“If you want something stuck in someone’s head, put it in a sequence of three” Brian Clark – travel writer and digital nomad
Several years ago, I engaged some consultants to review our logistics business. Investigations were made, systems, processes, customers and people were reviewed and a report completed. The single most important lesson I obtained from the review was what they called ‘the rule of three’.
What is that you might ask?
Basically, the assumption is that most people can remember three things. Anymore and the message is quickly lost. Therefore, in formulating any plan or message keep it simple (the KISS principle). Break it down into three actions, messages or goals so it’s easy to remember.
Examples are everywhere from well-known stories to famous quotations;
Three Little Pigs, the Three Blind Mice, and the Three Wise Men
“Friends, Romans, Countrymen”
“Blood, sweat, and tears”
“Sex, Lies, and Videotape”
Sadly, there are many examples of the opposite, often found in plans compiled by government bureaucracies, consultants and many politicians. One good example is the Australian Government’s Closing the Gap plan for improving the lives of Indigenous Australians. It has ‘19 national socio-economic targets across 17 socio-economic outcome areas’. There is little wonder that only five of the nineteen targets are ‘on track’.
The recent election of Donald Trump as US President is an example of the successful use of the ‘rule of three’. This is not an endorsement of Trump, his character nor methods, but is an example of the success of ‘the rule’. The Republican Party’s message was clear and simple:
Economy – Are you better off than four years ago?
Border Security – over 2 million illegal immigrants entered the country in 4 years
State of the Country – Is the country heading in the right direction?
In breaking down the Economy in message (1) above, it was the cost of living which was further divided into three – petrol, food and housing. A simple message – clear, concise and memorable.
Have you thought about using the ‘rule of three’ to better communicate to your staff or compile a plan of action?
“Little pig, little pig, let me come in” – the Big Bad Wolf
We can all remember the fairy tale of the Three Little Pigs from our childhood. The story of the Three Little Pigs has its roots in European folklore, with versions of the tale appearing in various cultures over the centuries. The version we’re most familiar with, however, gained popularity in the English-speaking world through the works of Joseph Jacobs in the late 19th century.
Are there lessons from this tale for us today as managers?
Once upon a time, there were three little pigs each with their own approach to building homes. The first little pig, not one to shy away from whimsy, built his house of straw, quickly and with minimal effort. The second little pig, slightly more diligent, chose sticks as his construction material, hoping for a home that was both swift and sturdy. Lastly, the third little pig, known for his practicality and foresight, opted for the timeless strength of bricks.
Enter the huffing and puffing Big Bad Wolf who is determined to test the structural integrity of these homes. He successfully blows down the straw and stick houses. This leaves the first two pigs in a precarious situation and they escape and see refuge in the third little pig’s house. As a team they stand up to the wolf as the brick house proves impenetrable, and the wolf’s efforts are thwarted.
What themes for managers are there in the story of the three little pigs?
Here are three.
Lesson 1: Strategic Decision-Making
In the world of the Three Little Pigs, the choice of building materials represent strategic decision-making. The first little pig, motivated by a desire for quick results, opted for the flimsy straw. The second little pig, slightly more prudent, chose sticks for a balance of speed and stability. However, it was the third little pig’s foresight in selecting bricks that ultimately proved to be a game-changer.
For managers in today’s competitive environment, this lesson underscores the importance of strategic decision-making. Choosing the right “bricks” or tools for your business—whether it’s technology, talent, or strategic partnerships—requires careful consideration. While speed is often crucial, it should not come at the expense of long-term stability. The third little pig’s approach reminds managers to think strategically andinvest timeand resources in durable solutions that withstand the “huff and puff” of industry challenges.
Lesson 2: Resilience
The Big Bad Wolf, represents the challenges and setbacks that businesses often face. The straw and stick houses succumbed to the wolf’s breath, highlighting the vulnerability of hastily-made decisions and insufficiently fortified strategies. It was the brick house, standing firm against the wolf’s onslaught, that demonstrated the power of resilience.
In the corporate landscape, challenges are inevitable. Economic downturns, technological disruptions, and unforeseen crises can all test the resilience of an organisation. The lesson for managers is clear: build a resilient business that can weather the storms. Invest in robust strategies, contingency plans, and a culture that encourages adaptability. When the Big Bad Wolf comes knocking, a resilient organisation can stand firm, its metaphorical brick walls unyielding in the face of adversity.
Lesson 3: Collaboration and Teamwork
While the individual choices of the three little pigs played a pivotal role in the fairy tale, it was their collective efforts that truly triumphed. Facing the common threat of the Big Bad Wolf, the pigs realised the power of collaborationand they teamed together in the brick house showing the strength that comes from unity.
In the modern workplace, collaboration is an essential ingredient for success. Managers should foster a culture of teamwork and open communication, where individual strengths complement each other. Just as the three little pigs achieved more together than they could have individually, teams that collaborate effectively can navigate challenges, innovate, and achieve shared goals.
Apart from sound strategic planning, building resilience and embracing collaboration can you think of other lessons for managers from the story of the three little pigs?
“Truth, like gold, is to be obtained not by its growth, but by washing away from it all that is not gold” Leo Tolstoy – Russian writer
As a young boy I remember reading the book by Ion Idriess called “Lasseter’s Last Ride” about the 1930 search for a fabled reef with gold “as thick as plums in a pudding” in the deserts of Central Australia. A rich gold reef waiting to be discovered! I was hooked. And I was not the first. Lasseter’s Reef continues to fascinate even today. Since the fateful 1930 expedition where Lasseter died alone in the desert, many expeditions have been undertaken, and none have discovered the fabled reef.
Who was Harold Bell Lasseter?
Lasseter was born in 1880 in Victoria, Australia. In 1903 Lasseter married while living in the USA. In the USA he changed his name to Harold Bell Lasseter, ‘Bell’ being the surname of a popular American author of a book about a lost gold reef! Returning 5 years later he allegedly spent his time inventing and working in various jobs around Australia. Lasseter twice enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) during World War I and was discharged both times without leaving Australia, once for being AWOL and for the second time for being engaged in a brawl. In 1927 he married again whilst still married to his first wife. In 1929 he claimed to have submitted the original design for the Sydney Harbour Bridge and sought compensation for his work. It was rejected. In around 1930 at the onset of the Great Depression, he began lobbying the government and trade union officials to mount an expedition to find a gold reef in the desert that he claimed he had discovered years earlier. Lasseter has been described as a bigamist, fantasist, an eccentric, a swindler, a crank and a difficult character with a reputation as a con man.
The ‘discovery’ of Lasseter’s Reef
Lasseter claimed that in 1897 while travelling alone in the deserts of Central Australia he had come across a rich gold reef whilst travelling from a false ruby strike in South Australia. His horse had died, and he was miraculously rescued by an Afghan camel driver who nursed him back to health. Three years later with a surveyor called Harding, he relocated the reef, took the bearings but failed to peg the claim. Unfortunately, their watches were incorrect, and this made their bearings incorrect. Sadly, Harding died just before Lasseter left for America in 1903.
Testing the Story
Lasseter would have only been 17 when he ‘discovered’ his reef in the deserts of Central Australia. This is highly unlikely, and the false ruby strike was in 1887, not 1897! If Harding was a surveyor, he would not have made the error of the watches having the incorrect time or failing to peg the claim. Harding was in fact not a surveyor but a cattle thief (in Australian slang a ‘cattle duffer’). His ‘death’ was convenient. In the 1930-31 expedition Lasseter was unable to discover his reef and had a major falling out with the leader and some members of the expedition. He left them and died a lonely death in the desert.
Postnote:
It is highly unlikely, given the character of Harold Lasseter himself that the reef exists. Despite this, expeditions continue to be mounted. Never let the truth get in the way of a good story, especially about hidden treasure. In an ironic twist in Alice Springs, there is a casino and hotel called Lasseter’s!
Are there any management lessons with the story of Lasseter’s lost gold reef?
Here are three worth considering:
Be aware of charlatans! We all meet them in our personal life and in business. It would appear that Lasseter was indeed a con man or a delusional liar. Despite this, people were willing to believe his story of his fabulous gold reef. Simple but hard questions would have revealed the implausibility of his story. How often are we as managers do we believe what we want to believe?
Do your homework. The most basic research would have highlighted that Lasseter’s story was fantasy. Checking the dates of when he ‘discovered’ his reef would have revealed the implausibility of his story
Be Aware of Myths that become Reality.A lie repeated enough becomes reality. Once again check the facts and test the logic.
Can you think of any other lessons from the myth of Lasseter’s Reef?
DID YOU KNOW? Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) beat the All Blacks 10-8 in Bulawayo on 27 July 1949, and drew 3-3 with them three days later?
Last year the Rugby World Cup was held in France, with the South African Springboks triumphing over the New Zealand All Blacks 12-11. The All Blacks are considered the pinnacle of national Rugby excellence but 75 years ago they were defeated by a provincial side in southern Africa. The provincial side remains undefeated against the All Blacks, the only team in history to do so.
The team represented Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia) and Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). The first match, played in Bulawayo in front of 10,000 people, resulted in a surprising defeat for the All Blacks 10-8. At the time the All Blacks were (and still are) one of the most formidable teams in international rugby. The significance of this defeat was made more poignant in the return match three days later with a 3-3 draw in Salisbury (now Harare). And for my New Zealand readers, 1949 remains the worst years in All Black history, with losses of 4-0 to the Springboks and 2-0 to the Wallabies.
What were the factors contributing to the defeat?
Complacency of the All Blacks: The All Blacks, being a top team, might have underestimated Rhodesia, leading to complacency. The All Blacks were surprised by the dash of the Rhodesians, who played a different, open, and attacking brand of Rugby, as distinct from the safety-first South African teams.
Local Conditions: The All Blacks were possibly not fully acclimatised to the local conditions in Rhodesia. Local knowledge and adaptation to specific environments can be crucial in determining the outcome of a contest.
Psychological Advantage: The Rhodesian team, motivated by the opportunity to make history, may have had a psychological advantage. They had everything to gain and nothing to lose, which can be a powerful motivator.
The Rhodesian rugby team’s victory over the New Zealand All Blacks in 1949 is a noteworthy event in the annals of sports history, particularly rugby.
Here are three lessons for managers that go beyond the realm of sports, offering valuable insights for managers in various fields.
Never Underestimate the Underdog: In business, as in sports, complacency can be a downfall. Always respect your competitors, regardless of their size or perceived strength.
Adaptability: The ability to adapt to different environments and conditions is crucial. Managers must be flexible and responsive to changing situations, whether in market conditions, consumer preferences, or competitive landscapes.
Motivation and Team Spirit: The Rhodesian team’s victory underscores the importance of motivation and team spirit. In management, fostering a strong team culture and keeping the team motivated, especially during challenges, can lead to significant achievements.
The Rhodesia vs. All Blacks games of 1949 serve as a timeless reminder of the unpredictable nature of sports and, by extension, the competitive world of business. They highlight the importance of preparation, respect for all competitors, adaptability, and leadership.
Note: Rhodesia RFU were treated as a province of South Africa for rugby reasons. Their players were eligible for selection by the South African team. Many were selected to play for the Springboks. Rhodesia never won another game against a touring side before being reconstituted as Zimbabwe in 1980.
“Any fact is better established by two or three good testimonies than a thousand arguments”.
Nathanial Emmons – influential American theologian
Before the opening of open range zoos in Australia, there was an African Lion Park located on the edge of suburban Sydney. It was owned and managed by the famous Bullen circus family. Families could drive through the park and get close to lions. As a kid I can remember visiting and reading the signs warning you that if you got out of your car you could be eaten!
How exciting a visit was for young children! As a visitor you had the chance to see lions rubbing up against your car and even licking the windows!
Interestingly, the park also provided a disposal service for the local community for their unwanted livestock. Classified advertisements ran in the local newspapers for the removal of sick or injured sheep, cows and horses. The park closed in 1991 but the lions remained!!!
Now, Australia is renowned for its dangerous creatures from the sharks, spiders, jelly fish, snakes to crocodiles. In 1995, the inhabitants in the townships of Warragamba and Silverdale close to the lion park were reportedly ‘terrorised’ by lions. In Australia, surely this was an urban myth!
Well, facts can be stranger than fiction.
So, what happened and was it true or just an urban myth?
Yes, three lions escaped. The local police received a call from a startled motorist who saw a lion cross the road and they had to attend to a “lion wandering the streets”. Two of the lions were recaptured and returned to the park. However, one lion continued to wander the streets and after killing a dog was shot and killed by the park’s owner in a suburban street.
How did the lions escape?
Even though the park was closed, lions could still be heard roaring and been seen being fed from the boundary fence. Living next to a defunct lion park were two 12-year-old boys. Now boys will be boys. One day on the park’s boundary fence, they kicked in a rusted grate on a stormwater culvert and wandered in. They did some exploring, fished for yabbies and then headed back home back through the culvert and broken grate. The thought of lions escaping was apparently furthest from their minds, and alas that occurred.
So, this was not an urban myth!
Is there a lesson about urban myths here for us as managers?
Years ago, a colleague related the story of a business owner who re-employed a person to run the business who had sacked the week before for non-performance. Sometimes facts can be stranger than fiction even if they sound like an urban myth or an episode of Utopia the ABC TV series that parodies how bureaucracies work. A great example is the Harold Holt Memorial Pool in Melbourne. The local Council named the pool after Prime Minister Harold Holt, who drowned while swimming in the surf near Melbourne and whose body has never been found!
When it comes to your own corporate myths, I am not suggesting that you make up stories. Instead, make an effort to find and share them. These stories can be a vehicle to connect and engage with current employees and customers. Without the ongoing sharing of the story, the actual event will be lost or forgotten, and companies will start to lose their corporate memory.
For example, in 1998 there was the shopping trolley story involving Roger Corbett, the then CEO of Woolworths Australia a supermarket company. Apparently, he came across an empty Woolies trolley and then pushed it all the way from Sydney’s Circular Quay near the Opera House to the Town Hall supermarket. At the time, Corbett was creating a culture of attention to detail and cost reduction. Although he retired in 2006, the story is still shared today. It has become an urban myth in the company.
Another business urban myth is the story set in 1960s about Sir Frank Packer, millionaire media owner and father of media baron Kerry Packer. The story goes that Sir Frank, a pugnacious, autocratic and often difficult businessman found himself in an elevator of his Sydney office building with a shabbily dressed man, and was outraged. Packer tells the man he’s a disgrace to his firm, fires him, and hands him $1,000 to buy a new suit. The ‘fired’ man just grins — he was a freelance photographer who stopped by to visit a friend who worked in the building. The story apparently circulated when Sir Frank believed his employees were not meeting his dress standards.
Does your organisation have stories that could be used to enhance and build a positive and constructive culture?
“Reach for it, you know. Go push yourself as far as you can”
Christa McAuliffe – astronaut on the doomed Challenger
38 years ago this month on 28 January 1986, on a cold morning watched by thousands of onlookers and millions live on TV, the Space Shuttle Challenger lifted off from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida at 11:38 AM EST. To everybody’s horror just 73 seconds into its flight the shuttle broke apart, leading to the tragic death of all seven crew members. This event is etched in our collective memory, not only for its heartbreaking impact but also for the profound lessons it imparts to managers, business owners, and leaders across various fields.
What caused this disaster?
The primary cause of the Challenger disaster was the failure of the O-ring seals in its right solid rocket booster (SRB). These O-rings were not designed to handle the unusually cold conditions on the day of the launch. The low temperatures compromised the O-rings’ elasticity, preventing a proper seal. This failure allowed pressurized burning gas from within the solid rocket motor to reach the outside and impinge upon the adjacent SRB aft field joint attachment hardware and external fuel tank, leading to the structural failure of the SRB attachment and the destruction of the Challenger.
Engineers at Morton Thiokol, the contractor responsible for the solid rocket boosters, had raised concerns about the O-rings in cold weather. However, these concerns were not adequately communicated to or heeded by the key decision-makers at NASA. The organisational culture at NASA, which at the time prioritised schedule and budget over safety, played a significant role in the decision to proceed with the launch, despite these known risks.
Furthermore, this design flaw was compounded by a failure in communication and decision-making processes within NASA and between NASA and its contractors.
What lessons can we as managers learn from this disaster?
Here are three lessons:
Importance of a Safety Culture: The Challenger disaster underscores the critical need for organisations to prioritise safety over other objectives, including schedule pressures or financial concerns. Creating a culture where safety is paramount can prevent catastrophic outcomes.
Effective Communication and Heed Expert Opinion: Effective communication and respecting the expertise of team members is vital. The concerns of the engineers about the O-rings were a missed opportunity that highlight the importance of listening to and acting on expert advice, especially when it pertains to potential risks.
Ethical Decision Making: The Challenger incident serves as a stark reminder of the ethical responsibilities of decision-makers. Ethical decision-making involves considering the wider implications of actions and prioritising the well-being of all stakeholders, including employees and the public.
In conclusion, the Challenger disaster, serves as a sombre reminder of the consequences of overlooking safety, underestimating risks, and the critical importance of ethical leadership. For managers and business owners, it is a call to reflect on their practices, to ensure that the lessons from this event are not just remembered, but integrated into how they lead and make decisions.
(c) The Sydney Morning Herald (Sept 2023)- illustration by Matt Golding
Several years ago in my management blog, I described Elvis Business Model (EBM) as an ‘ideal business’ model. In 1977, the year Elvis Presley tragically died he had less than $US1 million in the bank, but by 2016 his estate had earned more than $US27 million.
The recent corporate history of Qantas ‘the spirit of Australia’ has now provided what may be a better business model. Let’s call it FKBM – the flying kangaroo business model.
In August 2023 Qantas announced a record pre-tax annual profit of nearly AU$2.5 billion up from a loss of almost AU$2 billion the previous year. Following the pandemic years, many travellers were prepared to tolerate, perhaps even forgive their poor customer service, long call centre delays, lost luggage and cancelled or delayed flights. But two years on, trust and esteem for the airline is running at an all-time low.
Now at the time of writing, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) is taking the action against Qantas for engaging in false, misleading or deceptive conduct by advertising and selling tickets for flights that it had already cancelled sometimes months ahead. This often led to customers having less time to make alternative arrangements and paying higher prices for new flights. These credits exceeded $570 million! Tickets are now averaging 60% above pre-COVID prices. Coupled with this, an international rival of Qantas, Qatar Airlines recognised for its high level of customer satisfaction was refused additional flights into Australia by the current Australian Government. Competition was reduced providing the opportunity to increase prices.
What an excellent business model!
Collecting money for already cancelled flights, thereby having access to this cash certainly helped finance the business, then make it difficult to redeem the credits (this was partially reversed) and later having the government of the day restrict international competition, thus allowing you to charge higher prices.
So, how far has Qantas fallen in Skytrax Best Airline survey?
As Qatar has a significantly better ranking than Qantas, having the government refuse to increase their landing rights is certainly ‘beneficial’.
So, is FKBM the way forward?
Well, no, not really.
Firstly, Qantas has alienated its customers. Judging by the high number of customer complaints this is certainly the case. Many have said they will never fly with them again. The brand has been trashed.
However, it goes further than this.
Qantas has had a difficult relationship with its employees, from shutting down the airline in 2011 in a dispute with staff to sacking thousands of employees during the pandemic and outsourcing maintenance which saved the airline over $100m per year. The High Court of Australia ruled last month that Qantas had unlawfully outsourced the jobs of sacked workers. Whilst not all of this is Qantas’ fault, its restrictive trade union work practices which inflated costs did not help. Businesses cannot reliably add value when the relationship between management and other employees is broken. If a company’s employees have little or no faith in their brand, how are customers be expected to?
Employee disfunction morphs into broken promises to customers, suppliers and other stakeholders further depleting goodwill. Although not all stakeholders are adversely affected – Qantas shareholders and senior management have certainly benefited from good dividends and bonuses. However, if you are a customer, a worker, or you live in a regional area or are a taxpayer you might not agree. It is not helped when the public see the CEO walk away with millions of dollars in bonuses.
Trust is a highly emotive, particularly when viewed through a brand lens. A brand is a belief and values system which acts as the bedrock for guiding management on how to re-engage with its many stakeholders whether they be an employee, shareholder or customer. Businesses cannot be successful without customers. When it comes to convincing customers to believe what you are saying, there is no one size fits all approach. A good start would be to engage and have faith in your employees. It flows on from there.
Do you think the FKBM is a good long-term strategy?
If not, why not?
How important is employee engagement in ensuring good customer service?
Is excellent customer service vital for long term business success?
Note: On an international flight over 4 months ago, Qantas mislaid my luggage and I had to purchase clothing to continue my travels. Qantas ‘offered’ to pay compensation and I completed the requested form. Despite over 10 emails (Qantas ‘customer service’ claims not to have received my emails), and several phone calls including a promise to return my call within 5 working days which has not been returned, the compensation has not been forthcoming. I am one of many who have experienced Qantas’ poor service levels firsthand. Have you?
“There’s a difference between criminals and crooks. Crooks steal. Criminals blow some guy’s brains out. I’m a crook”
Ronnie Briggs – Great Train Robber
Sixty years ago, this month on 8th August 1963 the Glasgow–London Royal Mail Train was held up by 15 men, wearing helmets, ski masks, and gloves. The train was carrying mostly used bank notes to be destroyed. This was known as the Great Train Robbery. The ringleader, Bruce Reynolds was a known burglar and armed robber. Just over £2,600,000 (£50m today) was stolen in an audacious and apparently well-planned heist aided by inside information. It only took 15 minutes. No firearms were used, although the train’s driver was seriously injured when bashed with a metal bar.
Before the Great Train Robbery, Reynolds had organised a gang and conducted a successful £62,000 airport robbery. Flush with this success, Reynolds began searching for ‘the next big one’. Upon identifying the opportunity, Reynolds realised that he needed help from the London underworld as his original gang could not do the job alone.
The train was stopped when the robbers turned off a green track signal with batteries and turned on a red signal. Approximately 120 mail bags were taken from the train to a farm hideaway, where it was divided up. During the robbery, one of the gang told the postal staff on the train not to move for 30 minutes. This information suggested to the police that the hideout was within a 30-mile radius.
On hearing on the radio that the police were narrowing the search, the robbers hurriedly left the farm the day after the robbery. Only five days after the robbery a local farm worker had noted suspicious vehicles at a neighbouring farm and advised the police. When two police came to the farm, they found the Landrovers and truck used in the robbery, plus bedding, food, post office bags, banknote wrappers and a monopoly board. Part of the plan was to burn down the farmhouse. However, the robbers in their haste left fingerprints on a tomato sauce bottle and the monopoly board. Apparently, the robbers had played monopoly with real money from the heist!
The robbery had attracted far more police attention than anticipated by the robbers. It also captured the imagination of the public and the media. A reward of £250,000 was offered. A breakthrough came when an informant gave the police a list of names. Some of the names were matched to the fingerprints from the farm. With this and other evidence, by Christmas 12 robbers had been caught, convicted and sentenced up to 30 years jail.
Only three of the robbers remained at large. Reynolds and two others went abroad to Mexico and lived the highlife. By 1968 Reynolds had spent most of his ill-gotten gains. He planned another large robbery and returned to England where he was arrested. Ronnie Biggs escaped from prison in 1965, fled first to Paris, then after undergoing plastic surgery travelled to Australia, and finally to Brazil in 1970. He remained at large as there was no extradition treaty between Brazil and the UK. In 2001 after suffering several strokes, he returned voluntarily to the England and was rearrested.
Are there any lessons here for managers in this ‘crime of the century’ (apart from the obvious lessons of crime not paying and it’s not a good idea to play Monopoly with real money)?
The robbery was well planned and executed with military precision. But by Christmas in 1963, 12 of the robbers had been arrested. Hardly a sign of success!
Here are three lessons I think we can take away from the Great Train Robbery:
1. Have a vision.
Reynolds as the leader was the brains behind the daring heist. Following the ‘success’ of the airport robbery, Reynolds wanted a bigger challenge. In the dialogue from a movie of the robbery, Reynolds was quoted as saying:
“You’ve got to dream big. What are we here for if we don’t make our mark? It was never just about the cash. It’s the buzz. Building the team, finding the job, planning the job, carrying it out. It’s the camaraderie. Trusting other men with everything you know. With your life.”
Although this is a fictional quote it is probably is an accurate depiction of what occurred. Reynolds had clear vision – in other words a vision statement! The power of vision is very powerful. An ingredient of a successful business is to have a very clear vision.
2. Plan thoroughly.
With a clear vision, Reynolds meticulously prepared and planned the robbery. He realised that the scope was beyond his immediate circle’s skills and quickly expanded the size and skills of the gang. He was faced with needing specific skills to ensure success. This included how to fake the train signals to stop the train and how to drive the train once it was held up. Sound planning allowed the initial success of the robbery – in 15 minutes.
3. You cannot plan for all eventualities and you should have a plan B.
Despite the meticulous planning, the robbers did not plan for all eventualities. In reality, in business it is also not possible to plan for all eventualities. However, you should always have a Plan B. A contingency plan if ‘things go wrong’. When calm leadership was required, the gang panicked when they heard that the police were searching within a 30-mile radius of the robbery. They left the farm and didn’t adequately cover their tracks. In other words, despite the planning there was poor execution which resulted in the robbers being caught.
In concluding, there is nothing like a good story to demonstrate a point and the Great Train Robbery certainly does this!
What do you think?
Note: I am not condoning the robbery that left the train driver seriously injured. Just using a well-known story as an example for managers. The robbery was a success, but many things went wrong after that. The amount stolen was so much more than expected that it sparked a major investigation plus “crime of the century” publicity. The police response was swift and successful. An example of sound management and leadership.
“Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.” Aldous Huxley – British Author
In a previous blog I used the backdrop of the remote isolated and windswept island of St Kilda off the west coast of mainland Scotland and the suburb of St Kilda in Melbourne, Australia. The moral of the story was THAT as managers, we should never accept things at face value. Once again, I’m going to use the island of St Kilda as a backdrop for another lesson for managers.
Background
On St Kilda the climate was so extreme, and the wind was sometimes so strong that the islanders’ sheep and cattle could be blown over the cliffs. During the 19th Century, the island’s population was around 100 people. With increasing contact with the outside world in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the island’s population gradually declined. In September 1852, 36 emigrants from St Kilda left for Melbourne. Sadly, only 17 survived the journey, the others succumbing to diseases they had no immunity to due to their isolated existence. The island never fully recovered from this event, both physically and psychologically.
After the World War I, most of the young men left the island. The population fell from 73 in 1920 to only 37 in 1928. In 1930, the last of the island’s inhabitants were evacuated to mainland Scotland, ending hundreds of years of isolation, poverty, and deprivation.
What caused the demise of the population of St Kilda?
Obviously, increasing contact with the outside world provided the opportunity for the islanders to see that an easier and better standard of living could be achieved if they left the island. However, one of the main reasons can be traced back to the mid-19th Century with the arrival of Rev John Mackay, a minister in the new Free Church of Scotland. Mackay was a religious zealot. He introduced a routine of three two to three-hour services on Sunday. No work was permitted or conversation, only recitation from the Bible was allowed.
Although Rev Mackay left the island in 1889 his legacy lived on. Mackay denied the islanders outside influences and being the only English speaker on the island (the islanders spoke Gaelic) he was able to keep them in a state of ignorance, combining this with religious zealotry.
Linked to societal ignorance, one of the sadder aspects of St Kilda’s life was the horrendous infant mortality rate. One out of every two babies born would not survive their first year of life, dying of infant tetanus. When a child was born on the island, fulmar (sea bird) oil, was applied to the baby after the umbilical cord had been cut. The oil was not stored in sterile conditions.
In 1891, two years after Rev Mackay left a midwife arrived from Glasgow. She brought improved midwifery skills, hygienic nursing practices and education and the practice of dipping the umbilical cord in fulmar oil ceased. This reduced childhood tetanus, and it was virtually eliminated. Unfortunately, by this time the situation on the island was irreversible. The population was stagnant, and many wanted to leave.
What can we learn as managers from this sad story of the demise of the people of St Kilda?
Organisations and businesses have similar characteristics to small communities like St Kilda. In particular, family-owned businesses often fail to bring in new blood and ideas and this can lead to a gradual demise of the business. Often when new blood comes into an organisation, the owner and the family refuse to change and this undermines the newcomer’s position. I witnessed a former client who claimed he wanted to ‘step back’ from the day to day running of the business. Sadly, he failed to share information, didn’t communicate in a constructive and rational way, and often made decisions behind the new manager’s back. Despite claiming he wanted to ‘step back’, he couldn’t let go and didn’t know how to. He then fired the incumbent because he claimed he had “failed”. Employees on experiencing professional management and then seeing a return to the old behaviors, started to leave. People join organisations but leave due to bad managers.
In my experience, keeping people ignorant is never a wise strategy for managers. I have found that often sharing information can improve performance. When I was managing a major trucking business, despite ‘advice’ to the contrary, I shared weekly driving performance statistics with the linehaul drivers. Driving performance improved, with reduced speeding and fuel consumption and fewer accidents.
All organisations have life cycles and they need to be regenerated with ideas and people externally.
Postscript: I do want to stress that many factors contributed to the decline and death of the community of St Kilda, with health-related problems being one of the main causes. I visited the islands in mid-2023 and it was a very interesting trip – history, birds and landscape. I would recommend a visit – a real step back in time.
“They cast me out and they were jealous because I turned in the fastest time ever run by a human and it was impossible at the time”
Ben Johnson – disgraced 100m 1988 Olympic “Champion”
The head of the International Olympics Committee Pierre de Coubertin described the 1904 St Louis Olympic Games in the USA as an “outrageous charade”. The running of the men’s marathon was so poorly organised and managed, the event was nearly abolished for future games.
So, what happened?
At 3:03pm on a hot summer day in 1904 St Louis Olympic Games, the marathon runners set off from the stadium in oppressive heat amongst horses and dogs and over dusty and unpaved roads. Many of the athletes were not experienced long distance runners. Two members of South Africa’s Tswana tribe raced in bare feet. They finished ninth and twelfth. However, they could have done better if one of them had not been chased off course by wild dogs.
Another entrant, Cuban Félix Carbajal de Sotos blew all his donated funds when he went gambling in New Orleans. He hitchhiked to St Louis in time for the marathon, showing up in a dress shirt, slacks, leather street shoes and a beret. Luckily a sympathetic spectator using a pair of scissors and helped him turn his pants into shorts. He came 4th!
There was only one water station on the entire course. The organisers deliberately deprived the athletes of water as they wanted to test the theory called ‘purposeful dehydration’, that is water diminishes athletic performance. Over half the participants dropped out from dehydration and several nearly died. American runner William Garcia collapsed halfway through the course and needed emergency surgery because he ingested so much dust that it had ripped his stomach lining.
The first ‘winner’ was 20-year-old Fred Lorz. He had given up at the 14th kilometre mark. His trainer offered him a lift to the stadium so he could pick up his clothes. However, the car broke down, so Lorz decided to run the rest of the way. He ran across the finish line first and had his photograph taken with the daughter of President Theodore Roosevelt. And just as he was about to accept the gold medal a witness stepped forward and declared him a fraud
The eventual winner, Thomas Hicks doped up and hallucinating on rat poison was dragged across the finishing line by his trainers. This certainly would not be allowed in the Olympics today! The Amateur Athletics Union immediately banned Lotz for life for ‘cheating’. This was overturned after a year, and he subsequently won the 1905 Boston Marathon!
Are there any lessons for managers in this fascinating Olympic episode?
Here are three that come to mind.
Just like in sport, organisations need clear policies and procedures that provide rules of behaviour
Be prepared to improvise. The unlucky gambler Cuban de Sotos despite not be correctly attired to run the marathon with the help of a bystander improvised and still managed to do remarkably well
5-Dimensionz 