Added for You - Leading Change - Be Careful What You Push For

If you're trying to lead change in an organization overflowing with bureaucracy you'd better get ready for some fights. In one company where we worked to drive a big change project, the bad guys running the bureaucracy came bubbling out of the woodwork like a gusher of bad crude.

It was the end of the quarter and the changes we were working on were far from complete. They weren’t even scheduled for completion for another nine months but that didn’t stop the head of manufacturing from driving sales orders straight out the back door whether the product was ready or not. Never mind the fact the handhelds we were working on didn’t pass the motherboard burn in tests, they overheated. In some cases, the heat was actually causing damage to the plastic case they were housed in. It was bad.

In spite of the dogs of bureaucracy nipping at his heals the head of quality was sticking to his guns. That is until the manufacturing manager, who he worked for, turned ugly. He was told in no uncertain terms that he would ship those handhelds that were on hold or he'd find someone else who 'could get the job done'.

It was an hour long tirade that brought the quality guy to his knees.

"Yes, I understand and I can ship those new motherboards. But with that motherboard overheating like it is, I'll need a little time to get hold of some of those tiny little air conditioners to put on the back of each one to cool them down ... you know, so they don’t burn the customers hands."

It was the end of the quarter and the changes we were working on were far from complete. They weren’t even scheduled for completion for another nine months but that didn’t stop the head of manufacturing from driving sales orders straight out the back door whether the product was ready or not. Never mind the fact the handhelds we were working on didn’t pass the motherboard burn in tests, they overheated. In some cases, the heat was actually causing damage to the plastic case they were housed in. It was bad.

In spite of the dogs of bureaucracy nipping at his heals the head of quality was sticking to his guns. That is until the manufacturing manager, who he worked for, turned ugly. He was told in no uncertain terms that he would ship those handhelds that were on hold or he'd find someone else who 'could get the job done'.

It was an hour long tirade that brought the quality guy to his knees.

"Yes, I understand and I can ship those new motherboards. But with that motherboard overheating like it is, I'll need a little time to get hold of some of those tiny little air conditioners to put on the back of each one to cool them down ... you know, so they don’t burn the customers hands." How to Attract and Keep a Personal Assistant
Many managers will often say their personal assistant is invaluable to them yet they often treat them as if they're not.Day after day, week after week the P.A. is in the office, slogging away making sure the work gets done. In many instances it is the P.A. that holds the business / department together.Many of them are so conscientious they won't takecompletion for another nine months but that didn’t stop the head of manufacturing from driving sales orders straight out the back door whether the product was ready or not. Never mind the fact the handhelds we were working on didn’t pass the motherboard burn in tests, they overheated. In some cases, the heat was actually causing damage to the plastic case they were housed in. It was bad.

In spite of the dogs of bureaucracy nipping at his heals the head of quality was sticking to his guns. That is until the manufacturing manager, who he worked for, turned ugly. He was told in no uncertain terms that he would ship those handhelds that were on hold or he'd find someone else who 'could get the job done'.

It was an hour long tirade that brought the quality guy to his knees.

"Yes, I understand and I can ship those new motherboards. But with that motherboard overheating like it is, I'll need a little time to get hold of some of those tiny little air conditioners to put on the back of each one to cool them down ... you know, so they don’t burn the customers hands." Advertised Products Versus Perception from a South African Perspective
A South African publication revealed that South Africa's top 100 advertisers spent in excess of $930 million on building their brands in 2005. Some individual companies spent upwards of $28 million on advertising to drive their brands home.What's being advertised and what's being delivered are two totally opposite things. Customers have been left by the wayre housed in. It was bad.

In spite of the dogs of bureaucracy nipping at his heals the head of quality was sticking to his guns. That is until the manufacturing manager, who he worked for, turned ugly. He was told in no uncertain terms that he would ship those handhelds that were on hold or he'd find someone else who 'could get the job done'.

It was an hour long tirade that brought the quality guy to his knees.

"Yes, I understand and I can ship those new motherboards. But with that motherboard overheating like it is, I'll need a little time to get hold of some of those tiny little air conditioners to put on the back of each one to cool them down ... you know, so they don’t burn the customers hands." Mystery Shopping Helps Quality Management Improve
Mystery shopping is an exciting opportunity for hundreds of thousands of consumers to earn some cash and freebies while helping quality customer service improve. Mystery shoppers do not simply go around shopping malls and gas stations to earn cash or get free services. Their job has much deeper long-term consequences, because mystery shopping helps companies enhann hour long tirade that brought the quality guy to his knees.

"Yes, I understand and I can ship those new motherboards. But with that motherboard overheating like it is, I'll need a little time to get hold of some of those tiny little air conditioners to put on the back of each one to cool them down ... you know, so they don’t burn the customers hands."

He had guts, it was funny at the time but I tell you, the guy made us ship them anyway. It was a train wreck. I couldn’t get the CEO to override the manufacturing guy so our project was about to be put on hold to pick up these pieces.

The debacle that day came about because we had a guy who pushed for what he wanted, not what the project needed or the customer or anything. He got his way. You cannot let that happen or you fail, like we did in this case. Unfortunately, it does happen all too often.

As a change leader you must look out for people like the one described above. You must smoke them out long before you’re in a box like this one. In this case as well, the CEO, who was behind me driving the change, stood with the manufacturing guy so they could drive the quarter for Wall Street. The company later went down and those two with it.

"Change is inevitable, except from vending machines." If you're driving change with a few vending machines for leaders, the you’ll fail. No question about it ... be careful and watch what you push for - you just may get it.

Ed Kugler

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