Why do Managers not rush to put into practice every recommendation by their Lean Consultants, or to install Manufacturing and Business Intelligence systems? There is plenty of data to suggest that in general these methods and systems produce outstanding returns, and this is backed up by detailed analyses of selected leading companies.
I think there are just too many "IF"'s between the proposition and the return. In essence, when a Lean Consultant presents their report, they are saying "if you invest management time in changing your organisation's behaviour, and if you get your people to behave in this way, and if the consistently apply these methods even if it appears more expedient in a crisis to go back to the old ways, then you will reap the benefit of my advice." Similarly vendors of Operational and Business Intelligence tools are saying "if we pick the right KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) to monitor, and if you make monitoring these KPIs part of your people's management process, and if they respond quickly and appropriately when they are alerted to an issue, and if they carry the action through to closure, then our system will deliver a return on your investment."
Think about it: in a world where at least on the face of it a new machine will increase your throughput because it's advertised cycle time is 20% lower, or you can save millions in labour costs by moving to China because they earn 1/10 of people in the West, it is asking a lot of your Client to make such a complicated and contingent cased to their Board / Senior Management and then ask them to invest money in it. Should we just give up? No - we just need to make a better case, and I believe that by taking responsibility for the Client's problem, rather than limiting ourselves to being just a part of the solution, we can!
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