Next BADUG Meeting - 3 June

[DanRobrtsn@aol.com]

BAY AREA DEMING USERS GROUP NEWSLETTER

Our next meeting is on Monday, 3 June 2002 from 6:00-8:30pm,
at Acuson in Mountain View on the corner of Shorebird Way
and Shoreline Boulevard.  Detailed directions available below.

PLANNED PROGRAMS: 

Please note that BADUG meetings are always open to all
interested parties.  Dr. Deming's teaching extended far
beyond the traditional confines of quality.  Consider
inviting a friend or work associate who might share your
interest in learning about, and discussing, innovative
and effective theories regarding organizations, systems
and management.

3 Jun:  The Systems Thinking Study Group will facilitate
a simulation titled The Lemonade Game, using a board game
media.  The Study Group has been developing their version
of this simulation for the education sector over the past
several months, and they would like to bring it to the
BADUG community.  Come share in the learning and help
provide feedback to the Study Group. 

Jul/Aug: There will be no BADUG sessions held in July
or August.  September's session is planned for the
Monday after Labor Day.  Have a great summer! 

ANNOUNCEMENTS: 

* The BADUG Systems Thinking Study Group meets monthly,
prior to -- and in the same building as -- the main BADUG
session.  Please contact David Camp at dcamp@ciena.com /
408-366-4863 or Karen Takle Quinn at ktq@svpal.org /
650-964-5195 if you are planning to join the June
discussion.

* 4-day Deming seminar to be led in June by Dr.Heero
Hacquebord and Gordon McGilton.  The seminar will be
taught in Irvine, CA the week of June 17th.  Only a
limited number of seats are left.  Price is $1,250 per
person, with class materials, breakfast, and lunch
included -- Group discounts are available.  Contact
Marcia Daszko for more information or if you are
interested in attending.

* The W.E. Deming Institute is holding its fall conference
in Washington, DC October 12-13.  Click www.deming.org or
call 301-294-8405 for further info.

* The next offering of the Deming 4-day video seminar will
be held October 14-17 in Washington, DC, following the
weekend conference noted above.  Contact the W. E. Deming
Institute for details and to register. 

* The 15th Annual Hunter Conference will be held October
16-17 in Madison, WI.  For more information, see the
Madison Area Quality Improvement Network (MAQIN) website
at www.maqin.org or call 608-277-7800.

* October 29, a Symposium on Dr. Deming's Analytic Papers
will be held in New York City.  Contact the Deming
Institute for further details.

* WE ARE VERY INTERESTED IN GETTING YOUR INPUTS FOR
UPCOMING TOPICS and SPEAKERS. If you have inputs, please
contact Marcia Daszko.  Also contact Marcia for details
about upcoming programs.  Her number is 408-247-7757;
e-mail address is MDaszko@aol.com. 

Surf the Worldwide Web to BADUG.  An overview of the group,
past meeting minutes, and an index of Deming-associated
sites can be accessed via your web browser.  Find the site at: 

http://www.cafm-services.com/badug/BADUG-TOC.htm

May's Meeting Notes: 

A Debrief of the "Creating New ROIs" Conference - 

Highlights reported by Marian Hirsch, Myron Tribus &
Dan Robertson

Lamar Van Gunten and Marian Hirsch provided the outline
for this month's notes:

Marian Hirsch coordinated the presentation of highlights
of the "Creating New ROIs" conference held April 19-21,
which was attended by herself, Myron and Dan.  Limitations
in time and space will cause these notes to be too brief...
The conference was full of information, and there is
already talk of having another one next year -- Watch
www.in2in.org later this year -- You had to be there to
fully appreciate it!

Myron was the morning keynote speaker and provided a
shortened version of his talk.  Some of the points:

* Forces of change today have brought about money moving
at the speed of light; information freely moving across 
the internet; television and mobile phones everywhere.

* Predictions from 20 years ago that have come true: Those
who have not will try to get; those who have will try to
keep; local leaders will rise to exploit the situation,
all forms of competition - commercial, military, ideological/
religious, terroristic.  Within all this is a general
disillusionment with large enterprises and abandonment
of the 'social contract'.

* Myron spent time recently at Stanford to gain a sense
for what was being taught at today's business schools.
He was reminded of the work of Leonard Sayles, who writes
of the 'myths' that MBAs are exposed to: The primary
managerial activities are (should be) command and control;
The following problems are distinct and require unique
solutions: Efficiency, Excessive Overhead, Product Quality,
Innovation; Managers may be categorised in two groups:
Administrators and Leaders; Best managers manage by
results and do not get involved in work or technology;
Management represents generic skills, transferable from
one organization to another without significant start up
costs; Leaders have two kinds of work: "People" work and
"work" work; A manager's primary task is to gain
credibility with the boss; Good management is synonymous
with: Clarity, Well defined responsibility, Clear authority

* Top executives, analysts, and customers only see the tip
  of the iceberg relative to how the company is operated 

* Typical companies will look upon their aim as one of the
  following:  
  * Make money
  * Provide a satisfying environment for employees
  * Provide satisfaction to the market

Whichever component is looked upon as the aim will require
the other two to achieve the aim.  However, there is higher
aim -- to "serve society" -- to strive for; where all of
the three above become required elements to achieve that aim.

* Myron described the Bata Shoe Company and Tomas Bata's
  dedication to this higher form of aim.
* Myron also quoted David Packard: "We inevitably come to
  the conclusion that a group of people get together and
  exist as an institution that we call a company.  Now they
  are able to accomplish something collectively that they
  could not accomplish separately - they make a contribution
  to society, a phrase that sounds trite but is fundamental
* A concluding caution expressed by Myron was that "the
  'ROI', new or old, is a measure of interest only to the
  current owners and leaders, not to the society that gave
  it life.  There is an 'IOU' to society.  We cannot reduce
  the contributions of your life to a single measure...
  Do not attempt to create one to measure the value of a
  corporation, or some part of its activities.

The conference aim was to break through the limitations
of the traditional concept of ROI (return on investment),
in light of conscious thinking about systems, variation,
knowledge, and psychology, and their interaction.  The
intent was to seek a more expansive concept of what
organizations might invest in; yielding returns of broader
and longer-lasting value than are usually seen in
traditional organizations.  Investments in Integration,
Introspection, Intelligence, and Innovation were explored
as specific themes in presentations and panel discussions
through the rest of the conference.  

Marian reported on two of the presentations.  She provided
an outline of points made by Ed Maher, a systems
integration consultant, in his presentation titled
"Return on Integration".

Two types of constraints to integrative thinking: Brain-mind 
(physiological/neurological) and Cultural
* Black-white thinking is hard wired in the brain
* The mind focuses on what is New, Unusual, Short term, Local
* The mind filters out the steady state
* Culture is so ingrained into our thinking that we miss
  patterns and take our cultural responses as the real
  response ("cultural trance") 
* Archetypes of our culture greatly influence our behavior
  and values

As a business example, Ed presented a visual of all the
initiatives going on at Boeing at one time to illustrate
complexity and fragmentation.

- We are trying to move from fragmentation to integration
- We are making strides turning data into knowledge
- Wisdom and understanding largely elude us

Three levels of understanding:
Level              Thinking Type            Action
System Events      Linear, sequential       Reaction 
System Patterns    Associative, relational  Prediction
System Structure   Systems, integrative     Creation

Some options that increase integration
- Design-build teams
- Open-book management
- Information sharing
- Smaller work groups (150 maximum)
- Flatter organizations
- Education
- Any process that loosens the stranglehold of rigid
  bureaucracies

Marian also provided highlights of a talk by Barrett
Hazeltine, professor of engineering and management at
Brown University, whose topic was "Return on Introspection".

What is introspection?
* Contemplation of one's own thoughts and feelings, and
  by extension, one's attitudes
* A process leading to an understanding of approaches,
  assumptions, and mindsets
* Thinking about thinking

How can introspection be used professionally?
* In situations that demand process orientation and
  innovation
* In top-down planning as a reality check
* For attempting to understand the system

Benefits of Introspection
- Helps us understand the system structure and behavior;
  a way of getting out of the system in order to understand
  it
- Discourages easy heuristics, outmoded analogies, invalid
  transference, and biases
- Encourages strategic approaches

Barriers to Introspection
- Uncomfortable for many individuals
- Discouraged in many cultures
- Perceived as ineffective or for teachers only

Laurie Broedling presented a session on "Return on
Intelligence" describing the process, opportunities, and
benefits of team-oriented programs sponsored by the
California Council for Excellence.  We didn't have
highlights to report, but further info on the program is
available at www.calexcellence.org.  Marcia Daszko spoke
on "Return on Innovation", a topic covered in a previous
BADUG session.

A panel discussed the topic, "Learning the New ROIs".  The
panel included Myron, Ed Maher, Barrett Hazeltine, and
H. Thomas Johnson, author and professor at Portland State
University.  A few highlights: 

* Build awareness and become a change agent
* Be patient yet enthusiastic
* Work toward small changes with big impact
* If you display frustration, that becomes part of the
  problem
* Respect the "dinosaurs" in the organization and find
  out their strengths
* Care, plan, and have confidence
* Don't suffer so much (according to Tom Johnson)

Another panel, made up of Bill Bellows and John Duddy
(Boeing executives), Rip Stauffer and Phil Monroe (quality
consultants) discussed "Getting Started and Maintaining
Momentum with the New ROIs".

* Even in a system that appears rigid and problematical,
  there are ways to pursue the new thinking
* Try to realize the connections
* Example:  John and Bill using the existing performance
  appraisal system more flexibly for feedback 
* Aim for better understanding and more alternatives

The concluding talk was given by Rob Rodin, who spoke of
his experience in the transformation of Marshall Industries.

* Very dramatic illustration of how incentives and rewards
  can distort a system to an amazing level
* Compensation schemes had a major effect on behavior
* Transformation is frightening for the leader
* Transformation takes time

Some recommended reading:
Ornstein and Ehrlich: New World New Mind
Gladwell: The Tipping Point
Rapaille: 7 Secrets of Marketing
Hall: Beyond Culture
Johnson: Profit Beyond Measure: Extraordinary Results
         through Attention to Work and People
Rodin: Free, Perfect, and Now

For information about next year's conference plans, email
info@in2-inthinking-network.org

To receive the Bay Area Deming Users Group's newsletter, contact:

Dan Robertson          -or-     Marcia Daszko
1141 Bruckner Circle            2752 Glorietta Circle
Mountain View, CA   94040       Santa Clara, CA  95051
650-964-9186                    408-247-7757
DanRobrtsn@AOL.com              MDaszko@AOL.com
                                www.mdaszko.com
                                www.itslonelyatthetop.com

Please supply us with a US Mail address, a fax number
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** Directions to BADUG meetings **

Venue: The Acuson Corporation Education Center, Building I,
at 1393 Shorebird Way in Mountain View.  Contact
Dan Robertson if you have questions.

1/ From freeway 101 take Shoreline Boulevard,
   "Amphitheatre" direction (toward the bay).
2/ Turn right, off Shoreline, onto Shorebird Way
   (Shorebird is the next street after Spacepark).
3/ Building I is the first building on the right.
   "BADUG" signs will direct you to the meeting room.


The next BADUG meeting is Monday, 3 June 2002.