After his habitual morning round through the factory, Bill, the Operations Director of Global Manufacturing Services Inc., sits down at his desk to read and answer his emails. He prefers to do this between 9am and 9:30am each and every morning, while the morning shift is having their coffee break in the factory cafeteria. This is the perfect time of the day to answer emails, because during the shift’s coffee break Bill will not be distracted by people browsing into his office space.
One of the email messages among the many in Bill’s inbox is from Gregg, Bills’s superior and CEO of the company. The message arrived at 6:32am this morning, and it is marked as highly urgent.
“Bill, I need your help with info about the mould changing times, and I need it asap. Thanks! Gregg.”
While reading Gregg’s email, and reading it again, Bill slowly shakes his head and mumbles to himself: “Some info…?? What info exactly does Gregg need…? What does Gregg need that information for…? And of which injection moulds…? We have so many different configurations that Gregg would have to be more specific in defining his question for me to be able to give him a professional answer. And when exactly is asap…??”
Bill starts answering Gregg’s email, carefully phrasing his thoughts:
“Gregg, I just wanted to let you know that, in principle, I am prepared to help you with finding answers to your question. However, in order to provide definitive answers, I need to know, in as much detail as possible, what kind of information you are looking for regarding exactly which injection moulds (and please define the level of detail you require, which will of course determine the quality of the answers). Based on that information, I will do a preliminary research to determine if I can obtain the information you are looking for, at the level of detail you are interested in, and then I will discuss your question with the mould engineer for his input. Please also specify in more detail when exactly you would need the information, so we can accurately plan for it. Thank you, Bill”
Just when Bill hits the ‘send’-button, the door swings open and Gregg with a big grin on his face and in his typical swagger enters into Bill’s office, cordially joking: “Haha…!! Here you are Bill… Found you…!! Man, it is always so hard to find you… You are always hiding out here in your little dark dungeon…!!”, followed by: “Anyway, Bill, did you get my email…?”
Bill, with his hands still on the keyboard, hesitates for a moment, and thinks: “What do you mean it is hard to get a hold of me… I sit here at my desk every morning between 9am and 9:30am…”, but then he decides not to respond to Gregg’s remark, and instead he calmly says: “It is okay to say good morning, Gregg”. Then, with a calm and composed voice he asks Gregg the question: “Which email did you mean Gregg…?
Gregg immediately responds with: “Ha! The one about the moulds of course…!”
Bill: “I guess you mean your last email with the question about the mould changing times?”
Gregg: “Yes of-course the one about the mould changing times! That’s what I just said! What else would I need you for…??”. He gives Bill a cordial slap on the shoulder.
Bill mutters: “Well Gregg, you just now mentioned an email about ‘the moulds’, which is not necessarily the same as an email about ‘mould changing times’…”
Gregg, slightly impatient now: “Oh, come-on Bill, don’t be such a stick in the mud… of-course you know which email I meant!”
Bill: “Well Gregg, I have received at least twelve emails from you since last night…” Bill pauses for a moment, and then continues: “Some were about mould repairs, some about mould replacements, some about mould changing times. So how can I know which one you meant…?”. He decides not to add what he is thinking: “And most of them leave me guessing what exactly you need…”.
Gregg: “Okay, Bill, whatever, yeah, I meant the one about the mould changing times! Okay, so what about the mould changing times?”
Bill: “Well Gregg, indeed, what about the mould changing times? What exactly do you need to know? I just answered your email with a few questions I need answers to if you want me to help you out. So, I suggest that you just take a little time to read my email first”
Gregg: “For Pete’s sake, Bill, can’t we just discuss it here and now?”
Bill: “Well Gregg, as you wish…” Bill looks down, and after a few seconds of silence he continues with: “As I wrote to you this morning in my answer to your email, I am prepared to help you with finding answers to your question”.
Bill pauses for another moment, and then continues: “However, in order to provide you with the right answers, I need to know, in as much detail as possible, what kind of information you are looking for regarding exactly which injection molds”.
Bill suddenly re-establishes eye contact with Gregg, and with a stern face he adds: “Do you have any idea, Gregg, how many injection mould configurations we work with…?”
Gregg stares at Bill with a blank face while Bill again pauses for a moment. Bill then continues: “Please, Gregg, carefully define the level of detail you require, because it will help us decide what we have to look for, and it will of course determine the quality of the answers I can get you”.
Gregg, impatient now: “Okay, okay, Bill…, just tell me what you need…!”
Bill: “Well Gregg, that is what I am trying to do right now. Based on the information I just mentioned, I will do a preliminary research to determine if I can obtain the information you are looking for, at the level of detail you are interested in, which of course I still need to receive, and then I will discuss your question with our mould engineer for his input”.
Bill pauses for a moment, and then says: “Please also specify in more detail when exactly you would need the information, Gregg, so we can accurately plan for it.”
Gregg, who is turning red in his face now: “Yeah, okay Bill, whatever you need… just get me the info by this afternoon, because I urgently need it”.
Bill: “Well Gregg, that is exactly the point, as I was just trying to explain. What info exactly do you need…?”
Gregg, angry now, with an elevated voice: “Oh, what the heck Bill, just send me all the mould changing times, of all our configurations, whatever…!! Just make sure that I have it by 3pm!”
While finishing his sentence, Gregg paces out of Bill’s office, slamming the door while he leaves.
Bill sits back, and doesn’t know what to say. How on earth can one run a complex operation without attending the details? To Bill, understanding the details and implications of a task or project is essential for making professional decisions, no matter how insignificant certain details may seem. One is only able to assess significance after investigating significance, right? Contrary to Gregg, Bill likes to do things right the first time, instead of constantly having to give it another try. A need to improvise demonstrates lack of professionalism, and is a waste of valuable resources, according to Bill. Life is too short to keep missing the mark all the time; it is much more efficient to prepare well and hit the mark immediately at first try.
Read this case from Gregg’s perspective →
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