Just maybe there is not a shortcut
I just started a new Tom Peters audiobook, The Excellence Divide. In reading the reviews of the book, a reviewer complained that Tom Peters offered nothing new over what he has provided over the past forty years. I suggest to the reviewer that the basic framework for excellence in business has not changed over time. There are different approaches but no short cuts. Excellence in business takes effort, and as Tom Peters has been hammering this issue for forty years, it starts with people, and it ends with people. Take care of your people, and your people will take care of your business. You want that person who is the last contact with your customer or patient to be a happy and satisfied employee. The problem is too many managers are trying to shortcut long term thinking for short term results, and Tom Peters has been pointing this out since the beginning. Stop focusing on monthly dollar goals and start focusing on a long term strategy of excellence culture. It takes effort to strive for excellence, and there are no shortcuts. Quality is a company culture, leadership is a company culture, and customer service is a company culture. All must be nurtured, or they will be swept under the rug, and problems in the organization will begin to appear. "The key to the Toyota Way and what makes Toyota stand out is not any of the individual elements…But what is important is having all the elements together as a system. It must be practiced every day in a very consistent manner, not in spurts." Taiichi Ohno