Management Stories

A corporate executive on holiday in a small Greek seacoast village was strolling by the docks and drinking in the local color. He complimented one fisherman on the quality of his catch.

“How long did it take you to get all those fish?” he wondered.

“Not very long,” answered the Greek. “An hour or two.”

“Then why didn’t you stay out longer to catch more?”

Shrugging, the Greek explained that his catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.

The executive asked, “But what do you do with the rest of your time?”

I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a nap with my wife. In the evening, I go to the village to see my friends, dance a little, play the bouzouki, and sing songs. I have a full life.”

The executive said, “I have an MBA from Harvard. I can help you. You should start by fishing longer every day. You’ll catch extra fish that you can sell. With the revenue, you can buy a bigger boat. With the extra money the larger boat will bring you, you can buy a second boat and a third one, and so on, until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middleman, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can ship fish to markets all around the world. In time, you can then move to New York City to direct your huge enterprise.”

“How long would that take?” asked the Greek.

“Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years,” replied the executive.

“And after that?”

“When your business gets really big, you can sell stock and make millions!” exclaimed the executive with zeal.

“Millions? Really? And after that?”

“After that you’ll be able to retire, live in a small village near the coast, sleep late, play with your grandchildren, catch a few fish, take a nap with your wife, and spend your evenings singing, dancing, and playing the bouzouki with your friends.”

Source: Managers Ignite! Now is the Time to Take Back Your Company, Your Career, Your Life by Vince Thompson / ChangeThis

4 Comments » Posted by Administrator / Career / Employment and Purpose / Meaning and Success / Failure / Achievement

In an article from FredHarriman.com, ex-Toyota Group manager Chihiro Nakao relates his experience with Taiichi Ohno, who originated Toyota’s Lean Production in collaboration with Shigeo Shingo. Here’s the punchline:

As Mr. Taiichi Ohno drove deeper and deeper in the effort to achieve Just in Time ideals among the companies of the Toyota Group, […] the struggle was to keep people from [ordering] too much too soon from their upstream process.

In one incidence remembered by Chihiro Nakao, Mr. Ohno caught someone he knew was about to pull his materials too soon and thundered: “Who are you and where did you come from?! What makes you think you have any right to this material? Show me your kanban!!” [i.e. prove your authority!]

Such incidents demonstrated the need to “show one’s kanban” when procuring material or parts. They needed some way to prove that they had followed all the rules put in place to achieve Just in Time. Since Mr. Ohno’s demand for a “kanban” left a lasting impression, the name for the cards that were issued to limit in-process inventory […] became “kanban.”

Source: Toyota Stays Lean and Green with Kanban… Kan-who? / BNET, April 2nd, 2007

1 Comment » Posted by Administrator / History and Miscellaneous