Sigh…
Yep. The corporate mindset that MBA’s and accountants can run anything leads to running anything –
Into the ground.

When I finished school and went to work for my dad, he told me to forget the office, “you’ll need at least five years in the field” before you have a clue about manufacturing machinery and electronic design.

When I first started going into manufacturing facilities (Mid 70’s) the old guard was still in charge. Almost every plant manager, no matter the level of education, had started out on the factory floor, sometimes as nothing more than a sweeper (yes, with a broom). I watched as they retired and were replaced, not by those experienced like them, but with the new class, the MBA’s and accountants. For a while that works, because the old guard did such a fine job of building those factories and operations. Eventually it starts falling apart, just as it appears it did for SWA.

The young men I have been associated with, children of friends and youngsters going through Boy Scouts all got the same counsel from me – If you want to be an engineer, study engineering then get an MBA. If you want to be a business man, study engineering, then get an MBA. There’s nothing wrong with the MBA/business degree, but you need to be able to understand what and how things get manufactured, or that education is worthless for a manufacturing career.

If you wish to run an airline, you better know how to fly, and you better fly on your planes as a passenger, unknown to the crew. It would be best if you were familiar with the function and maintenance of an aircraft.

If you’re the CEO of McDonalds you should go the drive through occasionally, and walk in occasionally, so you’ll have some clue what is going on.

Oh, and if your the CEO of Coca Cola, perhaps you should just shut the fuck up.

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