The Circuit Breaker

The meeting is about helping you shape a new way or a different path. It's about letting everybody be heard. It's about discussing and having real discussions about what has worked in the past and what the new direction is.

In today's Circuit Breaker episode, Bob and Greg look at a tool they use frequently: the Gut Check. Bob recalls a consumer packaged goods company that ran into legal and patent issues while developing a product. The team had to hold a "Gut Check" meeting. Discover how this meeting proved very useful. They will explain why a Gut Check is a powerful tool, but also why it can be dangerous if not used properly.

You will understand why Gut Check meetings should not be held on a regular basis, but only when significant changes are coming and when there are tradeoffs that require input from all stakeholders, among other considerations. They'll also have an annoucnemnt to make about this season of the Circuit Breaker show.

Join Bob and Greg for this thought-provoking discussion on a "gut check" meeting.

Enjoy! 

What You'll Learn in this Show:

• An example of a Gut Check.
• The dangers of a Gut Check meeting.
• Why Gut Check meetings are helpful in startups.
• The purpose and role of a Gut Check.
• And so much more...

Resources:

“Make sure you're comfortable learning and describing the things you don't know rather than trying to articulate what you do know and finding a way to verify only what you do know. There is no such thing as a completely red line or a completely green line.”

In today's Circuit Breaker episode, Bob and Greg delve into the "green line" vs. the "red line." This reflects contrasting approaches to product development. Bob will recount his research on this topic in Japan when he was a member of the Ford team. You'll understand the mindset difference in product development between the US and Japan.

They'll talk about one of Taguchi's methods, Design of Experiments. You'll discover the "green line" and the "red line" main takeaways. This includes, among other things, determining the cause of a product failure rather than bearing personal responsibility and not settling for the unknowns. You'll also learn why redline projects have more going on as they get closer to launch than greenline projects, which have more going on at the beginning.

Join Bob and Greg for this thought-provoking discussion on "green line" and "red line" development.

Enjoy!

What You'll Learn in this Show:

• What are the "red line" and "green line," and why is it important?
• How to discover the unknown.
• The importance of continuous learning.
• How do you know if you're on the "green line" or the "red line?"
• How do you get from the red line to the green line?
• And so much more...

Resources:

If I were to change anything, it would be to make sure that students understand why they're there and what progress they're trying to make. That will actually help set the curriculum in the right way for how much and what they should be learning.

In today's Circuit Breaker episode, Bob and Greg explore an interesting topic from an audience member: How would the curriculum in business schools change if JTBD was more widely understood? You'll learn what changes they'd propose to integrate the JTBD context into business school.

Bob will explain why JTBD should be introduced as a supplement to the curriculum rather than being the core of it. You'll learn about the downsides of full learning and the impact of Bob's book Choosing College. You'll also learn why Bob abhors the term "best practices."

Join Bob and Greg for this thought-provoking discussion on JTBD in business school.

Enjoy!

What You'll Learn in this Show:

• Why the case-based approach is the best teaching style.
• Understanding who, when, where, and why can transform the way you process information.
• The key thing JTBD teaches us. 
• Why it’s your responsibility as a student to understand the different contexts. 
• And so much more...

Resources:

Most of the time the process assumes linearity, like step one, step two, step three, step four, but in reality sometimes there is iteration. And there are phases of work as opposed to steps of work.

In today's episode of the Circuit Breaker Show, Bob and Greg address a current trend they've noticed in their interactions with customers, balancing the pendulum between process-driven product development and practice. Learn more about process-driven product development.

This topic traces back to some of Bob's early work in Japan. You'll discover the Japanese perspective on process and how it has been implemented differently in the US. Making the pendulum straight in the middle is no guarantee of success either. They will discuss how to find the "sweet spot" that allows flexibility between process and practice. You'll identify what kind of manager is needed to balance process and practice.

They'll dissect Edwards Deming's notion, that says, "If you can't describe what you do as a process, you don't know what you're doing"

Join Bob and Greg for this stimulating discussion on the boundaries of practice and process.

Enjoy!

What You'll Learn in this Show:

• The pendulum between process-driven product development and practice.
• Why the process alone is no guarantee of success.
• The implications of becoming overly rigorous with the process or practice too rigorously.
• Capacity and capability in the process.
• What makes execution difficult?
• Process and practice go hand in hand.
• And so much more...

Resources:

Listening is about actually understanding where people are going and what they are trying to do. You need to listen very carefully not only to what they are saying, but how they are saying it.

On today's episode of the Circuit Breaker Show, Bob and Greg address one of their guiding principles, listening, particularly in the context of JTBD. You'll learn about the orientation of the language as they expound more about listening for intent.

Bob will discuss why he is not the biggest fan of small talk. They often argue with their office lawyer over whether words or intent is more important. You'll find out why Greg believes intent precedes words. They will share different office scenarios to demonstrate how they apply their listening skills.

You will discover why they have multiple people listen when theyconduct interviews and what they mean by hypothesis-building research as opposed to hypothesis-proving research. Bob will also tie in Dr. Taguchi's concept of the signal-to-noise ratio.

Join Bob and Greg for this thought-provoking discussion about listening and words vs intent.

Enjoy!

What You'll Learn in this Show:

• How to hone your listening skills.
• Why active listening is a two-way street.
• The importance of being aware of one's own biases.
• Why companies hire them to conduct interviews.  
• And so much more...

Resources: