Development of a Continuous Improvement Culture
Serious tournament players often have their individual (physical and mental) exercise routines and regularly read up on the latest theory to ensure that they stay on top of their game. But what makes a chess player world-class as opposed to just being good is his ability to not just keep up with the latest theory, but to challenge existing ones and potentially contribute new ones.
In chess, we often hear and read about a world-class player introducing a "novelty" into a known system or "refuting" an accepted theory. In business, the application of best practice models is not necessarily enough to gain genuine competitive advantage. What advantage can be had when the competition applies the same principles, gets the same compliance certificates, and recruits the same "black belts" as you?
Genuine competitive advantage can only be had if there are business intangibles that you are able to do and gain that none of your competitors can. A continuous improvement culture, one that always looks for possibilities and is not averse to challenging existing systems, will help the business leader find these intangibles.
Recognition of Key Decision Points
We often wonder how the world's best players can quickly trot out moves in succession, then just suddenly hunker down and think, and not make a move for more than half an hour. One easy answer, especially at the start of a game, is the player is familiar with existing theory and only starts critically thinking when the opponent makes an unfamiliar move.
A more subtle reason is most world-class chess players instinctively recognize, from years of practice and practical experience, key decision points in a game. These key decision points are often situations where there are at least two serious moves consideration and the move that is next chosen can dictate the direction the rest of the game takes.
There are many of these types of decision points in the life cycle of any business: divestment considerations, new business opportunities, interest rate variations, etc. It is important the business leader not only recognizes key business decision points when such arise, but invest necessary resources to ensure that he makes the correct decision.
Taking A Decisive Action
Personally, I believe this is the most important capacity a business leader can learn from chess. A game of chess is complex: Chess players claimed there are far more possible moves in a chess game than there are atoms in the universe. So a chess player can spend all the time that he wants looking as far ahead and considering complex a decision tree as he can handle. Also, after all the time a chess player spent analyzing, it is more likely there are far more moves that he failed to consider than he took. Yet a chess player has to make a move and a quick one at the most in gaining a competitive edge.
Business leaders have to make most key business decisions under similar circumstances. What often sets great business leaders apart are their ability to recognize when they need to take a decisive action, and take this even with limited information.
Playing chess in the workforce is not that hard in grooming workers to take decisive action in their work. Businesses need critical thinkers who have the ability to advance forward even with limited information. Chess develops the mind in using strategies to advance floundering or expanding business. Chess as a part of workforce training will help businesses keep employees challenged for a long time(Annmarie Edwards, Workforce Trainer).
Efrain Tionko is a Senior Consultant at Northgate Arinso Australia. You can learn more about his services @ http://www.linkedin.com/in/ebtionko
Copyrighted (C)2008 by Efrain Tionko
1 comments:
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