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Tag Archives: theory of knowledge
Annual Performance Evaluations are a Poor Management Practice
Sports provides visible examples of the futility of accurate performance appraisal. We have athletes who thousands of people devote a huge amount of time to dissecting their strengths and weaknesses and those evaluations are constantly shown to be wrong. Teams are constantly paying free agents tens of millions that completely flop. Others hire someone no-one else wanted for the league minimum and they become a big contributor. Yes, it isn’t hard to figure out Stephen Curry is a far better … Continue reading
Posted in Career, Deming, Performance Appraisal, Systems thinking
Tagged Career, Deming, Performance Appraisal, Psychology, theory of knowledge
The Importance of Critical Thinking and Challenging Assumptions
There are many factors that are important to effectively practice the management improvement ideas that I have discussed in this blog for over a decade. One of the most important is a culture that encourages critical thinking as well as challenging claims, decisions and assumptions. I discussed this idea some in: Customers Are Often Irrational. There is a difference between saying people wish to have their desires met and people act in the manner to maximize the benefits they wish … Continue reading
Acting Without Theory Often Results in Wasted Effort
When you act without theory you can find yourself beating your head against the wall, in ways similar to this woodpecker bangs its head against this sign. This bird may have copied the pecking behavior without understanding the theory. Pecking steel won’t lead to it uncovering insects to eat. Alternatively, it may be pecking to make noise and attract a mate or tell other woodpeckers this territory is claimed. If mates and others acknowledge the metal pecking noises then the … Continue reading
The Road Not Taken
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I– I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. Wonderful advice and so poignant. But actually, if you read the whole poem, what we take from the quote isn’t what the poem was saying. Earlier in the poem it says Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same Robert Frost was poking fun at his friend who would obsess over what … Continue reading
Posted in Creativity, Psychology
Tagged coaching, Creativity, Psychology, quote, theory of knowledge, thinking, travel
1 Comment
Cognition: How Your Mind Can Amaze and Betray You
The webcast above is from the excellent folks at Crash Course. This webcast provides another view into the area of Deming’s management system on the theory of knowledge (the one most people forget), how we know what we know and how that belief isn’t always right. Two of the four components of Dr. Deming’s management system were about our brains (psychology is the other) which makes a great deal of sense when you think about how focused he was on … Continue reading
Posted in Deming, Psychology
Tagged Deming, Psychology, Science, theory of knowledge, webcast
Stated Versus Revealed Preference
My father provided me a good example of the flawed thinking of relying on stated preference when I was growing up. Stated preference is, as you might deduce, the preferences voiced by customers when you ask. This is certainly useful but people’s stated preference often do not match there actions. And for a business, actions that lead to customers are more important than claims potential customers make about what will make them customers. His example was that if you ask … Continue reading
Posted in Customer focus, Popular, Psychology
Tagged Bill Hunter, Customer focus, food, Popular, Psychology, Quality tools, Statistics, theory of knowledge
8 Comments
Experience Teaches Nothing Without Theory
Experience teaches nothing. In fact there is no experience to record without theory… Without theory there is no learning… And that is their downfall. People copy examples and then they wonder what is the trouble. They look at examples and without theory they learn nothing. W. Edwards Deming in The Deming of America Our brains are good at creating theories, from our experiences, so that our brain can learn. However when this is done only subconsciously we can be led … Continue reading
Posted in Deming, Psychology, quote
Tagged curiouscat, Deming, learning, Psychology, quote, theory of knowledge
9 Comments
Your Brain Can Jump to Incorrect Conclusions
How our brain works without us realizing it often is hugely beneficial, but it also creates some faulty conclusions at times. The video gives a good synopsis of the quick intuitive leaps our brains make all the time. These are extremely helpful, but occasionally lead us to fall into traps. I have discussed these idea before: The Illusion of Knowledge, Optical and Other Illusions. By understanding some of the traps our brain can fall into, we can improve our decision … Continue reading
Posted in Fun, Psychology
Tagged learning, Psychology, system thinking, theory of knowledge
2 Comments
Double Loop Learning Presentation by Benjamin Mitchell
Benjamin Mitchell – Using the Mutual Learning Model to achieve Double Loop Learning [the original video is not online anymore, I replaced it with another presentation by Benjamin on the same topic at a different conference at close to the same time – JH] Benjamin Mitchell presents ideas using Chris Argyris thinking on double-loop learning. “Double-loop learning occurs when error is detected and corrected in ways that involve the modification of an organization’s underlying norms, policies and objectives.” Single loop … Continue reading
Ackoff: Corporations Are Not Led By Those Seeking to Maximize Shareholder Value
If I had to limit myself to a handful of management experts, Russel Ackoff would definitely be in that group. Thankfully there is no such limit. Ackoff once again provides great insight, with great wit, in the above clip. A corporation says that its principle value is maximizing shareholder value. That’s non-sense. If that were the case executives wouldn’t fly around on private jets and have Philippine mahogany lined offices and the rest of it. The principle function to those … Continue reading
Posted in Fun, Management, Systems thinking, webcast
Tagged Ackoff, aim, culture, evidence based management, leadership, management webcast, purpose, quote, theory of knowledge
8 Comments
We are Being Ruined by the Best Efforts of People Who are Doing the Wrong Thing
Deming’s Second Theorem: “We are being ruined by best efforts.” What did Dr. Deming mean by this? Another quote by Dr. Deming might give you a clue? “Best efforts will not substitute for knowledge.” Irwin, the porcupine at the Animal Rescue League Wildlife Center has to work a little harder for his breakfast in this clip. The wildlife center likes to provide animals in captivity puzzles and challenges to keep them interested in their environment so they stuck his breakfast … Continue reading
Posted in Deming, Management, Psychology, Systems thinking
Tagged Deming, Fun, management, Psychology, Systems thinking, theory of knowledge
8 Comments
The Theory of Knowledge in Deming’s Management System: How Do We Know What We Know?
I contributed an article to the Process Excellence Network’s Deming Files that was published yesterday: How Do We Know What We Know?. I took on the task of explaining the theory of knowledge, as one article in a four part series looking at the four components of Dr. Deming’s System of Profound Knowledge. The other 3 articles are: Systems Thinking and the Three Musketeers by Eric Christiansen The Trouble with Motivation by Jussi Kyllonen Variation, So Meaningful Yet So Misunderstood … Continue reading
Learn by Seeking Knowledge – Not Just from Mistakes
Being open to new ideas and new knowledge is what is needed to learn. Experimenting, seeking out new knowledge is even better. You can be successful and see an even better way to do things and learn from it. This seems the best way to learn to me – not to just learn from mistakes. Of course this means your goal has to be improvement not just avoiding more mistakes than before. Your actions are based on theories (often unconsciously): … Continue reading
No True Lean Thinking or Agile Software Development
“There is no true value of any characteristic, state, or condition that is defined in terms of measurement or observation.” – Dr. W. Edwards Deming. The value depends on your operational definition. Once you operationalize management ideas in a real organization it necessarily should have differences from how it is operationalized elsewhere. As Deming said there are no effective simple recipes for management. It is one of the frustrations people have with Dr. Deming: that there is no cookbook telling … Continue reading
A Theory of a System for Educators and Managers
Excerpts from The Deming Library Volume XXI, Dr. W. Edwards Deming, Dr. Russell Ackoff and David Langford demonstrate that educators can begin a quality transformation by developing an understanding of the properties and powers of systems-oriented thinking. You can order the entire video, as well as the rest of The Deming Library. Great stuff! If you enjoy this blog (the Curious Cat Management Improvement Blog), you definitely should watch this webcast. This video has some great insight into education, learning … Continue reading
Posted in Creativity, Deming, Education, Management, quote, Systems thinking, webcast
Tagged Ackoff, curiouscat, Data, Deming, Education, Innovation, learning, management, management webcast, quote, Systems thinking, theory of knowledge, webcast
7 Comments
The Illusion of Knowledge
The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge. – Daniel J. Boorstin Great quote on a topic I discussed in, How We Know What We Know. Dr. Deming included the theory of knowledge as one of the 4 pillars of his management system. When you do not question what you think you know, and conventional thinking, that will keep you from discovery. Now much of conventional wisdom is right, so you often do well … Continue reading
Posted in Deming, Management
Tagged curiouscat, Deming, John Hunter, learning, management, quote, theory of knowledge
4 Comments