Date: Tue, 18 Jun 2002 21:55:33 -0700 | 03 00050 61 02061802 |
Mr. Garold L. Johnson
dynalt@dynalt.com
Dynamic Alternatives
http://www.dynalt.com/
City, St Zip
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Subject: | Com Manager Role |
Dear Gary,
You have raised an important question in
your letter
today (see below)
about how a Com Manager interacts with the existing organizational
staff, and how many people one Com Manager can support? This
explanation reflects your experience related previously on the Boeing
ISS project and other large projects.
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The record on June 3, 1997 for a meeting at Intel has an
overview of the
Com Manager role.
..
There is a
diagram
and more narrative in the same record that shows how
the Com Manager complements traditional management.
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Several questions remain, however, until people get actual experience,
because no matter how well things are explained, since
intelligence is a
new role in business,
as set out in NWO, people need
experience to understand what takes place and how
it saves time and money.
..
See for example
Tom Keesling's
remarks a few months after Com Metrics
was underway, and after getting 9 months of explanations of what it
would be like.
..
One of the most frequently asked questions is does the Com Manager
enter all the
past history
into SDS in order for Com Metrics to be
effective in managing organizational memory, and is addressed in the
record on June 28, 1994.
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Another FAQ is how long does it take for everybody to learn Com Metrics and
overcome resistance to changing their way of doing things?
..
The Com Metrics model of applying SDS doesn't require anyone to learn
anything nor to change anything about their work practice. Com
Metrics improves performance using what people already know and the
methods they are presently using, because instead of spreading guess
and gossip in meetings, calls and email, the team begins to have a
resource for working intelligently. This means people continue with
present skills using Windows, Word, email, Powerpoint, etc. The Com
Manager uses this work product as input for creating intelligence that
guides conduct of the work on critical issues that impact
productivity, earnings and legal exposure.
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There is a review and setup period of time needed to get started that
varies from a few days to a week or so to examine contracts and other
instruments and get briefed on objectives, requirements and
commitments necessary to set up the initial organic structure.
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Day-to-day the work largely entails attending meetings, visiting with
staff to check understandings, point out risks and opportunities, preparing the
record, planning action items, briefing people on the record to prepare them
for meetings and calls, and
writing correspondence
for others to issue (on a
government contract this would be the contracting officer or ACO) that reflects
the record in a way that encourages timely performance, and recognizes legal
exposure. See for example the record on December 5, 1991.
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Most of the Com Manager's time is using the
eight (8) steps for creating
the record to improve memory and understanding, commonly called
listening, reported on December 19, 2000 Creating structure and identifying
context makes information useful and efficient for
busy people to use.
Busy people don't have a lot of time for thinking and so typically do
not engage the SDS record directly (commenting on
your specific question).
Therefore facilitating thinking saves time and money by avoiding mistakes.
Tying things together and
checking alignment reveals a constant stream of action items to correct small
deviations before they become big problems. Avoiding big problems is the
biggest source of saving time and money under
Aristotle's rule
set out in the New World Order... The Com
Manager solves common experience reported on November 27, 1992 where
seemingly
inconsequential details become major problems
as small leaks of time
and money become a flood of crisis, conflict and calamity.
..
The Com Manager contacts affected people to gather information for
planning and positioning the record in a constructive way. The Com
Manager expands span of attention by helping people think through
solutions that align with objectives, requirements and commitments.
Sometimes the Com Manager conducts a meeting to mentor people on how
to use the record for an effective meeting, occasionally, the Com
Manger may ask a question or two to facilitate progress.
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The record is always issued in the name of assigned staff. The Com
Manager's name never or rarely appears in the record. The record strives to
make everyone look good, and by helping people be aware of work history in
relation to objectives, requirements and commitments, this can largely be
accomplished so that things get done correctly on time and within budget.
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How many people can a Com Manager help?
It depends on the organization structure. On the CDWR project with PG&E, one
person helped several hundred to perhaps a thousand, because the record was
prepared for a small group, but it was distributed widely within PG&E and
within the State of California to their project staff. This goes to your point
on October 6, 2001 about
how to help big organizations,
like Boeing, Lockheed,
IBM, Microsoft, etc., avoid continual problems.
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See, for example,
results
reported on December 8, 1994.
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Similar results occurred with USACE, where one person supported a
small group of 10 or 20, but spread out to hundreds who reviewed the
record directly counting contractor, subcontractors, Port of Oakland,
State of California, outside consultants, and so on.
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So, the key is placing the Com Manager at the strategic position where
communication emanates to everyone, and where decisions on taking action occur
that impact value at risk.
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The Com Manager does not attend every meeting nor listen in on every
call, nor see every email. The Com Manager decides in consultation
with the lead customer rep, e.g., a manager, CEO, VP, Director,
Commander, etc., where and when support is needed based on the state
of the record. See for example discussion with
Max Blodgett
at USACE on September 24, 1996.
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By issuing the record of a few key meetings, the Com Manager ties
together all prior communication that impact the meeting and provides
a focused expression that guides action in relation to objectives,
requirements and commitments under a theory of
Command and Control of the Record, as explained in POIMS.
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The strength of the process is that just as
bad management
infects every
aspect of performance, causing a downward spiral reported by Gary Johnson on
October 6, 2001, so, too,
working intelligently,
as reported by the US Army
Corps of Engineers, is leveraged by the same army of people spreading accurate
understandings that are aligned with objectives, requirements and commitments.
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Another good source for understanding this role is the explanation
prepared by a
DOD program manager
and entered in the record on February 17,
2002, responding to an earlier question you raised along the same lines.
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Of course we created the
scope of services
to precisely explain the Com
Manager role and deliverables.
Let me know if have any questions.
..
Rod
Sincerely,
THE WELCH COMPANY
Rod Welch
rowelch@attglobal.net
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Post Script
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Also sent copies to a few other folks who have asked about this role, and to
some staff at PG&E, and USACE shown above whom you can ask to get their
perspective. For example
Max,
Leonard
and
Herb
have correspondence in the
record on this.
..
Wayne Wetzel,
now retired, has written extensively on the role of Com Manager
based on experience at DNRC over many years.
Copy to:
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