John Seddon and my Vanguard partners have written a very important white paper on economies of scale titled Why do we believe in economy of scale?    If management is to change thinking, here is a great place to start.  The mass-production, economy of scale thinking has outlived its usefulness.

This paper challenges the assumptions around our management thinking from costs to the causes of costs.  The leap from economies of scale and the design of work that is resultant from it is destroying value and creating waste.  Economies of flow are driving both work design and management thinking.

I am commited to finding ways for service organizations and government to understand the impact of this thinking in improving profits and reducing costs.  This paper is lengthy, but should be reviewed and digested several times as its significance is unequivocal. 

I am writing in both columns (Quality Digest and IQPC) about the importance of economies of flow.  Additonally, I am working on a speech to present to associations, government entities and service companies on this topic.

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Make the new decade a profitable and rewarding one, start a new path here.  Download free from www.newsystemsthinking.com “Understanding Your Organization as a System” and gain knowledge of systems thinking or contact us about how to get started at [email protected].  Reach him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TriBabbitt or LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/trippbabbitt.

Tripp Babbitt is a columist (Quality Digest and IQPC), speaker, and consultant to private and public service industry.