TOO many managers think. It’s something they should do a lot less of; instead, they should spend more time looking. A weekly analysis, a five-year campaign, and the hourly operations of a business are best understood by the manager who looks.
A number of managers consider the sales, wonder about profit and think about how to improve things. They wonder about advertising, and whether the last campaign worked. They try to figure out how they can make that new idea, which they heard at a seminar, work in their business. They consider their current staff and future ones – will they need them, can they afford them? It’s just too much thinking.
It is far more effective and useful to use the eyes and observe what is happening. Pull out the sales figures and see if they went up or down. Look at the records and see if the advertising actually went out and if it was what was ordered. Look at whether the advertising was effective rather than listening to someone saying it worked. Stand back and watch a sale happening without getting involved. Go down to the basement and look at the state of the files, or open some drawers or hook into other computers. See what is there, not what is supposed to be there or what you thought was there last time.
The greatest athletes do not ‘think’ about the obstacles of the sport, what may or may not happen or why it did; they look and respond to each situation as it occurs. It’s second nature to them. If they think about each situation, they act too slowly and lose. If they observe they can analyse, compute and act almost instantly, and win.
Any military operation would fail if the generals spent all their time pondering options and no time looking at the information on the enemy and the resources they have available. And plenty have done just that.
Rumour and opinion, which is not based on fact, will damage a business. Opinion is alright as a soft sort of information but only if it is stated as such.
Sometimes a person knows something from experience but can’t quite put the reason into words; that’s fine so long as it is acknowledged as such and it is watched for its workability. But other than those very few things, a business needs to be run on direct observation. Decisions should only be made based on what is actually there and current.
Have a look at the management programs you have in operation and see if each step is actually being done properly or just skimmed over.
Are your staff doing what they are supposed to be doing? Go down to the bins and see what is being thrown out.
Is that new brochure appealing to the eye? See if staff conversations are resulting in productivity or a date for the weekend. Are those images on the computer screens games or work related? Do customers leave feeling satisfied with their purchase or service? Is the mine site full of water or only wet? Are the toilets clean?
When doing an analysis, it should be based on hard, statistical information. If the statistical information is there, you have a solid basis to define action that can be taken to reinforce the ups or correct the downs. If the information is not available, a system to gather it needs to be put in place.
Just thinking about production will not result in much. By looking at the actual figures one can make quick reliable decisions, which are supported by your other direct observations.
Production/sales is down – get out that advertising campaign and get the sales staff hitting the streets. Refunds are up—do an immediate inspection to find out why. Refunds are zero – hold a staff party. Production is up – reinforce this with better facilities and do more of what you’ve been doing. Production is way up – cut out any possible wastage but otherwise don’t change a thing.
Production is crashing – hire a new team. Six decisions in six seconds.
Having a good familiarity with an operation and then increasing the accuracy of observations and speed of decisions makes the difference between a good and a phenomenally effective manager.