What are some of the processes in your professional, personal or academic life that can be managed differently? How so? What would you expect this new approach’s outcomes to be?

 The typical process of my academic life were start with a to-do list where I write down what I have to do such as the discussion post, learning journal, and reading assignments. Then, it was a long list. I only strikethrough each item when they were done. However, this system has two issues, priority and progress. I don't know which one is more important than the others or their expiration date. Moreover, I don't know which one is what I am focusing on right now or I am just multitasking. 

To robust it, I make two major upgrades, the first is to sort the tasks by priority, and the second is to create a hashtag "#in progress" to highlight the tasks that I am working on right now. After this upgrade, I become much more productive than ever before. Instead of being trapped in a mess, I begin to make better progress and also increase my efficiency. 

However, I reckon that this method benefits when I only care about when I have to finish these tasks and what tasks should I accomplish. It does not provide me further details about HOW I have done these tasks. The quality of the results that have been processed by me. Do I truly understand the core concept of the readings? How could I know if the quality of my journal or written assignments are good or poor, even though I did put intense effort into them? 

To further improve it, I add some parameters to this system. I started to monitor the variations such as notifications from my phone and the schedule of my full-time job. Distractions take attention away from what I need to do when performing a task and divert my attention from a desired area of focus and thereby blocking or diminishing the reception of desired information. I believe this update will further improve my focus on my assignments and tasks. After eliminating those distraction factors, I can feel my efficiency has improved due to the more focus mindset.

What do you think should be an organization’s priority to achieve excellence: its processes, or its people? Why? How do the two relate and interact?

 Organizational excellence is the ongoing efforts to establish an internal framework of standards and processes intended to engage and motivate employees to deliver products and services that fulfill customer requirements within business expectations(ASQ, 2022). Organizational excellence continues the progress established by a foundation such as total quality management, in which all levels of the organization participate in continual improvement(ASQ, 2022).

Processes are crucial components of how a company operates and delivers value to its customers. However, back to where an organization was founded, there are always a leader(or leaders) and a team(or multiple teams). Leaders share their vision and motivate the team to construct it. After that, leaders keep focusing on the vision and motivation, and those teams are focusing on operations and monitoring the results. These teams follow the vision and mission to design the processes and keep them effective. If the vision is to land on the moon, the team will design and build a rocket and hire astronauts to accomplish the mission. If the vision is to be a coffee chain like Starbuck, the team will start to hire baristas and find suitable places to operate. Then, at every stage of the progress, the employees carry out each process and see to it that everything is done properly. Employees implement the vision and goals created and motivated by the leaders and the whole organization.

I believe people are one of the most important elements when it comes to an organization that functions effectively. An organization is only as good as its employees. To achieve consistently superior performance such as outputs that exceed meeting objectives, needs, or expectations, the original source of this motivation I think, is people. Processes are like the laws and rules. They are designed and executed by people to meet certain expectations, objectives, and needs. Even though we are using AI nowadays, it is still "Artificial" intelligence. That doesn't mean that the processes are not important at all. The computer and the program are there to assist us and we can keep them upgraded. They are somewhat interdependent. Feed the probiotics that live in your body and they will contribute to your health. If a company already has excellent processes but does not have good employees, those processes are hard to be effective. Likewise, if a company has talented employees but does not have good processes in place, the skills of the employees would go to waste.

Reference

What is organizational excellence? ASQ. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2022, from https://asq.org/quality-resources/organizational-excellence 

What do you think should be an organization’s priority to achieve excellence: its processes, or its people? Why? How do the two relate and interact?

Organizational excellence is the ongoing efforts to establish an internal framework of standards and processes intended to engage and motivate employees to deliver products and services that fulfill customer requirements within business expectations(ASQ, 2022). Organizational excellence continues the progress established by a foundation such as total quality management, in which all levels of the organization participate in continual improvement(ASQ, 2022).

Processes are crucial components of how a company operates and delivers value to its customers. However, back to where an organization was founded, there are always a leader(or leaders) and a team(or multiple teams). Leaders share their vision and motivate the team to construct it. After that, leaders keep focusing on the vision and motivation, and those teams are focusing on operations and monitoring the results. These teams follow the vision and mission to design the processes and keep them effective. If the vision is to land on the moon, the team will design and build a rocket and hire astronauts to accomplish the mission. If the vision is to be a coffee chain like Starbuck, the team will start to hire baristas and find suitable places to operate. Then, at every stage of the progress, the employees carry out each process and see to it that everything is done properly. Employees implement the vision and goals created and motivated by the leaders and the whole organization.

I believe people are one of the most important elements when it comes to an organization that functions effectively. An organization is only as good as its employees. To achieve consistently superior performance such as outputs that exceed meeting objectives, needs, or expectations, the original source of this motivation I think, is people. Processes are like the laws and rules. They are designed and executed by people to meet certain expectations, objectives, and needs. Even though we are using AI nowadays, it is still "Artificial" intelligence. That doesn't mean that the processes are not important at all. The computer and the program are there to assist us and we can keep them upgraded. They are somewhat interdependent. Feed the probiotics that live in your body and they will contribute to your health. If a company already has excellent processes but does not have good employees, those processes are hard to be effective. Likewise, if a company has talented employees but does not have good processes in place, the skills of the employees would go to waste.

Reference

What is organizational excellence? ASQ. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2022, from https://asq.org/quality-resources/organizational-excellence 

In your organization, how can you contribute to the quality of delivery? Which skills or behaviors can you develop individually to improve collective excellence?

 Usually, when workers think of how can they contribute to the quality of delivery, they feel powerless and helpless because they just follow the rules and policies constructed by managers or business owners. However, workers are also an example of internal customers. For example, when I worked in my friend's cafe' as a barista, I frequently observed those customers who enjoy their coffee in the store and tried to figure out their satisfaction through their actions and expressions. If I observed a dissatisfied signal, I would be thinking why he(or she) is unhappy and what I can do about this. With the excellent leadership of my friend, I was motivated to do and think more about how to improve my service on my job. I reckon that for me to effectively improve my services, three factors have to be included. Excellent leadership, Understanding of what customers needs, and Resources. In my case, the company already has excellent leadership. How to understand what customers need is either through life or experiences, or I have the empowerment and resource to do an extra survey. Then, after identifying the real issue, I can start to think of possible solutions to the issue or make recommendations.

Source :https://blog.aiesec.org/is-leadership-a-skill-or-a-quality/

As I mentioned above, I believe that leadership is the key to improving collective excellence. With excellent leadership skills, I can influence others through my own ability, even though I am not at the top position or one of the board members. Therefore, anyone who can influence people to follow them has leadership qualities. However, it is more than not just a word. Effective leadership enables followers to succeed. I have to set a direction, build a vision, and adapt as circumstances require it. It is about mapping out what kind of results are identified as excellent. Moreover, although everyone can be a leader in their own way, it still depends on some key required skills such as a strategic plan or relationship building. 

Reference

the Mind Tools Content Team By the Mind Tools Content Team, Team, the M. T. C., wrote, B. T., & wrote, M. (n.d.). What is leadership?: How to lead your team skilfully. From MindTools.com. Retrieved September 13, 2022, from https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_41.htm 

the EFQM Excellence Model. It states, "Excellent organisations embed within their culture an ethical mindset, clear values and the highest standards for organisational behaviour, all of which enable them to strive for economic, social and ecological sustainability

 If we look at the summary of the EFQM Excellence Model. It states, "Excellent organisations embed within their culture an ethical mindset, clear values and the highest standards for organisational behaviour, all of which enable them to strive for economic, social and ecological sustainability.”(EFQM.org, 2022). But, how exactly does excellence leads actually to sustainability? I think that when we talk about the sustainability of a business, we always consider the economic or financial situation first. Yes, it is right. Economic and financial conditions are important factors that make businesses flourish. However, there are other things we are ignoring, social and environmental. Our consumers are part of the society and we are living and depending on the planet, it's the environment. I believe you can understand that when rivers are all dried up and the trees are all cut down, people will then know that they cannot eat "money". The biggest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will protect it. Therefore, an effective quality management model must include at least these three dimensions. 

To achieve sustainable development, there must be economic progress, social justice, and the preservation of the environment. Therefore, sustainability is made up of three pillars: economy, society, and the environment. To discuss this topic, I would like to introduce a successful example to explain my thought, which is Tesla. Tesla is an American multinational automotive and clean energy company. It designs and manufactures electric vehicles, Model X, Model 3, and Roadster. The company had the most worldwide sales of battery electric vehicles in 2021. 

Photo from: https://electrek.co/2022/03/10/tesla-tsla-order-rate-surging-us-gas-prices-turning-people-to-electric-cars/

Economically, In February 2004, via a $6.5 million investment, Elon Musk became the largest shareholder of the company. Tesla then began to produce its first car model, the Roadster sports car, in 2009. Its Model 3 was the all-time best-selling plug-in electric car worldwide in 2021 and became the first electric car to sell 1 million units globally. As we know that the EFQM Excellence Model starts with leadership, Elon Musk successfully created Tesla's mission statement and vision statement that reflect the nature of the prominent electric automobile manufacturing business. In short, Tesla is targeting the future of clean energy as a whole. Economically, it is a huge demand. Like many other entrepreneurs, Elon Musk saw a need and took the financial risks to start a business. This decision has created 110,000 direct jobs and 500,000 indirect jobs, including its suppliers, according to its CEO Elon Musk(Crider, 2022). Socially, Tesla has successfully transferred millions of people to learn new skills and develop a better future with Tesla. While more and more people have the ability to improve the quality of their life, the quality of life of the population as a whole is also improved. According to Tesla's 2020 Impact Report, in 2020, Tesla customers helped accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy by avoiding 5.0 million metric tons of CO2e emissions. This is a substantial success for protecting the environment. This success comes with Tesla’s generic competitive strategy and intensive growth strategies, which are directed toward satisfying the corporate mission and the corporate vision(Crider, 2022).

Reference

Crider, B. J. (2022, May 5). Tesla is now supporting over 600,000 jobs. CleanTechnica. Retrieved September 12, 2022, from https://cleantechnica.com/2022/05/05/tesla-is-now-providing-over-600000-jobs/ 

EFQM. (2022, August 16). The EFQM model. EFQM. Retrieved September 10, 2022, from https://efqm.org/the-efqm-model/

Rowland, C. (2022, July 27). Tesla's Mission Statement & Vision Statement (an analysis). Panmore Institute. Retrieved September 12, 2022, from https://panmore.com/tesla-motors-inc-vision-statement-mission-statement-analysis 

Case Study 1, H. James Harrington, author of the book “Business Process Improvement“ and noted quality guru, reports this story on Quality Digest.

 Introduction

BUS4406 – Case Study 1, H. James Harrington, author of the book “Business Process Improvement“ and noted quality guru, reports this story on Quality Digest.

I called to make a flight reservation just an hour ago. The telephone rang five times before a recorded voice answered. "Thank you for calling ABC Travel Services," it said. "To ensure the highest level of customer service, this call may be recorded for future analysis." Next, I was asked to select from one of the following three choices: "If the trip is related to company business, press 1. Personal business, press 2. Group travel, press 3." I pressed 1. I was then asked to select from the following four choices: "If this is a trip within the United States, press 1. International, press 2. Scheduled training, press 3. Related to a conference, press 4." Because I was going to Canada, I pressed 2.

Now two minutes into my telephone call, I was instructed to be sure that I had my customer identification card available. A few seconds passed and a very sweet voice came on, saying, "All international operators are busy, but please hold because you are a very important customer." The voice was then replaced by music. About two minutes later, another recorded message said, "Our operators are still busy, but please hold and the first available operator will take care of you." More music. Then yet another message: "Our operators are still busy, but please hold. Your business is important to us." More bad music. Finally, the sweet voice returned, stating, "To speed up your service, enter your 19-digit customer service number." I frantically searched for their card, hoping that I could find it before I was cut off. I was lucky; I found it and entered the number in time. The same sweet voice came back to me, saying, "To confirm your customer service number, enter the last four digits of your social security number." I pushed the four numbers on the keypad. The voice said: "Thank you. An operator will be with you shortly. If your call is an emergency, you can call 1-800-CAL-HELP, or push all of the buttons on the telephone at the same time. Otherwise, please hold, as you are a very important customer." This time, in place of music, I heard a commercial about the service that the company provides.

At last, a real person answered the telephone and asked, "Can I help you?" I replied, "Yes, oh yes." He answered, "Please give me your 19-digit customer service number, followed by the last four digits of your social security number so I can verify who you are." (I thought I gave these numbers in the first place to speed up service. Why do I have to rattle them off again?)

I was now convinced that he would call me Mr. 5523-3675-0714-1313-040. But, to my surprise, he said: "Yes, Mr. Harrington. Where do you want to go and when?" I explained that I wanted to go to Montreal the following Monday morning. He replied: "I only handle domestic reservations. Our international desk has a new telephone number: 1-800-1WE-GOTU. I'll transfer you." A few clicks later a message came on, saying: "All of our international operators are busy. Please hold and your call will be answered in the order it was received. Do not hang up or redial, as it will only delay our response to your call. Please continue to hold, as your business is important to us."

From: http://www.qualitydigest.com/may00/html/harrington.html

From a consumer standpoint, there are so many service failures associated with this experience. The recorded voice makes sense due to the technical issue of the background and the costs of a human supporter or customer service advisor. However, in this case, saving such costs appears a sign it is losing customers. Then, the long list is also inappropriate. Business and group clients should be sorted into another line rather than centered in the same line costing each client additional time. Although asking questions like a doctor somewhat makes sense, not everyone likes to be asked so many questions before their issues have been resolved. Simplifying the processes would be better for both the businesses and their clients. In addition, I reckon that customer identification can be done by store and remember those registered incoming phone numbers and clients only have to provide their private passwords or personal security numbers. 

Moreover, operators are busy means three things, the operator shortage, their efficiency, and the overall procedure. In this case, ABC Travel Services did not have sufficient operators to deal with their daily operations probably due to cost-cutting. However, that would be a worse choice since it only makes their operators busier while so many clients are waiting for a real person to answer on the phone. 

The Stakeholders

A stakeholder is an individual or group that has an interest in a company or organization and can either affect or be affected by the business(Fernando, 2022). Yes, affect or be affected. Typically, they are investors, employees, customers, and suppliers. With the increasing attention on corporate social responsibility, the concept has been extended to include communities, governments, and trade associations(Fernando, 2022). Stakeholders can be internal or external. Internal stakeholders have a direct relationship with the company such as employment, ownership, or investment(Fernando, 2022). External stakeholders are those who do not directly work with a company but are affected somehow by the actions and outcomes of the business such as suppliers, creditors, and public groups are all considered external stakeholders(Fernando, 2022).

In this case, the dissatisfied customer, H. James Harrington, is an example of the key external stakeholders. Customers are the stakeholders who decide whether the business will be a successful one or not. If a firm does not satisfy customers’ needs continuously, the customers will simply take their business elsewhere. In addition, the owners of the ABC Travel Services and the board of directors are an example of internal stakeholders since they control and decide how the company will operate. Their decisions determine how the managers and employees do their work, manage the tasks, and provide their services. The operators who are employed by the company to handle those phone calls is also an internal stakeholder. The telecom company that supplies the telecommunication services is one of the external stakeholders, called suppliers. Suppliers are also often concerned with safety and stability since their products can directly impact your business operations. In this case, the telecommunication services providers can determine the quality of the connection. "I am afraid I cannot hear you" or "Can you repeat that?" are the results that can make a company begin to lose its customers.

The EFQM Excellence Model

The EFQM Model is a globally recognized management framework that supports organizations in managing change and improving performance. EFQM is an acronym that stands for European Foundation for Quality Management. It was founded in 1988 to create a platform where organizations can learn from each other to continuously improve their performance for the long term. The Leadership, People, Strategy, Resources, and Processes indicate how these objectives can be achieved. Then, monitor the People, Customers, Society, and the Key Performance results that indicate the intended objectives. The core concept of it is that it is a "continuous process" and "self-assessment" model.

Application of The EFQM Model

Leadership

The key targets here are Communication of a clear vision and mission, Timely Appreciation of the efforts and success, Resources and Assistance, and Proper Empowerment. In the case of ABC Travel service, obviously, it did not communicate a clear vision and mission of providing excellent travel experience planning experiences. Timely Appreciation of the efforts and success probably do not have sufficient data to evaluate the progress. However, it did not provide adequate resources and assistance, and proper empowerment to handle the situation. As a result, they do not have the resources and assistance to provide excellent services. 

Strategy

The company does not formulate the concept of excellence. It only formulates the incoming call process to reduce the costs of hiring more people. In addition, it does not be regularly improved, since the system is not functioning well. 

People

Human resources are the most important assets of a company since they are all part of daily operations and make a company thrive. However, in this case, the company tends to make their operators as busy as possible to reduce the cost rather than improve their efficiency. Insufficient operators have made their customers unsatisfied. Either the procedure has to be redesigned or the company has to focus on the most valuable customers like American Express which renewed its focus on affluent customers. 

Partnership & Resources

This criterion considers how a company effectively utilizes its resources such as finances, technology, information, and materials. In this case, although we cannot judge its finances and materials yet due to insufficient information, its technological innovation is like a dying industry. 

People Results

Do people who work in this company feel their expectations are satisfied? In this case, we don't have direct evidence. But, "all the operators are busy" may tell us something about its internal management.

Customer Results

Of course, the perception of its customer, H. James Harrington, is pretty bad. After being asked so many questions, and waiting in line for so much time, his simple need remains unsatisfied. 

Impact on Society

Does the company satisfy the needs and expectations of the community at large? Generally, travel service providers' vision should be like, "Through travel, we connect people to positive experiences enabling them to see the world differently." or " Our mission is to make affordable travel accessible to more people". As we can see that those visions satisfy the needs and expectations such as affordable travel accessible to more people and making the world a better place. However, in this case, study, I did not see any vision of it and how it satisfied the needs and expectations of the community at large. 

Key Results

They are the planned performance of all key internal processes such as sales, profit margin, assets, cash flows, net income, return on investment, market share, and waste. In my opinion, if a company keeps wasting its customers' time, it is destroying its market share. If Mcdonald's keeps you waiting in line for over 30 minutes each time you go to its Drive Thru, you will consider other restaurants that can complete your order faster.

Recommendation on Leadership

Since the key targets here are communication of a clear vision and mission, top leaders of the ABC Travel must create a clear vision and mission for all the members to follow and timely appreciate the efforts when there are small successes.

Recommendation on Strategy

The company has to formulate the concept of excellence and regularly improve it. Reviews and surveys can be a good way to do it. 

Recommendation on People

Since human resources are the most important assets of a company, the procedure has to be redesigned. Instead of letting customers wait in line, the company can develop a system that sorts those who only need a few simple favors and preserves the effort of human operators for more complex questions or valuable clients.

 

Recommendation on Partnership & Resources

The company can partner with some telecom service providers to create a VIP line for some clients to avoid they are waiting in line with other customers. A VIP or Prime program is also a good way to consider separating those clients from others and charging extra fees for their membership privileges such as private assistants.

Recommendation on People Results

Although we don't have direct evidence of whether the people who work in this company feel their expectations are satisfied, we still have to fix the issue that always keeps its operators busy. Busy only brings press. A blocked list for those who are always annoying operators can be a good start. 

Recommendation on Customer Results

In this case, the perception of its customer, H. James Harrington, is pretty bad since he has been asked so many questions and waiting in line. A free trial of a VIP or Prime program can be a good way to express an apology.

Recommendation on The Impact on Society

To satisfy the needs and expectations of the community at large, CSR(Corporate Social Responsibility) can be a good way to do it. CSR is a self-regulating business model that helps a company be socially accountable to itself, its stakeholders, and the public. By practicing CSR, companies can be conscious of the kind of impact they are having on all aspects of society, including economic, social, and environmental.

Recommendation on Key Results

As mentioned above, a VIP or Prime program and CSR Program are both effective tools to ensure the planned performance of all key internal processes such as sales, profit margin, assets, cash flows, return on investment, market share, and waste. 

Summary

Oftentimes, we see the world through our views. But, the world can be either better or worse than we think it should be. Blaming an airplane crash on a sleepy pilot will not help to stop future crashes. We have to ask why he was sleepy and how to regulate and build a procedure to avoid it. To understand the significant issues, we have to look beyond a guilty individual and to the overall system. That's why we should adopt The EFQM Excellence Model or other models that may help to ensure the whole system has been considered.

Reference

EFQM. (2022, August 16). The EFQM model. EFQM. Retrieved September 10, 2022, from https://efqm.org/the-efqm-model/ 

Fernando, J. (2022, August 23). What are stakeholders: Definition, types, and examples. Investopedia. Retrieved September 9, 2022, from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/stakeholder.asp 

What does quality mean to you? How does good (or bad) quality affect you personally as a consumer? Have you had experiences where your expectations were exceeded, or on the contrary, not met? How did that change your opinion of the organization and its product or service?

 Most definitions of quality are expectations, requirements, fine, preferences, or standards focus. However, all of these definitions can be hugely different among individuals. Food is a good example. The basic rule is safety but not everyone has the same taste and likes the same kind of food. For me, espresso coffee is great but Americano is also popular for many people. You can't judge a cup of coffee by how "espresso" it should be. 

According to Albert Einstein, "Everybody is a genius, but if you judge a fish by the ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid." It makes me think that maybe every product can be a genius product if it just fits what its buyer wants it to be. Another reflection on this was if we look back over how iPhone was created and improved year by year, we will find that the expectations are also higher as time passes. Therefore, time is also one of the crucial elements of how we definite quality. 

To summarize, I think quality means two things, time and preferences. When a product or service meets the two elements at the same for an individual, it is probably a good product or service for the consumer.

A good or bad product affects consumers emotionally and physically. For example, some healthy food may be good for my body but it is not always as tasty as some unhealthy food. A better battery life phone helps me keep playing games longer but I will have less time for exercise. If a product is designed to entertain consumers by doing exercise, it would affect consumers both emotionally and physically. Right now, many plant-based food companies such as Beyond Meat tend to make their products both tasty and healthy.

Another example is that online retailers such as Amazon or Alibaba, are doing their business to help their consumers buy goods quickly and conveniently. Amazon Prime even delivers its products within two days. Such services affect customers both emotionally (consumers tend to have anxiety after they pay for something but they have to wait a period) and physically(people no longer have to wait in lines at a physical store or actually take a long ride).

Most of the time, I had experiences where my expectations fell behind when some food smiles good but not so much after I take a bite. Usually, it is very personal since it is feelings or preferences. People also feel differently when they are starving or full. Among daily purchases, some boots I purchased did exceed my expectation. For example, PAMPA LITE+ RECYCLE WP+ Boots were better than I expected since they cost me less money when I purchased them from a retailer. 

I think the prices of a product is also affect the buyer's expectation. Mentally, people feel much more pain from a loss than a gain. It's Loss aversion. It is a phenomenon where a loss is perceived by individuals as emotionally more severe than an equivalent gain. I think even if your product is 50% more valuable, consumers still feel serve pain if it is also 50% more expensive. Regardless of consumer preferences, I reckon that if the price of an iPhone is 50% higher than its competitors' products, fewer iPhones would be bought when it's only 50% more valuable.

Reference

Liberto, D. (2022, July 8). Loss aversion definition. Investopedia. Retrieved September 4, 2022, from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/l/loss-psychology.asp 

Issue of Business Week entitled "What Drives Consumers Not To Buy GM Cars."

 Read the Article from the July 8, 2007 issue of Business Week entitled "What Drives Consumers Not To Buy GM Cars."

Source : https://logistics.asia/toyota-to-slash-september-production-due-to-global-chip-shortage/

Source: https://auto.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/passenger-vehicle/cars/general-motors-to-boost-electric-vehicle-profile-with-40000-charging-stations-in-us-canada/87286587

One contributor writes: "Americans have switched from Detroit Big Three vehicles to Honda and Toyota vehicles not for visual design features but for durability, reliability, good fuel consumption, and the lower full cost of operation. Detroit needs to offer five-passenger, 35-mile-per-gallon vehicles with 100,000-mile bumper-to-bumper warranties over 10 years of ownership to cause satisfied Honda and Toyota buyers to switch.”

What drives quality in these comments I think is that the customers of GM Cars are expecting much more durable, reliable, and higher fuel efficiency products. It appears that GM Cars did not meet the expectations of its customers and it can be even worse if GM Cars does not understand what consumers want it to provide. Moreover, according to such comments, these issues have been ignored for a very long time because durability has to be evaluated over a very long period.

The General Motors Company (GM) is an American multinational automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit. It is the largest automaker in the United States and was the largest in the world for over 70 years. However, General Motors (GM) officially loses the title in 2009, when it announces worldwide sales of 8.36 million vehicles in 2008, compared with Toyota's 8.97 million vehicle sales that same year. 

This automotive giant was originally thriving along with the standardization and mass production era which work become progressively deskilled and more repetitive. The inspection might be the primary focus for GM to ensure that its products are performed well. However, there is a defect in this practice. This kind of inspection probably ignores what consumers actually need and do they feel satisfied after purchasing a product that is cost them large amounts. Purchasing durable goods such as cars or houses typically costs consumers a lot of money. Therefore, their expectations would generally be higher or do a lot of research before making such decisions. From the consumer's perspective, durable, reliable, and higher fuel efficiency are the elements that GM did not do well. In addition, GM believed that designers and engineers create the car, and the assembly line just follows the instructions to produce. However, manufacturing staff have more expertise than designers when it comes to creating the end product. Toyota, on the other hand, empowers its assembly line workers to identify problems, devise solutions, and get management to quickly make changes.

So, what does this demand for quality drive innovation? Generally, when we trying to solve a problem, we must understand and identify the issue first and then be willing to solve it. Secondly, when the issue is actually solved, the solution will become a long-term strategy and finally back into the beginning of the circle and keep discovering new issues. During this circle, organizations innovate when they trying to solve an issue or find a way to remain competitive.

Reference

Four valuable lessons from GM's failed experiment. Salesforce.com. (n.d.). Retrieved September 2, 2022, from https://www.salesforce.com/workdifferently/articles/four-lessons-for-working-differently-gms-failed-experiment-with-toyota/ 

Knowles, G. (2011). Quality Management. London, UK: Ventus Publishing ApS; Bookboon.

Are We In A Recession 2022?

 Usually, there are two things always happen during a recession. The GDP goes DOWN and unemployment rate goes UP. That make sense since we feel recession while we start worrying about our jobs. These two factors feed on each other. When companies do not make money, they start to layoff workers. When workers are losing their jobs, they spend less. And, when people spend less, companies generate less revenue from its sales. A recession can start from each of these points. Right now, the GDP is going down. However, the unemployment rate is also FALLING. Right now, people are not worry about their jobs. The Labor Participation Rate is as low as it’s been in four decades. This unsustainable! How can companies are not making enough money but still keep hiring more people? What issues will we face in the recent months or years? 

Different from management, leadership is focusing on leading and influencing people for achieving a common goal

 Different from management, leadership is focusing on leading and influencing people for achieving a common goal. However, there are multiple ways to achieve a common goal but not everyone prefers the same route. Most definitions of leadership reflect the assumption that leadership involves an influencing process whereby intentional influence is exerted by the leader over followers. However, different kinds of influencing processes and intentional influence tend to result in different outcomes. Many business owners think that they only have to lead their employees by paying them wages. If leaders do not communicate and explain the vision, it would be hard for them to motivate people to attain the essential vision. Followers follow their leaders for multiple reasons. Whether for the same benefits or merely don't know where to go, leaders must bring hope, credibility, and safety to their followers. 

Businesses face ups and downs. Without someone to push forward in optimism, the company will likely be unsuccessful. I ought to hold my emotions in check, especially in tough situations. To increase my positive energy, I start exercising regularly and eating healthier diets. In addition, positive thinking is a mental and emotional state of mind that focuses on the good and expects positive outcomes and also involves more than merely thinking happy thoughts.