James Drogan

Re Conversations with Dave

Maier prompts the following thought experiment.
 
Sort the world into big companies (which she seems to disdain) and small companies. Presume that all of the work of the big companies is transferred to small companies.  The loss is the economies of scale of the big companies; the gain is people are more productive (yes, the model is a bit simple, but it matches the data).  Put the loss and the gain on the economic balance and see which way it tips.
 
Doubtless Maier has expunged from her life all goods and services made by big companies.
 
I inclined to equate Bonjour Paresse with a hula hoop.
 
Having been reasonably sarcastic, let me also say I agree with your comment as to what she should be really driving at.

Were I a party unfriendly to America I would welcome the politico-blog-MSM attention to this matter.  This keeps America from focusing its energies on the real issues.

Suppose in the beginning this was a planned diversion.

Re: Conversations with Dave

Saturday, March 27, 2004

THE EMPIRE STRIKES OUT

In the Senge and Carstedt article, Innovating Our Way to the Next Industrial Revolution (MIT Sloan Management Review, 2001. 42(2): p. 24-28.), the issue is raised of the sustainable corporation. In Forces I have called this out as a fundamental idea for "getting to the other side."

The Empire Strikes Out article, by Kenny Ausubel and brought to my attention by Dave Pollard (who, by the way, has a very insightful, provocative blog) speaks more eloquently about this than can I. I recommend it as required reading.

The issue is really one of politics, and particularly political leaders. We lack the number of leaders with vision, and strong moral and ethical underpinnings, and courage to take us where we need to go. The pettiness of the current national campaign in the US does not inspire hope.

For me, the important issues and objectives are:

1. Education: Lift the level of learning of primary and secondary students, and prompt increased college enrollments.

2. Health: Improve the health of Americans, then deal with the issues of the cost of healthcare.

3. Economy: Reduce the deficit through a reductlon in federal spending.

4. Security: Develop sufficient capacity to deter and, if necessary, defeat threats to American interests at home and abroad.

5. International Relationships: Be recognized around the world as an example of ethical and economic leadershlp.

I look at the political choices in terms of their ideas for resolving these matters.

posted by James at 9:02 AM

My thinking on these matters has become more sophisticated (I hope I'm learning) since I first posted this over a year ago, but I think the thrust of what I said then stands now.

One interesting thing about the article on Indian math tutors is that it mentions no outraged response from the educational community that jobs are being lost. Perhaps that is a reflection of what Americans really think about education.

This article from Material Handling Management says:

' GMB (London), a U.K. trade union with more than 600,000 members, recently demanded an end to the "electronic tagging" of workers. Specifically, the group decried the use of handheld computers linked to local area networks to tell employees which goods to pick. The organization's primary objection is the work monitoring capabilities of such devices. "This technology which involves the electronic tagging of workers has been imported into Britain from the U.S. The GMB is no Luddite organization but we will not stand idly by to see our members reduced to automatons," said Paul Kenny, GMB Acting General Secretary. "The use of this technology needs to be redesigned to be an aide to the worker rather than making the worker its slave. The supermarkets that rely on just-in-time shelf filling rather than holding buffer stocks are incredibly profitable companies. They can well afford to operate a humanized supply chain." '

It would be helpful if this union would provide some ideas as to what needs to be done.   It's not my point to  pick on this union or the use of technology, but rather to suggest that criticism without recommendations as to what needs to be done to correct the situation is pretty much useless.