Old and new – same same but different.
When a client asks for consultants with experience working on engagements in the same industry, I often deliberately send in a team without the relevant industry experience.
I don’t want anyone with preconceived ideas to help the client.
In any industry, well trained consultants who understand processes, would be able to assist.
Work is not difficult to understand.
Work comes into an organization, is done, and the output is sent forth to the next step.
Once we understand the details of how that work is done, we can analyze it, and improve on it – control the parts, and you control the whole.
When IBM was in dire straits, a top honcho from a biscuit company was appointed as CEO in 1983 to fix it.
Recently SMRT appointed a retired army general as CEO. The board claimed that the appointment was the result of a global search.
The new CEO has zero experience in the transport industry, zero experience working in the private sector and zero experience at board level of any company let alone a S$1b company.
One may argue that he could be another Lou Gerstner who once turned an ailing IBM around.
But that argument cannot hold water.
Why?
Because, in the case of SMRT, it has already been tried.
This new CEO is simply replacing another retired general whose tenure in SMRT is probably one plagued with the most troubles ever.
Global search my big, fat, hairy ass!
It’s sad when certain people think that the entire nation is full of idiots who can’t see through things, that we are a nation of morons who will swallow any dog turd fed to us.