CONTACTS 
0201 - San Francisco Intl. Airport (SFIA)   415 737 7711 fax or 800...
020101 - Bureau of Design and Construction
020102 - Mr. Jason Yuen; 650 737 7700

SUBJECTS
SFIA Projects
Time Too Busy to Think About Com Metrics
Sales discussions
Cognitive Science Unfamiliar, Quackery
Yuen, Jason, 990622

0907 -    ..
0908 - Summary/Objective
0909 -
090901 - Follow up ref SDS 42 0000, ref SDS 40 0000.
090902 -
090903 - Jason provided helpful comments on the NSF proposal.  Busy executives
090904 - have difficulty finding the time to understand the process and benefit
090905 - of an intelligence role for the management function.  We reviewed the
090906 - correlation between the proposal calling for technology that assembles
090907 - timely and accurate chronologies of events, and how this saves $M of
090908 - dollars by ensuring that claims for extra payment are justified by the
090909 - project record, under the rule: did a, b, c, and d cause e?  Our real
090910 - aim, though, is to save $M of dollars for everyone, by using
090911 - intelligence to avoid the daily bumbling that causes mistakes, loss,
090912 - conflict and frustration. ref OF 5
090913 -
090914 - Jason will submit comments to make the language easier for practical
090915 - managers to understand.
090916 -
090917 - Submitted ref DIT 1 linked to this record, and to the NSF Technical
090918 - Proposal part 2, to facilitate any further comments Jason may wish to
090919 - make.
090920 -
090921 -      [On 990827 discussed getting Com Metrics specified with Denis.
090922 -      ref SDS 48 3025 and ref SDS 48 4624]
090923 -
090924 -      [On 991104 Jason called on Com Metrics. ref SDS 49 0001]
090925 -
090926 -
090927 -
090928 -
090929 -
0910 -
0911 -
0912 - Discussion
0913 -
091301 -  ..
091302 - Communication Metrics Visionary, Hard to Grasp for Busy Minds
091303 -
091304 - Jason appreciated receiving a copy of the proposal to the National
091305 - Science Foundation, ref DIP 10, issued on 990616. ref SDS 45 0001
091306 -
091307 - He has printed the proposal for review.
091308 -
091309 - It was unclear if he had read the Technical Proposal
091310 -
091311 -          Identification and Significance of the Innovation
091312 -
091313 -     ...which is in Part 2. ref OF 5
091314 -
091315 - I explained the proposal is best understood from reading online, so
091316 - that references can be opened at the relevant locations in the record.
091317 - Reading printed material masks the advantage of using Communication
091318 - Metrics, which the proposal seeks to present.
091319 - ..
091320 - Jason said the proposal to NSF on Communication Metrics
091321 - research seems to offer a powerful advance on ways to use technology
091322 - for management.  He feels the methodology is visionary, far ahead of
091323 - current management practice, and this makes it hard for people to
091324 - understand, who do not have experience with it.
091325 -
091326 -     [On 991104 Jason called again and cited SDS as technology for the
091327 -     future. ref SDS 49 0F6M
091328 -
091329 - This is a serious dilemma because the purpose of technology is to help
091330 - busy minds keep up with a faster paced world.  I mentioned review on
091331 - 990527 of the book "The Innovator's Dilemma. ref SDS 43 0001  The
091332 - problem is cited in the proposal. ref OF 5 9677
091333 - ..
091334 - Jason read an example from the Project Summary...
091335 -
091336 -      Research objectives are (1) to create a search capability on the
091337 -      Internet that assembles chains of chronology by subject content
091338 -      to show causation over specified time spans; (2) a means is
091339 -      needed to assign multiple subjects to chunks of information based
091340 -      on personal and organizational objectives that control how
091341 -      information is assembled for discovering causation, and to share
091342 -      knowledge structures that build and maintain shared meaning; (3)
091343 -      guidelines for clear, concise, complete communication support
091344 -      effective use of the Internet. ref OF 4 6800
091345 -
091346 -                               ******
091347 -
091348 - Jason noted that experts at the National Science Foundation will
091349 - understand this, but practical people, like him, who are responsible
091350 - for managing the $6B building program at the airport, have a hard time
091351 - equating these research objectives with their goal to complete the
091352 - work on time and within budget.
091353 -
091354 -     [On 990715 Morris encountered similar reaction from colleagues at
091355 -     Intel. ref SDS 47 2592]
091356 - ..
091357 - Jason recalled seeking approval to pilot test Communication
091358 - Metrics.  His superiors refused, because they feel adding
091359 - "intelligence" to management is impossible,  too costly, incredible,
091360 - and "off-the-wall," from discussion on 990505. ref SDS 42 0778
091361 -
091362 -     [On 990713 engineers at Intel who review investment opportunities
091363 -     to position Intel as a technology leader, reported that adding
091364 -     "intelligence" to management is funny and alien. ref SDS 46 1767
091365 -
091366 - Jason commented on 990505 that better management requires a change in
091367 - "attitude." ref SDS 42 4732
091368 -
091369 - I pointed out that "attitude" is difficult to change without a pilot
091370 - test to demonstrate benefits.
091371 -
091372 - "Disruptive technology" is hard to take root initially because people
091373 - are afraid that "intelligence" requires significant change in current
091374 - work practice.  Andy Grove, Chairman of Intel, notes in his book that
091375 - managers loathe change. ref SDS 30 1660  Jason noted on 990505 that no
091376 - one believes Communication Metrics can be used without everyone having
091377 - to change the way they work.  The idea of adding intelligence to
091378 - information so that managers and executives can do "better" work, is
091379 - not believable.
091380 -
091381 - So lack of belief, i.e., ignorance, breeds fear and denial that
091382 - prevent discovering the key to better productivity.
091383 -
091384 - For example, on 970611 a former executive with the Navy was frustrated
091385 - about slow acceptance of Communication Metrics. ref SDS 20 0007  More
091386 - recently on 990602 this person commented favorably. ref SDS 44 0001
091387 - Yet, earlier, on 920506, while fully engaged on the "firing line" of
091388 - daily management crises, the evaluation was different. ref SDS 6 0980
091389 - Only after retiring and having time to use Communication Metrics, was
091390 - it recognized that adding "intelligence" to management is a practical
091391 - way to save time and money.
091392 -
091393 -
091394 -
091395 -  ..
091396 - Automated History Helps Managers Save Money
091397 -
091398 - Jason asked what the NSF proposal means....
091399 -
091400 -      (1) to create a search capability on the Internet that assembles
091401 -      chains of chronology by subject content to show causation over
091402 -      specified time spans. ref OF 4 6800
091403 -
091404 - We recalled the General Contractor's practice to prepare a daily
091405 - diary of progress and problems.
091406 -
091407 - Jason is familiar with this practice.
091408 -
091409 - We considered claims that contractors make, seeking extra payment from
091410 - several hundred dollars to $Millions of dollars.
091411 -
091412 - Jason was familiar with this practice.  On 960911 the record reports
091413 - delays and extra cost in the building program caused SFIA to change
091414 - management. ref SDS 16 9043  They fired the prior team, including a
091415 - respected construction management firm, and then Jason was brought
091416 - back on board from retirement to clean up the mess.  Since he is
091417 - working long hours, things seem to be going pretty well.
091418 -
091419 - So "causation," discussed in the proposal, is a very practical matter
091420 - that airport executives can grasp, when they have to pay out large
091421 - sums of money to fix mistakes that lead to inflated claims.
091422 -
091423 - As a practical fellow, from years working as a General Contractor and
091424 - later representing owners and agencies, and as an arbitrator, it
091425 - occurred to me, that assembling the history, also, called a
091426 - "chronology," that shows events which caused, or did not cause, extra
091427 - cost and delay, could help busy executives who have to decide whether
091428 - a claim is justified.  It might also help a neutral fact finder reach
091429 - an equitable decision, and it might reduce the cost of assembling the
091430 - record that is necessary to reach such decisions.  For example, on
091431 - 990413 a senior engineer reported Caltrans had to pay $M of dollars to
091432 - search daily diaries for information on various subjects, and wound up
091433 - paying $40M because they were unable to get information on
091434 - "causation," that refuted the contractor's position. ref SDS 41 0899
091435 -
091436 - Communication Metrics accomplishes this task, enhancing "Command and
091437 - Control of the Record, as explained in POIMS. ref OF 1 1113 On 981027
091438 - the Corps of Engineers reported Communication Metrics saved the
091439 - government $millions of dollars despite being used for only 3 months.
091440 -
091441 - Using more intelligence should save more money.
091442 -
091443 - On 990308 Jason cited examples of the need for better management of
091444 - contracts to save money. ref SDS 37 3996
091445 -
091446 - Research in the NSF proposal is to bring this existing capability in
091447 - SDS, which supports Communication Metrics, to the Internet, which
091448 - would bring an added advantage of faster distribution.
091449 -
091450 - Revenue from saving customers money should support this research,
091451 - rather than turning to the government for a grant.  However, managers
091452 - who feel intelligence cannot help them, presents a dilemma which may
091453 - justify neutral funding, as stated in the proposal. ref OF 5 9677
091454 -
091455 - Jason will try to submit other examples of language in the proposal to
091456 - NSF which are difficult to understand, so we can revise the proposal
091457 - to help practical people see the benefits of adding intelligence to
091458 - management.
091459 -
091460 -      [Jason gave up trying to help his team use intelligence.]
091461 -
091462 -
091463 -
091464 -
091465 -
091466 -
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091469 -