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If so, that may be a good thing, not bad.
Here's why.
Some years
ago, I spoke at a conference at a Midwestern university. Prior to my
talk, I
was sitting in the back of a meeting room while a
session was in progress, paying more attention to the notes for my talk
that afternoon than to what the speaker, the then-CEO of NCR
Corporation, was
saying.
Suddenly, one of the speaker’s sentences penetrated my consciousness: “At our
company, we try hard to get the moose on the
table.” My head popped up and I said to myself, “What’s this with the moose? What in the world is he talking
about?” Here’s what the speaker was
saying:
* In virtually every company, there are important issues – problems, difficulties,
road blocks, and so forth –
that are not on the agenda of most meetings.
* Sometimes these are big issues – as big and
as ugly as a moose –
and they’re present in the minds of
the people.
* Even though the moose is present, no one talks about it.
It’s taboo.
* Thus, these issues are present in meetings but they’re not discussed. And
they can be significant impediments to
progress.
The speaker went on to say that the challenge is to get the moose on
the table – make it impossible to ignore the issue. Raising conflict is
good; it’s the first step to resolving it.
My colleague Bob Stahl and I believe that success with Executive
S&OP comes not only from the proper application of the tools,
techniques, and
processes but in large measure from the ability to talk about the tough
issues. In other words, to get the moose on the table. Not doing so can
generate substantial amounts of negative energy and impede progress.
Executive S&OP – done well – often raises conflict, one reason
being that it is so cross-functional. This is not a bad thing at all.
Rather, as conflict is raised and resolved, the result can be positive energy among the members of the group. Executive S&OP
tends to
force “the moose onto the table.” Therefore, organizations that are
conflict-averse will tend to have a tougher time being highly
successful with it. They’ll need to learn to:
* Accept
differences of opinion as a natural and logical part of the decision- making process.
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* Avoid – like the plague – the practice of “shoot the
messenger.”
This is a primary reason for
organizations to be conflict averse in the first place; people are
reluctant to identify and talk about problems for fear that they’ll be
blamed for causing the bad news.
* Strive for consensus within their groups, being aware that
consensus is not the same as unanimity. When a majority of the
participants are in agreement, and after all present have been given a
chance to air their views, the decision is made and the process moves
forward.
When this does not happen, decisions are often avoided; they’re not
made and that in itself is a decision: to do nothing, to maintain the
status quo, to sweep problems under the rug. On other occasions,
decisions are made at points in the organization not in complete
possession of all
the facts, and often these are not good decisions.
A good culture is one that not only accepts the discomfort of raising
these issues, but thrives on it without raising negative energy. Bob
Stahl
takes the principle of getting the moose on the table and puts it into
action. For companies with whom he consults, he gives them a stuffed
moose to
literally be put on the table when a tough issue needs to be addressed.
All present are empowered to put the moose on the table, and they do so
without fear of becoming the messenger who gets shot.
So the approach should be not to avoid conflict – but rather to raise
it and resolve it. In that environment, the odds for success with
Executive S&OP increase dramatically.
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For more on this, click here to see a draft copy of Chapter 7 of
Bob’s and my new book: Sales & Operations Planning: The
Executive’s Guide,
due out in October. Chapter Seven addresses the
conflict issue as well as lack of organizational discipline, fuzzy
accountability, and other critical elements in implementing Executive
S&OP.
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This important book can help you and your team "see" the critical issues that are hindering your
S&OP
and demand planning processes -- the first step to removing those impediments.
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Tips from Tom and
Bob
Are you “hanging on” to the forecast too long? Are you relying on it longer than you should?
Principle of Forecasting #10 says: As soon as possible, replace the
unknown with the known. Quotes are more certain than forecasts;
commitments are
more certain than quotes; orders are more certain than commitments. Click here to see all 12 principles
of forecasting, contained in our book Sales & Operations Planning: The Self- Audit Workbook.
You might want to check on how you’re doing in this regard. An
important part of effective Demand Management is to replace the unknown
with
the known – as soon as possible.
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