ANALYSE PROBLEMS TACTFULLY

Case 1

When NASA began the launch of astronauts into space, they found out that the pens wouldn't work at zero gravity (ink won't flow down to the writing surface). To solve this problem, it took them one decade and $12 million. They developed a pen that worked at zero gravity, upside down, underwater, in practically any surface including crystal and in a temperature range from below freezing to over 300 degrees C.

And what did the Russians do...??

They used a pencil.....!!!!!!

Case 2

One of the most memorable case studies on Japanese management was the Case of the empty soap box, which happened in one of Japan's biggest Cosmetics companies. The company received a complaint that a consumer had bought a soap box that was empty. Immediately the authorities isolated the problem to the assembly line, which transported all the packaged boxes of soap to the delivery department. For some reason, one soap box went through the assembly line empty. Management asked its engineers to solve the problem. Post-haste, the engineers worked hard to devise an X-ray machine with high-resolution monitors manned by two people to watch all the soap boxes that passed through the line to make sure they were not empty. No doubt, they worked hard and they worked fast but they spent a whopping amount to do so.

But when a rank-and-file employee in a small company was posed with the same problem, he did not get into complications of X-rays, etc., but instead came out with another solution. He bought a strong industrial electric fan and pointed it at the assembly line. He switched the fan on, and as each soap box passed the fan, it simply blew the empty boxes out of the line.

Moral: Always look for simple solutions. Devise the simplest possible solution that solves the problems

Case 3

OTIS ....... A Lift manufacturing Giant ...... had a complaint from the customer that their lifts were very slow, and that it took a long time to go up 60 stories........ Otis Engineers were fired and asked to solve the problem at the earliest and replace all the lifts accordingly. Engineers started working on the chain mechanism, the pulley systems, the power drives, the weight to speed ratio, and other such hi tech parts...... The problem had no solution, as in increasing speed, weight had to be reduced, or the safety was an issue, or other such thing.

Moral: Always analyze the Problems from all view points.......

But, one newly appointed engineer solved the problem in 2 days. He fitted the mirror in the lifts. Suddenly the Complaints reduced drastically to 10%. The director asked for he young engineer, and asked him about this solution. The young man said, The problem is not that the lifts are slow, but that People feel that our Lifts are slow.

HOW MEN AND WOMEN DIFFER

NICKNAMES* If Laura, Kate and Sarah go out for lunch, they will call each other Laura, Kate and Sarah.* If Mike, Dave and John go out, they will affectionately refer to each other as Fat Boy, Godzilla and Four-eyes

EATING OUT* When the bill arrives, Mike, Dave and John will each throw in $50, even though it's only for $115.50. None of them will have anything smaller and none will actually admit they want change back.* When the girls get their bill, out come the pocket calculators.

MONEY* A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs.* A woman will pay $1 for a $2 item that she doesn't need but it's on sale

BATHROOMS* A man has six items in his bathroom: toothbrush and toothpaste, shaving cream, razor, a bar of soap, and a towel from Dischem.* The average number of items in the typical woman's bathroom is 337. A man would not be able to identify more than 20 of these items.

ARGUMENTS* A woman has the last word in any argument.* Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument

CATS* Women love cats.* Men say they love cats, but when women aren't looking, men kick cats.

FUTURE* A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband.* A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife.

SUCCESS* A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend.* A successful woman is one who can find such a man.

MARRIAGE* A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn't.* A man marries a woman expecting that she won't change, but she does.

DRESSING UP* A woman will dress up to go shopping, water the plants, empty the bins, answer the phone, read a book, and get the post.* A man will dress up for weddings and funerals.

NATURAL* Men wake up as good-looking as they went to bed.* Women somehow deteriorate during the night.

OFFSPRING* Ah, children. A woman knows all about her children. She knows about dentist appointments and romances, best friends, favourite foods, secret-fears and hopes and dreams.* A man is vaguely aware of some short people living in the house.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY* Any married man should forget his mistakes. There's no use in two people remembering the same thing.