In the mid-80s, when Jack Welch launched GE x10 he said: I would love to have a management team that really understood the cvsx10=bvs equation. Its the value-added role in the management process.
At that time GE was a USD35 billion manufacturer of everything from locomotives to light bulbs. By the time Jack left in 2001 GE market value had maximised to USD484 billion making it the most valuable company in the world.
Today, the most valuable company in the world is Google. In February 2013, WIRED Magazines Steven Levy interviewed Larry Page of Google and wrote:
Larry Page lives by the gospel of 10x. Most companies would be happy to improve a product by 10 percent. Not the CEO and cofounder of Google. The way Page sees it, a 10 percent improvement means that youre basically doing the same thing as everybody else. Thats why Page expects his employees to create products and services that are 10 times better than the competition.
MICHAEL HEWITT-GLEESON designed GE x10 for Jack Welch and is acknowledged as the father of x10 thinking. He is the author of The x10 Memeplex: Multiply Your Business By Ten! (Prentice Hall, 2000). Michael talks about x10 thinking here …
In my field of creative design, I am faced with this type of thinking requirement. It is good to think towards multiple levels of improvement instead of one small step of improvement. 10 times = a quantum leap
The skill in being a leader is that you can see a range of outcomes to any particular problem. You are not constrained by blinkered thinking, conditioned responses that most people have taken on board. Leaders think “outside the box”. they engage in creative thinking by escaping from the commonly held view on the current problem. They then search for their own unique response to the problem , and then think how effective that response would be in solving that problem. Actually, leaders do not see “problems” as problems, but as learning opportunities.
This separates them from the vast majority of the population.
I had the pleasure of learning about this last week at Melbourne Grammar School with Michael. This is a fantastic concept and I am currently trying to adapt it in to my day to day life. The more you practice the better you become.
Thanks for sharing with us all Michael.
Renee
i totally agree.i have used CVS2BVS about a dozen times ,every time i came
out of a manic episode.i also used it when my doctor told me i had to take
drugs for the rest of my life for the pain in my hip-joint. within a year i healed my arthritis using acupuncture and chinese herbal medicine.
then i had diabitis,fatty liver and stones in gallbladder and weightgain of 40 pounds in a year.within 6 month
of diagnosis my blood sugar is normal and i have lost 16 pounds ;using only
herbal medicine and regular exercise.
i do not take any pharmaceutical drugs though my doctors told me that
i had to take drugs for the rest of my life for each of this condition.
The ‘cvs2bvs’ concept is great, but only IF you have a desire or are motivated to make a change. From my observations, most of us (humans) get ‘stuck’ in our on comfort zone. This zone is very prevalent when you address someone’s ‘belief’ system (i.e. religious etc.). The act of change is very frightening for many adults. You see this in ones’ political views and personal relationships. Therefore, to seriously change or attempt to find a ‘better way’ or BVS, one must WANT or DESIRE to do so.
Lastly, people who question authority or another person’s views are seemingly most likely via ‘critical thinking’ to want to find a ‘BVS.’
I think the hardest thing might be to recognise your cvs…but once that has been accomplished, you might already have escaped….well, at least opened the door.
i really feel like i am starting to understand and that this lesson really sunk in.
How refreshing to read this lesson again.
Naughty me, I had forgot this lesson from when I last heard you speak at a conference. I must repeat “cvs is ok but look for a bvs” x 10.
To open my mind to bvs will definitely make me a better leader. Surprise, surprise I am not always right!!!
In my field of creative design, I am faced with this type of thinking requirement. It is good to think towards multiple levels of improvement instead of one small step of improvement. 10 times = a quantum leap
The skill in being a leader is that you can see a range of outcomes to any particular problem. You are not constrained by blinkered thinking, conditioned responses that most people have taken on board. Leaders think “outside the box”. they engage in creative thinking by escaping from the commonly held view on the current problem. They then search for their own unique response to the problem , and then think how effective that response would be in solving that problem. Actually, leaders do not see “problems” as problems, but as learning opportunities.
This separates them from the vast majority of the population.
cvs bvs is how I visualized in the Think Darwin lessons.
The perfection is in the design and the next copy is a little bit better, and the next copy a little bit better than that.
It’s always perfect although it can always be a little bit better and it’s perfect every time!
I had the pleasure of learning about this last week at Melbourne Grammar School with Michael. This is a fantastic concept and I am currently trying to adapt it in to my day to day life. The more you practice the better you become.
Thanks for sharing with us all Michael.
Renee
At this very moment I am escaping from my present situation looking to change it for better. Good reminder
i totally agree.i have used CVS2BVS about a dozen times ,every time i came
out of a manic episode.i also used it when my doctor told me i had to take
drugs for the rest of my life for the pain in my hip-joint. within a year i healed my arthritis using acupuncture and chinese herbal medicine.
then i had diabitis,fatty liver and stones in gallbladder and weightgain of 40 pounds in a year.within 6 month
of diagnosis my blood sugar is normal and i have lost 16 pounds ;using only
herbal medicine and regular exercise.
i do not take any pharmaceutical drugs though my doctors told me that
i had to take drugs for the rest of my life for each of this condition.
The ‘cvs2bvs’ concept is great, but only IF you have a desire or are motivated to make a change. From my observations, most of us (humans) get ‘stuck’ in our on comfort zone. This zone is very prevalent when you address someone’s ‘belief’ system (i.e. religious etc.). The act of change is very frightening for many adults. You see this in ones’ political views and personal relationships. Therefore, to seriously change or attempt to find a ‘better way’ or BVS, one must WANT or DESIRE to do so.
Lastly, people who question authority or another person’s views are seemingly most likely via ‘critical thinking’ to want to find a ‘BVS.’
I think the hardest thing might be to recognise your cvs…but once that has been accomplished, you might already have escaped….well, at least opened the door.