Category Archives: Sustainability

Opportunity in Every Storm

By John Evelyn  |  August 31, 2011  |  Adversity,Agility,Blind Spots,Capability,Execution,General,Leadership,Lean,Rigidity,Six Sigma,Sustainability,Teamwork

Five years ago this last Monday, Katrina struck along the Gulf Coast. Its aftermath still lives with us, the 9th Ward in New Orleans still devastated with diminishing hope. The Katrina experience was transformative along many dimensions. It graphically illustrated the execution rigidity borne of planning and responsiveness that comes from leadership gained through cronyism and political machines. Lives were lost and value was destroyed in an experience that put light on our soft underbelly. In fact, 1836 people died and 135 were missing and financial losses exceeded $108 billion. The aftereffects from looting, violence, and losses to the economies would fill scores of books. It reshaped the local economy, created a diaspora of resources and cast doubts globally about our values.

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I’m Shocked

By John Evelyn  |  June 10, 2011  |  Adversity,Agility,Blind Spots,Capability,Execution,Fit for purpose,General,Lean,Rigidity,Risks,Six Sigma,Sustainability

The 9.0 earthquake that devastated northern Japan continues to have severe aftershocks. They are shocks in what clever physicist would ascribe to a type of space-time. It’s not about Star Trek stuff, or the time travel that fantasies love to use, but rather how one type of event starts a whole series of other events along a different type of path, affecting a different space at a different time, but connected. These types of other events are very real “butterfly effects” where a small change in one place can cause a whole bunch of changes downstream. Believe it or not, that earthquake has changed our lives, our businesses, and our collective futures.
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Steering and Branding

By John Evelyn  |  May 11, 2011  |  Agility,Capability,Customer Experience,Customer Service,Execution,Fit for purpose,General,Legacy,Rigidity,Sustainability,Winning

What’s in a name? How about the three R’s: recognition, reputation, and revenues? What’s the value of a brand? BRANDZ has just published their evaluations and valuations of global brands. It’s a measure of just how valuable the commercial brand is and supporting insight into the whys and wherefores. The shifts and changes in their rankings are a barometer of how our choices of who delivers value are manifested in our buying behavior. It’s not an opinion poll, but rather an evaluation that incorporates business results with analysis inclusive of some subjectivity.
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Going Nuclear

By John Evelyn  |  April 7, 2011  |  Agility,Blind Spots,Capability,Diagnosis,Fit for purpose,General,Lean,Operational Excellence,Rigidity,Risks,Six Sigma,Sustainability,Transparency

Over that last couple of years, we’ve highlighted the evidence and perspectives that our business world is increasingly more dynamic, interdependent, highly networked, dangerously complex, and managed by tools and traditions built on much more stable process experience. Business models and algorithms, control systems, enterprise tools and performance improvement technologies derived significant power from the likelihood that behavior repeat sufficiently to enable the power of statistics to improve decision making. I many cases, that stability and value remains and I expect that that will go on beyond any horizon I can conjure. In fact, Dr. Deming encouraged us to look at the world through the lens of Plan, Do, Check, and Act, and his truism remains eternal.
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Swan Lake and Nutcrackers

By John Evelyn  |  March 17, 2011  |  Agility,Blind Spots,Capability,Diagnosis,Fit for purpose,General,Sustainability

2010 was a year where much of our attention and anxiety were held captive by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. It was a sobering reminder of our dependence on fuels that support our lifestyle, commerce, defense, and essentials to life today. Moratoriums on deep water drilling ensued followed by hearings and probes into why it happened and who we need to blame and subsequently seek a means of exacting some comforting justice. It’s been months since the topic has had front page coverage, almost forgotten much like the devastation and impacts of Katrina, the earthquakes in Haiti, China, and Chile.

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Who’s in Your Wallet?

By John Evelyn  |  December 7, 2010  |  Agility,Capability,Competition,Customer Experience,Fit for purpose,General,Leverage,Resources,Rigidity,Sustainability,Technology

Many great cities over developed for one important reason. They were at crossroads, or at bays, river crossings, or safe harbors. Some were near resources to be harvested or emerging roads, tracks, or caravan routes. They grew because they were or would become markets. Markets towns enabled trade, commerce, and exchanges that enabled value creation. Agriculture, mining, cattle, diamonds, forestry … all types of enterprises emerged, so that exchanges could be made, with money or barter as instruments. We could get and sell stuff. For most of human history, markets were visible, tangible, and somewhere we travelled to buy or sell. This tangible requirement and the transportation linkages determined life or death to commerce and the development of cities. Ask the railroad towns that were bypassed by the interstate highway system or mining towns that had no metals or minerals left to harvest. Our conquest of time and space over centuries has shaped this dynamic.

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Turkeys Don’t Vote for Thanksgiving!

By John Evelyn  |  November 24, 2010  |  Adversity,Blind Spots,General,Integrity,Leadership,Legacy,Purpose and Values,Sustainability

Thanksgiving 2010 is upon us. It nears the end of a year replete with catastrophes, wars, economic and political upheaval. The media successfully amplified issues, created pain and panic disguised as news, and pundits freely demonized others without restraint. Yet, above this soup of sadness are life, dignity, and the love we are capable of demonstrating. We hope that this Thanksgiving begins a better year and launches renewed opportunity and reminders of all that is good about life, …, personally, professionally, or collectively, as enterprises.

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I’d Gladly Pay You Tuesday for a Hamburger Today

By John Evelyn  |  September 13, 2010  |  Blind Spots,Capability,Customer Experience,Diagnosis,Execution,General,Lean,Resources,Risks,Six Sigma,Sustainability,Transparency

Yesterday, residents in the San Francisco neighborhood of San Bruno returned to what was left of their homes. Several had burned when a 24 inch distribution gas pipeline failed and a fire ensued. The section that failed was due to fail and, following the rules of physics, it complied
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Better Late Than Never, or Better Never Than Late?

By John Evelyn  |  September 3, 2010  |  Agility,Capability,Competition,Diets,General,Lean,Leverage,Obesity,Resources,Rigidity,Six Sigma,Sustainability,Technology,Winning

Labor Day weekend is upon us as is also the statistical peak of the hurricane season. Somehow the coincidence befits the times as it may well be a different type of statistical peak for labor. The Labor Department defined the day as “Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.” It provokes an interesting question as to who is the chicken and who is the egg? Are “strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country” a consequence of the labor movement or the cause? What does the experience of our current situation say?

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Whose Life Is It Anyway?

By John Evelyn  |  August 17, 2010  |  Alignment,Blind Spots,Capability,Fit for purpose,Integrity,Leadership,Legacy,Purpose and Values,Respect,Risks,Sustainability,Vision

It’s absolutely fascinating how much leverage going green has gained. It’s hard to miss the marketing, packaging, and commitments that continue to grow and show. Many of us make green choices daily, some bigger, some smaller, and some to feel better, all with positive impacts. My observations are that, in consumer goods, the visible focus is on producing “from recycled” materials or from producing from benign components or processes. But what about all the really big stuff we build, produce, or operate?
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