My enemy is command and control thinking so why is entropy my friend? Well, it is because entropy says that things left alone will deteriorate. Command and control is all about "maintenance" and protecting. These folks love to hide behind contracts, manipulated surveys and data, lots of inspection, attorneys, bean counters, reports and other non-value-added activities that add costs and waste. The problem is with their focus on adding waste the value work is deteriorating. Sometimes this is a trickle and sometimes this is a flood. If you are not improving the system you are deteriorating.
The systems thinking organization understands entropy and that customer demands shift. Management sets up the front-line workers to work with them to help understand this changing demand as it happens instead of trying to figure it out on a report. Innovation leadership means having a close ear to changes in customer demand and what creates value.
So thank you entropy you can make changing thinking much easier by what you do naturally.
Tripp Babbitt is a speaker, blogger and consultant to service industry (private and public). He is focused on exposing the problems of command and control thinking and the termination of bad service through application of new thinking . . . systems thinking. Download free Understanding Your Organization as a System and gain knowledge of systems thinking or contact us about our intervention services at [email protected]. Reach him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TriBabbitt.
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