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The thing I find most amazing about this (I work for a bank) is seeing people make decisions based on version 812 of a workbook passed between 3 different depar
by ellius 10y ago
The thing I find most amazing about this (I work for a bank) is seeing people make decisions based on version 812 of a workbook passed between 3 different departments with multiple pages where the count of line items doesn't even add up. They're so obviously incorrect and of questionable value, but I've seen managers drop them like they're God's own Truth in meetings. It's that kind of thing that convinces me organizational dysfunction is the root cause of all the mysterious "productivity crisis" that economists often cite.
- ethbro 10y agoAbstraction increases as you move up org charts. Unfortunately, actual process knowledge does not. I blame the "MBAs can do anything" philosophy, but it's probably also a consequence of worker mobility. To state it most simply: if your management (at any level) cannot call bullshit on the data their direct reports provide them (whatever level of abstraction that is), then your business is at existential risk.
- ellius 10y agoAgreed. And then you realize these are the guys that handle the world's money. Not exactly a mystery why the financial industry has a culture problem. I almost had a heart attack thinking about it while watching one of my bosses try to consolidate 13 different versions of a spreadsheet, none of which made sense. And then I realized he's one of the above par ones.