Tag Archives: Strategic management

June 20, 2014 · 9:11 am

Why Cook?

Foodie Friday (finally) and this week’s food screed is about cooking. I’m always surprised that many people – younger people in particular – can’t cook.

Cooking Knifes

(Photo credit: nickwheeleroz)

Oh sure, they can heat up something in the microwave and say they’ve “cooked” supper, but since food is one of life’s necessities, one would think that everyone would take the time to learn to prepare it.  There are some basic business points in my thinking as well (you knew THAT was coming…).

I can hear the naysayers among you: “Cooking takes time and I don’t have any.”  Not true.  Once you’ve learned a few basic skills, you can have really good dishes on the table in under 30 minutes.  That’s not longer than it takes to heat a frozen meal up in the oven and while the microwave might cut that time down, there is no comparison to the quality (plus you’ll generally have some leftover for the next day).

Other reasons to learn to cook:  you know what you’re eating.  I guarantee you can pronounce the names of everything you put in a dish – read a frozen food package and see if you can say the same.  The ingredients are healthier too.  Ordering in?  Besides being more expensive than doing it yourself (even factoring in the cost of your time), you have no clue how much salt or fat was used, no clue if everything was as scrupulously clean as you would make it, and no idea if the food will arrive hot (ever had a pizza arrive with a steamed crust – yuck).  Finally, cooking is fun.  OK, maybe not so much when it doesn’t go well, but for me it’s almost a form of meditation.  It takes you away from the rest of your world and forces your focus elsewhere.  So why this rant on why you should learn to cook?

Like the non-cooks, many businesses haven’t learned some of the basic skills they need, thinking they can outsource them or buy an off-the shelf solution.  In some cases it makes sense – it’s like going out to eat every so often.But take, as an example, a web business that outsources all of its coding and design.  That firm is at the mercy of the developer. They can’t “cook” for themselves.  Obviously I’m a “dine out”solution for my clients so you know I’m a fan of looking outside for some tasks.  But mission-critical skills – which will vary by business – should be acquired and available, just like cooking.

Your take?

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June 19, 2014 · 10:30 am

Decision making

How do you make decisions?  We make many of them every day.  Some are as simple as what to wear or what to have for supper; others involve far more complex thinking and input from many sources.  The folks over at The Economist Intelligence Unit released a study on decision-making and I thought you might find some of what they discovered of interest.  You can read the entire thing here – it’s a 15 page document.

Let’s start with the conclusion:

Data are a highly prized commodity when it comes to making decisions. As The Economist Intelligence Unit’s survey shows, more senior managers consider themselves to be “data-driven” decision-makers than any other available option. And when asked what would improve decision-making, most choose “better ability to analyze data”…Intuition is also valued highly, even among decision-makers who consider themselves data-driven. Evidently both intuition and analysis contribute to effective decision-making, in business as in life. Rather than a weakness that must be avoided, intuition should instead be seen as a skill that is appropriate in the right circumstances.

I find that fascinating since many of the folks with whom I’ve worked over the years have gone out of their way to avoid “I think” in favor of “the data shows.”  There is a term in aviation – spatial disorientation – that refers to when a pilot’s perception of direction does not agree with reality.  They must use the aircraft’s instruments or risk flying themselves into trouble (as in “the ground”).  That’s an instance where intuition is a really bad idea – you must rely on the data.  The same is true as we fly our businesses.

There are business circumstances where data-driven decisions have to rule.  We as human business people don’t seem to like that:

“When making a decision, if the available data contradicted your gut feeling, what would you do?” By far the most popular response, with 57% of the sample, is “Re-analyze the data”. This is followed by “Collect more data”, chosen by 30%.

Who are you going to believe – me or your lying numbers, to paraphrase the old joke.  Maybe this is the art/science debate.  Parts of marketing should revolve around data (science) and some decisions must be based on your gut – art, in my mind.  While finance may be data-driven, designers need solid intuition.  Sometimes we don’t have the data we need or want.  Sometimes what we have overwhelms us or conflicts with itself.

I think the best outcomes are decisions made by people with vast experience who have seen reams of data over the years and understand when it’s relevant, even if it conflicts with their feelings.  I agree with the conclusion that intuition is a useful skill.  What do you think?

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June 11, 2014 · 8:42 am

Switch It

The World Cup starts tomorrow. It’s the greatest sporting event on the planet, in my humble opinion. There is a phrase in soccer – switching it – that refers to moving the ball into a completely different area, usually across the field, to gain time and space. That’s what I want to write about today, prompted by an announcement made yesterday.  It raises a great business point.

According to the Japan Times:

Toyota Motor Corp. plans to begin commercial production of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in mid-December and roll out the next-generation green car by the end of this year, ahead of its earlier target of 2015, sources said Wednesday.

What is that and why is it important?  The car is powered by electricity generated through a chemical reaction of hydrogen and oxygen.  No fossil fuels anywhere.  Initially it is going to cost around $78,000 but the price will come down, hopefully to half of that in 5 years.  That price drop isn’t unusual.  After all, an Apple II was $1,300 in 1977 – that’s around $4,800 today.  When the IBM PC came out in 1981, people still wondered why they’d need a “personal” computer, especially one that cost the equivalent of almost $4,000 today.  Like a hydrogen car, the support system – fuel stations in the case of the car, software in the case f the computers – wasn’t developed.  As the world woke up to the better technology, that support system matured and here we are.

What’s my business point?  Many companies have tried to improve the gas mileage.  Very few – fully electric cars such as Tesla – have thought about changing the paradigm – switching the ball on the field.  Getting off fossil fuels changes everything from global politics to climate.  It’s a big idea.  That’s the kind of thinking that moves businesses forward.  Like soccer players running into a stiff defense, switching the ball – changing the underlying assumptions that drive the thinking – can buy time and space and maybe even result in finding an opening to the goal.

Worth a try?

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