Author: Robert Schlaff

They all want sharp knives, but I’m nervous about them running around with scissors.

I was having a conversation with my friend Lutz the other day about the differences between the US and Germany. He said, “I don’t understand Americans and driving. On parts of the autobahn we don’t have speed limits. Americans want the speed of the autobahn but don’t want any of the responsibility.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Driving in Germany is a responsibility. I feel like the only time Americans care about driving rules is when they are taking a driving test. For example, you have “guidance” to pass on the left and you do what you want. On the autobahn, passing on the right means a 450 euro fine. Also, there are non-autobahn roads, where speeding can mean 20 days of your salary.”

It made me think about how we view things in the US. We want to have the best and fastest of everything, but we don’t want the rules that come with them. It’s a weird form of American exceptionalism. We love the freedom, sure, but when it comes to following regulations? Not so much. We want to have the best and shiniest things but don’t take care of them. It’s like giving a kid a fancy new toy and finding it broken the next day. And this, my friends, is why we can’t have nice things.

Sharp Tools in Business: The Japanese Influence

In business, I call this sharp tools. I got the idea from Andy Jassy, Amazon’s CEO. When questioned about the nefarious uses of AWS, Jassy likes to say that AWS is just a tool. It’s like a knife. Knives can be used for good or bad depending on how you use them.

Let’s talk about tools in business. In the 1980s when American businesses were obsessed with Japan. No, not the tech gadgets or cars – I’m talking about leading edge business practices from Toyota. Post World War Two, these folks weren’t just rebuilding; they were redefining efficiency. These practices made it into the US with names like Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma.

Toyota’s tools? They were like the Ginzu knives of the business world. We’re talking about methodologies that cut through waste like butter. One of the key tools from Toyota was the Andon cord. This was a cord in the middle of the production line. If anyone sees a quality issue on the line, they yank that Andon Cord, and bam – the entire production line grinds to a halt.

This little cord was a game-changer. It wasn’t just about catching mistakes; it was about empowering everyone on that floor to be a guardian of quality. Pulling the cord could cost big bucks in the short term, but it led to greatly increased quality and efficiency.

Naturally, American companies saw the power of these Japanese processes and wanted to bring it to the US. They saw the Andon Cord and wanted to implement it. See something off? Pull a cord, stop the line. It was a clear process that would help them boost quality.

Misusing the Tools: The Dangers of Incomplete Adoption

But it’s not so easy. While companies like Netflix and Amazon have successfully implemented this process, the Andon Cord isn’t a cure all. The Andon Cord isn’t just a fancy break-the-glass-in-case-of-emergency tool. It’s a symbol, a philosophy, a whole new way of thinking about quality and responsibility.

Many people look at the Andon Cord as a shortcut to quality, a quick-fix solution. But it’s more than just a cord; it’s a commitment. It requires an environment where quality is king, where every employee, from the CEO to the floor worker, is aligned in a relentless pursuit of excellence.

Implementing the Andon Cord without changing the culture makes causes more problems than it selves. Imagine this: production lines stopping left and right, because there are large problems in quality beforehand. The Andon Cord is a final quality check before things go out to the market. There’s a huge got to pulling it but that’s the point. When used correctly, everyone is signing up for superior quality. When used incorrectly it’s just a big, giant “I told you so” that “someone else” messed up.

Conclusion

We need to be careful with sharp tools. Adopting tools without a deep understanding of their purpose and without laying the necessary groundwork is like handing over a Formula 1 car to someone who’s only ever driven in a school zone. It’s not just about the tool; it’s about the readiness to use it effectively and responsibly.

So, what have we learned? It boils down to this: with great power comes great responsibility. Whether it’s the freedom of a no-speed-limit road, the prowess of cutting-edge technology, or the precision of an Andon Cord, the underlying message is crystal clear – respect the tool, understand its power, and use it wisely.

This took about 40 minutes to edit. It’s hard to find the right tone that doesn’t sound too overconfident. The ideas tend to be pretty on point which is what’s fun. I had an interesting problem with this one because I told it that companies implemented the Andon Cord and failed so it created that fictional history and I needed to correct that. Also, for this one I spent another 20 minutes editing it. Here’s the chat.

I’m getting to this point where I want to just have an idea and write it out and get it to a point where the bones show well enough. Can people understand what I’m trying to say. Likely, I need to get ChatGPT to flesh out the idea without being too clever.