He loved to go through the store a dozen times a day. He swept through the aisles, his eyes taking in every detail about him. He took a deep interest in everything that went on in the store—from the welfare of the cash boys, to the exact wording of the linen department's advertisement for the week. He stayed in his office until long after the store closed each night, yet was one of the first to

Question

arrive in the morning. He never criticized workers in the presence of customers or other clerks. On his trips through the store he always stopped to talk with customers. Any customer, whether her mission involved a small purchase or one that ran into the thousands of dollars, was assured a personal interview if she desired it. When a shipping clerk alerted him that Field's was no longer shipping merchandise to some of the customers they used to, he set up a task force that determined many of the reasons why these customers had stopped shopping at Field's.

Through their efforts, changes were made that returned customers to the store. There was but one test for the success or failure of changes implemented: they had to bring profits. Give the Lady What She Wants Wendt and Kogan, And Books Publishers.

Answer 1

Deming said, "Your job as a leader is to manage the change necessary.". What does that mean from a strategic planning point of view?

Without good strategic planning and deployment, there is short-term achievement at the expense of long-term organizational health. Leaders must create strategic plans that align actions with the critical success factors as identified by the customers. They must work toward total system alignment, aligning the organization's vision, mission, strategic objectives, processes, and day-to-day activities with their customers' needs, wants, and expectations. Effective organizations must change faster than their competitors and the external market environment in order to gain and sustain a competitive advantage. Effective leaders use the strategic plan to provide clarity. In the complexity of day-to-day operations, it is easy for members of the organization to become distracted and lose sight of the strategic goals and objectives. Effective leaders continually re-emphasize the ultimate targets established in the strategic plan.