Forget Excellence. How About "Really Good"?

When Tom Peters  and Bob Waterman  originally penned In Search of Excellence back in 1982, they lit a spark of life in managers everywhere. Peters and Waterman concluded that there were 8 keys to excellence that were shared by the 43 "excellent" firms cited in the book:

1. A bias for action
Do it. Try it. Don't waste time studying it with multiple reports and committees.

2. Customer focus
Get close to the customer. Know your customer.

3. Entrepreneurship
Even big companies act and think small by giving people the authority to take initiatives.

4. Productivity through people
Treat your people with respect and they will reward you with productivity.

5. Value oriented CEOs
The CEO should actively propagate corporate values throughout the organization.

6. Stick to the knitting
Do what you know well.

7. Keep things simple and lean
Complexity encourages waste and confusion.

8. Simultaneously centralized and decentralized
Have tight centralized control while also allowing maximum individual autonomy.

It has become de rigeur to weave the word "Excellence" into corporate brochures, annual reports, Powerpoint presentations, and business conversation. Just look around you and you'll see it. But I would ask you this:

Where is the Excellence that so many claim as theirs? 

My observation is that Excellence has become a meaningless buzzword whose sole function is to comfort those who use it, as if "declaring 'Excellence' " makes it so. Wave the banner of Excellence...people will believe it. Kind of like. . .

Zero Defects: The Precursor to Excellence

When I was 17 my dad asked me to drive him to work at RCA in Camden, NJ. Since he usually took the train--a 15-minute commute from our doorstep--I was surprised at the request. And the chance to legitimately show up late for high school classes stoked my altruism.

He had recently become a supervisor and was pretty excited about the new role. What he was not excited about was telling me about the union problems at the company. When I pulled up in front of his building, I noticed this: A huge banner--probably 40 feet long--with the bold statement "Zero Defects." Wow. Perfection. No mistakes. What a place to work. 

As my father got out of the car and started for the steps, I saw a group of people quickly gather. They were union folks who had a gripe of some sort (I was 17 and not up on the latest IBEW union issues). The moment he broke the imaginary us-vs.-them barrier on the steps and reached for the building's door handle, the crowd pelted him with eggs. The only Zero Defect I noticed was in the accuracy of the egg tossing. From that moment on, every time I saw an RCA "Zero Defects" pen, pocket protector, or paper weight I visualized flying eggs.

The Case for Really, Really Good

You and I "get" the ideas of Excellence and Zero Defects. We also live every day with the reality of quality and customer service as they really are. So I propose that we start using real words that convey real meaning in order to bring about the kind of real-ity that we want:

1. Provide us with really, really good customer service that gets to the real problem.

2. Do it with real people who really know what they're talking about.

3. Let's talk to our employees using real information with words that convey what we really mean.

4. No matter what we do for a living, let's get really, really good at it.

If those four things happen, other people can say "excellent" job. Wouldn't that be really, really good?

Comments

[mvellandi]

I have this book on my shelf, but I can never get to continue reading it although I have underlined some key points for reference. Part of it has to do with some of these companies being out of business or much different today: I can't relate because I was a toddler at book publication. History is interesting though, so maybe I can pick it up someday from that angle.

Secondly, many of the discussed themes I've picked up over the years from other great books including Good to Great, Mavericks at Work, and Small Giants (Built to Last is on the list to read). Pursue Excellence, minimize waste and defects, build a great employee culture, be highly attuned to your customers, and more.

Nonetheless, case studies and stories are what make these topics come to life and resonate within us as meaningful and possible.

[Karin H.]

"If those four things happen, other people can say "excellent" job. Wouldn't that be really, really good?"

Great sentence Steve.
Leave the final decision/valuation with your client. All you have to do is work/act to the best of your (personal or company) abilities. And do it honestly.
100% perfect doesn't exist, and besides then there's nothing left to improve, to grow.

Karin H. (Keep It Simple Sweetheart, specially in business)

[Steve Roesler]

Mario,

It is interesting to see how many of those companies have fared since the book was published.

Perhaps the real long-term value of "In Search of Excellence" is it's role as a springboard of encouragement for other authors and researchers. The books you mentioned are all classics in their own right and may never have had a niche had it not been for Waterman and Peters.

[Steve Roesler]

Hello, Karin,

This is the kind of simplicity that fits so well with your business and your thinking.

Our clients make the final decision regarding our brand--not us. So wouldn't it make sense to focus on those who will determine our success?

[Wally Bock]

I've always thought that Lyndon Johnson might have done better if he had gone for a "Pretty Good Society." After that we could work on an "Above Average Society." In time we might have made it to "The Great Society."

[Steve Roesler]

Wally,

Clearly, LBJ hadn't been reading up on incremental change. Then again, "Only A Few Children Left Behind" would have been a fairly difficult sell.

[Beth Robinson]

On a more personal note than organizational excellence - after I'd been working a couple of years I put a goal on my self-appraisal for the next year - to become an excellent chemist, instead of just the good enough chemist I felt I was. My boss, quite rightly, wanted to know exactly what I meant by that. We came up with a few specific habits for me to put in place over the next year instead, such as making sure all the results went into the lab notebooks and not just the Excel spreadsheets. Not quite as inspiring, but of more use to the department.

[Steve Roesler]

Beth,

That's really the ultimate point.

When someone with your penchant for excellence sits down and defines what it actually means--in real terms--then, outstanding things start happening.

It may not aways seem inspiring, but in the context of what needs to be accomplished in the best possible way, it's the real deal.

Thanks for the example...