TAGS: Building permits, Commerce
Department, Seth Godin, James Hackett, Steelcase, cutting corners
Now Is Not the Time to Be Cutting Corners
We
know it’s late August. It’s hot, muggy and you’ve already used up your
vacation. The business and political climate is still uncertain and you’ve got
too many deadlines to possibly handle before the real post Labor Day sprint
kicks in. At times like this, there’s always the temptation to “mail it in,”
cut corners a little and maybe try to get by with 90 percent effort or even 80.
Don’t do it.
As Steelcase
CEO, James Hackett revealed
in yesterday’s New York Times, “you have to practice for moments when your
integrity might be tested,” such as a bad earnings quarter or a tough issue at
your company. “People tend to double down and do bad things under the most extreme
pressure.”
In this hyper competitive age of outsourcing
and technological one upsmanship, we’re pressured to squeeze every penny out of
our production process and every hour of productivity out of our workforce. But
cutting costs and cutting corners in order to pump up your bottom line won’t work
in the long run, argues futurist and blogger, Seth Godin in his post
today, “The Race to the Bottom.”
“There's always the opportunity to cut a corner, sacrifice lifestyle quality
and suck it up as we race to grab a little more market share. But the problem with the
race to the bottom is that you might win.” Instead, he argues, we should strive
to win the race to the top which is focused on “design and respect
and dignity and guts and innovation and sustainability and yes, generosity when
it might be easier to be selfish.”
OUR TAKE: As we’ve opinioned again and
again in this blog, you can’t replace the value of high quality products, high
quality client service and going the extra mile for your employees, strategic partners
and stakeholders.
The bulls eye prioritization
system
As Hackett observed, one technique that’s helped him prioritize for short-term,
medium term and long term goals is to think of your work life as a bulls eye. “You
put now in the center,” and the outer ring is “near” and the furthest ring is “far.”
If you analyze your work calendar, how much time do you spend in each of the
three zones? “You’ve got to train
yourself to work in all three zones simultaneously.” Unfortunately, it’s human
nature to get pulled into the “now,” Hackett argues, and unfortunately at most
organizations, the reward systems are build that way. Great leaders, he says,
can transcend the short term thinking.
Macro View
Building permits rise to a 4 year high
Last week the
Commerce Department reported that new building permits surged 5.1 percent to a
seasonally adjusted annual rate of 717,000 units last month, the highest since
October 2008. The numbers are yet another signal that the housing market is improving
and experts say it could be the first time that home building adds to U.S. economic
growth since 2005.
OUR TAKE: What we like about this indicator is that it points to “new” building
activity, not just “sales” which in recent years has mean clearing out old
inventory of bargain basement homes, factories, office space and apartments. This
is potentially real investment activity and shows signs of confidence on both
the consumer and business fronts.
Conclusion
As preseason football gets underway, focus hard on your basic blocking and
tackling. Nail down the basics before you get too visionary, but again, don’t
ever try to cut corners. As a great leader and marketing organization, however,
you have to spend a little time up in the film room and up in the coaches tower
to get the overview of where you are now and where you are going. No one wants
to get blindsided by the unexpected or caught offside for moving to soon and
too carelessly.
There are too many competitors, referees and video reviewers watching your every
move.
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TAGS: TAGS: Building permits, Commerce Department, Seth Godin, James Hackett,
Steelcase, cutting corners
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