Category Archives: Systems

PAR

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Corina was puzzled. Her simple Cap Ex budget exercise that took her a week to prepare, now knowing it was a 15 month Time Span task, had caused her to think. That’s the point. Defining the Time Span of the task communicates the “real” complexity of the task. This was not a simple exercise. The Cap Ex budget is a complicated task and will require some deep thought, some research, some data gathering.

“Where do I start?” she asked.

“Do you remember my golf analogy?” I replied.

“You mean PAR?”

I nodded.

“P stands for Purpose, A stands for Action, R stands for Results. First I have to define the Purpose?”

I nodded again. “We cannot go any further until we define the purpose. What is the purpose of the organization?”

“The organization?” she leaned back. “But I just run the plant floor?”

“But if you just think about the plant floor, you will make wrong decisions. What is the purpose of the organization?” -TF

Shrink Wraps in 20 Seconds

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“Yes, I have been looking at this new shrink wrap machine for next year. It picks up a pallet, automatically spins it and shrink wraps it, all in about 20 seconds. It’s pretty cool. It’s on my list of things to buy for next year,” Corina proudly stated.

“Great! But is that where we need to spend the money?” I asked.

“Well, I usually always get to spend what I spent last year. In fact, if I don’t spend it, I will lose my budget the following year and will have to do a song and dance to spend anything.”

“But is that where we need to spend the money?” I repeated.

Corina looked down at her feet, then back up. “I really don’t know. Every year, I go out to the equipment show in Las Vegas and look around. I have a pretty good eye for deals on equipment and I have to justify the trip.”

“But is that where we need to spend the money? Where, in your system, should we focus our attention? Remember, as a manager, your role is to create, monitor and adjust the systems in your area. I really don’t care about neat robotic equipment. I care more about impact on the system.” -TF