By Katherine Bethany, FSAVE – President, SAVE International
This month, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the Value Methodology. Why, you ask?
Well, we started a project at our home in early August – home ownership means lots of projects. We are replacing all the columns, railings, posts, etc. on our front porch. That project led to my decision that the five wooden rocking chairs also need some maintenance. Yes, in my home, the function of some projects is to identify (additional) requirements.
I took on the job of doing the rocking chairs. Three of the chairs are second hand, so I did not know the history of the chairs. I began with the rocking chair that had the most peeling paint on it and started prepping it for painting. This started with sanding, which led to more sanding, which led to buying stripping chemicals. I learned the hard way that those chemicals burn when they touch bare skin. After stripping (per the can’s directions) I still had peeling/splotchy rough paint, so more sanding. Then washing/scrubbing the chair to remove some mold and dust. It has been seven days of work and I still am on the first chair, and it has not yet been painted. Believe me when I say that it is not as easy or as quick as the projects they demonstrate on those home improvement shows on TV or YouTube.
So what does this rocking chair story have to do with the Value Methodology? Well, during the hours I’ve spent stripping the paint down layer by layer I realized that the chair made a great analogy for how Value Professionals should approach the projects, products, services, etc., for a value study. You really do have to do the work to get to the raw material in order to build it with more value.
I could have just slapped some paint over the peeling paint on my chair. But then, in a couple of months, the chair would start peeling again. The layers of paint applied that way hid some underlying issues, like mold, that would never have surfaced if I didn’t go looking for the root cause of why the chair is peeling so badly. In fact, some of the fixes made the problem worse not better.
As value professionals, you really need to lead your teams to dig for the issues so they know what to work on in the study. I also implore you to make sure ideas the team develops are not just applying a shiny and new surface coat to make it look better in the short term without addressing the root cause of the issue. When the “shiny” implemented idea fails, your client will rightly believe that the methodology does not work.
I hope all of your home (or work) projects are going well (and that you are more prepared than I was with my chairs). Next month I will update you on the results of your SAVE International Board of Directors Strategic Planning session.
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