Energy is the capacity to perform work. It also might be described as the force that animates and brings people to life. The work of design and manufacturing and selling and managing are all activities within a business that take energy to produce. Whether your business is a manufacturing plant or a fast food restaurant or an accounting firm it requires energy to produce that work. We all know from filling a car with gas or heating our homes in the winter that energy costs money. So, we look for ways to minimize the cost of energy. We insulate our homes, buy energy efficient cars and try to convince our families that it is cheaper to put a sweater on than turn up the heat, all so that we won't have to spend as much on energy. That same concept applies to the energy it takes to produce work in a business. It costs money and it makes sense to look for ways to make your business more energy efficient. But I‘m not talking about adding double pane windows to your office and turning the heat down to 68 degrees in the winter (although that is an innovative way to reduce the cost of your product). What I am talking about is "Innovating with People" energy and the overall through put of energy from person to person in your business!
"Through put" might be a term that is more commonly used when referring to a manufacturing plant, it is often used to describe the rate of flow of inputs (energy) materials, labor etc. in a plant to produce a product. The management Theory of Constraints looks for bottlenecks or constraints in the flow rate of a manufacturing plant in order to improve the efficiencies in those areas which will improve the overall performance of the plant output. If we apply this theory to energy within an organization we can find a usable model for identifying bottlenecks in teamwork, communication and collaboration flow rates among people. If it takes more energy to get one team moving on a project than another you know that the first team is a source of energy constraint. Your business is only as good as its weakest link so it pays to find those weak links or constraints and work to make them more energy efficient so that the whole business can produce more. Watch where energy flows through people and teams and where it gets stuck and dies. If you have a good high-energy person or team you'll notice that people who are connected that person or team are more animated (they come to life). If energy is flowing freely and unconstrained people will feel to talk and contribute in a meeting and they will usually be much more excited about contributing on the job. On the other hand if you see people shutting down and not contributing then you know you have an electrical short (your energy is being lost in a black hole of space) you have a de-energizing force in the room and these constrainers of energy are actually the bottlenecks that will slow down the energy throughput and profitability of the entire business. That is where you need to go to work innovating with people!
"Through put" might be a term that is more commonly used when referring to a manufacturing plant, it is often used to describe the rate of flow of inputs (energy) materials, labor etc. in a plant to produce a product. The management Theory of Constraints looks for bottlenecks or constraints in the flow rate of a manufacturing plant in order to improve the efficiencies in those areas which will improve the overall performance of the plant output. If we apply this theory to energy within an organization we can find a usable model for identifying bottlenecks in teamwork, communication and collaboration flow rates among people. If it takes more energy to get one team moving on a project than another you know that the first team is a source of energy constraint. Your business is only as good as its weakest link so it pays to find those weak links or constraints and work to make them more energy efficient so that the whole business can produce more. Watch where energy flows through people and teams and where it gets stuck and dies. If you have a good high-energy person or team you'll notice that people who are connected that person or team are more animated (they come to life). If energy is flowing freely and unconstrained people will feel to talk and contribute in a meeting and they will usually be much more excited about contributing on the job. On the other hand if you see people shutting down and not contributing then you know you have an electrical short (your energy is being lost in a black hole of space) you have a de-energizing force in the room and these constrainers of energy are actually the bottlenecks that will slow down the energy throughput and profitability of the entire business. That is where you need to go to work innovating with people!
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