My previous article I started with the first of seven learning disabilities identified by Peter Senge in his book The Fifth Discipline. An organizations success is usually limited due to the learning disabilities found within it. These learning disabilities keep companies repeating the same mistakes time and again and prevent them from taking advantage of new opportunities.

The Enemy is Out There is not a problem confined to organizations but also to individuals in their daily lives. It is related to the saying A bad workman always blames his tools. Nothing is our fault it is always someone elses.

In an organization this disability can be fatal as marketing blames manufacturing who blames purchasing who blames accounting. Instead of a problem being sorted out someone else is blamed. Blame is easy; it can be passed on and forgotten. However, this is never going to solve the problem and let the organization thrive.

Think of a sales situation. The sales team goes out to sell the companys widget to a new customer but instead they come back empty handed. The company was dependent on this sale so everyone wants to know why it wasnt successful. Sales blames marketing as they say the prospect thought the widget solved another problem they had and worked a different way. Marketing blames design as they say that is what they were told. Design blames manufacture as they say the widget obviously wasnt made correctly. Manufacture blames purchasing saying the wrong parts were bought to make the widget. This pass the blame keeps going round until no one has any idea what the problem was or why the prospect didnt buy the widget.

To solve a problem someone needs to take ownership of it. They need to make it theirs and then strive to find the best solution. If the solution lands up on their doorstep then changes should be embraced and not avoided. The whole organization benefits if there is collaboration between the departments and there is a common vision of the desired outcome.

The Enemy is Out There is not confined to passing the blame within the organization but can also be used to blame external factors for our lack of success. Think of the airlines that blame the rising price of fuel for their lack of success. How then is Virgin or SouthWest operating a successful airline? The Enemy can be government regulations, expensive labor, foreign companies, the weather or any other excuse we can think of. When blaming someone or something else we should remember that there is always another company that doesnt seem to be affected by this enemy.

The more we take responsibility for our current situation and work as a team to find a solution the more successful we will be. Individuals and organizations have thrived in the midst of enormous adversity. Look for possibilities and solutions and strive to achieve your shared vision.

Remember that the Enemy will only affect you as much as you let it.

Graeme Nichol

What differentiates Graeme is the depth and breadth of his experience in management. He has either been in management or has been consulting to management for over 25 years. What he has seen and experienced is an unlimited resource that his clients can tap when resolving their business and team problems.

His experience includes consulting with large practices such as PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young, Coopers and Lybrand and Price Waterhouse; and boutique performance improvement implementation practices such as Knox D?Arcy Intl. and KrestaHague Intl. He has configured and managed complex ERP software implementations, worked in productivity and performance improvement, quality improvement, change management, strategy implementation, and managed both small and large projects. Graeme has worked in manufacturing, transportation, agriculture, communication, direct marketing, banking, beverages, consumer packaged goods, foodstuffs, and retail amongst others.

In his years of experience gained around the globe, he always found that business problems were usually either caused or solved by a team. If a team worked well together they could overcome amazing hurdles but if they were not aligned all types of hurdles appeared. He has gained extensive experience developing high performing teams. He knows what makes a team works and how to get them to function as one.

Besides management he is passionate about teaching and training. He has instructed many workshops and training sessions on various aspects of business such business planning, sales training, team building, introduction to business, conflict resolution, negotiations, general management, costing, management accounting, management reporting, developing management metrics and operations management.

When not working with his clients, Graeme?s passions are flying and sailing. His passion for teaching extends into his private life where he teaches flying and basic aerobatics. He has a small aerobatic plane which he loves to take up and throw around the sky. He has raced a 40ft yacht across the Atlantic Ocean, and competed in numerous sailing regattas, in the USA and abroad as well as cruised the East Coast of the USA with his family. Sailing is always a team event as each team member controls a small part of the boat. Team members need to be aligned and focused to achieve the results they desire.

Graeme has a BS degree in Agricultural Economics and an MBA from the University of Cape Town, RSA