High Output Management

By Andy Grove

https://archive.org/details/dli.ernet.213936/mode/1up?view=theater

Notes

• 164 When a person is not doing his job, there can only be two reasons for it. The person either can’t do it or won’t do it; he is either not capable or not motivated.
• 139 Another Wrinkle: The Two-Plane Organization

Whenever a person becomes involved in coordination— something not part of his regular daily work—we en¬ counter a subtle variation of dual reporting

• OSE - 80/20 Dual Reporting. Functional units provide remixable or AI generators. Mission groups or business units do the adaptation. Central org provides the 'internal subcontracting'. Profits go to central, with profit sharing with divisions/biz units/mission groups.
• Hybrid organizations and the accom¬ panying dual reporting principle, like a democracy, are not great in and of themselves. They just happen to be the best way for any business to be organized.
• 135 The point is that a strong and posi¬ tive corporate culture is absolutely essential if dual re¬ porting and decision-making by peers are to work.
• 131 An unintended consequence of the moon shot was the development of a new organizational approach: matrix management.
• 127 Grove’s Law: All large organizations with a common business purpos
• 126 What are some of the advantages of organizing much of a company in a mission-oriented form? There is only one. It is that the individual units can stay in touch with the needs of their business or product areas and initiate changes rapidly when those needs change. That is it.
• Mission groups vs functional groups. Functional groups vs business units.
• The functional groups can be viewed as if they were internal subcontractors
• 123 Alfred Sloan summed up decades of experience at General Motors by saying, “Good manage¬ ment rests on a reconciliation of centralization and de¬ centralization.” (hybrid org)
• The idea behind MBO is extremely simple: If you don’t know where you’re going, you will not get there. Or, as an old Indian saying puts it, “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there.”
  • Where am I going?
  • How do I pace myself to get there?
• 110 idea that planners can be people apart from those implementing the plan simply does not work
• 109 as you plan you must answer the question: What do I have to do today to solve—or better, avoid— tomorrow’s problem?
• Development engineer vs production engineer vs product engineer - latter wants more documentation
• one of the man¬ ager’s key tasks is to settle six important questions in advance::
  • What decision needs to be made?
  • When does it have to be made?
  • Who will decide?
  • Who will need to be consulted prior to making the decision?
  • Who will ratify or veto the decision?
  • Who will need to be informed of the decision?
• 100 Employing consistent ways by which decisions are to be made has value beyond simply expediting the deci¬ sion-making itself.
• Address the peer group syndrome by 'You can overcome the peer-group syndrome if each of the members has self-confidence, which stems in part from developing balls
• Will I have to deal with this? Make it no: 'One of the reasons why people are reluctant to come out with an opinion in the presence of their peers is the fear of going against the group by stating an opinion that is differ¬ ent from that of the group.'
• 93 pride, ambition, fear, and insecurity must be dealt with
• 92 decisions made at lowest competent level. This includes both tech and judgment
• Allocate hlf a day per week to subordinates. Only 6-8 subordinates per manager?
• Value of procedure is in the thinking that led to the procedure - the procedure must be examined critically
• Carry slack, or you can jam. Carry inventory of projects - which can be done in slack time, otherwise manger would meddle in other biz
• Leverage of manager comes from - number of people; focusing people with key direction (brief well focused words or actions (role model)); priorities; key enabling info or tools
• 50. Cul*ture obviates rules and regulations. Part of high Output.
• 2 minute kernel takes a half hour meeting. To avoid this, visit company locations in action.
• 49 reports are a medium of self-discipline and not necessarily of communicating information
• 35 One way to attain the work leverage is by work simplification
• Good indicators - measure output, not activity. Measure a tangible, not quality. Paired indi ators - second of pair can measure quality
• 7 - Pairing indicators - measure one and related negAtive other in a counterbalancing pair