Will Your Next Mistake Be Fatal?: Avoiding the Chain of Mistakes That Can Destroy Your Organization - Hardcover

Mittelstaedt, Robert

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0131913646 ISBN 13: 9780131913646

Publisher: Financial Times/ Prentice Hall, 2004

Synopsis

What catastrophes have in common -- and how to keep them from happening to you!

Introducing M3: the first systematic approach to

• Managing mistakes so they don't lead to disaster
• Building systems that prevent 'failure chains' from spiraling out of control
• Avoiding failures in preparation, strategy, execution, and culture
• Reducing the impact and cost of the mistakes you do make

Also includes coverage of the unique 'mistake chains' facing entrepreneurs and small businesses.

Every business disaster has one thing in common: the people in charge never saw it coming. The warnings were there. They didn't have to wreck their companies and their careers. But they let it happen. This book can keep it from happening to you.

You will make mistakes. If you don't, you're not taking enough risk. But you can make fewer of them. You can catch them early. Keep them cheap. Learn from them. Whether you're in a global enterprise or a garage startup, Robert Mittelstaedt shows how. His techniques apply to everything from culture to strategy, customer safety to market share. They won't just help you avoid catastrophe: they'll help you improve profitability and business value, too.

Stay on track. Stay off the front page of The Wall Street Journal. Read this book.

About this title

Synopsis:

What do Enron, the Space Shuttle Columbia and 9/11 have in common? Catastrophes don't 'just happen.' From Enron to the Space Shuttle Columbia to 9/11, virtually every disaster is the end result of a long series of small mistakes -- each one easy to overlook, and set in motion because people simply refused to believe the evidence staring right at them. Robert E. Mittelstaedt first identifies the common factors beneath massive failures ranging from Watergate to Firestone Tire, Three Mile Island to 'New Coke.' Why did they happen? What could have prevented them? How did they spiral out of control? Then, drawing on these lessons, he introduces 'M3': the first systematic approach to managing multiple mistakes so they don't lead to disaster. Mittelstaedt addresses errors in preparation, execution, strategy, and culture. He shows how to build internal systems that trigger loud and actionable alarms before 'failure chains' accelerate beyond control. Mittelstaedt's techniques don't just apply to high-profile disasters: they're equally valuable in helping you avert failures arising from mistakes in analyzing markets, understanding customers, assessing feedback, or directing investments.

Don't want the next failure to be yours? Read this book.

About the Author:

Robert E. Mittelstaedt Jr. is Dean and professor of the W. P. Carvey School of Business, Arizona State University, and former, Vice Dean and Director, Aresty Institute of Executive Education, The Wharton School. He has consulted with organizations ranging from IBM to Weirton Steel, Pfizer to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and is a member of the board of directors of three corporations in electronics and healthcare services businesses.

Mittelstaedt's research interests have included executive learning, corporate governance, IT, and strategy. He formerly directed the Wharton Innovation Center and the Wharton Applied Research Center. Mittelstaedt founded Intellgo, Inc. He served as an officer in the U.S. Navy in nuclear submarines at the height of the Cold War. He is also a licensed commercial pilot with multi-engine and instrument ratings.

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About this edition

• Publisher: Financial Times/ Prentice Hall
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0131913646
• ISBN 13: 9780131913646
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 336