Black Box Thinking

Failures, mistakes and problems are part of every contractor’s business.

D. Brown Management Profile Picture
Share

They are part of everyone’s day.  What separates out high-performing teams is a relentless focus on learning from these problems then creating systems and training to mitigate them in the future.  

Talent Development Tools: Root Cause Analysis and Improvements. Quote: Ego is about who's right. Truth is about what's right. Mike Maples Jr. Book: Black Box Thinking by Matthew Syed.

Low-performers look for “Who” did something wrong.

Low-performers put quick fixes in place and move on.

Low-performers avoid talking about failures, problems and mistakes openly.  


High-performers view every failure, problem or mistake as an opportunity to learn. 

High-performers ask lots of questions to identify the root cause of what happened.

High-performers then make plans to adjust for the next cycle.  

High-performers raise up the whole team by creating new standards, processes and training when they find a better way.  


Black Box Thinking was recommended to me by Sujata Bhide and dives much deeper into this topic.  

We spend a lot of time with our clients helping their teams develop great skills at Root Cause Analysis + Improvements.  Never easy; always worth it.  

Learn more




Higher Scores Aren’t Always Better: Percent Planned Complete (PPC) Example
Construction is full of competitive personalities - more is always better. This is not always the case, and you must be careful when setting targets that your goals don't have unintended consequences. Percent Planned Complete (PPC) is a perfect example.
Incentive Compensation for Contractors - Introduction
Every successful and profitably growing contractor we work with has a comprehensive and integrated set of incentive programs in place at all levels of the organization. These programs reinforce the daily actions and behaviors that make them successful.
Cash Flow and the 5Cs of Credit - Character
Out of the 5C’s of Credit, character is the one that takes the longest to develop and can be lost in an instant. Character is like your safety EMR in that it is a multiplier for the other C’s, including how much capital you will need to leverage.