Thursday, February 2, 2012

Go "Undercover" to Find the Flaws in Your Company - Robert M. Galford - Harvard Business Review

Go "Undercover" to Find the Flaws in Your Company - Robert M. Galford - Harvard Business Review

Robert Galford discusses the "Undercover Boss" phenomenon and recommendations about how to put such a strategy in place in the regular world.

When I first saw the show, I recognized something right away...the format is actually a new type of Kaizen event:
1. The executive meets with his senior team and determines a charter of what they hope to accomplish or learn
2. A cross section of the business is chosen to examine
3. The CEO goes to the Gemba, in disguise, to gain unfiltered data
4. The CEO learns what the intended or unintended consequences of existing policies and methods are in the field
5. The CEO returns to the board and/or institutes countermeasures based on what was learned
6. The CEO reports out to the broader organization, explaining the process, findings, and follow-up items

Other similarities:
1. Being put outside one's comfort zone as a method of learning
2. There's always at least one epiphany moment - where direct observation shatters pre-conceived views or opinions of the current state

I noticed in recent episodes, the report out seems to be missing. I hope that's only the case for the TV audience, because this new type of kaizen event can be invaluable for the actual companies.

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

To-Do Lists Don't Work - Daniel Markovitz - Harvard Business Review

To-Do Lists Don't Work - Daniel Markovitz - Harvard Business Review

Daniel Markovitz lays out the reasons that traditional to-do lists are counterproductive, providing a poor guide to time management and prioritization.

What's most interesting is the substitute he proposes for the to-do list and the issues it resolves.