order to achieve growth. These initiatives were cited as: ■

Aggressive cost reduction;

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Digital products and services;

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New product introductions;

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Strategic investments;

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Joint ventures and alliances;

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Emerging markets.

The first-listed of the above can strike some level of fear in the hearts of employees as well as stockholders. Aggressive cost reduction often gets translated into large-scale layoffs, even if the company doesn’t wish to convey that message. Also, rather than standing alone, Kodak also stressed the fact that the above initiatives were considered to be a complementary set of opportunities, each supporting the other when and where appropriate.

Strategic Directions 197 8.2.4

Hewlett-Packard (HP)

This extraordinary company has been serving as a model for success for a large number of years. They declare that what customers have come to expect from HP and their partners is: “a robust information infrastructure—systems, support and applications that are powerful, available, manageable, and secure.” They then go on to explain how this is approached and achieved. One of the ways is high availability through their “5nines:5minutes” initiative. This refers to a maximum of five minutes of unplanned downtime per year, representing 99.999% uptime. Over the past generation or so, HP has been working to create a future in which “computing and measurement are pervasive—that is, universally accessible and almost infinitely adaptable to users’ needs.” HP, over the years, has clearly been one of the best run and adaptable enterprises in the high-tech community. 8.2.5

AT&T

AT&T described the previous second quarter financial results as a “low water mark,” and went on to present the messages they’d received as to what their customers want, that is, simplicity, practical solutions, and value for their money. That input helped the company define their mission, cited as: “Build shareholder value by providing ‘universal communications services’ that put our customers in touch with the people or information they need, whenever they want, wherever they are, in the form most useful to them, and at a competitive price.” This is certainly a long way down the road from the often-parodied company that had lots of trouble listening to and then responding to their customers. The company then articulated their three (strategic) priorities as: 1. Competitive costs; 2. Invest for growth in the five areas of: local services, wireless

services, Internet services, outsourcing and networking integration, and global markets; 3. Implementation of a future-proof network architecture.

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In order to achieve the above priorities, they identified four areas of interest: 1. “Focus means picking the right opportunities”; 2. “Strength means moving decisively”; 3. “Execution means everything”; 4. “Balance means making the right tradeoffs.” 8.2.6

Xerox

In Chapter 4, I spent some time looking at some of the ups and downs of Xerox. When I saw Xerox describing itself as “The Document Company,” some inner voice in me objected and said “they’re moving backward.” Their 1997 Annual Report had the same document company on the front page, but happily, at the top of that page was the special note “Gone digital!” I was pleased to see it. Here are some additional perspectives from Xerox: ■

■

The company is a global enterprise that offers the “widest array of document-related business solutions, products and services in the industry”; Their strategic intent (mission) is to be “the leader in the global document market providing document solutions that enhance business productivity”;

■

Their two core objectives are growth and productivity;

■

Other areas of emphasis include: Their reliance on technology and research; A customer-first attitude; Their commitment to quality (won the Baldrige Award in 1997).

8.2.7

Lucent

Lucent is in the communications networking business, from data traffic to wireless systems to optical networking. As they suggest,

Strategic Directions 199 communications networking is about “how voice and data, optical, wireless, software and semiconductor technologies are redefining what’s possible in communications.” Lucent claims that its holistic approach to networking is their specialty and that no one understands better how to make networks operate and work together. They know how to build networks and keep them at peak performance, thus “earning our customers’ trust.” They’ve also intensified their attack on global markets, a growth goal of the company. 8.2.8

AlliedSignal

AlliedSignal shows a seven year pattern of consistent growth in earnings per share emphasizing the importance of growth and productivity. They claim: ■

A competitive advantage through a culture of learning;

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More and better employee and customer satisfaction;

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It’s easier for customers to do business with them;

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Recent large acquisitions have been home runs;

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Continuous renewal serves as a major competitive advantage;

Their overall strategy is focused upon: ■

Gaining market share with high-value proprietary products;

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Continuous improvements in productivity;

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Penetrating new markets through niche acquisitions.

The overall orientation of the company is revealed by emphasizing the following: ■

Having a culture of continuous renewal;

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Developing growth markets;

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Leveraging technical expertise;

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■

Rebuilding out-of-date processes;

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Helping their people grow;

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Launching new products;

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Promoting technological efficiency.

8.2.9

DuPont

DuPont, putting forth the proposition that they are a “science company,” believes that they are without peer in integrating scientific knowledge into valuable commercial applications needed by their customers. And there’s lots of evidence, over the years, of their ability to do exactly that. After a less than wonderful year, DuPont had as its objectives a faster growing, more profitable, and less cyclical company that needed to accomplish the following five things: 1. Exit the energy business area; 2. Strengthen differentiated businesses; 3. Reshape its businesses that compete in mature markets; 4. Establish a more advantageous position in life sciences; 5. Drive productivity by means of “Six Sigma.”

The latter, Six Sigma, is a program for achieving very high quality in one’s products. It was pioneered by Motorola and has been advanced by many companies, notably AlliedSignal and General Electric, with respect to those discussed here. 8.2.10

Enron

Enron, a Texas-based company, has the following attached to their logo: Natural gas. Electricity. Endless possibilitiesTM

Not what we would think of as necessarily a “high-tech” company, they have lots of technology that makes the enterprise go. They focus on their values as critical to the company’s success:

Strategic Directions 201 ■

Respect—essentially the “golden rule”;

■

Integrity—open, honest, and sincere interactions;

■

Communication—taking the time to talk and to listen;

■

Excellence—satisfied with nothing less than being the best.

8.2.11

Schlumberger

Schlumberger launched its “Performed by Schlumberger” program which was based upon the following Schlumberger Promise: Every person in Schlumberger is committed to deliver the best possible performance—anytime, anywhere. Our culturally diverse teams innovate to create new standards of excellence that surpass our customers’ expectations. At Schlumberger, what matters is getting the job done right.

Rather concise, but with a clear message. The above program recognizes people for delivery of a product or service that fulfills this promise. The highest level of achievement carries with it a concrete award that all employees may strive for. The program declares the company’s pledge to be a leader in everything they do. 8.2.12

General Electric (GE)

Placing GE on the list reflects only my admiration for the way in which they’ve managed to grow and improve the company under the stewardship of Jack Welch. Here are some statistics cited in their Annual Report that year (1998): ■

Revenues up 11% to $100.5 billion;

■

Earnings increased 13% to $9.3 billion;

■

Earnings per share up 14% to $2.80;

■

Operating margin rose to a record 16.7%;

■

Performance generated $10 billion in free cash flow;

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■

Dividends raised by 17%;

■

Total return on a share of GE stock was 41%.

The report defines the GE culture as one that “values the contributions of every individual, thrives on learning, thirsts for the better idea, and has the flexibility and speed to put the better idea into action every day.” GE believes that its commitment to learning as well as its ability to act quickly upon that learning gives the company an “insurmountable and sustainable competitive advantage” in its three major growth initiatives, namely: 1. Globalization; 2. Product services; 3. Six Sigma quality.

GE’s impressive performance led to the company being named Fortune magazine’s “most admired company in America.” 8.2.13

Microsoft

It’s hard to resist a brief citation of some information on Microsoft, especially when you go to the trouble of retrieving their Annual Report for 1999. Bill Gates’ picture (with more than a substantial smile) appears opposite the Financial Highlights, which shows steady (some might say relentless) and large growth patterns in all of the following from 1995 through 1999: ■

Revenue;

■

Net income;

■

Diluted earnings per share;

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Cash and short-term investments;

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Total assets;

■

Stockholders’ equity.

Here are some of the technical themes that Microsoft conveys:

Strategic Directions 203 ■

Accelerating change in the software industry, moving to a “PCPlus” world emphasizing connectivity, scalability, and simplicity;

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High connectivity through the Internet;

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Support the deployment of high-speed broadband networks;

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Provide integrated solutions;

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Managing knowledge;

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Customer-centric thinking, with products easier to use;

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Empowering people through great software.

Along with the above, Mr. Gates highlights the fact that the company plans to spend $3.8 billion in fiscal 2000 on research and development (R & D) for the products of tomorrow. Any questions? 8.2.14

Summary of company thrusts

Based upon the above, we are able to construct a sample list of the thrusts that were cited by these companies. This list is shown in Table 8.1. Each of the above items represents a thrust articulated by one or more of the enterprises briefly discussed above. In that context, they are candidates for our own list of what might be important in terms of strategic directions for any enterprise. In particular, I will be taking them into account when I formulate my own list of strategic directions that form the last significant section of this chapter.

8.3

Other models of what’s important

As suggested at the beginning of this chapter, the issue of what it is that’s most important in the enterprise will likely be with us for the entire duration of the twenty-first century. And as times change (there’s that word again) we might expect that our priorities as to what’s most important are likely to shift. The “futurists” have provided their input (see Chapter 2) and the continuous observers have provided theirs (see Chapters 4 and 6) and now we’re rapidly approaching the

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Table 8.1 Summary of Thrusts Cited by Selected Companies Embracing and managing change

Moving decisively

Building high performance teams

Acting quickly

Performance/execution excellence

Globalization

Establishing core competencies

Key acquisitions

New products in emerging markets

Increasing productivity

Investing in growth markets

Process rebuilding

Selecting the right opportunities

Commitment to quality

Assuring market share

Extremely high availability

Balance and correct tradeoffs

Strengthening differentiation

Partnering, joint ventures, alliances

Continuous renewal

Cost reduction and competitiveness

Flexibility

Robust information system infrastructures

Innovative ideas

Satisfying customer needs and wants

Respect

Employee satisfaction and growth

Integrity

Communication

Being a leader

Providing integrated solutions

Managing knowledge

Customer-centric thinking

Empowering people

Leveraging through technology and research

time to try to summarize our key points in this regard. But first, I’d like to point to a few perspectives that might be of interest. 8.3.1

Drucker

If an enterprise is to be led by a leader, or several leaders, then the focus needs to be on doing the right things (the province of a leader) in contrast with doing things right (the domain of the manager). Peter Drucker

Strategic Directions 205 reinforces that point by posing it as the first question that a leader would ask [11], namely: “what needs to be done?” From there, the relevant issues become: ■

How can I make a difference?

■

What are the mission and goals of the enterprise?

■

■

What is it that constitutes performance and results? (Drucker has always been results-oriented.) Are my people up to the highest levels of performance, standards, and values?

In short, Drucker sees the leader as helping to clarify the mission and goals of the enterprise, and then being absolutely clear about performance (results), standards, and values. A very compact way of describing what’s important, at the top level of the organization. 8.3.2

The seven S’s

Both Peters and Waterman [1] as well as Pascale and Athos [3] point to a model that implicitly defines what’s important in the enterprise. It’s the “Seven S’s” model consisting of: 1. Strategy; 2. Structure; 3. Skills; 4. Systems; 5. Style; 6. Staff; 7. Shared values (or superordinate goals).

This framework, attributed to McKinsey & Company, was also briefly discussed previously in Chapter 4, Section 4.3.3, “The art of Japanese management.”

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This model is basically a construction that answers the question—what’s important in any enterprise? What’s important, in this context, are all of the seven S’s, and by declaration these seven items become the centerpiece of the company’s main agenda. In most organizations, that main agenda is also called its “strategic direction.” In other words, the company needs to figure out what position it will take in the years ahead, with respect to each and every one of these seven areas. So much for one view of the enterprise. 8.3.3

The balanced scorecard

Another view of “what’s important” is embodied in the model known as the “balanced scorecard” [12]. This scorecard, cited as well in Chapter 9, refers to four key aspects of what a company does, namely: 1. Financial; 2. Internal business process; 3. Customer; 4. Learning and growth.

When taken together with the company’s vision and strategy, they comprise a framework to convert the overall strategy into operational terms. The claim is that the scorecard “complements financial measures of past performance with measures of the drivers of future performance.” As such, the balanced scorecard then becomes a full-blown strategic management system that can be used to: ■

Gain consensus regarding the overall strategy;

■

Convey the agreed-upon strategy throughout the enterprise;

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Identify specific strategic initiatives;

■

Connect objectives to schedules and budgets;

■

Facilitate strategy reviews and realignments.

The developers of the balanced scorecard are extremely clear as to the answer to the question, What’s important in our enterprises? In the

Strategic Directions 207 most succinct terms, the answer is the four basic elements (i.e., financial, internal business process, customer, and learning and growth) and their interconnection through the enterprise’s vision and strategy. 8.3.4

Balance in our enterprises

Yet another view of balance as a model of corporate behavior (i.e., what’s important) can be found in some work done, in part, by this author [13, 14]. The basic notion is simply that there are only three fundamental things that are done by an enterprise, namely: 1. Providing its products and services (PAS); 2. Marketing those products and services (MKT); 3. Managing the overall enterprise (MNG).

In terms of this view, the conjecture (to be tested) was that in order for an enterprise to be excellent over the long haul, these three aspects had to be “in balance” (shown metaphorically in Figure 8.1).

MNG MKT PAS

Figure 8.1

Balancing product and service, marketing, and management.

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This hypothesis was explored in some detail in an enterprise that, by all reasonable measures, was indeed an excellent company over about a 30-year period. Several specific methods of measurement did not support that hypothesis, but the amount of time that people appeared to spend in each of the three areas was supportive. Beyond that particular study, other aspects of looking for “balance” in the enterprise remain an interesting notion [14]. The main questions of interest are: ■

■

■

■

Is “balance” itself an important concept? How is balance to be measured? (This author made the measurement with a questionnaire of 48 pairs of statements—see Chapter 9.) Does it mean that the variables that make up balance need to be demonstrably “in balance” in order for the enterprise to be successful? What would constitute a condition of being significantly “out of balance?”

8.4 Five strategic directions for any enterprise Taking this chapter’s previous discussion into account, as well as the themes from Chapter 4, I would like now to suggest five overall strategic directions for the enterprise that: ■

Synthesize the various thrusts already cited;

■

Apply to essentially all high-tech enterprises;

■

Are independent of the particular business areas of the enterprise, for example, it doesn’t matter whether you’re making airplanes or computer software.

These directions are constructed under the following five top-level categories:

Strategic Directions 209 1. Internal perspectives; 2. People; 3. Systems; 4. Differentiation and leverage; 5. External perspectives.

It is believed that these areas cover all of the ground represented by the balanced scorecard, but look at the enterprise through a different prism. In effect, they’re this author’s answer to the key question—What is it that’s of central importance to the enterprise? 8.4.1

Internal perspectives

The first of my five strategic directions for any enterprise deals with internal perspectives, especially those that are concerned with the focus of the leadership moving forward from where they are today. This focus is maintained and nurtured by constant attention to two main areas, namely: 1. Vision; 2. Culture.

Neither of these two notions is new in this book, nor are they new in our corporate enterprises. It’s simply that when all is said and done, they remain as two long poles in the strategic tent, and set the tone for much that occurs from an internal perspective. They also strongly influence just about every other strategic activity. That “vision thing,” as George Bush exclaimed one day, is a key strategic driver of the enterprise. If the vision is right, and correctly articulated (half of the battle), literally everyone in the enterprise lines up his or her energy behind such a vision. This colinearity creates enormous power and moves the company forward at a great rate and in the desired direction. A strong vision that is subscribed to brings the people closer to a personal identification with the most positive aspects of what the enterprise is trying to do. Some aspects of their visions were

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expressed by the thirteen companies previously cited in this chapter, and include such notions as: ■

Global leadership in core businesses;

■

Total solutions through partnerships;

■

Simple, practical, and high value solutions for customers;

■

The leader in the global document market;

■

Penetrating new markets through niche acquisitions;

■

Maintaining a robust information infrastructure.

A half-step behind the vision is the culture of the company in the sense that the culture is what it will take, in broad terms, to fulfill the vision. It’s the leadership saying—if we have in mind to be one of the top two companies in the field of (fill in blank A), then we need for our culture to have the following dimensions (fill in blank B). Some candidates for blank A include, as examples: ■

Wireless communications;

■

Automobiles;

■

Small computers;

■

Worldwide networks;

■

Commercial aircraft;

■

Integrated electronics.

Some culture dimensions (blank B candidates) might be: ■

Integrity and honesty;

■

Outstanding customer support;

■

The learning organization and continuous renewal;

■

Creating growth and opportunity;

■

Commitment to quality;

Strategic Directions 211 ■

Values the contributions of every individual;

■

Getting the job done right.

You can expect additional and more specific attention to these internal perspectives of vision and culture in the next chapter that deals with performance levels and measurements within the enterprise. 8.4.2

People

I’m reminded of an incident in one of my old companies with respect to this all-encompassing topic. One of my vice presidents was having a bad time and we managed to sit down together over a cup of coffee to discuss what was wrong and what might be done to solve the problem. It turned out that all aspects of the problem were directly traceable not to technical issues, but to people issues. My vice president was trying so hard to keep everyone happy (which, we were discovering, was not possible) he was driving himself into the dumps. Finally, he said, “You know, everything in our company would be just fine, if it weren’t for our goldarned people!” A nod of acknowledgement and a long moment of silence followed. People, of course, make it all happen—both the good and the bad. In the final analysis if it’s the bad that’s happening, it’s still the responsibility of the leadership to turn that around. If it’s the good that’s happening, everyone can take the credit, not just the leadership. It’s a nonsymmetric system. And of all the people issues, two stand out with respect to strategic directions: ■

High performance teams;

■

Accountability and rewards.

Today’s world tends to be internally powered by the high performance team (HPT) concept and reality. Building a high performance team is the ultimate in empowerment, assuming the results of the team effort are heeded. All of it is based upon giving the team essentially full responsibility for solving a key problem and backing them up with the appropriate levels of authority.

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HPTs are fast moving problem solvers that jump over hurdles and decimate bureaucratic obstacles, demonstrating as they go that it’s really possible to make progress, even within an enormous enterprise. The HPTs are moving at the speed and leading edge of change. They’re showing all of us that it can be done, and how to do it. They’re living and breathing counterexamples to those who complain that there are too many obstacles to moving forward in this enterprise. Their demonstrable success is infectious. The HPT creates new energy in those that see it operating. It multiplies and leverages the theme and reality of achievement. On the other side of the people equation is the critical issue (actually, set of issues) of accountability and rewards. In a bureaucratic environment, people often learn that, in the final analysis, there’s approximately zero accountability. This is a real killer since it lets everyone know that it really doesn’t matter whether or not they put forth the effort to try to succeed. They can fail and there are essentially no consequences. Coupling accountability with an appropriate system of rewards is well known as the solution that works. People are held accountable for getting the job done, and they’re amply rewarded for doing so. The system is finely tuned for a success orientation. People earn the rewards through their high achievements rather than political favors. They’re not given gifts just for hanging around and living through another year of lackluster performance. As with the first strategic direction of internal perspectives, this one dealing with people will be addressed in more detail in the next chapter. 8.4.3

Systems

This strategic direction is one of the seven S’s alluded to in Section 8.3.2. Systems are defined in the broadest terms here to include all of the “how” we do business, the infrastructure that supports the “how,” and all of the explicit as well as implicit processes that breathe life into the “how.” This systems direction basically says that we need to understand what our systems are today, and be committed to continuous improvement and reengineering of these systems such that they are pushing the state-of-the-art all the time. The two key aspects of such a strategic perspective are:

Strategic Directions 213 1. Continuous improvement and reengineering; 2. The learning organization.

The first of the above means that the enterprise has signed up to the realities of continuous improvement at the deepest levels in the organization. Everyone is thinking about and motivated to improve the systems with which they interact or are a part of. Everyone is able to gain some measure of satisfaction from seeing the system work better today than it did yesterday. Everyone is seeing that they’re able to make a difference in a very concrete way. At the same time, and clearly related to continuous improvement and reengineering, is the fact that the enterprise has become a true learning organization. In the fast-paced technology-driven world in which we all find ourselves (take another look at Chapter 2), we aren’t able to be effective at improvements and reengineering unless we have the skills to do so. This doesn’t happen by itself. The enterprise must accept it as a key strategic direction. The enterprise must assure that it becomes, and maintains itself, as a learning organization. Only by doing so will it be able to meet the serious and continuous challenges of keeping its systems up and running at world-class levels. So, the enterprise’s systems become the third major category of its five strategic directions. 8.4.4

Differentiation and leverage

I’ve become convinced, over the years, that a short form description of what a business enterprise is all about is embodied in the phrase “creating leverage.” These two simple words may indeed be the most important of all, but my experience tells me that this perspective is only sometimes truly appreciated. This is especially true when one considers the various dimensions of leverage, to include financial leverage and wealth as well as technical, management, and competitive leverage. Perhaps the ultimate in leverage is expressible by the reality that Microsoft has been building software packages (Windows, Office, take your pick) once, has very little tooling and manufacturing costs (compared to a Boeing when it’s building airplanes), and then is able to sell a zillion copies. “Make once, sell many times” is hardly a new formula for

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success. But in a services-driven economy many companies still don’t quite understand how that works. A close companion to creating leverage is that of differentiation, also a multidimensional notion. Technical performance and price are the two most-often cited differentiators, but others such as customer service and satisfaction are clearly part of the overall equation. Tomes have been written that are devoted to only these subjects, all reinforcing the importance of market differentiation. Suffice it to say for now that it is indeed critical to understanding and setting strategic directions for the enterprise. As such, differentiation and leverage become the fourth of the five key strategic areas within any organization. 8.4.5

External perspectives

This, of course, is the other pole to the first strategic direction of internal perspectives. It is outer-directed, trying to make sure that the enterprise maintains its sharp focus and understanding of what the world external to the enterprise is all about. The first critical aspect of the external world is clearly the customer. Everything we do is for the customer, and losing sight of that focus will ultimately lead to disaster. If we take another look at our company thrust list in Table 8.1 we are quickly reminded of the central fact that we’re doing all of it, every single bit of it, toward the goal of satisfying our current and future customers. Even though this feels a bit like preaching to the choir, there are still some echoes in my mind of that restaurant that responded to my complaint of bad service with “customers like you we don’t need.” I don’t know if they were right, but I do know that I never returned to find out. I wonder how many others had the same experience. The other image I continue to conjure up in this regard is the first time I saw the “customer” take front and center stage on the cover of Business Week. “It’s about time,” I thought, probably missing all the earlier times they had done so that I failed to notice. But it felt as if, in the 1980s, U.S. industry finally came to terms with the notion that whereas the customer may not always be right, the customer is still king (or queen, as the situation might reflect).

Strategic Directions 215 The second aspect of external perspectives that I believe to be critically important is the competition that you’re facing, both now and into the future. Every company truly needs a counterintelligence force, or a red team versus its internal blue team, to really study and understand in depth what its competitors are doing. Failure to do so might mean that you get seriously blindsided one day and then wonder how you got so close to the brink. Numerous examples abound, from the Japanese forays into the automobile and copier markets, to changing patterns and responses in the computer and software industries (take another look at Wang Labs and DEC). Too many companies get completely wound around their own axles (internal activities) and can’t see the train wreck coming (the competition). Part of the reason for this might well reside in one of the “five deadly sins” that Peter Drucker reminds us to steer clear of [8], namely, “feeding problems and starving opportunities.” If we’re completely engrossed in the many internal problems that we seem to have, we may well lose our ability to see the external world clearly from the viewpoint of both opportunity for us to seize as well as opportunity foregone (but captured by our competition). Being outerdirected in terms of customer and competitor helps us to guard against this (and other) deadly sins, and forms the foundation for the fifth aspect of my suggested strategic agenda.

8.5

Summary—Top Five strategic directions

In summary, my top five critical strategic directions for any enterprise are: 1. Internal perspectives; 2. People; 3. Systems; 4. Differentiation and leverage; 5. External perspectives.

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Key strategic directions for the enterprise

1. Internal perspectives

2. People

1.1 Vision

2.1 HPTs 2.2 Accountability and rewards

1.2 Culture

Figure 8.2

5. External perspectives

3. Systems

4. Differentiation and leverage 4.1 Innovation 3.1 Continuous improvement 4.2 Responsiveness and reengineering 3.2 The learning organization

5.1 Customer 5.2 Competitors

The strategic directions structure.

Areas of specific focus for each of the above, as discussed in this chapter, are shown as well in the diagram of Figure 8.2. This deliberately concise treatment of the above directions will be expanded upon, primarily in terms of a specific measurement structure, in Chapter 9 that follows immediately.

References 1. Peters, T. and R. Waterman, Jr., In Search of Excellence, New York: Warner Books, 1982. 2. Ouchi, W., Theory Z, New York: Avon Books, 1981. 3. Pascale, R. and A. Athos, The Art of Japanese Management, New York: Warner Books, 1981. 4. Deming, W. Edwards, Quality, Productivity, and Competitive Position, Cambridge, MA: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Center for Advanced Engineering Study, 1982.

Strategic Directions 217 5. Hammer, M. and J. Champy, Reengineering the Corporation, New York: HarperCollins, 1993. 6. Kotter, J., Leading Change, Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press, 1996. 7. Senge, P., The Fifth Discipline, New York: Doubleday/Currency, 1990. 8. Drucker, P., Managing in a Time of Great Change, New York: Truman Talley Books/Plume, 1995. 9. Gorbachev, M., Perestroika, New York: Harper & Row, 1987. 10. Porter, M., Competitive Strategy, New York: The Free Press, 1980. 11. Drucker, P., “Not Enough Generals Were Killed,” In The Leader of the Future, by Hesselbein, F., M. Goldsmith, and R. Beckhard (eds), San Francisco, CA; Jossey-Bass, 1996. 12. Kaplan, R. and D. Norton, The Balanced Scorecard, Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press, 1996. 13. Eisner, H. and M. Stankosky, A Case Study of Company Perceptions and Attributes, American Society of Engineering Management (ASEM), 18th Annual Conference, October 23–26, 1997, Virginia Beach, VA. 14. Eisner, H., Balance in Our Technology Enterprises: A New Perspective, IEEE Engineering Management Society, IEMC ‘98 Proceedings, May 3–5, 1999, San Juan, Puerto Rico.

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9 Enterprise Performance Levels 9.1

Introduction

Chapter 8 identified, in a qualitative manner, key strategic directions for any enterprise. This chapter focuses on a quantitative approach to measuring the performance levels of the enterprise in relation to these specific strategic directions. It’s the difference between saying that a baseball team needs to know how to pitch, field, and hit (three qualitative capabilities) and that its actual performance levels for the season have been (as average values) a pitching earned run average (ERA) of 3.2, a fielding average of .920, and a hitting average of .270 (quantitative performance levels). One says what’s important qualitatively; the other makes the quantitative measurement. This is the second chapter in Part 4 of this book dealing with reengineering your enterprise. The emphasis, therefore, is what you might be 219

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able to do, as a leader in your enterprise, to establish new strategic directions, or reinforce the directions that are already in place, if appropriate and successful. The recommended strategic directions were defined in Chapter 8 (see Figure 8.2) and are reiterated here below in Table 9.1. There are five key strategic directions listed below and two subordinate areas for each. The new perspective examined in some detail in this chapter is the notion that the levels of performance for each of the above can be appropriately defined and measured. As this is carried out, everyone in the enterprise knows and understands where it stands, and hopefully is motivated to improve performance in a concrete and measurable way. As this occurs, success builds upon itself, and the organization is able to move forward in demonstrable terms for all to see as well as to experience. A very straightforward example of this is demonstrated in the annual report of just about every company that produces such a public document. For example, in Chapter 8, I cited information that I obtained directly from the annual reports of 13 companies. These same reports showed quantitative graphs of, as a minimum, the last several years of revenues as well as earnings (is the slope up or down?). Table 9.1 Strategic Directions for the Enterprise 1. Internal perspectives

Vision Culture

2. People

High performance teams (HPTs) Accountability and rewards

3. Systems

Continuous improvement and reengineering The learning organization

4. Differentiation and leverage

Innovation Responsiveness

5. External perspectives

Customers Competitors

Enterprise Performance Levels 221 Other quantitative data provided included earnings per share, operating margin, working capital, free cash flow, return on investment, year-end stock price, economic value added, and various growth rates. This information tells the employees as well as the stockholders both the good and the bad news (although there’s much “spin” that buries most of the latter). Enormous efforts, at all levels in the company, are put forth toward the objective of “making the numbers.” And no company wants to have to show, as Motorola did, for example, in their 1998 Annual Report, negative numbers for earnings as well as return on average invested capital.

9.2

Measurements

As stated above, we are interested in this chapter in measuring the performance levels of the enterprise with respect to its key strategic directions. By doing so, we will hopefully be better able to: ■

■

■

Ascertain where we stand at any point in time (e.g., are we meeting all our strategic goals and objectives?); Decide where to move forward in order to improve our situation (e.g., in what strategic areas are we lagging behind?); Take the necessary steps to increase our performance effectiveness (e.g., what new resources need to be applied to the problems we’re having, and when?).

The previous chapter alluded to a few instances of measurement within the corporate enterprise. In particular, the following specific cases were briefly explored: ■

The balanced scorecard;

■

Balance between product and service, marketing, and management.

To these, I will be adding six additional perspectives in this chapter: 1. The general notion of measurement;

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2. The monthly measurements notion that is widely accepted in

various companies; 3. General measurement frameworks;

4. The Baldrige Award measurement framework; 5. The Capability Maturity Model (CMM); 6. The TEAM-SD measurement framework, which forms the last

topic of this chapter.

9.2.1

General notions of measurement

In the physical sciences it is more-or-less axiomatic that you don’t know very much about a subject unless you can begin to make some concrete and repeatable measurements. When it comes to matters of building and growing a world-class enterprise, there’s a lot that’s measurable but also much that is very difficult to measure, at least in the sense of absolutely repeatable results. Nonetheless, we continue to try, and to devise experiments that hopefully give us additional insight into the behavior of complex entities such as businesses. One excellent example of making simple but effective measurements lies in the field of project management. In this domain, to which so much of what goes on in our organizations can be traced, we are constantly making measurements of the three classical dimensions of a project [1]: 1. Schedule; 2. Cost; 3. Performance.

The first two, in principle, are the simplest as we normally determine current status and compare to where our plan tells us we ought to be. In the latter case, the measurements can be much more difficult as we attempt to see if we are meeting specification across all the technical dimensions of the project requirements. Without going into great detail in this arena, which is covered by an extensive literature [2, 3],

Enterprise Performance Levels 223 we have fully embraced various notions and specifics relative to measurement in the context of project management. 9.2.2

Monthly measurements

Another extremely important idea relative to making measurements in the enterprise is that of monthly measurements. I first ran into this notion when, as a young project manager, I was asked to brief a vice president in my company as to the status of an important project that I was working on. I later discovered that it was standard operating procedure for the vice presidents to present the status of all business units to the president and his or her staff each and every month. When I became a VP, I joined the parade of folks who engaged in that rather well-defined behavior. When I got to take on the mantle of president of two systems and software companies, I continued to follow the ritual. I found it to be a most useful mechanism, satisfying the condition that an executive from IBM once declared—“don’t expect what you don’t inspect.” Harold Geneen of ITT (see Chapter 4) certainly was a leader in implementing that philosophy and monthly measurements has become the way in which most companies do their inspections. As to what is actually quantified and discussed during monthly measurements, here’s a short list that will probably seem familiar even if you haven’t seen it before [4]: ■

Revenues;

■

Profits (or losses);

■

Bookings and backlog;

■

Status of key projects (the direct project management connection);

■

Status of bids on new contracts;

■

Personnel issues;

■

Problems and how they’re being resolved;

■

Special risk areas;

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■

Schedules for future key milestones;

■

Important meetings with customers;

■

Up and down trends;

■

Progress on tactical as well as strategic initiatives.

Over the years, I’ve certainly been party to large numbers of monthly measurement sessions, some rather heated and even threatening. If a business unit is doing poorly, it’s clearly no fun to have to get up and explain, one more time and often in excruciating detail, why you’re in trouble and the plans you have for getting back on track. Enough negative reports, of course, lead to being relieved from having to do all this. That’s one short form definition of big time stress on the job. The relentless measurements, month after month, also show a variety of differences about how people think about numbers and their presentation. For example, my controller in one of my companies started out showing many viewgraphs of very dense spreadsheets of rows and columns of numbers. Accountants are trained that way—hundreds of numbers in rows and columns. However, as an engineer (and manager), I was trained to look at graphs and plots. As a result, it took me about three months to get my controller to convert her spreadsheets into graphs. Very few people, I claim, can see trends from rows and columns of numbers. With a graph, such trends almost jump off the page at you. To this day I take some delight in telling folks that I discovered what accountants can do that engineers can’t, that is, they can see trends in a dense spreadsheet of rows and columns of numbers (the good ones claim they can). I’ve tried and for me it’s in the category of just plain too hard to do. And why even try with a plotting capability built in to our automated spreadsheets? In any case, it certainly seems that the monthly measurement process is here to stay and that it represents a type of “backbone” relative to how business is carried out today, and projected into the future. What we measure and give emphasis to from month to month is likely to shift and change, but the basic notion is well accepted and deeply ingrained.

Enterprise Performance Levels 225 9.2.3

Other general measurement frameworks

Another general measurement framework relevant to the corporate scene, in several areas, is the simple evaluation and scoring system exemplified by the leadership test presented in Section 6.4. This type of framework normally lists some number (in the above case, 20) of statements and asks the evaluator to select a score for each. The scores are well defined in terms of their meaning and the sum of the scores constitutes the overall assessment. This sum is then associated with some overall theme and set of conclusions. For example, in the above leadership quiz, the final scores were associated with various anticipated abilities to provide leadership. This is a typical structure for such a scheme. Another general measurement idea is carried forth in questionnaires in which one is asked to select the statement, from among two, that appears to be most true or appropriate. This set of pairwise comparisons is ultimately used to construct a numerical score, based upon the various selections that are made. For example, in the study of corporate balance referred to in Chapter 8 (Section 8.3.4), we were interested in determining the balance in the company between product and service (PAS),marketing (MKT), and management (MNG). Sample statements that were candidates for selection were [4]: ■

■

■

For product and service (PAS) We have specific and well-funded programs for new product (or service) development. Personnel who develop and deliver key products (or services) are held in high esteem and are well-rewarded. For marketing (MKT) Our marketing and sales organizations have a lot of clout. Our company is primarily oriented to marketing and sales. For management (MNG) We spend considerable amounts of money to train our managers. Our company is clearly run by the main line organization.

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These types of statements convey the flavor of constructing a pairwise comparison evaluation system, the results of which are scores for each of the three categories of product and service, marketing, and management. Since they are always being evaluated against one another, when one gains a point, another loses the opportunity to do so. In the specific study referred to in Chapter 8, a balanced score was 16-16-16, and the sum of the scores had to total 48 in all cases. The referenced paper [4] shows the results of using such an approach to make quantitative measurements. 9.2.4

The Baldrige Award measurement framework

The Baldrige Award refers to the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award [5] given to companies that demonstrate sufficiently high scores in some seven main award categories related to quality, as listed below, and with subcategories as shown in Table 9.2. The numerical percentage that each of the above represents, with respect to the overall maximum score, is also noted above. A maximum score of 1,000 points is achievable, as Table 9.2 indicates. Thus, the company is assessed in 33 subcategories to see what the levels of performance are in each of them. The value of the above notion, as well as the specific measurement framework, is readily apparent. Through a numerical scoring system, everyone is able to see, in quantitative terms, where the company stands. It is also possible to determine how much further it might need to go in order to make improvements. All the areas are well defined; there’s little room for ambiguity and lack of understanding. The only remaining question is—does the company wish to make the commitment to higher levels of achievement? If so, the directions for moving forward are rather clear. Measurement tends to provide such clarity since you know there’s a shortfall somewhere and how much that shortfall is. 9.2.5

The Capability Maturity Model (CMM)

The Capability Maturity Model (CMM) was developed by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) of the Carnegie Mellon University

Enterprise Performance Levels 227 Table 9.2 Baldrige Quality Award Measurement Framework Examination Categories/Items

Maximum Points

1. Leadership

100

1.1 Senior executive leadership

30

1.2 Quality values

20

1.3 Management for quality

30

1.4 Public responsibility

20

2. Information and analysis

60

2.1 Scope and management of quality data and information

35

2.2 Analysis of quality data and information

25

3. Strategic quality planning

90

3.1 Strategic quality planning process

40

3.2 Quality leadership indicators in planning

25

3.3 Quality priorities

25

4. Human resource utilization

150

4.1 Human resources management

30

4.2 Employee involvement

40

4.3 Quality of education and training

40

4.4 Employee recognition and performance measurement

20

4.5 Employee well-being and morale

20

5. Quality assurance of products and services

150

5.1 Design and introduction of quality products and services

30

5.2 Process and quality control

25

5.3 Continuous improvement of processes, products, and services

25

5.4 Quality assessment

15

5.5 Documentation

10

5.6 Quality assurance, quality assessment, and quality improvement of support services and business processes

25

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Table 9.2 Baldrige Quality Award Measurement Framework (Continued) Maximum Points

Examination Categories/Items 5.7 Quality assurance, quality assessment, and quality improvement of suppliers

20

6. Quality results

150

6.1 Quality of products and services

50

6.2 Comparison of quality results

35

6.3 Business process, operational and support service quality improvement

35

6.4 Supplier quality improvement

30

7. Customer satisfaction

300

7.1 Knowledge of customer requirements and expectations

50

7.2 Customer relationship management

30

7.3 Customer service standards

20

7.4 Commitment to customers

20

7.5 Complaint resolution for quality improvement

30

7.6 Customer satisfaction determination

50

7.7 Customer satisfaction results

50

7.8 Customer satisfaction comparison

50 Total Points

1000

(CMU) [6], originally to measure the degree to which various enterprises (industry, government, and so forth) were capable of building good software. The CMM was also extended from the arena of software to other areas such as systems, acquisition practices, personnel, and others. This is well worth noting since it shows that a good idea can often be extended into parallel domains with relative ease and considerable success.

Enterprise Performance Levels 229 The original construction of the software CMM was focused upon five levels of capability, as listed below: ■

Level 1—initial level;

■

Level 2—repeatable level;

■

Level 3—defined level;

■

Level 4—managed level;

■

Level 5—optimizing level.

Central to the model is the fact that a series of “Key Process Areas” (KPAs) were defined for each of the above levels. This overall structure is shown in Table 9.3. Thus, the model is showing that a total of 18 KPAs need to be mastered in order to move to the top (optimizing) level. The model is cumulative, meaning that as an enterprise progresses through the levels, it is necessary to maintain the prior capabilities that were mastered and not regress or lose them. A company with an informal approach to developing software would start out at the “initial” level. In order to move to Level 2, the repeatable level, it needs to master the six key process areas for that level listed in Table 9.3. Moving on to Level 3 (defined level), another seven KPAs must be part of how they regularly do business. Two more KPAs qualify the enterprise at Level 4, and three more can establish it at Level 5. One of the powerful aspects of the CMM is that it confirms that it is indeed possible to develop this type of level structure and then proceed to measure enterprises to determine what level they’re at. The measurements are not made with a caliper or a yardstick or a weighing machine that is absolutely repeatable in its accuracy and precision. It’s made on the basis of human judgment against a set of criteria that are not too different in concept from the criteria cited in Table 9.2 as part of the Baldrige Award. Nonetheless, the evidence is clear that the software CMM works, and that it’s also been a success in terms of its acceptance and implementation [7], especially in relation to contracting with the federal

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Table 9.3 Key Process Areas for Each Level in the Capability Maturity Model Level

Key Process Areas (KPAs)

Level 1—Initial

None at this level

Level 2—Repeatable

Requirements management Software configuration management Software project tracking and oversight Software project planning Software quality assurance Software subcontract management

Level 3—Defined

Integrated software management Intergroup coordination Organization process definition Organization process focus Peer reviews Software product engineering Training program

Level 4—Managed

Quantitative process management Software quality management

Level 5—Optimizing

Defect prevention Process change management Technology change management

government. When companies talk about being at Level 4 and moving by the end of the year to Level 5, just about everyone knows what that means and such a progression would be viewed as a serious accomplishment in the industry. Many of our largest corporations involved in software (e.g., Raytheon) report significant returns-on-investment (ROI) resulting from their use of the software CMM [7].

9.3

The TEAM-SD measurement framework

The TEAM-SD measurement framework is the central theme and topic of this chapter, where TEAM stands for The Enterprise Assessment Model (and, as well, The Eisner Assessment Model) and SD refers to

Enterprise Performance Levels 231 Strategic Directions. Its fundamental underpinning is that, in perhaps the same vein as the above CMM, it is possible and indeed useful to determine how well the enterprise is performing in various vital areas of business. Its main purpose is to set forth a process that can be used to quantify the extent to which an enterprise is moving forward in certain strategic directions. The strategic directions referred to above are indeed the same ones that are identified in Chapter 8 (Figure 8.2) and shown again in Table 9.1 of this chapter. 9.3.1

TEAM-SD measurement structure

Under the TEAM-SD notion, one is measuring the level of actual achievement, in a particular strategic direction, of the enterprise. As delineated in Table 9.1, there are five key strategic directions for the enterprise that are recommended here. The measurements are recorded on a bar chart for each of these directions on a scale from zero to 100, as depicted in Figure 9.1. 100

Numerical score

80

60

40

20

1. Internal perspectives

2. People

3. Systems

4. Differentiation 5. External and leverage perspectives

Figure 9.1 Illustrative scores for the enterprise assessment model (TEAM-SD).

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Six levels are part of the TEAM-SD structure. Each level has a name and a corresponding meaning on an alphabetic scale, as shown in Table 9.4. Therefore, given the above criteria, the illustrative scores shown in Figure 9.1 would qualify the enterprise at the “C” or “learning” level. If all scores are below 20, the enterprise is at the “ad hoc” level and receives an “F.” In such a case, the good news (such as it is) is that there’s lots of room for improvement and almost no place to go but up. The above scoring systems can also accommodate partial but not complete achievement of the requirements at each level. As an example, suppose the numerical scores are as follows: ■

Internal perspectives

74

■

People

71

■

Systems

78

■

Differentiation and leverage

70

■

External perspectives

82

Since these scores are all above 60, the enterprise has achieved level C, but not level B. However, we wish to account for the fact that all scores are over 70, a considerable advance above 60, the threshold for Table 9.4 Scores and Levels for TEAM-SD Measurement Every Strategic Direction Must Score at Least:

To Achieve Level:

Which Has the Name:

90

A

Optimizing

80

B

Leveraging

60

C

Learning

40

D

Managing

20

E

In process

Enterprise Performance Levels 233 level C. In such a case, we are able to call this “Level C Plus” (C+) and expand Table 9.4 above to the following in Table 9.5. We note that under this scoring scheme achieving an “A” score is a nontrivial matter. Those who are used to being “A” performers at a personal level may find it frustrating that it takes a great corporate commitment and effort to obtain such a score for the enterprise. On this basis, if one wishes to soften that issue, the levels can be renamed as in Table 9.6. This expanded system of measurement, whether number or letteroriented, has six main levels and six additional “plus” levels. To illustrate the above points, note the levels achieved for the hypothetical scores listed in Table 9.7. The above scores suggest an enterprise in some difficulty with respect first to “external perspectives” and also its “systems.” The Table 9.5 Expanded Scoring System Every Strategic Direction Must Score at Least:

To Achieve Level:

Which Has the Name:

95

A+

Optimizing plus

90

A

Optimizing

85

B+

Leveraging plus

80

B

Leveraging

70

C+

Learning plus

60

C

Learning

50

D+

Managing plus

40

D

Managing

30

E+

In process plus

20

E

In process

10

F+

Ad hoc plus

0–9

F

Ad hoc

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Table 9.6 Scoring System Based on Numerical Systems Level

May Be Numerical Level:

A+

Six plus

A

Six

B+

Five plus

B

Five

C+

Four plus

C

Four

D+

Three plus

D

Three

E+

Two plus

E

Two

F+

One plus

F

One

Table 9.7 Levels Achieved for Hypothetical Scores

Strategic Direction

Scores

Level Achieved

Name

Numerical Level Achieved

Internal perspectives

75

C+

Learning plus

Four plus

People

86

B+

Leveraging plus

Five plus

Systems

67

C

Learning

Four

Differentiation and leverage

82

B

Leveraging

Five

External perspectives

55

D+

Managing plus

Three plus

Enterprise Performance Levels 235 component elements that contributed to such scores is the next topic of interest, as provided below. 9.3.2

Subordinate strategic directions

The structure of strategic directions for the enterprise, as shown in Table 9.1, shows that there are two subordinate areas for each of the key directions. In terms of measurements and scoring, if each major strategic direction is scored as 100 points (see Figure 9.1), then each subordinate measure would nominally contribute 50 points. This nominal condition may be modified or tailored in any particular enterprise to reflect special emphases that management wishes to express. To illustrate the scoring system that is built up from the subordinate strategic directions, note the figures enumerated in Table 9.8. The values for the subordinate strategic directions are determined first and then added to yield scores for the five major strategic performance levels for the enterprise. 9.3.3

Selected implementation matters

At least two implementation matters remain and will be discussed here. One is the specific means by which an enterprise may give a score to each of the above key and subordinate strategic directions, and the other has to do with who in the enterprise might be providing the input information. On the first matter, there exist a variety of questionnaires that can be constructed so as to yield numerical results of the type suggested here (see, for example, Section 9.2.3). The Baldrige criteria, which cited the areas of interest and numerical weights in relation thereof (see Table 9.1), is one approach to this type of measurement issue. In this discussion, I will suggest an approach that can be used rather directly and efficiently. We will start with a modified college scoring system where there are six numerical scores, as described in Table 9.9. If the person assigning these scores feels that a numerical score between the ones listed (which can easily be the case), then there is

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Table 9.8 Illustrative Example of TEAM-SD Scoring Strategic Directions

Scores

Internal perspectives

SUM = 77

Vision

42

Culture

35

People

SUM = 75 HPTs

32

Accountability and rewards

43

Systems

SUM = 60 Continuous improvement and reengineering

28

The learning organization

32

Differentiation and leverage

SUM = 84

Innovation

41

Responsiveness

43

External perspectives

SUM = 61

Customers

37

Competitors

24

freedom to make such a choice. These scores are applied to each of the subordinate strategic directions. They are then each multiplied by 10 and summed to obtain a score for each of the five strategic directions. Table 9.10 illustrates the results of such a procedure. There are ten relatively straightforward judgments that need to be made to develop the input scores. The results show specific numerical scores for each of the five strategic areas. On the issue of who should be providing the input data to the above process, I suggest that top management (CEO, COO, vice presidents)

Enterprise Performance Levels 237 Table 9.9 Modified College Scoring Score

Numerical Value

Meaning (Level of Performance)

A

5

Excellent

B

4

Very good

C

3

Good

D

2

Passable

E

1

Poor

F

0

Very poor

take on that challenge in order to determine where the enterprise is in regard to the suggested strategic directions. If the results are unsatisfactory, then this same group is in a position to figure out what should be done to correct the situation. In other words, it is top management’s responsibility to reinforce these strategic directions and assure that the performance levels of the enterprise are sufficiently high and inclusive. If there is a separate advanced or strategic planning group, then the head of such a group can organize and facilitate the TEAM-SD procedure. Another possibility is the head of human resources. The important feature is to assure, as a minimum, that all the vice presidents as well as the CEO and COO are each independently making judgments about the state of the enterprise. Results can and should be compared, followed by a serious discussion of differences and similarities of view. In cases for which there are very noticeable differences, a follow-up exploration as to the reasons is likely to be both informative and important. This structured approach yields quantitative results, and such results are easy to compare. They also set the stage for a deeper and more complete understanding of where the enterprise is and where it might need to go as it moves on down the road.

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Table 9.10 Example of Scoring for TEAM-SD Approach Input Score

Multiplied by 10

Sum for internal perspectives

80

Vision

4.2

42

Culture

3.8

38

Sum for people

76

High performance teams

3.5

35

Accountability and rewards

4.1

41

Sum for systems

69

Continuous improvement and reengineering

3.7

37

The learning organization

3.2

32

Sum for differentiation and leverage

75

Innovation

4.0

40

Responsiveness

3.5

35

Sum for external perspectives

73

Customers

4.8

48

Competitors

2.5

25

9.4

Key Area Scores

Summary

This chapter has continued at the point at which Chapter 8 ended. That is, whereas Chapter 8 defined the five key strategic directions for any enterprise, this chapter sets forth a measurement framework for quantifying the performance of the enterprise in relation to these strategic directions. The overall procedure for such a framework and quantification is called The Enterprise Assessment Model-Strategic Directions (TEAM-SD). The suggested numerical scheme is summarized in

Enterprise Performance Levels 239 Table 9.11 with the following top-level and subordinate strategic directions and their maximum scores. The result of utilizing this measurement process is to be able to come to some conclusion as to the current levels of performance that the enterprise is actually achieving. The suggested levels of performance are summarized below in Table 9.12. This TEAM-SD notion deals with the five strategic directions (as well as two subordinate areas for each) for an enterprise and goes beyond simply articulating what they might or should be. It incorporates Table 9.11 Top-Level and Subordinate Strategic Directions Subordinate Maximum Score Internal perspectives

Overall Maximum 100

Vision

50

Culture

50

People

100

High performance teams

50

Accountability and rewards

50

Systems

100

Continuous improvement and reengineering

50

The learning organization

50

Differentiation and leverage

100

Innovation

50

Responsiveness

50

External perspectives

100

Customers

50

Competitors

50

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Table 9.12 Suggested Levels of Performance Every Strategic Direction Must Score at Least

To Achieve Level

Or Alternatively, Level

Which Has the Name

95

A+

Six plus

Optimizing plus

90

A

Six

Optimizing

85

B+

Five plus

Leveraging plus

80

B

Five

Leveraging

70

C+

Four plus

Learning plus

60

C

Four

Learning

50

D+

Three plus

Managing plus

40

D

Three

Managing

30

E+

Two plus

In process plus

20

E

Two

In process

10

F+

One plus

Ad hoc plus

0–9

F

One

Ad hoc

quantitative measurements of performance and interprets them in terms of levels of achievement. These levels can be used as markers as to how well the enterprise is doing, areas that require more work, and how much further it needs to go in order to achieve goals that it might set in the context of its strategic planning and execution. This quantitative measurement approach is an uncomplicated but effective way for an enterprise to evaluate its strategic position and make appropriate adjustments. It represents another perspective for reengineering the enterprise.

Enterprise Performance Levels 241

References 1. Eisner, H., Essentials of Project and Systems Engineering Management, New York: John Wiley, 1997. 2. Kerzner, H., Project Management—A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling and Controlling, New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1989. 3. Kezsbom, D., D. Schilling and K. Edward, Dynamic Project Management, New York: John Wiley, 1989. 4. Eisner, H., Balance in Our Technology Enterprises: A New Perspective, IEEE Engineering Management Society, IEMC ‘98 Proceedings, May 3–5, 1999, San Juan, Puerto Rico. 5. The URL for information regarding the Baldrige Award is www.quality.nist.gov 6. Various aspects of the Capability Maturity Model (CMM) can be found at the Web site for Carnegie Mellon’s Software Engineering Institute at www.sei.cmu.edu 7. Eisner, H., Do’s and Don’ts for the Software Capability Maturity Model (CMM), Seminar Viewgraphs, The George Washington University, Loudoun County Campus, VA, April 21, 27, and 29, 1999.

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10 Synthesis and Integration 10.1

Introduction

Moving through Chapters 1–9 has represented two journeys—one for me in constructing them out of my experiences and observations and the other for you, the reader, in staying the course. In this chapter I suggest another journey for you—that of attempting to join with me in pulling the individual pieces together into a whole that can be viewed in a larger context. Through synthesis the pieces are placed next to one another; integration involves a deeper meaning such that the pieces add up to more than their individual contributions. Integration implies that all of the combined pieces can be viewed as part of a system whereby the components interact, hopefully in a positive way. Integration also suggests that we can see the environment in which a system operates as it affects and is affected by that environment. 243

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The overall context may well be described by the pathway of moving from an individual contributor to a manager and then to a leader. For those who choose such a journey, I have tried to provide some suggestions that might help. Although I have spent considerable time here exploring what others have offered by way of advice, in the final analysis the suggestions are the result of my own synthesis and integration of this information. The largest ingredient within this process is my own experience over the past 40 years or so.

10.2

Reiterating the pieces

In this section I will reiterate the various main themes and results from the previous eight chapters. Seeing them in abbreviated form and in apposition to one another will help in trying to bring all the pieces together. Repetition, as we know, reinforces our ability to remember and absorb. It also may reinforce our determination to take action, a critical step that usually comes after recollection and understanding. 10.2.1

High-tech force fields

Chapter 2 attempted to describe the rather powerful forces that are very likely to impact our lives during the twenty-first century. The impacts are largely considered in the work-world, but flow from there back into our individual lives at home. The forces that I ultimately selected as most significant are based upon what the professional “futurists” are telling us, as observed through my particular viewfinder as to the nature of large-scale phenomena. As I have indicated, my own experiences have played a large part in this process. The top five high-tech force fields (see Chapter 2) that I believe will be dominant in the twenty-first century are reiterated as: 1. The information age; 2. Speed and responsiveness; 3. Competition; 4. New work patterns and environment;

Synthesis and Integration 245 5. Loyalties and leverage.

The information age, already with us, will grow in its pervasiveness and effects. All businesses will feel its influence, from even the local bakery store to the multibillion dollar multinational. To the latter, conquering the four corners of the Information Age will be a matter of survival, and management folks, leaders or not, will have to embrace the new technology that will inevitably continue to emerge. As this is happening, the increased available bandwidth will move bits and bytes faster, both at work and into your home. This technology push will force increased speed and responsiveness, especially in the work world. Businesses will have the means to be faster and more responsive in their day-to-day operations, which will soon convert from a convenience to a necessity. That conversion will be driven by the fact that your competitors will be ready, willing, and able to push the boundaries of speed and responsiveness. Two-day turnarounds will become 24 hours, and then, the same day. If we can do it, someone will do it. This, in turn, will lead to new work patterns and a new work environment. Whereas some will experience more leisure time, others will see their work days expanded. Few companies will close their doors at 5 P.M. and many will see second and even third shift patterns as a way of life. Overnight operations (e.g., Federal Express) will become more common as companies will be doing business closer to 24 hours each day. These accelerated paces will be reflected in all aspects of the environments in which businesses operate. As all of this is happening, loyalties and leverage within the firm will shift such that more power will lie in the hands of the information-smart purveyor of the bits and bytes. As knowledge management necessities grow, the nerds will proliferate and become mainstream, clones of Bill Gates that will believe that they too can become billionaires. Many of them will, and the more enlightened managers will try to find win-win solutions so that all can co-exist within the company. But the center of gravity for power and wealth will be shifting, continually in the direction of the highly productive information age expert and entrepreneur. As we focus on the issue of “integration” in this chapter, we then must ask the question—what is the above likely to mean in terms of the

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lives of our current and future managers and leaders? I offer the five following challenge areas: ■

Information/knowledge management;

■

Operations and time management;

■

Opportunism;

■

Positive and flexible work environment;

■

Negotiation.

The manager-leader of the twenty-first century must directly address the issues related to managing the information and knowledge that will be increasingly critical to his or her business. This is particularly true in the context of providing all the products and services of the business in the most productive manner. It also means fully embracing all aspects of the information age in order to be one step ahead of the competition. Operations and time management refers to the notion that enterprises will be forced to deal creatively with the issue of speed and responsiveness. As alluded to above, if two and three shift operations are to become commonplace, the way people spend their time at work will also have to change. Managers will either have to work longer hours, or begin to share responsibilities such that all shifts and locations are covered. Pressures to produce more in shorter time lines, and possibly even reduced work weeks, will represent a significant challenge. So, also, will be the matter of building internal information systems that support and streamline operations. In this context, the corporate information officer (CIO) may become a most critical job in the enterprise’s executive suite. The information age will present new opportunities for businesses, especially in what we now identify as our communications and computer fields. But the dimensions of the information age will also be present in such massive markets as medicine, transportation, finance, entertainment, and others. In order to generate and respond to all the new opportunities, the manager-leader must encourage innovation

Synthesis and Integration 247 and be prepared to support the new product ideas that come out of the research and development enclaves of the enterprise. As the company relies more and more on software-based products and services, the work environment must be more conducive to developing such software. Since it will be relatively easy to leave the company and set up a new enterprise in the garage, doing business with one or more competitors, the manager-leader will have to make sure that the work environment is sufficiently flexible, and the job very rewarding, so that the high producers will choose to stay rather than move on. At times it will feel like the inmates have taken over the asylum, but such is the nature of embracing the high-tech world of information technology and its embedded software. Finally, and directly related to the above, changes will result from the new power equation between labor and management that we can expect in the information age. This issue will show itself in all important matters if the enterprise does not know how to establish a stable equilibrium. Such a state requires more sharing of the power as well as the wealth in the overall enterprise. This means that the managerleader will have to possess expertly tuned negotiation skills in order to find win-win solutions on almost a continuous basis. The authoritarian style of management will, in most cases, be finally buried and participative (if not consensual) management will be fully embraced. 10.2.2

The nature of change

Various elements and aspects of change, at a personal level, were explored in some detail in Chapter 3. Since the point of view was personal rather than corporate, this chapter came closer to individual psychological matters than the others, and concluded with the following points of summary: Steps that lead to change [1] 1. Suffering; 2. Insight; 3. Will;

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4. Action; 5. Change. Brief conclusions regarding change 1. External world imposes forces and pressures on us; 2. Forces and pressures experienced as stress and anxiety; 3. If stress is too great, we may stagnate and decay; 4. If stress is not too great, we respond and grow; 5. Positive (4 above) or negative (3 above) change is a consequence. Mistakes made in attempting change 1. In the hands of other people; 2. Negative thinking; 3. Massive versus singular change; 4. Conceptions that are too broad; 5. Start tomorrow. Suggested approach to making changes 1. Recognize a specific need area; 2. Focus on positive behaviors; 3. Start today; 4. Monitor progress daily; 5. Positive reinforcement weekly.

The above conclusions from Chapter 3 provide suggestions as to how to make the journey from individual contributor to manager to leader. The changes represented by this journey can be enormous and any assistance along the way may ease the difficulty.

Synthesis and Integration 249 Looking at the “brief conclusions regarding change,” it is to be noted that taking on high-stress challenges can be extremely taxing for even the person with a great deal of experience. Success is by no means guaranteed. However, the other side of the coin is that the potential for personal growth is a very positive consequence. Step-bystep incremental growth generally means that the next levels of stress are approached with greater equanimity, strength, and self-assurance. I’m reminded, in this connection, of the tennis tournament analogy. The champions, virtually without exception, seem to look for greater than zero challenges along the way so that when they reach the finals, they’re tough and finely tuned. Too great a challenge (i.e., stress) too early generally leads to watching the finals from the sidelines. The steps listed under “suggested approach for making changes” offer specific advice to the individual contributor, manager, and even leader. However, the focus on the individual can easily be broadened to a corporate context. For example, and referring to the strategic directions cited in Chapters 8 and 9, if the enterprise is not stepping up to agreed-upon strategic (or tactical) initiatives, then it may be time to bring up and follow the five steps listed above under the suggested approach. The key step, of course, is to make the commitment to start today rather than tomorrow. Beyond that, continuous monitoring and positive reinforcement will normally carry the day. 10.2.3

Themes for corporate change

The main conclusions summarized in Chapter 4 were as follows: Problem-solving themes for corporate change 1. Formally embrace continuous reengineering for improvement; 2. Determine and prioritize fixes; 3. Implement the fixes; 4. Monitor results and make adjustments; 5. Assure support from the top.

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Areas of focus for corporate change 1. Look backward and forward; 2. Re-examine your strategic and tactical priorities every year; 3. Search for new opportunities and innovate; 4. Positively differentiate through performance and price; 5. Support your high performers.

We see in the above lists the reiteration of the word priorities. In one case it is suggested that we prioritize possible fixes to problems. In the other, we are asked to re-examine strategic as well as tactical priorities each year. This simple word, priorities, is a vitally important one in the corporate world. Companies tend to get into a “groove,” sometimes also called inertia, whereby what they do is more-or-less the same from year to year. They do it because everyone is comfortable doing so; to do otherwise is to face the issues of change, which as we have seen can be very difficult. However, as we have noted (e.g., the cases of Wang Labs and Xerox), the world can change around us. As we move more deeply into the information age, that change may well be more rapid as well as more drastic. If we fail to reprioritize on a moreor-less continuous basis, we may find that we’re working on yesterday’s solution while everyone is a few steps ahead of us. That notion, of course, ties into the need to “search for new opportunities and innovate.” All of this in the context of a world in which we must move with greater speed and responsiveness. Another critical theme is that of supporting your high performers. We have cited the shifts that we expect in the twenty-first century with respect to the work environment as well as loyalties and leverage. Assuring that your high performers are well taken care of is accentuated as we move forward from today. If you fail to do so, they’ll soon be elsewhere, bringing critical skills and knowledge of where you are and what you’re expected to do. The world we face is “knowledgebased,” rather than facilities and hardware-based. The knowledge is in the minds of your key employees, a fact that should never be forgotten. The remuneration for superstars may have gotten extremely

Synthesis and Integration 251 high, but so have the rewards of top management. Everyone knows and understands the shifts that are taking place. In this domain, we have to be living in the twenty-first century, not the twentieth. 10.2.4

Skills for the high-tech manager

These areas were cited in terms of skills and steps from Chapter 5 as: Skills for the high-tech manager 1. Problem solver; 2. Contingency planner; 3. People-oriented communicator; 4. Team builder; 5. Technically competent decision maker. Problem-solving steps 1. Surfacing a problem; 2. Articulating the problem; 3. Offering alternatives; 4. Evaluating alternatives; 5. Implementing a solution. Steps in transitioning to a manager 1. Make a conscious decision and commitment; 2. Obtain additional training and education; 3. Practice manager skills; 4. Study and talk to managers in your company or organization; 5. Seek and accept a manager position, that is, get into the fray by

actually serving as a manager (see Chapter 5).

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I have emphasized, given the forces that we expect to see in the twenty-first century, that supporting your high performers is of critical importance. In terms of the above-listed skills, there are two items that pertain especially to that need, namely, being a people-oriented communicator and a team builder. The former will provide to the manager a critical skill that will always be a prerequisite to managing and leading. The latter is somewhat more transcendent, implying that a group of individuals can be molded into a coherent whole, otherwise known as a high performance team (HPT). We have seen that issue raised previously in the context of key strategic directions for the enterprise. The HPT itself is an integrative concept, such that the production and creativity one is able to see from an HPT is greater than the linear sum of the individuals’ efforts working without the team. Another key concept, listed above under problem-solving steps, is that of defining and offering alternatives. This suggests a discipline that is always looking for a better way, one that might offer a solution that goes beyond a simple extrapolation of current experience. Trying to find and explore new options, in a very real sense, is what creativity and innovation are all about. They make possible the discovery of worlds that go beyond the ones that everyone knows and accepts. As a practical matter, this process of finding and examining new alternatives is facilitated by the high performance team. If the team is highly functional, people are encouraging and learning from each other. The ideas that can be built upon are those that come from the entire team rather than just a single person. In a very real sense, that’s the short form definition of synergy. We also see, in the third list of transition steps, the requirement for additional training and education. This is true for the evolution to a manager, but also true in a much broader sense. It’s the essence of what Senge calls “the learning organization” [2]. In such an enterprise, continuous learning is accepted by all as a way of life, and the organization sees it as a corporate responsibility to make sure that it happens. This means going beyond lip service to the idea to the concrete steps of setting aside yearly budgets for new learning patterns and participants. It means a commitment to making sure that the organization is growing in all the appropriate dimensions, to include the key aspects of product

Synthesis and Integration 253 and service, marketing, and management. It means offering new opportunities for all employees to improve their skills and their scope of understanding. It supports the integration notion since as people become both deeper and broader in the enterprise, they are able to connect pieces and activities that were not discernible as related before the learning experiences. 10.2.5

Leadership themes

In Chapter 6, after a review of leadership themes in the literature, I summarize my top five leadership attributes as: 1. Practical visionary; 2. Inclusive communicator; 3. Positive doer; 4. Renewing facilitator; 5. Principled integrator.

This list is my synthesis of the most significant qualities of a leader, drawn from a detailed review of the sources cited in Chapter 6 as well as other observers of the scene. An important question to be addressed in any organization is, Are there any significant differences between being a manager and being a leader? One answer, given in Chapter 6, is that “a manager does things right whereas a leader does the right things.” This differentiation says that a manager is able to execute the tasks that have been defined for him or her at high levels of effectiveness and efficiency, whereas the leader worries about whether or not these are the correct tasks for the enterprise. In order to accomplish this selection, the leader must be able to chart an overall course toward his or her vision of what the enterprise needs to become. More than that, such a vision needs to be exciting and communicated to the company in a compelling manner. We’re told that Jack Welch of GE spends a good part of each day reiterating the main company themes [3]. There’s little question that such is among the tasks of the leader.

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We note also that the attributes of a manager (Section 10.2.4) and a leader both include the ability to communicate. This skill is established and reinforced in the various manager jobs that one normally cycles through. It includes the distinct willingness to inform, going beyond the simple flow down of information. It is an absolute prerequisite to being a leader, so that earlier experiences (both successes and failures) help to fine-tune that capability. A leader without solid communication skills will soon find that followers are drifting away. Without followers, as Peter Drucker reminds us [4], one cannot really function as a leader. Communication is a necessary but still insufficient capability. We also see, by comparing the manager and leader attributes, that the manager acts more locally as a technically competent problem solver and decision maker. This is usually accomplished at the tactical level with one or more projects or programs within the enterprise. In contrast, the leader is a renewing facilitator, helping his or her managers to achieve at the limits of their abilities and assisting them in bringing new energy to the job when they might otherwise find themselves at the edge of, or into the depths of, a thing called burnout. Quite an important responsibility—paying enough attention to your people so that you are able to affect them in this most profound manner. Such is the inspirational nature of a true leader. The leader is also an integrator who is able to see the various ways in which company activities can be mutually supportive. We break enterprises into groups and divisions and sectors and business units so that they can be managed and work tasks accomplished in due order. Such disassemblies have proven themselves to be necessary. However, the leader also focuses on the benefits that can be achieved by maintaining appropriate interconnections between the pieces. This, as a minimum, creates multiple levels of positive affiliation as well as critical mass to tackle larger and larger challenges. In a dysfunctional enterprise, the various organizational pieces, sometimes referred to as “stovepipes,” are in a constant state of warfare with one another. In a highly functional company, these pieces help each other for their own good as well as the benefit of the enterprise as a whole. It’s the job of the leader to assure the latter scenario, rather than the former.

Synthesis and Integration 255 10.2.6

From manager to leader

The journey from manager to leader is considered explicitly in Chapter 7, and the following five steps are suggested: 1. Address leadership issues and questions; 2. Find and be a mentor; 3. Lead here and now; 4. Evaluate progress and make adjustments; 5. Learn, stretch, and grow.

These steps are shown in the integrated view of attributes as well as transition steps, as illustrated in Figure 10.1. This top-level picture of the individual contributor, manager, and leader tells a considerable portion of the story of this book. Take a few moments and study it for your own purposes. Maybe even sketch a reduced copy and carry it around your person so that you can refresh your memory from time to time. I have tried to reinforce the point several times that transitions, or changes, can be extremely difficult to make. The main purposes of those discussions pertain to the two transitions shown explicitly in Figure 10.1, that is, from high-performing individual contributor to manager, and then to leader. For the latter transition, it is important to focus early on leadership issues and questions and then move on, as quickly as possible, to behaving like a leader. What are these issues and questions? Take another look at Section 7.5.1. How can we jump to behaving like a leader? Take another look at the five key attributes of a leader shown in Figure 10.1 and remember that you can begin to experiment with and exercise the skills of a leader even if you’re toiling in the trenches of running a relatively small project. Leaders are made, not born, and it takes lots of practice. The most likely consequences of stepping up to behaving like a leader are that you will learn, stretch, and grow. By jumping into the fray you’re likely to encounter new situations where you’ll be uncertain about how far to step forward, how much to try to help, when to seek new inputs, and so forth. Along the way, you’ll probably make a

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Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

Highperforming individual contributor

Attributes 1. Strong technical skills 2. Enjoys making individual contributions 3. Innovative 4. Dedicated 5. Highly intelligent

Figure 10.1

1. Make a conscious decision and commitment 2. Obtain additional training and education 3. Practice manager skills 4. Study/talk to managers 5. Seek/accept a manager position 1. Recognize need area 2. Focus on new positive behaviors 3. Start today 4. Monitor progress daily 5. Positive reinforcement weekly

1. Address leadership issues and questions 2. Find and be a mentor 3. Lead here and now 4. Evaluate progress and make adjustments 5. Learn, stretch, and grow

Manager

Leader a. New thought processes b. New behavior patterns

Attributes

Attributes

1. Problem solver 2. Contingency planner 3. People-oriented communicator 4. Team builder 5. Technically competent decision maker

1. Practical visionary 2. Inclusive communicator 3. Positive doer 4. Renewing facilitator 5. Principled integrator

From individual contributor to manager to leader.

few mistakes, sometimes painful ones. In several of these situations, the “no pain, no gain” admonition might apply. By participating, rather than standing back and observing, you may find that you’re distinctly uncomfortable. You’re at the boundary of what you find familiar and feel as if you’re being stretched, and maybe pushed, to your personal “edge.” But you will also remember, at those times, that such experiences make us grow. So you’ll decide, hopefully, to continue to move forward and learn from the experience. Those decisions, and those experiences, will make you a better leader. You’ll not only have “talked the talk,” you’ll have “walked the walk.” Such is the journey from manager to leader.

Synthesis and Integration 257 10.2.7

Strategic directions

In Chapter 8, I explored the issue of reengineering the enterprise. This can be rephrased as a question—what are the most important strategic directions upon which to focus for more-or-less any high-tech organization? In this exploration I took a look at how about a dozen of our enterprises were representing themselves to their stockholders. All of this was accessible in the annual reports of these companies. From these perspectives, as well as my own observations of what my old companies and others had been up to (including many years of writing strategic plans), I concluded with the main and subordinate strategic directions shown below in Table 10.1. Internal perspectives, from a strategic point of view, focus on articulating a compelling vision and inculcating a culture that embodies the desired work values. With respect to the latter, how about this statement from a 1998 GE Annual Report: A GE culture that values the contributions of every individual, thrives on learning, thirsts for the better idea, and has the flexibility and speed to put the better idea into action every day. Table 10.1 Key Strategic Directions for the Enterprise 1. Internal perspectives

Vision Culture

2. People

High performance teams (HPTs) Accountability and rewards

3. Systems

Continuous improvement and reengineering The learning organization

4. Differentiation and leverage

Innovation Responsiveness

5. External perspectives

Customers Competitors

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None of the above is a one-time exercise that comes, is dealt with, and then disappears. Staying pointed in the right direction and operating so as to maintain a solid productive culture are continuous activities that need to be reinforced just about daily. All employees need not only to get the message but also to behave so as to support the message. These top-level internal perspectives set the stage and framework for all else that follows. Second on the list is an all-out concern for people. It has been remarked, when someone made a mistake in a work setting, that “everything would be okay if it weren’t for the people!” This small joke highlights the obvious, if you will—that it’s all in the hands of the people. If the people are highly creative and productive, then goods things happen. If not, you may be on the road to oblivion. Two subordinate areas stand out in this regard: 1. Establishing and nurturing high performance teams (HPTs); 2. Assuring a positive and equitable system of accountability and

rewards.

To the former, add the appropriate doses of responsibility and authority. To the latter, make sure you understand what it is that is a motivator for your people. Go beyond the books (even this one) and consultants and try asking them. The third key strategic direction has to do with the systems within the enterprise that are usually in various states of disarray. These include not only the formal systems with a visible printout (like the financial cost reports), but also the informal systems that are embodied in possible nonwritten procedures and practices (e.g., how marketing is carried out, how meetings are held, and so forth). The managerleader is always going to find that the systems in place don’t quite do what they need to do. One never reaches that state of perfection. The next best thing to do is to assure that all important systems are under a policy for and reality of continuous improvement and reengineering. This simple idea may save your company. Keep prioritizing your problem areas and systems and then fix them. What could be simpler? Yet many companies still don’t get it and therefore fail to do so.

Synthesis and Integration 259 Another aspect of dealing with the broadest context of systems is to fully embrace the concept and reality of the learning organization. This notion, attributed to Peter Senge [2], recognizes the life-long personal and corporate needs of making sure that we have the current knowledge and skills to do our jobs in the face of the high-tech stresses of the twenty-first century. Those enterprises that make the learning organization a top-level priority and commitment are also likely to be among the better performers, all else being equal. You won’t be able to do what needs to be done without the very best people. So, make sure that you set up a system (and spend the money) to assure that you indeed do have a learning organization. Differentiation and leverage are on my list of the top five strategic directions since I have come to believe that leverage is one of just a few critical concepts in business, and that it is achieved, in part, through positive differentiation of products and services. Although these are rather complex topics, and worthy of full books on their own, they can be boiled down to two main issues: 1. Innovation, so as to provide leading-edge products as well as

services; 2. Responsiveness, so that you’re faster than your competitors in providing these products and services.

In other words, provide the very best, and do it quickly. In some sense, all the rest is commentary. Finally, we get to external perspectives as a critical strategic direction. I have cited two subordinate areas, namely, your customers and your competitors. Despite all the volumes of words and advice to the contrary, some enterprises still behave as if having customers is one of the many inconveniences of being in business. Emblazoned on their banners are the famous words “customers like you we don’t need!” At this juncture, what more is there to say? I’ve also singled out competitors as a key strategic issue since I believe that too many companies have no idea what their competitors are likely to be doing. As a result, they get blindsided, with potentially disastrous consequences. In this regard, I’m reminded of

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the story about how Steve Jobs got several good ideas from a oneday invited tour of Xerox PARC, and then turned around to use these ideas in his Apple computers. How’s that for not recognizing a competitor when he looks you in the face? Ideas can be expected to be even more crucial in the ever-expanding information age. Companies will need a red team to stay focused on what competitors might be doing so that their products and services are always at least one step ahead. We apparently learned this lesson during the cold war where the overriding issue was national survival. No less may be at stake for your company. 10.2.8

Enterprise performance levels

In Chapter 9, I attempted to emphasize the three following points: 1. It is important to consider the five strategic directions set forth

in Chapter 8.

2. It is possible to establish a framework that will show how

well the enterprise is performing, relative to each of the five strategic directions. 3. By accepting and implementing the items above, a system of measurement and continuous improvement can be put in place that is very likely to lead to high performance levels of operation in the key strategic areas. To elaborate upon the first point above, the strategic directions are exactly those reiterated in Table 10.1. These are considered to be target areas for reengineering your enterprise, absent any additional information about the precise nature of your business, and given that you operate in the high-tech world. Relative to point two, The Enterprise Assessment Model-Strategic Directions (TEAM-SD) provides a framework for considering how well the enterprise is performing in relation to the strategic directions. The “short form” framework simply says that scores on a scale from 0 to 100 can be associated with the achievement of various levels of performance, as shown in Table 10.2.

Synthesis and Integration 261 Table 10.2 Scores and Levels for The Enterprise Assessment Model (TEAM-SD) Every Strategic Direction Must Score at Least:

To Achieve Level:

With Corresponding Numerical Level:

Which Has the Name:

90

A

6

Optimizing

80

B

5

Leveraging

60

C

4

Learning

40

D

3

Managing

20

E

2

In process

10

F

1

Ad hoc

Finally, the last point is that utilizing numerical scorecards, such as the one used for the Baldrige award, or others, will provide a specific measurement tool. Management will then be in a position to measure the level at which the enterprise is performing for each of the five strategic directions as well as the ten subordinate areas. A perspective of continuous improvement, over time, will lead the enterprise to ultimately operate at the top (optimizing) level. If, for example, an enterprise is meeting 90% of its goals, or better, in the key strategic areas, then it is very likely to be an extremely serious competitor in its various market segments. This, of course, is predicated upon the goals not being trivial. The special contribution of the TEAM-SD approach lies in being able to have a quantitative framework for evaluating enterprise performance levels in key strategic areas. This will facilitate your attempts at reengineering your enterprise, thus lifting it to higher levels of achievement in the highly competitive world of the twenty-first century.

10.3

A few closing comments

Before closing, I would like to cover just a few additional points, namely:

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■

A connection between reengineering and change;

■

The systems approach or perspective;

■

Looking at the three C’s—company, customer, and community.

My final closing remark will pertain to yet another “Top Five” list. 10.3.1

Reengineering and change

Two of the four parts of this book deal explicitly with reengineering, as does one of our five strategic directions (see Table 10.1). These parts, along with the chapters they include, are: ■

Part 3: Reengineering Yourself Chapter 5: Skills for the High-Tech Manager Chapter 6: Leadership Themes Chapter 7: From Manager to Leader

Part 4: Reengineering Your Company Chapter 8: Strategic Directions Chapter 9: Enterprise Performance Levels Chapter 10: Synthesis and Integration Reengineering was raised almost to the level of a new paradigm for management to embrace when Hammer and Champy’s book Reengineering the Corporation came upon the scene in 1993 [5]. This book advocated mostly radical rather than evolutionary change. To my way of thinking, there are some circumstances under which radical change is required. Examples are when the company has become largely dysfunctional, or when outside world stresses and forces seriously threaten the company’s well-being. The latter situation might be illustrated by the world changing around the Wang Labs when they had a virtual monopoly in word processing hardware and software. However, I don’t believe that radical change works for the majority of cases. Further, even radical change is not likely to be the preferred course of action unless a good part of the existing management team leave—too many vested interests in the old ways of doing things. ■

Synthesis and Integration 263 I have attempted in this book to look at reengineering both oneself and one’s enterprise, as noted above, in an evolutionary rather than a revolutionary or radical manner. Further, my approach has included examining both reengineering tasks and domains (personal, corporate) within the context of what it takes to make changes (see Part 2, “Aspects of Change”). Chapters 3 and 4, “The Nature of Change,” and “Themes for Corporate Change,” form a backdrop for the reengineering steps that follow in the later chapters. All of this was done for two essential reasons: 1. Even relatively small changes can be extremely difficult to

make; 2. Having an initial mind-set to implement radical changes is very likely to drastically reduce the probability of success.

We are interested in approaches that have significantly high chances of succeeding. In terms of reengineering oneself, I can point back to Section 10.2.4 that suggests: ■

Five skills for the high-tech manager;

■

Five problem-solving steps;

■

Five steps in transitioning to a manager.

For those without these skills, or those who have not made progress on these steps, a lot of personal “reengineering” is required. This is no small task, since reengineering means change, even if it is incremental. The same basic argument holds when considering the steps needed to evolve from a manager to a leader (see Section 10.2.6). Add five more requirements to the list, and with them the hurdles that need to be vaulted in the process. The bottom line is that reengineering oneself is not a trivial exercise. It means change, in which case all of the discussions of change, as explored in some detail in Chapters 3 and 4, become immediately relevant. At the same time, reengineering the enterprise is likely to be even more difficult. After all, if you decide to shift your own gears, you have

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the entire situation under you own control (except for the old tapes in your head). Convincing an entire organization to change can be a most daunting task, and making it happen is largely beyond your immediate control. It often requires lots of buy-in from other folks, and sharply honed skills on your part to achieve such a condition. Imagine what Jack Welch must have gone through to get this mammoth company called General Electric to move off its previous course and to start running in some new directions. So remember that the soft underbelly of reengineering is change, and change has a lot of current inertia acting against it all the time. 10.3.2

A systems perspective

At the beginning of this chapter I alluded to the connection between integration and a system, and from time to time in previous chapters made mention of systems, including the fact that I have taught systems engineering in graduate school for some number of years. At this juncture, it seems appropriate to try to tie some pieces together in the context of what might be called a systems approach or perspective. In my last book that contains the topic of systems engineering [6], I mentioned that there is a discipline called the systems approach and that this approach applies, in general, to building large-scale systems and also to various types of problem solving. The most powerful part of the latter is the emphasis on developing alternatives, which I have stressed in the problem-solving steps shown in Chapter 5, and noted in other sections of this book. The systems perspective would also suggest that there is a connectedness between various aspects of how an organization functions, and that as a consequence, pulling and pushing on one problem or solution in one part of the enterprise can have significant effects on other parts of the enterprise. Indeed, often the solution to one problem literally creates a whole new problem, sometimes also called the “law of unintended consequences.” If one solution creates a large number of new problems, then perhaps it’s better to reject that “solution” and go on to some other alternative. The trick is to see, that is, anticipate in advance, the array of solutions and consequences so that you don’t get bitten by something completely unintended. This can happen rather easily in the domain of providing rewards to people in

Synthesis and Integration 265 the company for performing beyond the call of duty. As an example, we were in the habit of giving spot (at the moment) bonuses to folks who had done an exceptionally good piece of work for the company. Although this practice tended to raise the overall level of achievement (we believed), it also raised the number of times we heard the cry “What about me?” or “What about us?” especially from folks in a completely different and separate part of the company. All of this had an impact on end-of-year bonuses, stock options, and salary increases, sometimes as unintended consequences. It also led to one of our people leaving, as I remember, believing as he did that he was not sufficiently appreciated since someone else got a spot bonus and he did not. In any case, the point is that the whole enterprise is in fact a system, and trying to recognize interactions in advance of actions is a highly desirable perspective. This systems issue was considered so important, that it became the featured “fifth discipline” in Peter Senge’s treatise by that same name [2]. The fifth discipline in Senge’s world of the learning organization is, as he puts it, “systems thinking.” To Senge, systems thinking “integrates the disciplines, fusing them into a coherent body of theory and practice.” He gives many examples of this in his book, which I highly recommend. From the vantage point of the book you’re reading, systems thinking helps to see the enterprise as an integrated whole. It also helps to emphasize the benefits that can be achieved when all the parts of a company are pulling in the same direction, rather than at crosspurposes. The reader is referred to Senge’s book to dig more deeply into systems thinking and the manner in which it can serve as a positive integrative force in a company. 10.3.3

Widening the circle

A couple of different corporate models have been reviewed here, notably the McKinsey 7-S Model (Section 4.3.3) and the three element model (Section 8.3.4). The former suggests that all important enterprise issues are subsumed within the 7 S’s, which are reiterated as: 1. Structure; 2. Strategy;

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3. Systems; 4. Style; 5. Skills; 6. Staff; 7. Subordinate goals.

The three element model is even more compact and looked for balance between product and service (PAS), marketing (MKT), and management (MNG) (see also Figure 8.1). The home grown model of key strategic directions for an enterprise, presented in Chapter 8 and summarized here in Section 10.2.7, begins to broaden the models to explicitly include an element previously omitted as a top-level aspect of the model, namely, the customer. Clearly, the customer is not literally within the confines of the company. But not having the customer in a more prominent position has its dangers. It’s too easy to simply forget about the customer in the heat of internal battle. It happens all too often. So I would like to make sure that we widen our circle, which was drawn around the enterprise, and now make sure that the customer is included therein. In Chapter 8, I took a brief look at the messages set forth by several companies in their annual reports. All of them, without exception, acknowledge the customer directly. For example, here are just three of those statements that do so: 1. “Upgrade the competitiveness and profitability of our custom-

ers” (GE); 2. “One of our three core competencies is detailed customer knowledge and support” (Boeing); 3. “A robust information infrastructure … is what customers expect from HP and our partners” (first line of report). So you can bet that these companies, and others like them, have not forgotten the customer, at least from the perspective of what the key executives believe they are committed to.

Synthesis and Integration 267 However, as I take a deeper look at these same annual reports, I see another element that needs to be added to our models. Indeed, not enough space is devoted to confirming that companies need to be visible in and supportive of the various communities of which they are a part. It’s true that their people resources are drawn, for the most part, from these communities, and that these same people tend to spend some time and energy in order to sustain and grow a stronger sense of community. In addition to these individual efforts, however, the companies need to spend corporate time and money for the benefit of their communities. I feel certain that every one of the companies that I cited in Chapter 8 does so; I would prefer that their annual reports reflect that commitment and sound the clarion call more loudly. Whether it be called the local village or just the local community, I wish to broaden our circle now to include the community, as shown in Figure 10.2. As this figure suggests, we start with only the company (a), then include the customer (b), and follow up with making sure that we add consideration of the community (c). Alongside the 7-S model is now our 3-C model of company, customer, and community.

10.4

A final Top Five

As we come down to this last section of the book, I offer a final Top Five, with a minimum of commentary: 1. Integrate through systems thinking—try to think through all of the

possible “system” effects of your proposed solutions and actions. 2. Reach outward—broaden your thinking to the “3-C Model” (company, customer, community), including both external as well as internal considerations and perspectives. 3. Be positive—confirm and present your own positive attitude

even if you’re struggling with difficult problems and issues. 4. Be action-oriented—make sure you go beyond the world as played out in your head to the realities of taking action with and on behalf of the people around you.

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Company

(a) From only the company …

Company

Customer

(b) To company and customer …

Company

Customer

Community

(c) To company, customer, and community Figure 10.2

Widening the circle of consideration.

Synthesis and Integration 269 5. When you feel stuck—what should you do when you’re feeling

completely and absolutely stuck? I would have thought the answer would be obvious. Pick up your dog-eared copy of this book and reread some of the sections. Perhaps therein lies a way to become unstuck. Good luck to all in your various journeys!

References 1. Wheelis, A., How People Change, New York: Harper Colophon, 1973. 2. Senge, P., The Fifth Discipline, New York: Doubleday Currency, 1990. 3. Slater, R., Get Better or Get Beaten! 31 Leadership Secrets from GE’s Jack Welch, New York: McGraw-Hill, 1994. 4. Drucker, P., “Foreword,” In The Leader of the Future, F. Hesselbein, M. Goldsmith and R. Beckhard (eds), San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1996. 5. Hammer, M. and J. Champy, Reengineering the Corporation, New York: HarperCollins, 1993. 6. Eisner, H., Essentials of Project and Systems Engineering Management, New York: John Wiley, 1997.

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Appendix Review of “Top Fives” Most of the chapters of this book end with a recap of the “Top Five” points that are made and stressed within these chapters. This Appendix provides a review of these various “Top Fives” so that the reader can see them all in one place. Chapter Two—High-tech force fields in the twenty-first century

Force one—The information age Force two—Speed and responsiveness Force three—Competition Force four—New work patterns and environments Force five—Loyalties and leverage 271

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Chapter Three—The nature of change

Steps that lead to change [1]: 1. Suffering; 2. Insight; 3. Will; 4. Action; 5. Change.

Brief conclusions regarding change: 1. External world imposes forces and pressures on us; 2. Forces and pressures experienced as stress and anxiety; 3. If stress too great, we may stagnate and decay; 4. If stress not too great, we respond and grow; 5. Positive (4 above) or negative (3 above) change is a consequence.

Mistakes made in attempting change: 1. In the hands of other people; 2. Negative thinking; 3. Massive vs. singular change; 4. Conceptions that are too broad; 5. Start tomorrow.

Suggested approach to making changes: 1. Recognize a specific need area; 2. Focus on new positive behaviors; 3. Start today; 4. Monitor progress daily; 5. Positive reenforcement weekly.

Appendix 273 Chapter Four—Themes for corporate change

Problem-solving themes for corporate change: 1. Formally embrace continuous reengineering for improvement; 2. Determine and prioritize fixes; 3. Implement the fixes; 4. Monitor results and make adjustments; 5. Assure support from the top.

Areas of focus for corporate change: 1. Look backward and forward; 2. Re-examine your strategic and tactical priorities every year; 3. Search for new opportunities and innovate; 4. Positively differentiate through performance and price; 5. Support your high performers. Chapter Five—Skills for the high-tech manager

Skills for the high-tech manager: 1. Problem solver; 2. Contingency planner; 3. People-oriented communicator; 4. Team builder; 5. Technically competent decision maker.

Problem-solving steps: 1. Surfacing a problem; 2. Articulating the problem; 3. Offering alternatives; 4. Evaluating alternatives;

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5. Implementing a solution.

Steps in transitioning to a manager: 1. Make a conscious decision and commitment; 2. Obtain additional training and education; 3. Practice manager skills; 4. Study and talk to managers in your company/organization; 5. Seek and accept a manager position. Chapter Six—Leadership themes

Key attributes of a leader: 1. Practical visionary; 2. Inclusive communicator; 3. Positive doer; 4. Renewing facilitator; 5. Principled integrator. Chapter Seven—From manager to leader

Transition steps from manager to leader: 1. Address leadership issues and questions; 2. Find and be a mentor; 3. Lead here and now; 4. Evaluate progress and make adjustments; 5. Learn, stretch, and grow. Chapter Eight—Strategic directions

Critical strategic directions for the enterprise: 1. Internal perspectives;

Appendix 275 Vision; Culture. 2. People:

High performance teams; Accountability and rewards.

3. Systems:

Continuous improvement and reengineering; The learning organization.

4. Differentiation and leverage:

Innovation; Responsiveness.

5. External perspectives:

Customers; Competitors.

Chapter Nine—Enterprise performance levels

Enterprise performance levels: 1. Optimizing; 2. Leveraging; 3. Learning; 4. Managing; 5. In process. 6. Ad hoc Chapter Ten—Synthesis and integration

Final Five: 1. Integrate through systems thinking; 2. Reach outward;

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3. Be positive; 4. Be action-oriented; 5. When you feel stuck … (pick up this book!)

References 1.

Wheelis, A., How People Change, New York, NY; Harper Colophon, 1973.

About the Author Since 1989, Howard Eisner has served as Distinguished Research Professor and Professor of Engineering Management and Systems Engineering at the George Washington University. For the 30 years prior, he held positions in industry, including president of two systems and software engineering companies (Intercon Systems Corporation and the Atlantic Research Services Corporation) and as a member of the board of three companies. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and a member of several engineering honor societies. Dr. Eisner has written two books on systems engineering and related topics and has worked extensively on programs and systems for the Departments of Defense, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the Department of Transportation. Dr. Eisner holds a B.E.E. from the City College of New York, an M.S. from Columbia University, and a Doctor of Science from the George Washington University. 277

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Index Articulating problems, 120–22 Artificial intelligence (AI), 43 The Art of Japanese Management, 88 AT&T, 197–98 areas of interest, 198 strategic priorities, 197 See also Corporate perspectives Athos, A., 88–89 Attributes, leadership, 160–65, 253, 274 American project managers, 176–79 communicator, 160, 254 doer, 160–61 expanded list of, 162–64 facilitator, 161, 254 inclusive communicator, 162–63 integrator, 161–62, 254 positive doer, 163 practical visionary, 162 principled integrator, 163–64 renewing facilitator, 163 test, 164, 165

3-C model, 267–68 defined, 267 illustrated, 268 7-S model, 88–89 80/20 rule, 36 Aburdene, Patricia, 27–30 Action orientation, 267 as step leading to change, 61 Age 30 Transition, 64 Age 50 Transition, 64 AlliedSignal, 199–200 orientation, 199–200 strategy, 199 See also Corporate perspectives Alternatives evaluating, 123–26, 252 offering, 122–23, 252 See also Problems Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). See Evaluating alternatives 279

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Attributes, leadership (continued) top five, 274 visionary, 160 See also Leaders; Leadership Augustine, Norman, 169–70 Balanced enterprise model, 207–8 elements, 207 illustrated, 207 questions, 208 See also Models Balanced scorecard model, 206–7 defined, 206 uses, 206 See also Models Baldrige Award measurement framework, 226 defined, 226 illustrated, 227–28 See also Measurements Bandwidth, 34, 43 Bennis, Warren, 145–46, 179 Block, Peter, 150–51 Boeing, 195 Business Process Reengineering (BPR), 91–92 common changes, 91 defined, 91 implementation, 92 Capability Maturity Model (CMM), 226–30 capability levels, 229 defined, 226–28 KPAs, 229, 230 power, 229 software, 228–29 See also Measurements Celente, Gerald, 30 Champy, J., 91–92 Change acceleration, 27, 29–30 acknowledging, 80 approaches to, 73–77, 78, 248, 272 aspects of, 55–56 Boeing example, 14 broad, 72–73 conclusions, 77, 248, 272

conscience, 81 convincing organization of need for, 264 corporate, 56, 79–103 defined, 66 dimensions of, 13–15 drivers, 37 dynamics, 67 embracing, 172–73 facilitator, 33 forces of, 14 importance, 13–14 managing at speed of, 94–95 massive, 71–72 mistakes in attempting, 70–73, 77–78, 248, 272 monitoring, 76 moving forward with, 173–74 nature of, 247–49 negative forces of, 58 personal, 55–78 perspectives, 14–15 positive behaviors for, 74–75 positive reinforcement, 76–77 reengineering and, 262–64 renewal and, 57–58 resistance to, 14, 67 resisters, 66 ROI resulting from, 230 scale of, 65 sequence, 58–59, 61, 77 singular, 71–72 specific area of, 74 steps leading to, 247–48, 272 tendencies, 63–64 themes for making, 15 The Change Masters, 154 Coates, Joe, 37, 39 Collective approach, 87–88 Communicator, 160, 254 inclusive, 162–63 questions, 183–84 See also Attributes, leadership Community, 267, 268 Competencies. See Core competencies Competition external perspective and, 215, 259–60 forces, 83

Index 281 as high-tech force, 45–46 increasing, 12 Contingency planner, 128–29 need, 128 qualities, 129 See also Skills Core competencies, 109–16 defined, 109 grand master, 110–11 MBTI and, 113–14 project manager, 111–12 seven habits, 114–16 U.K. perspective, 112 See also Managers Corporate change, 79–103 acknowledging, 80 areas of focus, 99–102, 103, 194, 250, 273 BPR and, 91–92 competitive forces and, 83 conscience, 81 for consideration, 96–102 differentiation through performance/price, 101–2 examples, 80–85 excellence and, 86–87 failure, 92–93 fixes, 97–98 introduction to, 79–80 Japanese management and, 88–89 looking backward/forward and, 100 managing at speed of, 94–95 mistakes, 92 monitoring, 98–99 opportunities, searching for, 101 performers support and, 102, 250–51 personal change leading to, 56 priorities, re-examining and, 100–101, 250 problem-solving themes, 97–99, 103, 249, 273 support from the top, 99 themes, 81, 249–51 Theory Z and, 87–88 TQM and, 90 Wang example, 81–83 Xerox example, 84–85

See also Change Corporate perspectives, 195–203 AlliedSignal, 199–200 AT&T, 197–98 Boeing, 195 DuPont, 200 Enron, 200–201 GE, 201–2 HP, 197 Kodak, 196 Lucent, 198–99 Microsoft, 202–3 Motorola, 195–96 Schlumberger, 201 summary, 203, 204 Xerox, 198 Covey, Stephen, 114–16 on leadership, 143–44 seven habits, 114–15 “sharpening the saw,” 115 Crainer, S., 157 Culture creating, 172 dimensions, 210–11 Customer, 214 Decision maker skill, 133–35 Decision-making under uncertainty. See Evaluating alternatives Deming, W. Edwards, 90 DePree, Max, 154–55 Differentiation, 20, 21, 214, 275 issues, 259 types of, 214 Doer, 160–61 positive, 163, 184 questions, 184 See also Attributes, leadership Dreher, Diane, 147 Drucker, Peter, 94–95, 110–11 “feeding problems and starving opportunities,” 215 “five deadly business sins,” 94 manager core competencies, 110–11 on leaders, 204–5 on leadership, 142–43 “systematic practices,” 95

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DuPont, 200 Economics Eupsychian, 60 information age, 11 Eight attributes of excellence, 86–87 Eisner, Howard, 159 Empowerment, 171 Enron, 200–201 logo, 200 values, 201 See also Corporate perspectives Enterprise performance, 219–40, 260–61 introduction, 219–21 levels, 275 measurements, 221–30 quantitative approach, 219 suggested levels of, 240 summary, 238–40 TEAM-SD measurement framework, 230–38, 260–61 See also Performance Enterprise reengineering, 19–22 differentiation and leverage and, 20, 21, 214, 275 external perspectives, 20, 21, 214–15, 259, 275 internal perspectives, 20, 21, 209–11, 257–58, 274–75 people and, 20, 21, 211–12, 258, 275 strategic directions, 19–21, 208–15, 257–60 systems and, 20, 21, 212–13, 258–59, 275 Enterprises assessment model, 21–22 balance in, 207–8 high-tech force fields, 7–13, 42 strategic directions for, 208–15, 220, 257–60 what’s important in, 193–95 Entrepreneurship, 86–87 Environmentalism, 37 Environments, 12–13, 47–48 Eupsychia, 60 Evaluating alternatives, 123–26 composite scorecard, 124

composite scorecard with weights, 126 criteria, 124 criteria weights, 125 guidance, 125 scorecard, 123 See also Alternatives; Problems Excellence, eight attributes of, 86–87 External perspectives, 20, 21, 214–15, 259, 275 competition, 215 customer, 214 See also Strategic directions Facilitator, 161, 254 change, 33 questions, 184 renewing, 163 See also Attributes, leadership Ferguson, Marilyn, 62–63 The Fifth Discipline, 93–94 “Five deadly business sins,” 94 Fixes determining/prioritizing, 97–98 implementing, 98 Flawless Consulting, 151 The Fourfold Pilgrimage, Domination, and Defiance, 147 Future 500, 147–48 The Gamesman, 151–52 Gardner, John, 57–58, 144–45 Gates, Bill, 30 General Electric (GE), 201–2 growth initiatives, 202 statistics, 201–2 See also Corporate perspectives Goodman, Ellen, 65–66, 67 Gorbachev, Mikhail, 95–96 Hammer, M., 91–92 Heider, John, 145 Hewlett Packard (HP), 197 Hickman, Craig, 147–48, 179 High performance teams (HPTs), 20, 211–12 characteristics of, 212 defined, 212, 252 See also Teams

Index 283 High-tech force fields, 7–13, 41–51 competition, 45–46 defined, 41 enterprise, 42 fields illustration, 42 individuals, 42 information age, 43–44 introduction to, 25–27 loyalties and leverage, 48–50 megatrends, 27–30 speed and responsiveness, 44–45 summary, 50–51 technology areas, 42–43 top five, 244–45, 271 work patterns and environments, 47–48 High-tech managers. See Managers Hodgson, P., 157 IBM layoff policy, 28–29, 49 PC market decision, 29 Individual contributor to manager transition, 174, 256 illustrated, 256 top five, 174, 274 Individuals empowerment of, 27 high-tech force fields, 42 loyalty shift, 27 Information age, 10–13, 245 challenges, 10 continuation of, 27 economics, 11 effects, 245 as high-tech force, 43–44 increasing competition and, 12 leader wealth, 10–11 loyalties/leverage and, 13 opportunities, 246–47 power in, 35 proposition, 28 speed/responsiveness and, 11 view of, 10 work patterns/environments and, 12–13 Informationalizing, 35

Information technology, 38 Innovation, 259 Insight, 61 Integration, 243, 267, 275 Integrator, 161–62, 254 principled, 163–64 questions, 184–85 See also Attributes, leadership Internal perspectives, 20, 21, 209–11, 257–58, 274–75 areas of attention, 209 defined, 257 See also Strategic directions Internet, 27–28 Japanese management, 88–89 Job hierarchy, 116–17 Jobs, 116 leader, 117 moving between, 116 pros/cons, 117 Journeys illustrated, 5 manager to leader, 4–5, 169–89, 255–56 reengineering enterprise, 4 reengineering yourself, 3–4 Key Process Areas (KPAs), 229, 230 Kodak, 196 Kotter, John, 92 Kouzes, J., 152–53 The Leader of the Future, 142–43 Leaders: Strategies for Taking Change, 146 Leaders as change facilitators, 33 defined, 179 Drucker, Peter on, 204–5 evolving to, 16–19 information age, 10–11 key attributes, 181 managers vs., 179–81, 254 Marine, attributes, 17 orientations of, 180 prospective, 18 resource pools of, 17 transition suggestions, 19

284

Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

Leaders (continued) twenty-first century, 246 See also Manager to leader Leadership art of, 155 attributes, 142–59, 253, 274 attributes, expanded list, 162–64 attributes for twenty-first century, 159–62 attributes, project managers, 176–79 attributes test, 164, 165 Bennis, Warren on, 145–46 Block, Peter on, 150–51 challenge, 188 Covey, Stephen on, 143–44 Crainer, S. on, 157 DePree, Max on, 154–55 Dreher, Diane on, 147 Drucker, Peter on, 142–43 Eisner, Howard on, 159 Gardner, John on, 144–45 hear and now, 186–87 Heider, John on, 145 Hickman, Craig on, 147–48 Hodgson, P. on, 157 issues and questions, 183–85 jobs, 117 Kouzes, J. on, 152–53 Leavitt, Harold on, 152 literature themes, 142–59 McCall, Carol on, 158–59 Maccoby, Michael on, 151–52 Manz, C. on, 157–58 Moss Kanter, Rosabeth on, 154 movement to, 27 Nanus, Burt, 148–49 Posner, B. on, 152–53 qualities, 18 resources, 16 Roberts, Wess on, 156–57 Safir, William and Leonard on, 153–54 Sawyer, Ralph on, 149–50 Schein, Edgar on, 155–56 secrets, 170–73 Sims Jr., Henry on, 157–58 themes, 141–65, 253–54 Wheatley, Margaret on, 146–47

White, R. on, 157 “white water” metaphor, 157 Zaleznik, Abraham on, 150 On Leadership, 144–45 Leavitt, Harold, 152 Leverage, 13, 20, 21, 275 creating, 213–14 as high-tech force, 48–50 issues, 259 technical skill, 50 Levinson, Daniel, 63–64 Loyalties, 13 double-sided, 49 eroded, 49 as high-tech force, 48–50 shift in, 28 “Loyalty Factor,” 29 Lucent, 198–99 McCall, Carol, 158–59 Maccoby, Michael, 151–52 Management less, 171 as “manglement,” 108 (MNG) (three element model), 225, 266 operations, 246 time, 246 vacuum, filling, 136 Management by objectives (MBO), 171 Managerial Psychology, 152 Managers attributes, 254 becoming, 15–16 communication attribute, 254 as contingency planners, 128–29 core competencies, 109–16 defined, 179 dimensions, 15 high-tech, skills, 15–16, 107–38 as leader resource pool, 17 leaders vs., 179–81, 254 orientations of, 180 as people-oriented communicators, 129–31 as problem solvers, 118–27 project, 111–12, 176–79 skills, 118–35, 251–53, 273

Index 285 steps to becoming, 135–37, 138, 251, 274 as team builder, 131–33 as technically competent decision maker, 133–35 in twenty-first century, 246 See also Management Manager to leader, 169–89, 255–56 as growth experience, 182–83 here and now, 186–87 introduction, 169–73 journey, 4–5 leadership issues, 183–85 learning experience, 188–89 mentors, 185–86 personal change and, 56–57 stretch, 188–89 transition, 181–89 transition evaluation/adjustments, 187–88 transition steps, 189, 255, 274 transition suggestions, 15 See also Leaders; Leadership Manz, C., 157–58 Marine leaders, 17 Marketing (MKT) (three element model), 225, 266 Massive change, 71–72 Measurements, 20–21, 221–30 Baldrige Award framework, 226, 227–28 CMM and, 226–30 dimensions, 222 frameworks of, 225–26 general notions of, 222–23 leadership test, 225 monthly, 223–24 pairwise comparison, 225–26 perspectives, 221–22 process results, 239 program framework, 21 project management, 222 TEAM-SD framework, 230–38, 260–61 See also Performance Megaskills, 148–49 Megatrends 2000, 30 Megatrends, 27–30 Megatrends, 27 Mental models, 93

Mentors being, 185–86 finding, 185 See also Manager to leader Microsoft, 202–3 growth patterns, 202 technical themes, 203 See also Corporate perspectives Mid-Life Transition, 64 Miller, George A., 22 Models 3-C, 267, 268 balanced enterprise, 207–8 balanced scorecard, 206–7 CMM, 226–30 Seven S’s, 205–6, 265–66 three element, 225–26, 266 Monitoring change progress, 76 corporate change, 98–99 Monthly measurements, 223–24 list, 223–24 views of, 224 See also Measurements Moss Kanter, Rosabeth, 154 Motorola, 195–96 key objectives, 196 top-level theme, 195 See also Corporate perspectives Moving forward, 173–75 Multiattribute decision making (MADM). See Evaluating alternatives Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), 113–14 Naisbitt, John, 27–30 Nanus, B, 148–49 Negative mind sets, 70–73 Negative thinking, 71 Negotiation skills, 247 On-the-job-training (OJT), 136 Organization, this book, 8 Ouchi, William, 87–88 Pairwise comparison, 225–26 Pascale, R., 88–89 Peck, M. Scott, 58–59, 66 People, 20, 21, 211–12

286

Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

People (continued) accountability/rewards and, 212, 258 HPTs and, 212–13, 258 strategic direction and, 211–12, 258, 275 People-oriented communicator, 129–31 defined, 129 need for, 130–31 qualities, 129–30 See also Skills Perestroika, 95–96 Performance differentiating through, 101–2 enterprise, 219–40, 260–61 Personal change, 55–78 action and, 61 approaches to, 73–77, 78, 248, 272 aspects of, 55–56 balance and, 59 broad, 72–73 corporate change and, 56 deep, 61 defined, 66 dynamics, 67 in engineer to manager transition, 56–57 getting unstuck and, 61–62 ideas, 68–69 insight and, 61 introduction to, 55–57 in manager to leader transition, 56–57 perspectives, 57–67 positive behavior focus, 74–75 positive reinforcement, 76–77 potential areas of, 69 progress monitoring, 76 recognize specific area and, 74 renewal and, 57–58, 61 resistance to, 67 scale of, 65 self-defeating, 70–73 sequence, 58–59, 77, 181 source of, 181 start today and, 75 steps leading to, 247–48, 272 suffering and, 61 tendencies, 63–64 “top five,” 73–77, 78

turning points and, 65–66 will and, 61 See also Change Personal change mistakes, 70–73, 77–78, 248, 272 ability in hands of others, 70–71 conceptions too broad, 72–73 massive vs. singular change, 71–72 negative thinking, 71 start tomorrow, 73 Perspectives corporate, 195–203 external, 20, 21, 214–15, 259 internal, 20, 21, 209–11, 257–58 measurement, 221–22 systems, 264–65 Peters, Tom, 86–87 Pirsig, Robert, 62 Porter, Michael, 83 Positive attitude, 267 behaviors, 74–75 reinforcement, 76–77 Posner, B., 152–53 Power bureaucratic companies and, 35 in information age, 35 shifting of, 33–35 Priorities, re-examining, 100–101 Problems alternatives, evaluating, 123–26, 252 alternatives, offering, 122–23, 252 articulating, 120–22 solutions, implementing, 126–27 surfacing, 119–20 Problem solver skill, 118–27 articulating problems, 120–22 evaluating alternatives, 123–26 offering alternatives, 122–23 solution implementation, 126–27 steps, 138, 251, 273–74 surfacing problems, 119–20 See also Skills Product and service (PAS), 225, 266 Project managers characteristics, 177 core competencies, 111–12

Index 287 effectiveness, 177 highest rated behaviors, 178 leadership attributes, 176–79 lowest rated behaviors, 178 responsibilities, 176 See also Managers Questions, 6–7, 19 Realities, facing, 172 Reengineering change and, 262–64 continuous, embracing, 97 enterprise, 19–22 principles, 97 yourself, 3–4, 263 Reengineering the Corporation, 262 Renewal, change and, 57–58 Responsiveness, 259 Roberts, Wess, 156–57 Safir, William and Leonard, 153–54 Sawyer, Ralph, 149–50 Schein, Edgar, 155–56 Schlumberger, 201 Senge, Peter, 93–94, 265 Seven habits, 114–16 list of, 114–15 sharpen the saw, 115 synergy, 115 See also Core competencies The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, 143–44 “Seven, plus or minus two,” 22–23 Seven S’s model, 205–6 defined, 206 elements, 205, 265–66 See also Models “Sharpen the saw,” 115 Short-term successes, 93 Shuttle Zone, 65–66 Sims Jr., Henry, 157–58 Singular change, 171–72 Skills, 118–35, 251–53 contingency planner, 128–29 manager, 118–35, 251–53 megaskills, 148–49 negotiation, 247

people-oriented communicator, 129–31 problem solver, 118–27, 251, 273–74 team builder, 131–33 technically competent decision maker, 133–35 top five, 137–38, 273 transitioning to manager, 251 Solutions, implementing, 126–27 Speed and responsiveness, 11 defined, 44 as high-tech force, 44–45 Starting today, 75 tomorrow, 73 “Stovepipes,” 254 Strategic directions, 208–15, 257–60 differentiation and leverage, 213–14, 259, 275 external perspectives, 214–15, 259, 275 internal perspectives, 209–11, 257–58, 274–75 list of, 209, 220 people, 211–12, 258 subordinate, 235 systems, 212–13, 258–59, 275 TEAM-SD measurement framework, 239 top five summary, 215–16, 274–75 See also Enterprises Stuck, feeling, 61–62, 269 Suffering, 61 Sun-Tzu, 149–50 Surfacing problems, 119–20 Synergy, 115 Synthesis, 243, 275 Systematic practices, 95 Systems, 20, 21, 212–13 approach, 32, 33 aspects, 33 defined, 212 engineering elements, 32 learning organization and, 259 perspective, 264–65 prioritizing, 258 strategic directions and, 212–13, 258–59, 275 thinking, 93–94, 265

288

Reengineering Yourself and Your Company

The Tao of Inner Peace, 147 Tao Te Ching, 145 Team builder skill, 131–33 areas, 133 examples, 132–33 need for, 131–32 six lessons, 132 See also Skills Team learning, 93 Teams, 81 effective, 132 high performance (HPT), 20, 211–12, 252 solution implementation by, 126–27 TEAM-SD measurement framework, 230–38, 260–61 basis, 231 contribution of, 261 defined, 230–31, 260 expanded scoring system, 233 illustrative scores, 231 implementation, 235–38 levels, 232, 261 levels achieved by hypothetical scores, 234 measurement recording, 231 modified college scoring, 237 scores, 232, 261 scoring approach example, 238 scoring illustrative example, 236 scoring system based on numerical system, 234 strategic directions, 239 structure, 231–35 subordinate strategic directions and, 235 See also Measurements Technically competent decision maker, 133–35 decision making, 135 technical competence, 134–35 See also Skills Technologies areas of, 42–43 projected year for, 39 The Enterprise Assessment Model. See TEAM-SD measurement framework Theory Z, 87–88

Three element model, 225–26, 266 MKT, 225 MNG, 225 PAS, 225 Toffler, Alvin, 33–35 Top five approaches to making change, 78, 272 areas of focus for corporate change, 99–102, 103, 250, 273 conclusions regarding change, 77, 272 enterprise performance levels, 275 final, 267–69, 275 high-tech force fields, 244–45, 271 individual contributor to manager transition, 174 leadership attributes, 164, 274 manager to leader transition steps, 189, 255, 274 manager transition steps, 138, 274 mistakes in attempting change, 77–78, 272 for personal change, 73–77, 78 problem-solving steps, 138, 251, 273–74 problem solving themes for corporate change, 97–99, 103, 249, 273 review, 271–75 skills for high-tech manager, 137–38, 273 steps leading to change, 77, 272 strategic directions, 215–16, 274–75 Total Quality Management (TQM), 90 Transitions Age 30, 64 Age 50, 64 attributes and, 175 individual contributor to manager, 174, 256 manager to leader, 181–89 Mid-Life, 64 periods, 64 progress evaluation, 187–88 steps, 251 Transportation domain, 7–9 hybrid vehicles, 40 Trends, 27–31 megatrends, 27–30 twenty-first century, 30–31

Index 289 year 2025, 37–39 Trust, 87–88 Turning points, 65–66 U.K. perspective, manager core competencies, 112 Visionary, 160 practical, 162, 183 questions, 183 See also Attributes, leadership Wang example, 81–83, 262 inability to adjust, 83 revenue and profit illustration, 82 See also Corporate change Waterman Jr., Robert, 86–87 Welch, Jack, 170, 253 Wheatley, Margaret, 146–47 When Giants Learn to Dance, 154 White, R., 157

“White water” metaphor, 157 Will, 61 Work patterns, 12–13 as high-tech force, 47–48 types of, 47 Workplaces, 31–33 high-performance, 31 influence, 38 Xerox, 84–85, 198 change and, 84 income and stock prices, 85 perspectives, 198 See also Corporate change; Corporate perspectives Yankelovich, Skelly and White (YSW), 26 Zaleznik, Abraham, 150 Zen and the Art of Management, 89