Seasoned operating executives will generally agree that a well-run business needs to have a set of metrics, above and beyond bare-bones financial results, that are used to guide decision-making and measure progress. Without metrics we would be flying blind. Unfortunately, operating metrics can also look like a panacea to the uninitiated, thereby lending themselves to fad-surfing. When boards, investors, and far-removed executives are at a loss about how to improve business results, demanding that metrics be put in place has a certain simplistic appeal. A metrics initiative can create the illusion of taking action, it sounds easy enough, and it might actually fix the business. Plus, metrics can provide a means of avoiding the need to assess people and strategies via more time-consuming and uncomfortably subjective means. What’s not to love? Continue reading ‘Metrics, Metrics, Everywhere’
Posts Tagged 'Operational Excellence'
Fascism
Published January 11, 2010 Culture & Change Management , Driving Financial Performance , Operating Disciplines , Organizational Structure Leave a CommentTags: Business Leadership, Management Ideas, Operational Excellence
A COO is often described as the person in the organization who makes the trains run on time. This was also Mussolini’s claim to fame – and he was a Fascist. Does this mean that a COO, or anyone else tasked with driving operational efficiency, is condemned to play the role of killjoy authoritarian if he or she is to be effective?
Well, yes and no. I do believe that efficient operations depend upon a disciplined approach: clear goal-setting, regular review, and good follow through. Systems and processes can provide the framework, but the key to success is consistency of individual and collective behavior. Someone has to be the focal point for Continue reading ‘Fascism’
The Hamster Wheel
Published January 7, 2010 Culture & Change Management , Driving Financial Performance , Operating Disciplines , Organizational Structure Leave a CommentTags: General Management, Operating Disciplines, Operational Excellence, Operational Execution
It is interesting to note that the symptoms of operational crisis are often remarkably similar, regardless of the underlying cause or the type of company. The often-used hamster wheel analogy of running around in circles and getting nowhere really does fit very well.
Here are some of the things you are likely to observe when an organization has lost its grip operationally: Continue reading ‘The Hamster Wheel’
Chick Operating Officer 
