See, that wasn’t too hard?: Recent Episodes
Salt-E’s
Salt-E’s is a collaborative and experimental podcasting and knowledge sharing project by Simple-Salt (Dylan Evans) and Beyond Agility (Maha Mubarak).
”That wasn’t too hard!” is a podcast that explores human-centered process improvement, bringing an interdisciplinary lens to solve process problems caused by irrational beings (us!)
We’re two smart, and awkward, process improvement enthusiasts who’re on a mission to help others utilize processes as a holistic tool to better understand business and its people.
We touch on everything from Public Policy, Security, Philosophy, Behavioral Science, Culture, Analytics, and more!
Follow us wherever you like getting your podcasts, and enjoy some solid knowledge share and good off tangent discussions.
like, subscribe, and share our content for more awkward but fun knowledge-sharing!
We're a bit late in the game BUT... we had a lot to say about #quietquitting
In today's #podcast we dissect what the elusive term means in regard to #productivity and how managers need to up their game if they're to retain #talent and boost - well, you guessed it! - continuous improvement!
show notes:
Bullsh*t Jobs by David Graeber: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullshit_Jobs
Episode with Sean: https://youtu.be/fwhDZM2Chzs
In a work environment that grows in complexity and the need for knowledge one, you'd expect managers to be swooning over candidates who offer them "Thought Diversity", defined as people who think differently due to their diverse backgrounds, and goes beyond just the way we think about diversity.
In today's episode, we use the continuous improvement concept of "explicitness" to discuss how managers can change their environment, be more explicit, and hence more vulnerable, in creating smooth communication channels which nearly all would understand, and throw away any implicit parts of communication which only create further conflict and divide.
Show Notes:
thought diversity: https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/topics/talent/diversitys-new-frontier.html
SNL link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZqdeeKVoBc
mind tools: https://www.mindtools.com/
ladder of inference: https://thesystemsthinker.com/the-ladder-of-inference/
There are many tools for change out there on the business side which have clear steps, stages or decision gates to ensure that change is on course.
But one tool's been there longer than most and has helped millions of people around the world change for good.
On Today's episode, Brandon Cunningham takes us through how AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) helps him and his clients go through realization, change, and sustained (continuous) improvement, and helps us draw fundamental realizations on how these proven systems for continuous improvement have much in common than one would think.
Today's special guest Eric Warheit, Senior Product Lead at Toyota Connected takes us through what customer-centric continuous improvement looks like in the world of product, and how the scientific method is intricately balanced with human-centered design.
Join us as we talk about "the legacy of pain", the "painted door test, how something like "The Mom Test" has helped Eric through his journey, and even more spicy content.
We are creatures of habit, so what exactly happens to our brains or day, when we actually face disruption or... unplanned work?
In this quick episode, Dylan and Maha discuss how unplanned work could spin us out of control, and what organizations, people, and departments can do about it
In a fragmented world, getting the support you need at different stages of your life became tougher.
Whether it's support to scale up your business, develop yourself, or tackle a very niche problem you have, having the right people around you to guide, advise, or offer hard truths is fundamental to your growth.
That's why when your immediate circle doesn't have the help available, seeking help from a professional coach is the way to go.
Maha's going to talk to us today about the why's of coaching, how to find the right coach for your needs, and even how to optimize your personal resources when you cannot find one, too!
Vision to some is a yukky word to some, that titles such as visionary or even visionary officer leave a bad taste in their mouth. We've witnessed this with our guest Sean in EP 13, and we decided to explore it further.
Join us as we discuss what vision is, the role of execution, and why having a team that'll help you turn vision into reality is.
keyRefs:
David Bowie Interview:
short form: (1) David Bowie predicted in 1999 the impact of the Internet in BBC - YouTube
long form interview: (1) David Bowie speaks to Jeremy Paxman on BBC Newsnight (1999) - YouTube
Paul Krugman's comment about the internet and fax machines: Did Paul Krugman Say the Internet's Effect on the World Economy Would Be 'No Greater Than the Fax Machine's'? | Snopes.com
Berlin's airport failure: Berlin's troubled Brandenburg Airport still in crisis one year after opening | CNN Travel
Driverless cars Self-driving cars from Tesla, Google, and others are still not here - Vox
Change in times where it is needed seems to still be hard, takes long, and often fails.
But "why" does change fail? fascinatingly enough, it's about the messenger more than it is about the message.
In today's episode, Dylan and Maha share some hard truths about wh change agents fail, and ultimately, how to be a change agent who utilizes their environment, instead of pushing against it.
cool refs:
Thinking Fast and Slow - Daniel Kahneman ISBN-10 0374533555
XKCD - Ten Thousand xkcd: Ten Thousand
How to be an "organizational heretic" | Carmen Medina | TEDxMidAtlantic How to be an "organizational heretic" | Carmen Medina | TEDxMidAtlantic - YouTube
Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It
By Chris Voss, Tahl Raz · ISBN: 9780062407801
Continuous Improvement isn't just something for companies, it is for individuals too.
Today's episode is special, we had our first interview with Sean Wallbridge, an agent of change and proclaimed Chief Troublemaker.
It was an episode full of hard truths, self-love, and many lessons learned for many of us to capture.
Come join us as Sean shares his raw and personal continuous improvement journey with us.
Sean can be found at various corners of the internet: https://twitter.com/regroove_sean
https://wallbridge.com/
Today's episode is a special one, we tap into Dylan's experience with his newly gained Six Sigma Black Belt certification, what that entails, and how companies could hire the "right" Black belt for their organization. Tune in and learn some cool interview tips and deeper truths!
Footnotes:
---- Deming - The Father Of Quality The Deming Philosophy - The W. Edwards Deming Institute
---- Bill Smith - The Father of Six Sigma (Motorola) Bill Smith (Motorola engineer) - Wikipedia
---- ASQ (American Society of Quality Excellence Through Quality | ASQ
---- Ford V Ferrari - Le Mans '66 (2019) - IMDb
In today's episode, Dylan and Maha discuss a hard to calculate cost which takes a toll on organizational performance and health: Unreliability This financial cost is usually part of maintenance and the aim for "zero failure", and while originating in manufacturing, it has definitely made a name for itself in the software world where it has expanded to even cover the effect of "fear of failure" on employee performance, effectiveness, or productivity. join us on today's episode to learn more!
In today's episode, Dylan and Maha complement their Cargo Cults conversation with one on the Halo effect a cognitive bias which drives us to consider a person, brand, or product as the as holy, where the main positive impression blinds us to anything negative or less perfect.
So, how does the halo effect impact your business, and what can you do about it?
Well, get watching!
Further readings:
https://thedecisionlab.com/biases/halo-effect
The Halo Effect and the Eight Other Business Delusions That Deceive Managers by Phil Rosenzweig
https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Halo-Effect/Phil-Rosenzweig/9781476784038
On today's episode, Dylan and Maha do a check-in to assess whether the project, their goals are in alignment, to discuss what's going well, and what could be done to improve the podcast. This frank discussion might come as a shock to some because, in most meetings like this, people are either protective of their work or really cannot pinpoint the root cause. But when you've been on the process improvement bandwagon long enough, Candid Feedback, Performance Reviews and more come easy!
In this episode, Dylan and Maha discuss Cargo Cults, a term coined to describe a type of mindset which could get in the way of good process improvement, especially the first step:
---- Cargo Cults: https://www.anthroencyclopedia.com/entry/cargo-cults
---- Cargo Cult Science coined by Feynman: https://calteches.library.caltech.edu/51/2/CargoCult.htm
---- P-sniping was actually P-Hacking! link to cool Wired article here https://www.wired.com/story/were-all-p-hacking-now/
---- Mandatory xkcd: https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/882:_Significant
In today's episode Dylan and Maha take it easy and discuss some classic process improvement diagramming tools which anyone can use to organize work better at the office, and even at home!
---- Swim Lanes
---- SIPOC's
---- RACI's
---- Spaghetti's
Have you used any of these tools before? If so, let us know!
watch our video on YouTube here https://youtu.be/1XH_m0IxCm4
In this episode of That Wasn't Too Hard, Dylan and Maha explore the other pillar in the Toyota Production System - respect!
shownotes:
---- HBR - Learning to Lead at Toyota - https://hbr.org/2004/05/learning-to-lead-at-toyota ---- The Toyota Way - https://tinyurl.com/yszz63u2
---- Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber - ISBN 150114331X, 978-1501143311 ---- The Amazon Way: Amazon's 14 Leadership Principles ---- Deming's 14 Principles: https://deming.org/explore/fourteen-points/ ---- Reinventing Organizations by Frederik Laloux: https://www.reinventingorganizations.com/
---- Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon by Colin Bryar ISBN 1250267595, 978-1250267597
In this episode of "That Wasn't Too Hard" Dylan and Maha discuss Root-Cause Analysis, its humble origins in philosophy and religion, and we kind of ripped on Psychology and the scientific method (FAFO), and Neurodiversity.
Show notes! (Holy Moly!)
---- Richard P. Feynman quote: "Science is what we do to keep us from lying to ourselves"
---- Weirdest People by Joseph Henrich: https://weirdpeople.fas.harvard.edu/
---- xkcd: Trouble for Science: https://xkcd.com/1574/
---- The Marshmallow Test and one of the many reasons it sucks: https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2018/06/marshmallow-test/561779/
---- Psychology research skews mostly white and wealthy: https://www.spectrumnews.org/opinion/psychology-research-skews-mostly-white-and-wealthy/
---- Why women may wait decades for an ADHD diagnosis: https://www.bbc.com/news/health-59038116
---- More social science studies just failed to replicate. Here’s why this is good: https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2018/8/27/17761466/psychology-replication-crisis-nature-social-science
---- Netflix Culture: https://jobs.netflix.com/culture
---- Fact Check! never found that Dave Chappelle quote!
In this episode of "That Wasn't Too Hard" Dylan and Maha discuss Root-Cause Analysis PART DEUX, where they finally delve into the tools used by Toyota and many other companies. We aired our grievances about bad metrics and KPIs, bad company culture and leadership,
Show notes! (Holy Moly!)
---- 5-whys: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_whys
---- Ishikawa diagram (fish diagram): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishikawa_diagram
---- Pareto principle (80/20 Rule): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_principle
---- Fault Tree Analysis: Fault tree analysis - Wikipedia
In this week's episode, Dylan and Maha discuss Poka Yoke, a Japanese term translating to "mistake proofing", part of the Toyota Production System.
learn more at the Shingo Institute: Mistake-Proofing Mistakes - Shingo Institute
More about Atomic Habits By James Clear here: Atomic Habits: Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results by James Clear
Dylan and Maha talk about Kanbans, their origin, and how the modern Kanban is more a To-Do list than a Kanban!
Things we spoke about:
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Trello
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single-piece flow
Books mentioned in the podcast:
The Phoenix Project:
Gene Kim, Kevin Behr, George Spafford (Author)
ISBN-10: 0988262592
ISBN-13: 978-098826259
Six Sigma for Small Business Paperback – October 25, 2005
Greg Brue (Author)
ISBN-10: 1932531556
ISBN-13: 978-1932531558