Improving Performance: How to Manage the White Space in the Organization Chart (Jossey Bass Business and Management Series),   ISBN:9780787900908

Customer Rating: 

The more involved you are with process improvement, the more you will benefit from reading this book. Consultants Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache focus your thinking on their process improvement method by including detailed diagrams, practical examples and flow charts. They demonstrate how the traditional use of hierarchical organizational charts creates silos, isolated corporate operations that are separated by white space on the chart and, thus, are literally unconnected. The authors' "three levels" approach to management can mitigate performance issues within that organizational white space and avoid silos. They present their framework as a reliable method for upgrading organization design, improving processes and enhancing individual performance. Managing the "nine variables" that affect performance can help you develop a better understanding of your organization and build a strategic foundation for continuous process improvement, rather than wasting effort on ad hoc fixes. getAbstract recommends this book to thoughtful managers who don't need lots of buzzwords.

Customer Rating: 

This is a classic text that hardly needs my endorsement. However, if I can bring it to the attention of people who might not have benefitted from its proven insights and wisdom, I am happy to do so. The basic notion of the book is that too many people run their companies in the silos of the traditional org-chart. This creates all kinds of communications and management problems that must be broken down to get the optimal performance from your firm. This need has only grown since the first edition of this book came out in 1990. This second edition came out in 1995.

The authors want you to think of what your company is trying to accomplish rather than as a bunch of fiefdoms hanging from a hierarchical org-chart. They use a matrix of three levels of performance (Organizational, Process, and Job/Performer) and three performance needs (Goals, Design, and Management). Using the nine areas these create the authors show you how to handle focusing, operating, and managing every aspect of your firm. Sure, the book requires more thought and concentration than your typical "business book", but the substance it provides is well worth the effort.

Use it.

Reviewed by Craig Matteson, Ann Arbor, MI

Customer Rating: 

This book presents some interesting concepts on Process Design and Performance.

Customer Rating: 

Don't let the date this book was published influence your decision to buy - it is timeless. I am on my second copy of this book and would characterize it as the best book on business process management that has ever been published. This is "The Book". Everyone I know in the Business Process Management field has this book. I recommend it to every client and every business improvement team member that I work with.

The information contained in this "gem" can help anyone involved in process improvement. Consultants, executives, managers, process team leaders, process team members - it doesn't matter whether you are working in manufacturing, finance, logistics, sales or human resources. It also doesn't matter whether you are new to BPM or have been in the field for 20 years. This book will change the way you think about organizational structure and approaching business process.

Trying to characterize what parts of the book were best, would be like trying to dissect what parts of the blue sky you like best. It is all great stuff - each chapter is better than the next, and will help you understand what needs to be done to make business improvement initiatives work. It is well written, easy to understand the concepts, with hundreds of useful illustrations and models to learn from.

I would give this book 6 stars if I could ...

Customer Rating: 

This book will survive the trends, since most of the trends are based on the principles in this book. The names will change (Quality Circles, Just In Time, TQM, Re-engineering, Six Sigma, ...), but these principles and how well they are implemented will determine a companies' efficiency and quality.