Insight? Explore an Idea for a Short Thesis
 

I welcome any ideas, examples, or wisdom from the brain trust here regarding a short thesis and presentation I have to crank out here in the next week or so, I know, nothing like waiting until the last minute....
My subject is fairly straight forward but other than a few somewhat related books I'm having trouble digging up references or thinking of examples. My opinion is that companies, American ones in particular, have forgotten how to do things well, or have disregarded the merits of doing things right in favor of just getting schit done. It's as simple as that.
That attitude seems pervasive in the business world these days. At least my experiences over the last decade indicate to me that often times meeting a deadline trumps following the right process, meeting goals, or doing things better. Making sales, regardless of the cost supersedes producing a product you'd be proud to put your name on.
An example of this is the oft-used statement that General Motors is in the business of making money, not cars. (We saw how that's turned out)

Another example that I'm currently exploring is the current Toyota debacle, which, in a nutshell seems to me to be summed up as; Toyota's quest for quality is paramount, and quality problems must be dealt with.... unless those problems will spell a loss of profits, or the potential to be toppled from the top auto producer spot, then we should just sweep the problems under the rug.

Please feel free to point to other examples of companies choosing to eschew the philosophy of doing things well in favor of just getting things done.
I could be completely off base on all of this, but I'd like to hear the opinions of others whether they support my theories or go contrary to them.


Thanks in advance for your input.

I think you should reverse your stand and investigate how well American small to medium businesses make their goods and provide their services. I do believe 1000's of shareholder owner corporations have lost that ability, but med to small businesses provide the larger share of the GDP.

To further my point, I think the more money is the focus of the business, whether for shareholders or simply profit (like Goldman Sachs), the more corrupt they are. General Motors is a great example as you pointed out. If they were just about cars, it may have been different.

Oh yea, here are the books I'm using as reference:

The Fifth Discipline, The Art and Practice of The Learning Organization

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

Shopclass as Soulcraft, An Inquiry Into the Value of Work

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't

I agree completely, and part of my presentation will include the companies that did things right! My goal is to not just crap all over our companies, but to offer contrast between how things were done wrong, and why, AND, how things were done right, and why. Thanks for pointing that out.

Can you think of some specific examples I can explore? Small companies that opted for pride in workmanship over profits?

You'll get this done in a week huh?

There is a whole government regulation and taxation side to your thesis as well. If it is not touched on you'll miss a lot on your topic.

Please elaborate.


I'm a full time student, so, I'm fortunate that I can devote all of my time to the subject.

Talewinds, I have watched numerous TV shows that have featured small to mid sized companies. The show "Made in America" had all kinds of examples where people had been working at an occupation for years. One that comes to mind is the Louisville Slugger baseball bat company. John Ratzenberger was the host.

A guy I knew had something to do with the company that made the pen that would write in space. Of course, the Russians used a pencil, or so the story goes. Anyway, the space pen may have been about money, but it had to work. I think quality control was paramount at that firm.

The list goes on. We used to have a shop nearby that built harness racing sulkies. Man, you talk about an art. Still, the purpose of high quality manufacturing is to not go out of business. It's a thin line you're dealing with.

My Book "Spend Analysis and Specification Development Using Failure Interpretation" would serve you very well - problem for you is that I dropped my publisher (Industrial Press) and just picked up CRC Press. It will be several months before it is pressed. I do have a bunch of published articles that might help.

I hear that loud and clear. Case in point Polartec LLC, formerly Malden Mills.
Devoted CEO utterly determined to keep his textile company's production base in the USA. Plant suffers a fire in 1995, but CEO vows to continue to pay his employees while they rebuild. Sounds like a fairytale, but the downside is they experienced two bankruptcies, one in 2001, and another in 2007.

Fast forward, Polartec is still producing textiles in Massachusetts. A GREAT product, and one of the last textile co's stateside.
But they existed on the bleeding edge of bankruptcy for years.

How about focusing on a particular part of what you're about to do?

What happened to simple ideas like integrity, morals and the customer?

Toyota is in a major bind but if see from the mother land you can get to see another view. Made in Japan did (after a certain year) and still does mean quality and many are crying foul over the fact that their plants did not create this mess and will point this clearly out to me.

Funds and Super Funds have changed the creed for companies so that the share holder gets a bigger cut rather than a bigger share of the market or better quality goods.

thesis:
effect of funds on businesses
integrity - the actual meaning per business size

...