Isn't MBM just a bunch of common sense?
That's a frequent refrain I've heard (and, cough, perhaps have even said a few times) over the years. "Oh, people follow incentives? Duh. What--sharing information is useful? You need a mental model for that?!"
Yes, many aspects of MBM are fairly intuitive, but despite that this stuff is just dang hard to apply. Mr. Koch, referring to one of the mental models used frequently in Market-Based Management, lamented the fact that it's application seemed common sensical to most people; the fact that few of us actually apply it, he said, makes it more like "uncommon sense."
This article seems to get at how most of us--unfortunately--fail at "common sense" fairly frequently, MBM or otherwise. As the abstract says, "Empirical research as well as numerous cases studying managers across diverse disciplines, cultures, and industries reveal consistent patterns of counter-productive decision-making. In this regard, decision-makers appear to exhibit an unmistakable tendency to ‘over-intervene' in the systems (companies, organizations, cities, communities, etc.) they are responsible for. This suggests an inadequate appreciation and understanding of the dynamics underlying decision-making, generating unwarranted and excessive fluctuations and instability in organizations. Numerous studies have observed such phenomena in simulated and experimental settings."
I can't remember who I heard it from first, but one description of MBM has always stuck with me: "disciplined common sense."
I like how that phrasing gets at the obviously common-sensical nature of some aspects of MBM, while evoking also the difficulty inherent in consistently and rigorously applying so many mental models in tandem.
What's a manager to do? Practice, practice, practice. As Ann is fond of saying, you have to exercise those muscles in your brain to make them tough enough to do the job all of the time. Find an MBM spotter and have fun pumping iron. [Worst. Joke. Ever.]
ht: Charlie Bowtie for the article.
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