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Article 1: The Magic of Systems Thinking!

Dear all, Hope this mail finds all of you in good spirits among all that you wish for in your life. Some of you may know that I have been away from Singapore since 2007 being part of a programme here in Botswana where I had assisted the government learn and appreciate the five disciplines…
Article 4: Remove self-doubt. Replace Visions.

Under construction (Photo credit: Wikipedia) The two however, does not exist together. It is one or the other. But not both.
Article 5: Growing Virtuous Cycles

Under construction (Photo credit: Wikipedia) Find the vicious cycles and turn them around.
Article 3: We are peaceful people

“We are peaceful people,” because we do not talk to each other when we are feeling angry (about something or somebody). Instead we keep it (bottled) inside within us (causing our body blood pressures and the cost of running the Ministry of Health in the country both to rise). We do this, because, “should we…
Article 2: Setting goals is the easy part. Reaching them is not!

REACHING THE GOALS YOU HAVE SET IS NOT EASY TILL …. WE FACE AND DEAL WITH STUBBORN PROBLEMS It is a management question. Are you there yet? What are you doing to get there? Have you set goals for you and your team? Yet, setting of goals is really the easy part. And there are…
Regional Article 23: Unemployment, labour disputes, economic diversification and fertility

Most countries think supply of labour should drive demand. We forget then (or choose not to admit to ourselves) that it is demand that drives supply in any situation. Not the other way around. It is just not realistic to believe that because we have so many ‘young ones’ here, that there should be jobs…
Sectoral Article 22: Not enough manpower! Where did all the good men go?
Sectoral Article 21: If it keeps coming back, did we really think it was urgent?
Regional Article 20: Why do disputes by labor (with unions) and employers go up?

Despite our efforts to set up judiciary courts to preside over cases involving employers and employees embroiled in disputes with each other as well as educate ‘people’ on ways to avoid disputes with each other, why do relations between employers and employees continue to sour and such disputes tend to soar year after year? Surely,…
National Article 19: What causes fidelity?

We know what causes infidelity? But what causes fidelity? Whatever that causes fidelity, when it is not there, causes infidelity! So, what causes fidelity? A couple goes through different stages or types of intimacy during their times together and experience one or more stages in their lifetime. To the extent the couple moves through the…
National Article 18: What would it take to ‘cure’ HIV?

Should we pay attention to: Curing the disease when it is already transmitted (attack the problem that we can see)? or Preventing the disease from being transmitted (defend ourselves from the problem?) or ‘Cure’ ‘the reason that causes the disease to be transmitted (what causes the problem)? Let’s take this situation. Suppose there is a couple, both…
Regional Article 17: Is unemployment real?

UNEMPLOYMENT = SUPPLY OF LABOUR > DEMAND FOR LABOUR In a country, where levels of unemployment stay persistent over time, then it is a sign that the rates of growth of the supply of labour (population numbers -” child creation”) each year is growing at rates faster than the rate of growth of the demand for…
National Article 16: So, who is the (real) criminal?

Stressed so I took my boss hostage (thesun.co.uk) I found this part interesting: Thompson then tied his victim to a chair and subjected him to a 20-minute ordeal that left Mr Grady suffering depression and post-traumatic stress. He remains off work five months later. The court heard the worker (Thomson) told his boss: “This is the…
National Article 15: Is one choosing to work because one needs to eat?

Or does one choose to work because one wants to carve a career (to advance the public or private good) for oneself and for others?
National Article 14: What is the right answer?

Focussing on how one teaches or how one learns? Can one exclude the other? Which would lead the other within the school system? When a student shows he has understood (by his grades) what the teacher has taught him, would that mean he is learning? Would that mean should the teacher stop teaching (such as…
National Article 13: Once it starts, it does not know how to stop!

Maybe somethings are best if we did not start them at all! But the ball has been running since there were men (and women) – kind. http://www.flickr.com/photos/the_missing_graph/4647545119/lightbox/ Hmm ….
National Article 12: Maybe the name ‘football’ is misleading

Because one foot really cannot make a difference to the game till the team is willing to work as a team but more importantly works to defend for its nation. Yet we all relish that one foot that kicks “the dream goal” to reality! It is what glues us all to the set and the…
National Article 11: A Case of Productivity! Really?

It is classic! Perhaps we are working longer number of hours but we are also not the most productive. How is that possible? Data extracted on 25 Feb 2012 16:34 UTC (GMT) from OECD.Stat Data from 1979: http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/34/42/35205504.pdf Frequency Annual Time 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Country Australia 1 780 1 739…
National Article 10: Do we have “systems” to measure performance because we have lost beliefs in ourselves and others and we cannot talk about the loss?

Without a belief in oneself and others can we really expect to see performance by oneself, the organization and the country (what about the region, the world) improve over time? Should, let us say for the sake of argument, that we do not believe in ourselves and others, is there a price that we would…
Regional Article 9: Systemic Development of Industries in a Nation. What would that look like?

Is there such a thing as systemic development of industries? We can tell what systematic is. Yes? But what about systemic development of industries? Let us take a context. Let us say we wish to see the industry of dairy production grow within the country. What needs to happen that would enable the sustained development…
National Article 8: Do we demand pay increments based on what we need to spend on or ….

… what we did to give in generating the revenue or increasing it and more importantly sustaining the increase (so we know we got it right!) so that it would allow the country (or organizations) to pay us increments? What contributes to the revenue rising? More sales (not increased prices – that is not real) and…
National Article 7: Is Job Descriptions a cover-up for hiding otherwise our fears or our aspirations at the workplace?

And bound by a belief that our views of the world and our aspirations cannot be ‘brought out into the world for others to see’? Job descriptions, yes they describe the job we do or that someone should do. But it is that ubiquitous clause at the end that always says, ‘To carry and obey all lawful orders…
National Article 6: When things go wrong, should we “go after” the supply or the demand?

Remember, without demand there will be no supply. At the marketplace it is the demand (overt or otherwise) that drives supply! Take anything: Peddling of fake sex drugs Peddling of counterfeit cigarettes Peddling by prostitutes Addiction to gambling Addiction to alcohol consumption Addiction to smoking Rise of HIV/AIDs epidemic Rise of inflation Price wars Availability…
National Article 5: Is life one big party … and then four days of study? When do we learn? Or did the dead cat just killed our curiosity?

“What would it take to see the levels of education in the country rise without having the need to set standards (and the government having to invest in) for it?” Hmm …. have we thought of this question? As a country? To appreciate the question, first we will need to find out what is causing…
Regional Article 4: Are hurricanes haphazard or is there a deliberateness in their behaviour?

Looking at the picture above, what do you think? It really is not as haphazard as we think, is it? There is an order. Clue: Look towards the right where they start. What do you notice about the land in the areas? Do they tend to be green or brown?