What Can We Learn from the Automakers?

Detroit was headed for collapse, but it looks like the government will step in to loan them the money needed to keep going despite their mismanagement and short-sightedness. Who will step in to help the government bureaucracy that suffers from some of the same types of mismanagement and short-sightedness?

Justin Pinkerman, writing for “Leadership Wired” has some suggestions in Leadership Lessons Driven Home by the Struggles of U.S. Automakers. These run contrary to a bureaucrat’s natural instinct, but are useful nonetheless.

1. Wealth Makes Waste, Fight to Stay Lean
2. Once Broken, Trust Must Be Restored at a Premium
3. During Downturns, Leaders Model the Way of Frugality

“Wealth Makes Waste, Fight to Stay Lean” Getting lean or leaner must be a priority, an ongoing ACTION, not a REACTION to current problems.

“Once Broken, Trust Must Be Restored at a Premium” Unfortunately Government is very low in current public perception. Government improvements will not be enough, public relations efforts must be established (innovative and frugal, of course.) But it is going to have a cost.

“During Downturns, Leaders Model the Way of Frugality” The corner office, large desk and leather chair are the bureaucrat’s status symbols (admittedly, few travel around in their own jets.) Still, a message of frugality sits better with the rank and file if the administrators practice it also.

Times are tough and getting tougher. Can we learn from the hard lessons of others or will we just plow ahead until disaster strikes us in the same way?