Pacific Gas & Electric Company Grid Customer Services 77 Beale Street P.O. Box 770000 San Francisco, CA 94177


MEMORANDUM

Date: December 30, 1994 File #: Welch

To:     Chris Snyder

From:   Bill DeHart
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Subject:   SDS - Evaluation

Chris:

PG&E entered into contract Z10 5 245 94 for the Welch Company to provide automated management support beginning on August 11, 1994.
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Our intent was to evaluate Welch's product, SDS, for improving our management techniques. As the lead PG&E contact with Welch, I reported in a memo dated September 27, 1994 that "...we have had very successful results in the application of SDS...."
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Since then, I have concluded that SDS can significantly improve PG&E earnings if adopted more widely. I based this on our customer response, other PG&E department staff, and my own interaction with SDS.
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During my 30+ years with PG&E undertaking project and functional assignments, I have participated in numerous company efforts to help managers do a better job. These include executive training, automated systems, and re-organizations, popularly called, today, "reengineering" our business systems. None of these efforts have had the impact of SDS to help managers get things done accurately, on time and within budget. Accordingly I recommend wider use of SDS at PG&E. ..
Since SDS implements a new concept called POIMS to convert information into knowledge, it requires dedicated training and support, as we have done in the past with other major business improvements. Our project managers travel too much to be able to assimilate SDS within the demands of their daily routine.
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Therefore, dedicated training is essential. Adopting SDS requires executive sponsorship because inexperienced managers will initially shun its methodology of converting information into knowledge, since at the time events occur, people feel they know what has transpired that is important. However, experience using SDS shows there is a lot more that occurred than seemed apparent at the time, which impact PG&E earnings. Since PG&E executives are responsible for earnings, their sponsorship of SDS training and implementation is critical. Please let me know if you need more information on this matter.
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Bill DeHart



cc: Rod Welch