Eleven Pound Pencil

Barry Gerber wrote a very interesting essay back in March 5 2006, published in the Tom's Guide website and titled: Who Designed This Crap? The Case of the 11 Pound Pencil. I suggest you take a few minutes and read the article (if you haven't done before) - it is extensive as it spans four chapters:

1. The Decision

2. The Execution

3. The Disaster

and a recap and last thoughts as

4. Productivity Increases? What Productivity Increases?

Look around in your own workplace, your department, your desk. How many 11 pound pencils can you identify? There has to be at least one... yes, even in the most tightly controlled world class lean operated environment there will always be at least one - the difference in such environments is that procedures will be in place to allow the involved parties to quickly identify the wasted resource, then efectively dispense solutions to minimize its negative impact and improve the health of the quality system.

When implementing the quality management system at your site or location, the goal is to create a system that works for you and not the other way around. When proper care in the planning is not taken seriously - as it happens oh so sadly more often than not - that quality system will become the most prominent 11 pound pencil in your operation, a resources hog that will eventually run the company down; one of the tell-tale signs of such condition is seeing your staff spending their time and effort on fighting brush fires all day long... no growth perceived beyond band-aid "solutions" to ever present problems.

That is the key element I believe: make the system you implement work for you and avoid ending up with you being the one working to sustain the system. That should be a banner reminding such policy displayed on top of the main entrance to your business areas.

An update was published shortly after the first installment of the 11 pound pencil story, you can read all about it following this link.

.