VisionToMission

The late Graeme Hennessey was one of the best managers I’ve ever had—direct and funny, firm and fair, trusting and trustworthy. Unflappable. I caught up with a friend and former colleague, Joe Armas, a couple of weeks ago, and we reminisced about Graeme. I shared a story he hadn’t heard before. At the time, I was struggling with a project. Graeme noticed and suggested I take a break. Then he told me a story. I didn’t realize it was a lesson until much later. He said his final chemistry lab was a take-home assignment. Each student received a small vial of liquid to identify using basic equipment. He tested his sample so thoroughly that he ran out of it and had to ask for a second vial. When he returned for a third, the professor asked why he needed it. Graeme replied, “The result doesn’t look right.” “What did you get?” the professor asked. “It says the liquid is water.” “And what’s wrong with that?” the professor said. “It is water.” Graeme had been convinced it had to ...

Can You Still Differentiate in a Commodity Market? Absolutely. Just ask Mr. Takagishi from Nippon Sheet Glass. About 20 years ago, we were exporting coated glass to LCD manufacturers in Japan—hardly the most glamorous product. But Takagishi-san gave me a framework I still use today: QCDS —Quality, Cost, Delivery, Service. I spoke with him this week (my first Japanese conversation in over 10 years—still holding my own!).  He remembered QCDS, but said the real foundation was the 3 Cs : Customer, Company, Competitor . QCDS was simply how you executed against them. Each account had an Account Plan with a 3C matrix, and every account manager had to understand, at a minimum: Customer : their priorities, decision-makers, and challenges Company (ours) : our strengths, gaps, and opportunities to improve Competitor : who they are, why they win, and what they’re good at Here’s one example: At a key customer, they held a 60% share. There was no edge on quality or delivery, and ...

  Stick Your Neck Out – What’s the Worst That Could Happen? According to my high school English teacher, Fr. Tom Helfrich? It might get chopped off. But only figuratively. Phew! When I recently reconnected with him, I brought it up.  He didn’t remember saying it—probably one of many attempts to get a sleepy class engaged—but he did offer a story that might explain the sentiment. Back in college, he once told his priest advisor that his life felt uneventful. No bold experiences, no hitchhiking stories. The advisor’s response? “Then go hitchhike.” So he did—$10 to his name, split between his pocket and a shoe (it was the 70s). He hitchhiked across Michigan, bought gas to secure a couch for one night, went to a party on the second night for the next couch, and grabbed donuts after Mass and a snowy ride home with a guy who looked like he wrestled bears for fun and kept a (possibly human?) bone on the dashboard. His takeaway? Most people are kind. Trust them. Take a chance....