Conference 7.286::digital

1328.0. "Please fill in an SPR and ...." by ESPO01::MOLLERHAUG (European Security Program Office) Wed Jan 02 1991 04:27

       The following is an editeded version of an article by Gudmund
       Hernes, originally printed in the Norwegian daily newspaper
       Aftenposten 21-december-1990.

       Do we have something to learn from it ?

       ----------------------------------------------------------------

       Anyone using software have probably noticed that the software
       over time becomes available in seemingly endless series of new
       releases. For each new release, new features are added to the
       software and bugs discovered in previous releases are fixed. You
       can see the same in the car industry: This years modell is
       (hopefully) an improved version of the last years modell.

       Still, when we are talking about innovation, we almost always
       think about the revolutionary discoveries: Thomas Eidsons
       electric bulb, the Wright brother's first aeroplane, the Marconi
       wireless.

       But it is the small and gradual improvements that have brought
       the great discoveries forth to the actual products that we use
       today. Todays lightbulbs have very little in common with the
       Edison bulb. A Jumbojet has a larger wing span than the actual
       flight distance of the first Wright plane. And the Marconi
       radio does have very little in common with todays portable
       phones.

       However, the large inventions carries a more heroic aura than the
       small and gradual improvements. But collected, the gradual
       improvements are just as important as great inventions.

       The economic importance of the gradual improvements are
       illustrated by an important difference between the American and
       Japaneese car industry. Japaneese car workers does in average
       make 14 suggestions of small improvements on the cars pr. year.
       American workers only make a couple pr. year. There were only a
       few people around in the world who were able to invent the car.
       But there are virtually billions around who can improve it.

       It is interesting to observe how some companies have taken the
       consequence of this in order to improve their products.
       WordPerfect has established an answer service for their word
       processing package. This answer service is offered for free to
       their customers. But it really pays off as this answerphone has
       become an important factor in their product development. Many of
       the people calling in are requesting minor changes and
       improvements in the product, and these requests are all logged
       and used as input for the next version of WordPerfect. The moment
       the company's software engineers knows WHAT the customers want,
       they can figure out HOW to implement it.

       The system of active customer feedback works approxomately as
       interest rates on capital: A 10% quality improvement pr. year
       will double the product quality in seven to eight years. And the
       quality improvement result in new sales that bring revenue back
       to the company.

       The point is really that production must be geared in a way that
       allows small problems to be easily identified and corrected so
       that resources can be applied to implement the small
       improvements.

       SMART COMPANIES USE ALL THEIR EMPLOYEES AS INNOVATORS.

       THE SMARTEST COMPANIES ALSO USE THEIR CUSTOMERS AS INNOVATORS.

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Well ?

Stein_M