Modern Management, SAA Style
"A Modern Parable" from The Business Day 25 April 2007
A Japanese company (Toyota) and a South African company (South African
Airways) decided to have a canoe race on the Vaal River. Both teams
practised long and hard to reach their peak performance before the race.
On the big day, the Japanese won by a mile. The SAA team, very
discouraged and depressed, decided to investigate the reason for the
crushing defeat. A team of senior managers was formed to investigate and
recommend appropriate action. The conclusion was that the Japanese had
eight people rowing and one steering, while the SAA team had eight
people steering and one rowing.
Feeling a deeper study was in order, SAA management hired a consulting
company and paid it a large amount of money for a second opinion. The
consulting company advised, of course, that too many people were
steering the boat, while not enough were rowing.
Not sure of how to utilise that information, but wanting to prevent
another loss to the Japanese, the SAA team totally re-organised the
rowing team's management structure to include four steering supervisors,
three area steering superintendents and one assistant superintendent
steering manager. It also implemented a new performance system that
would give the one person rowing the boat greater incentive to work
harder. It was called The "Rowing Team Quality First Programme," with
dinners and free pens for the rower. There was a lot of discussion about
getting new paddles, canoes and other equipment, as well as extra
holidays for practices and bonuses.
The next year the Japanese won by two miles.
Humiliated, SAA management laid off the rower for poor performance,
halted development of a new canoe, sold the paddles and cancelled all
capital investments for new equipment. The money saved was distributed
to executives as bonuses and the team outsourced to India
Last edited by FUG; 9th May 2007 at 12:48.