Problems Cross Boundaries

“You want me to do your job?” was Dr. Deming’s response to a manager who expressed his frustration at the lack of how-to rules and tools presented in the 4-day seminar. The four areas of the System of Profound Knowledge provide a means by which a person might see, think about and respond in a new way to the issues of management.

 Problems of today not only cross organizational lines, but also cross disciplinary boundaries as well. The four areas of SoPK (Appreciation for a System, Understanding Variation, Theory of Knowledge, Psychology) are one of the quickest passports into the boundary-crossing world in which generalists are succeeding over specialists.

 As Dr. Deming said, “One need not be eminent in any part nor in all four parts in order to understand it and to apply it.” Still, there is the requirement to do your own thinking.