- Toyota and GM decided to have a canoe race on the Missouri
River.
-
- Both teams practiced long and hard to reach their peak
performance before the race.
-
- BUT on the big day, the Japanese won by a mile.
-
- The Americans, very discouraged and depressed, decided
to investigate the reason for the crushing defeat. A management team made
up of senior management was formed to investigate and recommend appropriate
action.
-
- Their conclusion was the Japanese had 8 people rowing
and 1 person steering, while the American team had 8 people steering and
1 person rowing. So American management hired a consulting company referred
to them by the US Government and paid them a large amount of money for
a second opinion.
-
- The consultants advised that too many people were steering
the boat, while not enough people were rowing. To prevent another loss
to the Japanese, the rowing team's management structure was totally reorganized
into 3 steering supervisors, 1 area steering superintendents, 1 publicity
manager, 1 HR diversity coordinator, 1 union rep, and a rower.
-
- They also implemented a new performance system that would
give the 1 person rowing the boat greater incentive to work harder. It
was called the "Rowing Team Quality First Program", with a lunch
and a free company pen for the rower. There was discussion of getting new
paddles, canoes, and other equipment, extra vacation days for practices
and performance-tied bonuses but that decision was held up in committee.
-
- BUT the next year the Japanese won by two miles.
-
- Humiliated, the American management laid off the rower
for poor performance, halted development of a new canoe, sold the paddles,
and canceled all capital investments for new equipment.
-
- The money from all sales and all forecasted moneys saved
from further competition was distributed to the Senior Executives as bonuses
and the next year's racing team was out-sourced to India.
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- The End.
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