In a political war, treason is a capital offense punishable by death. A similar rule applies to the War on Waste. In a recent engagement, one of the CEOs who really understood what the War on Waste was about, stood up on the last day of class and gave a rousing speech to his employees. At the end, he said, “I am the General of our War on Waste. We are at war with our competitors who want to take business from us. There are some of these competitors who want to steal your jobs from you. As we go forward, I want everyone on board my train. It is leaving the station. If you aren’t on it, you are committing treason. And you know what I will do with an employee who commits treason?”
I loved it because he really understood what WOW was about. In our story, Mr. Grimes, the CEO, is the General in his company’s War on Waste. He had to deal with Mike Cain who was his Black Knight from the beginning. His behavior in leaving an employee out in the cold was inexcusable and was a rebellious treasonous offense.
Now Mr. Grimes is driving the train and everyone is getting on board. Mr. Grimes is doing what we want leaders to do. He is respecting his people as partners in his business; he is giving them a sense of purpose; and he is driving the strategic direction of the company in response to the operational input from the workers. And more important, he is there to witness the profound changes that are taking place in his company.
In a political war, treason is a capital offense punishable by death. A similar rule applies to the War on Waste. In a recent engagement, one of the CEOs who really understood what the War on Waste was about, stood up on the last day of class and gave a rousing speech to his employees. At the end, he said, “I am the General of our War on Waste. We are at war with our competitors who want to take business from us. There are some of these competitors who want to steal your jobs from you. As we go forward, I want everyone on board my train. It is leaving the station. If you aren’t on it, you are committing treason. And you know what I will do with an employee who commits treason?”
I loved it because he really understood what WOW was about. In our story, Mr. Grimes, the CEO, is the General in his company’s War on Waste. He had to deal with Mike Cain who was his Black Knight from the beginning. His behavior in leaving an employee out in the cold was inexcusable and was a rebellious treasonous offense.
Now Mr. Grimes is driving the train and everyone is getting on board. Mr. Grimes is doing what we want leaders to do. He is respecting his people as partners in his business; he is giving them a sense of purpose; and he is driving the strategic direction of the company in response to the operational input from the workers. And more important, he is there to witness the profound changes that are taking place in his company.