Paralyzed by too much attention to detail... a story. (This story is a little long, but I promise it has value). Back around 2001, I was Director of National System Development for Western Wireless (Cellular One). At HQ in Bellevue, WA, it came to my attention that we had audio boards for Lucent cellular switches unevenly distributed across our markets. For example, one Mobile Telephone Switching Office (MTSO) in some state might have ten of those boards in their antistatic wrappers on a shelf in the back room. Meanwhile, in another state, the GM of the MTSO there might have to place an overnight rush order for an audio board because he had no spares at all. I issued one of those emails from on high: “All GMs at Lucent locations, count your audio boards and send me an email. I want to know how many you have in service, and how many spares you have.” Time passed. All but one General Manager had reported their numbers. I called that GM and said, “How soon can you get me the count on your audio boards?” His reply made the reason for his reluctance clear. He said, “To get the serial number on the audio boards in service, I have to take the system offline. You can’t read the number from the front of the rack. We don’t have any downtime maintenance scheduled right now, so I haven’t got the serial numbers yet.” I clarified what I was asking for. “I don’t want to know the serial numbers. I didn’t ask for the serial numbers. I want to know how many you have in service, and whether you have an adequate number of spares on site.” He answered immediately. He knew the answer. “Oh. Well, if that’s all you need, I have twelve in service and one spare. Please don’t take my spare.” I replied, “Take your spare? Heck no, I’m going to send you another one!” He was bewildered that I didn’t want the serial numbers. As we continued our conversation, I explained it this way: “Our company is a bucket, and the audio boards are grains of sand in the bucket. I want to know how much sand is in the bucket. I don’t want to know the serial number of each grain.” THE LESSON Be intentional about the information you collect. A lot of time is spent on information collection and storage that will never provide value. Over the years, the waste caused by this activity has gotten worse, not better. Storage is cheap (by comparison to what it used to cost), and search and sort algorithms are efficient. As a result, the default position is to scoop up information because we never know when we might be able to use it or monetize it. The problem is that we’re hoarding data. You heard me. Without focus, without clarity, without direction, without a plan, that pile of data is indicative of a hoarding problem. The storage may be cheap, but the human resource cost is often higher than estimated. Get a vision. Get focus, clarity, and direction. And let go of everything else, because everything else is a distraction. #CallMeIfYouNeedMe #FIFONetworks #InformationTechnology
The Dangers of Information Overload: A Cautionary Tale
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If I may add, also be clear with your intentions. Those of us who have been in similar situations to that manger know sandbagging is an essential skill.