Imagine you worked for McDonald’s and you had a super new idea for a product, the McPizza. How would you test it? Option 1: Launch it nationwide Create the recipe Build a supply chain for the ingredients Buy the ovens Train all your staff Develop the marketing Put up the in-store banners Run the adverts […]
How Come Your Projects Are Always Late?
Mrs Lawther wants an extension to the kitchen, she also wants us to break into the loft and build (or, as she says, create) another bedroom. Her friend is an architect, she tells us that all the natural light will be uplifting. My heart on the other hand, is sinking. Think of the noise and […]
How to Think Like an Auditor
On Friday I was audited If you live in a corporate world you will be familiar with the sensation. I’d like to say I felt warm all over, but I would be lying (lying through my teeth). I was put through a “process audit” by an auditor in his mid 20’s, 6 foot 2 inches, […]
Surge Planning: I Hate the Snow
It was cold this morning Freezing It is going to snow, maybe not today or tomorrow, but soon Snow is a mixed blessing, great for sledging but for some of us, it’s a work disaster Pipes freeze People fall Cars won’t start Boilers fail If you happen to be in the game of mending pipes […]
Swiss Cheese: It’s Bad for Your Health
Things go wrong: People sleep in Training isn’t acted on Doors get left open Staff members resent each other Taps get stuck open People put boxes on the wrong pile Shit, as they say, happens. Normally “things gone wrong” are just an irritant, a minor expense, nothing to get too worried about. Sometimes however, it […]