JOHNSONÕS WORLD
Dear Mister Perfect…
A few thoughts on why "good enough" never is.
By Steve Johnson
T
here is a mentality that is poison to the system of any established organization. That mindset, which creeps in slowly
and eventually permeates an organization if not stopped, is
the attitude of "good enough."
This line of thinking evolves when a
workforce comes to believe that it cannot
or need not innovate any more, that has
reached the pinnacle of customer service,
and that it is unrealistic and downright
ungrateful of clients to expect anything
better than the status quo.
Factors such as unions, monopolies,
and most of all plain ol' success all help
to engender this mindset. Since all of
these factors are present in federal governmental organizations, this mentality
is particularly dangerous to the public
sector.
Take for Example…
Large corporations and non-profits also
fall prey to this sort of thinking. The
most obvious example of the disastrous
results of this attitude is to be found in
the lesson of the automobile giants of
Detroit and the United Auto Workers.
Lee Iacocca was president of Ford in
the 1960's when Detroit was firmly convinced that substantial improvements to
cars weren't practical, even though the
Japanese were introducing those very
improvements. So how did Iacocca plan
to satisfy increasingly demanding customers?
"I say, give 'em leather," he said. "They
can smell it." You can hear the contempt
for the customer in his voice.
When Carroll Shelby was offered a
Houston Toyota dealership in 1971,
Iacocca advised him not to take it. Why
not?
"Because we're going to kick their butts
into the Pacific Ocean," sneered Iacocca.
Shelby later estimated that following
that advice cost him $10 million, which
was nothing compared to the billions
that American automakers lost when
40
Japanese carmakers kicked Detroit's proverbial butt into Lake Erie.
No one is exempt. That very same arrogance infected the victorious Japanese
just a few decades later.
There are not as many stories about the
"good enough" attitude poisoning entrepreneurs because the poison is much
faster-acting in small businesses. If a
small businessman cops an attitude, a
new entrepreneur is quick to jump in
to meet the increasing demands of the
slighted clients.
Another Observation
I received this note in response to my
criticism of the quality of service of the
United States Postal Service.
QUICK PRINTING / August 2013
Mr. "Perfect" Johnson,
Are you so perfect, that you have
NEVER made a mistake? I guess ALL
of your articles are 100% accurate.
Only ONE man has ever been perfect
and I don't think that he writes such
biased articles. If only you could
experience just one day in a letter
carrier's shoes... You really have no
idea. How many times have you
received the right mail?
Less than Perfect Letter
Carrier of 30 years,
Jeff Essick
"How many times have you received
the right mail?" Mr. Essick asks rhetorically.
No, I'm not satisfied just because I
receive the "right mail" some of the time.
Manufacturers who have implemented
the Six Sigma standard of quality, guaranteeing no more than 3.4 defects per
million, won't be satisfied with the Postal Service's level of mistakes either.
I won't be sharing your message with
my clients, Mr. Essick. I have a giant
ongoing challenge convincing the world
of the value of print, of its effectiveness
and its superiority to electronic media
such as email, Web, and text.
After I tell people that they should
pay a premium for print and another for
postage, you want me to tell them that
they should be satisfied as long as some
of their message is delivered correctly?
Mailers now have email for their newsletters and business correspondence.
They have UPS and FedEx for their catalogs and product deliveries. They
have text messaging and Facebook
for their personal notes.
These tools aren't perfect. I spend
the majority of my time convincing people that, in most instances,
print is the most effective communication medium. That includes
direct mail, but please, Mr. Essick,
all of my efforts are for naught if
you don't put the envelope in the
correct mailbox.
Lastly, Mr. Essick, I notice that
in the heat of the moment you
sent your note to me by the first
method that entered your mind.
You sent me an email. ◗◗
Steve Johnson is president of
Copresco in Carol Stream, IL; a pioneer
in digital printing technology and print
on demand. Contact him at MyPRINTResource.com/10111496, or send direct feedback about this column via www.copresco.
com/forms/contact.htm.
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