Book Summary | The Age of Agile - Stephen Denning

 

Book: The Age of Agile: How smart companies are transforming the way work gets Done

Author: Stephen Denning

 

One of the popular words in today’s corporate world in any discussion is Agile. It may be on the culture of work, the projects that we drive. Today organizations are connecting everything and everywhere, all the time. They can deliver instant, intimate frictionless value on a large scale. They are creating a world in which people, insights and money interact quickly, easily, and cheaply. In software development, there is no option but to purse Agile Management.  The shift is nonnegotiable. If management won’t support Agile Management, the best developers go elsewhere.

 And since the software is eating the world and become more central aspect of every business model, the pressure for changing from within the organization is never ending.

Agile Management is about working smarter than harder. Agile is about understanding and interacting with the world with a different mindset. Business success in the twenty-first century increasingly depends on becoming quick as the rapid shifting and unpredictable context in which organization operate. Becoming an agile organization is an increasingly urgent necessity for companies in today’s digital economy. The principle of Agile management is empowering small teams, that will add value to the customers through bottom-up innovations. There are many case studies and research, that Innovations generated by agile teams had fuel growth. Innovations that happen from the top-down trends to be orderly but dumb. Innovation that happens from that happens from the bottom-up trends to be chaotic but smart. Agile means embracing fundamentally different assumptions. In organizations that have embraced agile management, self-organizing teams are continuously providing new value for customers. When Agile is done right, the teams are working within a business model in which organization is generating value for the organization itself as well as customers.  Agile is about generating more value from less work. The driver of sustained success is the Agile Mindset.

Three Core characteristics of Agile

1.    The law of small teams

Agile practitioners share a mindset that work should in principle be done in a small autonomous, cross-functional teams working in short cycles on relatively small tasks and getting continuously feedback from the ultimate customer or end-user. 

 

2.       The law of the customer

Agile practitioners are obsessed with delivering value to customers. The firm adjust everything – goals, values, principles, processes, systems, practices, data structures, incentives, - to generate continuous new value for customers and ruthlessly eliminates anything that does not contribute. The law of the customer is a single message, delivered consistently, every day all the time. Agile teams take initiatives on their own and interact with other agile teams to solve common problems.

 

Agile Small team – Common Practices

1.       Work in small batches

2.       Small cross functional teams

3.       Limited wok in process in agile management, teams learn to focus on an amount of work that can be brought to completion in each short cycle.

4.       Autonomous teams

5.       Getting to “Done”

6.       Work without interruption

7.       Daily standups

8.       Radically transparency

9.       Customer feedback each cycle

10.   Retrospective reviews

 

Rule of the customer – Practices by Agile teams.

§  Target

§  Constantly experiment

§  Partner with start-ups

§  Increase product malleability (turn a physical product into a digital product)

§  Focus

§  Innovate in short stages

§  Evaluate

§  Be willing to disappoint

§  Deliver value faster

§  Customize

 

3.       The law of the network

Agile practitioners view the organization as a fluid and transparent network of players that are contributing towards a common goal of delighting customers. A network is a group or system of interconnected people or things. An organizational network is a set of teams that interact with and collaborate with other teams with the same connectivity. A network model of organization is key to making the whole organization agile.

 

Assumptions of Networking:

1.       Network has a compelling goal

2.       The network comprises small groups

3.       The groups have an action orientation

4.       The network is the sum of the small groups

5.       The network legal framework stays in the background

Reviews - Continuously Monitor Progress to drive business:

Every month the program manager reports out on metrics of the accounts, measuring different aspects of the service. The group is learning to become a data informed business.  Done is having the right measures. The teams see this data and monitor it, both when they are testing it and as soon s it goes live. They use the metrics to drive the business forward.

 

Four components of a market creating value proposition: Need, Approach, Benefits per costs, and Competition (NABC).

The four Management Traps

1.       Maximizing shareholder value

Shareholder value is the dumbest idea in the world. Shareholder value is a result not a strategy. Short-term profits should be aligned with an increase in the long-term value of a company.

2.       The trap of buy back of shares.

Market leadership can translate directly to higher revenue, higher profitability, greater capital velocity and correspondingly stronger returns on invested capital.  

3.       Cost oriented economics trap.

Cutting costs could lead to a permanent loss of expertise. – Dell case study an interesting eye-opener.

4.       The trap of backward-looking strategy.

Transformative ideas are ideas that change our frame of refences.  Agile Management offers a financial critique of current management. Shareholder value thinking is a trap that inexorably leads to a preoccupation with the short term and ultimately destroys shareholder value.  The emerging age thus offers the possibility of a great awakening – a foreshadowing of a transformation in the way our organizations and our society functions. The emerging age offers a promising path forward. It’s the work of many minds, hearts and hands.        

The difference between winners and losers is not the matter of access to technology or big data. Both the successful and unsuccessful firms generally have access to same technology and data, which are now largely commodities.  The difference lies in a different way of running the organization that deploys technology and data more nimbly.

Bottom-line:

The central theme of this book – the corporations must radically reinvent how they are organized and led and embrace a new management paradigm. A principal role of the top is to identify and support champions throughout the organization.  

I would recommend reading the case study of how Microsoft deployed Agile and then read the chapters for easy navigation and connect on the principles.

 

Book Summary | Rethinking Competitive Advantage: New Rules for the Digital Age

 

Book :  Rethinking Competitive Advantage: New Rules for the Digital Age.

Author : Ram Charan

Many of us are experiencing the greater convenience using digital platforms. These digital platforms have enabled lower price, greater convenience, and instant access to relevant information to the consumers, businesses and employees. These digital giants have forever changed our experience as consumers and employees.

Creating competitive advantage is different in the 

digital age. In the digital age. Competitive advantage is the ability to win the ultimate price the consumer preferences, repeatedly through continuous innovation on behalf of the consumer to create immense value for shareholders. Core competencies have a self-life.  They become obsolete and new ones have to be built. Today due to information availability in abundance, the consumer takes the call.

Roadblocks to moving into Digital

1.       An overreliance to outdated theories

2.       A dominant psychology of incrementalism and short term thinking

3.       A blind spot when it comes to customers

4.       Acceptance of existing boundaries

5.       Belief in mass markets and segmentations

 

New Rules of Competition

# 1.  A personalized consumer experience is key for exponentiation growth.

The digital companies imagine a 100X market space that does not yet exist. Digital giant’s relentlessly focus on consumer’s total experience end and work backwardly.  They operate with the mind-set of Market of One – M=1, is the ultimate personalization.  Technology is important, but the ultimate focus is on the consumer. Mapping the customer journey is emerging as distinct expertise. It involves breaking apart all of the interactions and decisions steps a consumer goes through from first exposure to an idea or recognition of a need through to what happens after the person makes a purchase.  Leaders in the digital age takes on a stiffer but more exhilarating challenge.

# 2. Algorithms and Data are essential weapons

The digital platforms are built using algorithms and data that collects and analyses various customer experiences and behaviors.  Each algorithm is a simpler sequence of steps for solving a problem. The ability to personalize an end-to-end consumer experience creates market space of 100x.  A digital platform is also key to exponential growth. Standardization of data will eliminate lot fo the waste in record keeping and combined with algorithms can detect fraudulent billings Technology, logistics/ distribution and customer experience are the key pillars for digital growth.

#3. A company does not compete, its ecosystem does.

The ecosystem accelerates the growth. In digital age, competitive advantage goes to those who build ecosystem or network that leverages digital technology for the benefits of the consumers and paves the way to multiple streams of revenue. Ecosystem are never permanent, because the work is moving at such a ferocious speed, technology changes continue to accelerate and consumer expectations, continuously evolve finding new partnerships.

# 4. Moneymaking is geared for huge cash generation, not earnings per share, and the new law of increasing returns.

# 5. People culture and work design form a social engine that drive innovation and execution personalized for each customer.

Most digital companies operate with as few as three or four organizational layers. The digital companies recognize that structure goes lonely so far and that success ultimately depends upon the quality of its people. Technology plays a key role in giving people greater freedom to do their work. Technology makes real time data transparent, but still the organization depends upon people to knit the pieces together on a daily basis. Decision-making is designed for innovation & speed.

# 6. Their leaders drive learning, reinvention and execution.

Leaders continuously learn, imagine and breakthrough obstacles to create the change that other companies must contend with.

Book Summary | Innovation by Design - Thomas Lockwood

 Innovation by Design: How Any Organization Can Leverage Design Thinking to Produce Change, Drive New Ideas, and Deliver Meaningful Solutions, Reviews

Author : Edgar Papke and Thomas Lockwood

 Organizations have realized that the each customer has unique experience and need to tap this experience for developing products and services that would enhance customer experience and thereby loyalty resulting in improving business. There are various tools and techniques, which organizations adopt to map these customer experiences and thereby develop new products.

Design thinking is one such tool, where in the empathy is to map the customer journey at various touch points to drive innovations for new products and improve customer experience. Several key traits appear common in Design Thinking

1.       Identifying the right problem to solve coupled with deep understanding of the user

2.       Empathy coupled with collaboration both with the user & through multi-disciplinary teams

3.       Accelerate learning through hands-on experimenting, visualization and creating quick rough prototypes.

Ten Attributes of design thinking

1.       Design thinking at scale

2.       Pull Factor

3.       Right Problem

4.       Cultural Awareness

5.       Curious confrontation

6.       Co-Creation

7.       Open Spaces

8.       Whole Communication

9.       Aligned leadership

10.   Purpose

 

Three driving factors of the Collective Imagination:

1. Participation (collaboration).

2. The pursuit of knowledge.

3. Free expression (engaging in unbridled creativity).

Five - orders of Design

First order – focus on graphics design & visualization

Second order – Design of products which includes feel

Third, order Design – Customer experience and application in design of service, user interface & information

Fourth Order Design – Design of system

Fifth, order design – Design of culture

 

12 Key cultural keys

1.       Power & Influence

2.       Planning & Goal setting

3.       Problem Solving

4.       Decision Making

5.       Conflict Management

6.       Incentive & Reward

7.       Hiring

8.       Role definition

9.       Customer interface

10.   Team work

11.   Structure

12.   Aligned Values

 

Aligned Design in expertise culture

1.       Leverage internal competency

2.       Expertise based, adhoc teaming

3.       Support analytical process

4.       Challenge for better and best peer competition

5.       Leverage external expertise

6.       Reward Conceptual thinking

7.       Leverage status through and for high achievement

 

Bottom-line: 

Many use cases from various successful organizations have been presented in the book. However, complete approach and challenges that they have overcome while implementing is not provided, making this a one-time read.

Book Summary | The Top Five Regrets of Dying - Bronnie Ware

One of the widely circulated message on WhatsApp and other social media was "The  Top Five Regrets of the dying".  Many might have read or checked the video messages on this. The author has captured the regrets of the lives, while working as caretaker to few of the aged people.  Based on these interactions with an emotional connect with these elderly people, the author was able to identify the following are the Top Regrets that were made before dying; 

Regret 1 : Wish I 'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me 

Regret 2 : I wish I hadn't worked so hard 

Regret 3 : I wish I 'd had the courage to express my feelings 

Regret 4 : I wish I'd stayed in touch with my friends 

Regret 5 : I wish I had let myself be happier 

Generically, all these regrets are applicable to everyone. The author had identified these regrets as she was employed to take care of them. The collective memories of good and bad is experienced between birth and death and on the death bed regretting for the past may not yield anything. However may be the authors intension is to mend others, by sharing the experiences from the past. 

The society that we live has different demographics - rich and poor, young and old, married and unmarried, men and women etc. Apart from one regret that the author had identified as top 5, these demographics regrets may be different. Times, I wonder if the author had an opportunity to interview and provide care to the middle class and poor people there may be more inspiring stories on life lessons than regrets, as everyday it was an struggle and next day is the only hope. 

Book Summary | Start with WHY

Book Title : START WITH WHY 

Author : Simon Sinek 

Great leaders are able to inspire people to act with a sense of purpose or belonging that has little to do with any external incentives or benefit to be gained. Inspired employees make a stronger companies and stronger economies.  Assumptions affect our behaviour and we take decisions based on what we know. The dance between Gut and rational decision making pretty much covers how we conduct business and live our live.  There are two ways to influence the human behaviour – Manipulate  it or Inspire.  When fear is employed, facts are incidentally deeply seated in our biological drive to survive, that emptions cannot be quickly wiped away with facts and figure. The book “Start with Why” is about applying logic to inspire and decision making using a concept called Golden Circle and validating this through celery test for check for balance.

 

The Golden Circle:  provides insights into how great organization are systematized through KNOW – WHY, KNOW – HOW, THEN WHAT. Golden circle shows how leaders ar

e able to inspire actions instead of manipulating people to act. It starts from Inside out with WHY moving inward WHAT bounded by HOW. When we are inspired, the decisions we make have more to do with who we are and less to do with companies in products were buying.

 

Clarify of WHY :  The power of Why is not option. Starting from Why defines clarity, Discipline and consistency to inspire. Why do they it is something deeper. Why is just a belief and if we don’t know WHY, we cant know HOW. The ability to puts why in words provides the emotional context for decision making. When motivated by Why success happens.  In any organization – Top Leader (CEO) represent the WHY.  A clear sense of why sets expectations. The why exists in the part of the brain that control feelings and decision making but not language.  Why defines the founding purpose, cause or belief. Why comes from looking back, finding WHY is discovery, not invention. All organization starts with WHY, but only the great ones keep their why clear year after year.  WHY- types are optimists and see things other cant. They are visionary and see how they think the world should be.

 

Discipline of HOW:  How are the values or principles that guide the cause of life. How we do things are manifests in systems and process within the organization and culture. Understanding the HOW gives greater ability. How are actions.  Senior executives in the organization represents How. These are the small group of people who will build the infrastructure that can make WHY tangible.  How – types are more in the here an now. They’re more rational and get things done.

 

Consistency of WHAT: What are the results of action (How). What don’t drive decision making, what should be used as proof why. The rational what offers proof for the feeling of why. What is the level where majority of the employees are placed in the organization. What exist is the part of the brain that control rational thinking and language.  What comes first and all their systems and processes are in pursuit of those tangible results. What gets measured, Get Done.

 

Law of Diffusion: Mass market success can only be achieved after penetrate between 15 to 18% of the market.

 

Celery test: Appling to find out exactly WHAT and HOW is consistent with WHY metaphor is know as celery test. Decision making needs to pass the celery test especially in Hiring, Partnership, strategies and tactics.

 

Bottom-line:

Although the author starts with inspiring and fact based concepts making it inspiring it to read. As you move, it is more about the culture of Apple – at times its more Gyan. Would suggest watch the videos or listen to podcast and then reading this book will help in quick conceptualization.

Book Summary | No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention

Book : No Rules Rules : Netflix and the culture of Reinvention

Authors: Reed Hastings, Erin Meyer

One of the companies that is widely used as an example that has disrupted the entertainment industry in one decade is Netflix. From DVD by mail to streaming old TB series and movies over the internet. From streaming old content to launching new original content, From licensing content provided by external studios to building their own in-house studios, from USA co
mpany to Global company… 

No Rules Rules is about success of Netflix through a culture that promoted flexibility, employee freedom and innovation through a culture of “Freedom and Responsibility”. The book has Ten chapters, which the author connects through 10 dots and you have to connect the dots differently. Netfix has shared these practices with examples making easy to connect with the culture and process of any organization. One of the reason for Netflix’s success – it treats Employees like Grownups. The book offers provoking thought, on reinventing culture to remain relevant in a changing business environment through agility, innovation and flexibility. 

The First Dot: A Great workplace is stunning colleagues

• Talent Density: Talented people make one another more effective
• Performance is contagious

The Second Dot : Say what you really Think ( with positive intent)

• High Performance + Selfless Condor = Extremely High performance
• Giving Feedback – 4A Feedback Guidelines

• Aim to Assist – Feedback must be given with positive intent. Clearly explain how a specific behavior change will help the individual or the company.
• Actionable – Feedback must focus on what the receipt can do differently
• Appreciate – When receiving feedback ask yourself, “How can I show appreciation for this feedback by listening carefully, with open mind and becoming neither defensive nor angry
• Accept or Discard :

The Third Dot - Policy & Continue removing controls 

• Set and reinforce context to guide employee behavior
• Freedom from vacation policy adds value – even if no one uses it
• Give freedom to get responsibility
• Spend money as if it were your own
• Act in Companies best interest
• Set context up front and keep an eye on spending out back

The Fourth Dot – Pay top of personal market

• Offer rock – star pay
• Divide the workforce into creative and operational employees
• Bonuses are bad for flexibility

The Fifth Dot - Open the Books

• Stuff of Secrets = SOS
• Knowing when to Share
• Create a work culture of financial transparency, making every aspect of the business visible to every employee
• Invest a substantial amount of time and effort training every staff member how to read and understand, in detail, the weekly operating and financial reports
• When making decisions that will impact the employees wellbeing, like reorganizations or layoffs, open up to the workforce early, before things solidified. This will cause some anxiety and distraction, but the trust you build will outweigh the disadvantages.

The Sixth Dot – No Decision making approval needed
Don’t seek to please your boss. Seek to do what is best for the company.
Netflix innovation Cycle – Innovation Friday

• - Farm for dissent or socialize the idea
• - For a big idea, test it out
• - As the informed captain, make your bet
• - If succeed celebrate. If it fails sunshine 

Three-part response on Sunshine

• - Ask what learning came from that project
• - Don’t make a big deal about it
• - Ask to “sunshine” the failure

The Seventh Dot – The Keeper Test

• Demand excellence. Count on the manger to make sure every position is filled by the best person at any given time.
• Train to win, expecting to receive candid and continuous feedback about hot to up their game from the coach and from one another.
• Know effort isn’t enough, recognizing that they will be thanked and respectfully swapped out for another project.
• Avoid stack-ranking system, as they create internal competition and discourage collaboration.
• From Family to Team - For high performance culture a professional sports team is a better metaphor than a family. Coach the managers to create strong feelings of commitment, cohesion and camaraderie on the team, which continually making touch decisions to ensure that best player is manning each post.

The Eight Dot – A circle of Feedback

• A circle of Feedback – “Start, Stop, Continue” format for the 360 degree feedback that gives concrete actionable feedback
• Live 360 dinners are another effective process. Set aside several hours away from the office. Set aside several hours away from the office. Give clear instructions, follow the 4A feedback guidelines and use the Start, Stop, Continue Method.

The Ninth Dot – Lead with Context, Not Control

• Leading with context will not work unless you have the right conditions in place.
• Align to true north and highly aligned on vision and objectives
• A loosely coupled organization should resemble a tree rather than pyramid. The boss is at roots, holding up the trunk of senior managers who support the outer branches where decisions are made.
• You know you are successfully leading with context when your people are moving the team in the desired directions by using the information they have received from you and those around you to make great decisions themselves.
• Everything is Relative

The Tenth Dot – Bring it all to the World – Going Global

Book Summary | Light Bulb Moments

 Book Title : Light Bulb Moments : 75 lessons for Everyday Living 

Author : Talayah G Stovall 

The moment we see a light bulb symbol represents a trigger for innovation in corporate world. Light bulb moments is collection of experience in a short story form that are thought provoking. Every story shared resembles the path and experience each one might have gone through. Reading these anecdotes trigger a thought on the times how we responded or reacted and provides an opportunity to introspect action.

The book is collection of 75 stories that spread uniqueness in experience that one might have undergone.  The topics range from purpose, passion, preparation, persistence, patience, goal focus, trials, forgiveness, friendship and many more. 

Few that I could recollect; 

Prepare, Persevere and it will pass  -  Sometimes the reward is not in reaching the mountaintop of life but in the lessons you learn during your journey and the strength you gain from the climb.

The rainbow only comes after the storm -  The rainbow reminds us of how much God cares about us. In order to get to the rainbow periods in our lives, we must first endure the storms.

Trials Precede Transformation : In order for the butterfly's to emerge, the caterpillar must be transformed. If you are experiencing the pain of change in life, don't fight it. Go with it. 

Listen Closely to your GPS -   "Listen closely to your GPS" is about navigating through your life. You must know where you are and where you want to go. There is more than one way to get there. It is never too late to get back on track. You might be closer than you think. Enjoy the journey.

Push Through the Concrete -  Permanence, Perseverance and Persistence in spite of all obstacles, discouragements and impossibilities its is this that in all things distinguishes the strong soul from the weak. 

Find Your Why : 

Choose your blocks Carefully - when Moses doubted his ability to lead the people out of Egypt, God told him to use what he already had in his hand. The same goes for us.  We can let circumstances rule us, or we can take charge and rule our lives within. 

Its all about relationships : The rules of Relationship - Seven Be's: - Be Realistic | Be Authentic | Be Open | Be Tactful | Be Flexible | Be Accountable | Be Patient 

Don't be an Elephant - Success is a way of thinking. Shifting our mindsets will shift our energy, which will lead us to positive action. 

Empty your Cup - every time you empty it, it comes back twice as full. As you enjoy your own blessings, remember to reach our to others and share from your bounty as only you can. 

Beating the Blues - 

Alone does not mean lonely - 

Don't Quit the Race - Being defeated is often a temporary condition. Giving up is what makes it permanent. Whatever your race and whatever your goal, just keep on running. 

A good read each day as we start every day.

Book Summary | Reengineering the Corporation: A Manifesto for Business Revolution

Book : Re-engineering the Corporation : A Manifesto for Business Revolution 

Author:  Michael Hammer,  James Champy

Business is all about taking the right risk for profits. Business is run by people and needs processes and guidelines for controls. Business processes needs re-engineering based on the organisations vision and appetite. The re-engineering the corporation provides key insights on how to redevelop or redesign the business process so that the purpose and value is achieved based on the customer needs. Re-engineering is the opportunity to develop the rules by which business in the future will be conducted rather than being forced to operate by the rules imposed by someone else. As such, re-engineering underpins every attempt to seize and maintain a true competitive advantage. I found the following as the key from the book.

Chapter – 1: The reengineering Concept
- Re-engineering is the opportunity to develop the rules by which business in the future will be conducted rather than being forced to operate by the rules imposed by someone else.
- Re-engineering is defined as the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to generate dramatic improvements in critical performances measures such as cost, quality, service and speed.    

- Three types of organisation undertake re-engineering

o   Companies that find themselves in deep competitive trouble – and who often require an order of magnitude improvements    

o   Companies with managers who can see problems arising in future

o   Companies with mangers who are ambitious and aggressive.          

Most re engineered processes deliver impressive production planning flexibility and capabilities
Companies enjoy the benefits of centralized purchasing power and decentralized operations.

Chapter – 2: The Characteristics of A Re-engineered corporation       
- Re-engineering is not solely about creating a new business processes it focuses on creating a new company by Simplifying the process | empowerment of people through range of tasks to perform | moving from hierarchy to a flatter management run by professionals and not managers | People in the organisation no longer worry about pleasing the boss but focus on pleasing the customers.          
- Re-engineering is never focused on fixing old processes. Re-engineering is focused on breakthroughs – quantum leaps forward       

Chapter – 3: Re-engineering Case Studies

Successful re engineering programs undertaken by large and small corporations in the past have these common themes:

•  A focus on processes rather than organizational boundaries.
• The drive to create breakthrough performance.
•  A willingness to break with old traditions and rules.
•  The creative use of new information technology.

Every company’s re-engineering program must be unique if it is to achieve anything substantial. There are no guaranteed-to-work or step-by-step prescriptions that can be followed in re-engineering.          

Chapter -4 : The Key to re-engineering success:               
Business process exist solely for the purpose of creating a satisfied customer – Always start with customer and work backward.              
Re-engineering must be done at speed – the faster the better.
Tolerate risk  
No engineering program every emerges full-blown right out of the box – accept imperfections along the way               
Don’t stop too soon

Book Summary | Sadhu Sundar Singh

Book: Sadhu Sunder Singh : A Biography of the Remarkable Indian Disciple 
Author: Phyllis Thompson 

The book of Acts in the bible is about a promise that Christ made before Ascension to Heaven on Holy Spirit. The book of acts professes about a great prosecutor who wanted to wipe out the believers and his conversion into Paul and his story of healing etc. However, on the road to Damascus, he reported being blinded by a vision of Jesus Christ. He heard the voice of Jesus Christ, asking Saul, “why persecutes thou me?” Saul replied, “Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutes.   After his vision and healing, he proclaimed the divinity of Jesus Christ and dedicated his life to spreading the Christian message. Paul explained that he was a servant of Jesus Christ and his unexpected conversion to ardent Christian was due to the Grace of God and not reason or intellect. We come across many stories on how he was released from the jail, how he healed many people, even when believers touched the clothes they got healed. At the end of the book, we read about a snake bit and people waited for him to die, but obviously then they started to believe in God. 

The story of Sadhu Sunder Singh does resemble the path of Saul who became Paul. A young boy with hatred, being rebellion on the teaching Bible in the class to becoming a great Saint who did evangelisation and healing of the sick across India, Tibet, Pakistan and Afghanistan.  He experienced the vision, and after the personal tragedy, as he tried to commit suicide in the tracks of the railways. The story of poisoning him and the treatment given to him. His miracles are just amazing to read and get inspired.  

He was known as the India’s Saffron Saint & the apostle with the bleeding feet for he walked far and long.  

An inspiring and interesting biography from post-independence i.es 1929. 

Book Summary | Upstream: How to solve problem before they happen - Dan Heath

One of the Top 3 skills that organizations look for during hiring is Critical Problem Solving Skills. This is as per the survey by the World Economic Forum. People are employed in the organization to resolve problems. If there are no problems then I think, employees are not required. In life to, if there are no issues / concerns then human-being were not required. However, be it an organization or life, resolving issues / problems is critical and for this we need to apply certain principles or tools or a statement than can be understood by all. Then apply brainstorming or some other methodology to apply solutions. However, many a times, the problem repeats the causes may be different.

The author prescribes Upstream and Downstream for resolving the problems. Upstream is to identify the problems before it occurs – in normal terms we could say it’s about Proactive way of identifying the problem and resolving. Downstream is once the problem is occurred, it is resolved.  The upstream focuses on the early warning sings, use of system thinking, and directions. In case of Downstream is about reacting, where a hero resolves the problem.

Hurdle for the upstream thinking

• Problem Blindness: This occurs when we believe that it is normal - Story of the Sexual Harassment case in 1975.
• Lack of Ownership: The author narrates a story of car seat belt
• Tunneling: The story of how a nurse solved a problem every 90 min in average

Thought Provoking for Upstream:

1. How will you unite right people - Surround the problem, use data for learning?
2. How will you change the system - Look for the system change
3. Where can you find a point of leverage – Start with target a small population, event and data set etc.
4. How will you get early warning of the problem – Look for the historical patterns to inform your predictions, maneuvering etc.
5. How will you know what you’re succeeding - Use of paired measure
6. Who will pay for what does not happen – Create closed feedback loops to continuously improve.