Hey there!
Last week I had the pleasure of introducing myself and engineering to 3 classes of Gr. 5 students. For the rest of the school year I am going to be working with them on their science curriculum, doing experiments and generally giving an engineers view on how what they learn is being applied all around them.
Let me say that I got a lesson in being organized and focused on the key points. I knew basically what I wanted to say but as soon as I got in the class, most of that went out the window! Once you give the kids a chance to ask questions, they can lead in you in so many different directions! After the first class, which I didn't do too bad for time, I thought I was prepared for the next! NOPE! During the second class I blew my time budget and by the third group, I was at the school for about an hour longer than I had planned!
Since the first part of the curriculum I would be helping with is about structures and forces acting on them, I knew we would be talking a lot about bridges. I decided to tie this in with the Iron Ring that engineers in Canada wear BUT I just wanted to give them an idea of what was to come. No, Gr. 5's want the info NOW. Plus, they are proud of their parents and want to tell you all about what the parents do! And the students want to show off what they know!
All in all, it was a lot of fun and I had a good time. I did learn though that I really need to think about what my key lessons are that I want to share, the amount of time that I have to share it in and how the audience best receives it. Then I need to reduce it by half because the kids will have too many questions! It is kind of like when you pack for a trip!
Lastly, I gained a new admiration for teachers especially in how they can politely, without putting children down, stop the questions and move on to the next topic.
I am so looking forward to building bridges, solar ovens, and doing lots of other fun with the kids! There is nothing like spending time with a class to get back to what is really important in life and refresh your own desire to learn more!
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Thursday, November 5, 2009
How numbers can make you make mistakes
When I've moved into new jobs, positions or projects, one of the first things I'll do is look to see what data there is about the process and what people are doing with it. Time and again it amazes me what huge amounts of data there is - or the complete lack of it. Having lots of data is not always good because the majority of it is completely useless and the rest is never looked at.
People have an obsession with numbers and apply a lot of significance to them (IE baseball stats) without thinking through what the numbers are truly telling us. The three biggest sins when measuring and analyzing numbers would be: a) they don't measure anything controllable, b) the measure at the wrong frequency (too often or not often enough) and c) they measure the wrong step of the process.
Measuring too often or not often enough can be quite a significant factor but focus on only that particular point of the process. The two other sins have a tremendous impact on the total process and on the business itself if the measurements are used to make significant business decisions. Again, those two sins are measuring the wrong step in the process and measuring uncontrollable factors.
Imagine a company making widgets. The company has been doing well and they know this because they look at their sales numbers on a monthly basis. One month, the sales drop. Second month, they drop as well and phone calls by Sales to customers aren't being returned. The owner is furious and fires the Sales Manager.
The new Sales Manager comes in but sales continue to fall. She gets smart though and starts looking for other measures. Hmm, complaints about the number of defective parts being received has escalated in the past 6 months. Speaking to the plant manager, who in only measured on number of cases leaving the plant, reveals that an old machine was put back on the line about 7 months ago so that demand for product could be met.
Together, they look at the old machine and start to measure the number of defective parts making it into the cases. Turns out, there is an 80% defective rate on a machine that produces 1/3 of all production. Over 26% of the product shipped from the plant to customers is defective.
The Sales Manager does not have any control over the quality of the product, which is getting customers upset and causing them not to purchase product. Yet, she is being measured on it via sales numbers. The Plant Manager is being measured on how much product is going out the door, not on how good that product is - measuring the wrong point in the process and after the fact.
Another way to look at is the dieter. They want to be healthier and figure if they measure their weight everyday, they'll know how healthy they are. Between the error inherent in the scale and the natural daily variation in weight, they won't get the true story. Plus, as they exercise more and make better nutrional choices, the fat will decrease and the heavier, more dense muscle will increase, potentially causing an increase in actual weight. BUT, the person is actually healthier and if they measured the type of food they were eating, how long they can now run for and how long they can hold the plank position, they would know that they are healthier! Especially as the jeans wouldn't be so tight! A much better, truer measure!
People have an obsession with numbers and apply a lot of significance to them (IE baseball stats) without thinking through what the numbers are truly telling us. The three biggest sins when measuring and analyzing numbers would be: a) they don't measure anything controllable, b) the measure at the wrong frequency (too often or not often enough) and c) they measure the wrong step of the process.
Measuring too often or not often enough can be quite a significant factor but focus on only that particular point of the process. The two other sins have a tremendous impact on the total process and on the business itself if the measurements are used to make significant business decisions. Again, those two sins are measuring the wrong step in the process and measuring uncontrollable factors.
Imagine a company making widgets. The company has been doing well and they know this because they look at their sales numbers on a monthly basis. One month, the sales drop. Second month, they drop as well and phone calls by Sales to customers aren't being returned. The owner is furious and fires the Sales Manager.
The new Sales Manager comes in but sales continue to fall. She gets smart though and starts looking for other measures. Hmm, complaints about the number of defective parts being received has escalated in the past 6 months. Speaking to the plant manager, who in only measured on number of cases leaving the plant, reveals that an old machine was put back on the line about 7 months ago so that demand for product could be met.
Together, they look at the old machine and start to measure the number of defective parts making it into the cases. Turns out, there is an 80% defective rate on a machine that produces 1/3 of all production. Over 26% of the product shipped from the plant to customers is defective.
The Sales Manager does not have any control over the quality of the product, which is getting customers upset and causing them not to purchase product. Yet, she is being measured on it via sales numbers. The Plant Manager is being measured on how much product is going out the door, not on how good that product is - measuring the wrong point in the process and after the fact.
Another way to look at is the dieter. They want to be healthier and figure if they measure their weight everyday, they'll know how healthy they are. Between the error inherent in the scale and the natural daily variation in weight, they won't get the true story. Plus, as they exercise more and make better nutrional choices, the fat will decrease and the heavier, more dense muscle will increase, potentially causing an increase in actual weight. BUT, the person is actually healthier and if they measured the type of food they were eating, how long they can now run for and how long they can hold the plank position, they would know that they are healthier! Especially as the jeans wouldn't be so tight! A much better, truer measure!
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