Replying to LO28698 --
Risk management is indeed the issue that prevents us to reach continuous
development and "cover your ass" is the systematic strategy deployed.
The success of American corporations - in my view - depends on the
perspective you taken. It might also be due to cheap resources: cheap
ores, fuels, capital and human resources (labour). Or to other policies,
like imigrants who feel lonely, threatened and scared and therefor
organise themselves good. Perhaps they had great leaders with good
visions. Or it was just sheer luck (that would explain why they have
"forgotten" the lessons from the past: they never noticed them).
On risk management and how the west was won: recently i read that 90.000
went west in the USA, between 1840 and 1850. They had a lot of firepower
to protect themselves against wild animals and - the biggest risk - native
Americans. About 5000 didn't make it back. It turned out that 115 were
killed by indians - mostly in incidents they invoked themselves - and
about 900 lost their lifes in other incidents. Most, about 4000, were
killed by gunfire: accidents with guns, shooting games, gunfights with
other "white men", etc. These stories do not reach the press, do not get
noticed, are not very heroic.
I would look for the cost of accidents as the driving for force behind
improvements, not presciptive rules and laws.
When i listen to the stories from people in organisations, there is
already permanent change. A lot of movement, insecurity, but not much
improvement. The issue is that there is little progres. It alsmost seems
that training and consultancy do not work, because that is the very
intention. It is just a token: you have been to that training and therfore
you are important to us, respected etc. When you apply what you've learned
- i used to that, when i was working for a large company - like in quality
courses and Theory of Constraints (Listen to each other, cross training,
redesigning products and factory lay-outs, drive out fear) you'll meet
resistance from the management.
It is not that managers do not want to change, they just act that way.
Best,
Jan Lelie
Alan Cotterell wrote:
> I'm sure the answer to the problem of implementing permanent change in
> organisations can be answered by a systematic risk management approach.
> I read somewhere that the success of America compared to other nations
> lies in it's companys' excellent risk management, and from what I've seen
> I believe this is true.
--With kind regards - met vriendelijke groeten,
Jan Lelie
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