August 28, 2007Poison Phrase – The nature of the beast
Fern’s office was the last stop in production before the product went out to the client. Because the sales department over-promised, she was often faced with unrealistic deadlines. When Fern went to her general manager to tell her a deadline was impossible, the manager said,
- That’s the nature of the beast.
The manager turned and walked away without waiting for a response.
Fern found the remark dismissive.
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When the deadline is missed and the manager demands to know why, simply say: “That the nature of the beast.”
I think the point will be made!
Comment by Ron Pulliam — August 28, 2007 @ 2:53 pm
Capitalism? Personal ambition & greed? Stupidity? All three? I’ve been observing this particular scenario all my adult life, in every profession, and asking these same questions. Anyone with any work experience knows how it will play out. If not supported by upper management and policy makers, production employees will start finding their own ways to meet the sales promotions unrealistic promises. And neither the customer nor the company is going to like the end result – when it’s discovered. Computer programmers, factory workers, health care providers, teachers, chemical plants, bridge builders; in short, every profession and industry, is faced with this dilemma in some fashion or other. Most of us need our jobs too much to do anything but respond with timely delivered, but incomplete or unperfected products and services. In 30+ years of adult life, I have not found an answer. By the time it gets to the point described by Fern (the end of the assembly line), effective communication does not seem like enough of a solution. In some situations I have been able to go over the head of the uncommunicative sales manager and get results. I may have tried a strategy of getting the sales manager into a figurative corner, with witnesses, where he or she could not walk away. Or I may have been able to continue to produce good product and service but not at the requested pace, balancing my desire for good performance with my desire to give someone what they want. These days I would probably be documenting every step of the way with emails to the sales manager with copies to the upper management, so the sales manager would have no way to say he or she did not realize productions folks could not produce what he was promising. This all sounds heavy handed and war like, even to me, but I can’t remember one single time when a simple effort at better communication was going to fix this. I am eager to hear a different take on it.
Comment by Kathleen — August 29, 2007 @ 8:13 am