[Leica] Volume two of the expert criticisms

[Aubin <aubin@aa.net>]

Greetings all,

Most big companies have opinion boxes on the floor because the people directly 
involved in actually PRODUCING the product have a bit more insight into ways to improve
productivity and reduce scrap and rework.  I hope Leica does the same, as the people who
built the cameras probably know quite a bit about how to improve them.  Very few of them
will produce new ideas about marketing though, and probably almost as few ideas about 
new product lines, still, one never knows.

As for patronizing, you ain't seen nothing yet.  Wait till I get my New York up!

No, all kidding aside, I'm not being patronizing, and I'm sorry you managed to 
get that inflection from my written words.  What I'm saying is that I respect and 
admire the people who care enough to argue and debate and suggest things that
might make it better.  Its the caring that causes that behavior, and not a bias for 
arguing just to hear themselves.  

One thing I learned a long time ago in managing employees is that the sullen
and uncommunicative ones are the dissatisfied and uncaring ones, not the ones
who get involved and offer suggestions and ideas.  I am all for everyone trying to 
offer ideas and analysis of what Leica could do to make it better, and much prefer that
to a crowd of sycophants looking for instant gratification or they'll walk.

I just get a little impatient with the quick fix solutions, and suggest that there may be a 
whole lot of other issues that are not public domain information, and to assume that
the fix is as easy as 1-2- 3 is naive, at the very least.  I for one would suggest that
there may be a whole lot of other things being dealt with, and that we should temper our
quick and superficial analysis with the caution that we are not privy to these things.

I would like to know what is going on, and why, but also understand the issues of 
keeping trade information secret.  So I will wait and see, and hope for the best.

later -

Norm
 

***********************
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 1999 16:19:03 +1000
From: "A.H.SCHMIDT" <horsts@primus.com.au>
Subject: Re: [Leica] Erwins last comments on the marketing experts

<SNIP>

Is this the reason, why most big companies have suggestion boxes on the shop floor.For
some strange reasons, many of the suggestions( from non-managment workers) are later used
and the owner of the suggestions get paid well.

<SNIP>

Well, how patronizing can you get!!!.  You forgot to say: "Let'em,  after all, they can't
do any harm."

Horst Schmidt