I LOVE INEFFICIENCY!
I recognize that the term “inefficient” typically holds a negative connotation. For example, the “inefficiency” of an architectural structure is measured by the sqare footage in which the structure’s style and thruways reduce or prevent day-to-day usage and/or functionality. The inefficiency of a factory or assembly line is quantified by the total hours of downtime due to repairs, equipment malfunctions or personnel failures.
Certainly we want our homes to be energy efficient and our vehicles to be fuel efficient… but is an extremely efficient business model a strength or a weakness?
Most business models I’ve encountered require extreme efficiency of their staff and labor force. Businesses live in a perpetual cycle of having more work to be done, than there are people or hours in the week to facilitate that work. This; of course, is due to a highly competitive marketplace that requires business owners to lower their fees in the bloody war of price erosion, which ultimately demands the need to closely manage, or even micro-manage costs.
In a slavery effort to manage costs, business owners are forced to hire fewer people than the actual workload requires… which leads to pressure-cooker work environments in which nobody is happy or fulfilled. The business owner is always frustrated because the staff could be working harder. The employees aren’t happy because their work is never done, they feel under-appreciated, and they’re constantly under the gun to get more work done than is humanly possible. Both the business owner and the employee are ultimately setup for failure. The employee faces the impossible task of ever pleasing their boss, and the business owner is never able to develop a true sense of employee loyalty and longevity, resulting in low morale, which inevitably and ironically results to lower productivity and greater human resource costs.
COMPARE MACY’S AND WALMART
Inefficiency can be a GREAT thing! Compare retail giants, Macy’s and Walmart. Walmart’s “efficient” floor plan has smaller aisles and more shelves and rack space per zone to fit more products in less space. Macy’s intentionally widened their aisles and reduced the number of shelves and racks per zone to create additional customer space and reduce the perception of a claustrophobic shopping experience. Which store would the average consumer cast their vote for the best, most relaxing and enjoyable shopping experience?
Imagine reading a book in which the text was printed from the very top of the page to the very bottom of the page… from the very left side of the page to the very right side of the page, leaving no margins. We all want the margins. We need the margins! Margins are healthy, even though they cost more.
Maybe a healthy balance of business inefficiency is a good thing… or a GREAT thing! Imagine the following…
1. A work environment in which there’s plenty of employee work force to consistently get the job done.
2. A business model in which the cashflow and profitability actually allows its leadership and employees to “enjoy” their lives instead of resenting them.
3. A business or organization that has little to no turnover, and where high caliber college graduates and experienced industry professionals would walk through fire for the opportunity of working for you.
4. A business that attracts and cultivates an environment of dreamers and thought-leaders rather than hostility and defeat.
While this post is too limited to address the “how-to’s” for creating this ambitious business model and environment… I can tell you with great certainty that you’ll never just stumble into it. This only happens with deliberate thought, intentional planning, a recognition that it’s possible, and the desire and motivation to see it through fruition.
I hope I’ve challenged your thought-process and heightened your awareness to this blissful possibility.