THE WELCH COMPANY
440 Davis Court #1602
San Francisco, CA 94111-2496
415 781 5700


S U M M A R Y


DIARY: April 30, 1999 08:42 AM Friday; Rod Welch

Called Iman on Field Automation meeting today at Caltrans.

1...Summary/Objective
2...Field Automation Meeting Today, Communication Metrics Trial
3...Enterprise Management Integrates Cross Functional Operations
4...Communication Metrics Supports Design and Construction Management
5...Organization Change in Construction Reflects Constant Evolution


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CONTACTS 
0201 - State of California                  916 445 6038
020101 - Department of Transportation
020102 - Mr. Iman Sallam, P.E.
020103 - Senior Transportation Engineer =916 653 2084
020104 - Construction Program MS-44
020105 - Field Automation

SUBJECTS
Common Administration
Caltrans, Self-evident Cost Savings
Clear Concise Complete Communication
Demonstrate SDS, Communication Metrics
Design Support
Diary record, Journal
History Case Studies, Root Causes

1509 -    ..
1510 - Summary/Objective
1511 -
151101 - Follow up ref SDS 9 0000, ref SDS 8 0000.
151102 -
151103 - The field automation meeting is today.  Iman will bring up
151104 - Communication Metrics.  He feels Com Metrics can be used for design.
151105 - We discussed the benefit of adding "intelligence" to all aspects of
151106 - management.
151107 -
151108 - We need to notify people in Caltrans about this opportunity, as Ross
151109 - did by forwarding mail to colleagues so they can experience first hand
151110 - the meaning of "intelligence" on the Internet.
151111 -
151112 -
151113 -
151114 -
151115 -
151116 -
1512 -
1513 -
1514 - Progress
1515 -
151501 -  ..
151502 - Field Automation Meeting Today, Communication Metrics Trial
151503 -
151504 - Iman is preparing for the Field Automation meeting today.  This
151505 - meeting involves senior HQ people reviewing needs and requests from
151506 - the field.
151507 -
151508 - Iman has not talked to John McMillan about our meeting on 990414...
151509 - ref SDS 6
151510 -
151511 - John received the record of our discussion on 990420. ref SDS 8 7056,
151512 - submitted with my letter, ref DIP 1, which was sent as shown on
151513 - 990421. ref SDS 9 0627
151514 - ..
151515 - Iman plans to bring up Communication Metrics at the meeting
151516 - today, as we discussed on 990414. ref SDS 6 4212
151517 -
151518 - We can talk after his meeting about the next step.
151519 -
151520 -
151521 -  ..
151522 - Enterprise Management Integrates Cross Functional Operations
151523 - Communication Metrics Supports Design and Construction Management
151524 -
151525 - Iman feels a good time to start Communication Metrics is during the
151526 - design stage before construction, so there is a good record of the
151527 - various agencies and vendors contacted in establishing design criteria
151528 - and decisions.  He said current practice makes it difficult to get
151529 - relevant information from the project record on a timely basis during
151530 - construction.
151531 -
151532 - He feels Communication Metrics solves this problem, and so suggests we
151533 - talk to the Engineering people.
151534 -
151535 - I mentioned Tom Keesling at the Corps of Engineers recommended to Ross
151536 - Chittenden on 970926, that Communication Metrics be used throughout
151537 - the life-cycle of a project. ref SDS 3 9609  On 951026 application to
151538 - design was reviewed in relation to ISO compliance. ref SDS 2 7773
151539 -
151540 - Communication Metrics helps everything because it is a fundamental
151541 - advance that adds "time" to using the alphabet for knowledge work...
151542 - ref OF 2 7055
151543 -
151544 - I did not mention the National Science Foundation (NSF) proposal for
151545 - Enterprise Management based on Communication Metrics, which was
151546 - received on 990427. ref SDS 10 7503
151547 -
151548 - We are working on a grand scale to improve everything.  However, to
151549 - improve anything, we have to start by improving something.
151550 -
151551 - To expose this new capability in trials so people can discover the
151552 - benefit of "intelligence," we have to look for opportunities where the
151553 - need is perceived in conventional terms.
151554 -
151555 - The SDS diary supports a perceived construction need to keep a diary,
151556 - as Iman related on 990414. ref SDS 6 6960
151557 -
151558 - It would be better to start during design.  Starting with construction
151559 - will bring signigicant improvement, as well; because, like design,
151560 - construction management is mostly communication.  See Kerzner lecture
151561 - on 950202. ref SDS 1 5005 and ref SDS 1 0333,
151562 -
151563 - Communication Metrics during construction fills in the relevant design
151564 - information.  It is easier if there is an SDS record for design, but
151565 - if not, it is created as needed.
151566 -
151567 - Caltrans is a big organization.  It has a lot of work to do that can
151568 - support a trial of Communication Metrics at any stage in the life
151569 - cycle of a project.
151570 -
151571 -
151572 -
151573 -  ..
151574 - Organization Change in Construction Reflects Constant Evolution
151575 -
151576 - Iman advised that changes are occuring in the Construction department.
151577 -
151578 - We considered that large organizations are pretty much undergoing
151579 - constant change these days.  On 970926 Ross explained big changes that
151580 - were occuring then.  Andy Grove, Chairman of Intel explains that
151581 - executives like to tinker with the organization chart because it is
151582 - something they can do that has an impact.  Helping people work more
151583 - effectively is a lot harder, see review on 980307. ref SDS 4 4316
151584 -
151585 - We have to work hard to help people see that adding "intelligence" to
151586 - management can be a big help to everyone. ref OF 1 8536
151587 -
151588 -
151589 -
151590 -
151591 -
1516 -
Distribution. . . . See "CONTACTS"