Could this be a turning point?
Road Warrior
Joined: May 2017
Posts: 1,347
Likes: 2,060
From: Phoenix
Have you ever heard of the Peter Principle? In a nutshell it says that competent people will be promoted up to their level of incompetence.
If you're a good worker, you'll get a promotion, which means you'll be doing a different job. Building widgets on an assembly line is an entirely different job and requires an entirely different skillset than managing people who build widgets on an assembly line. If you make the adjustment and are a good manager, you'll get promoted to store manager. Which is an entirely wildly different set of skills, managing the flow of every department rather than managing just the workers you used to work shoulder to shoulder with. But if you pull it off and do a great job, they'll promote you to General Manager. And by that time you're supposed to do profit and loss statements, accounting, forward projections, regulatory compliance, health and welfare benefits, hiring and firing, and on and on. What, exactly, does being a good builder of widgets qualify someone to be general manager?
At some point you're not going to be great at the new job, it's a step too far. So you're screwed, you're stuck in a job you can't do well, and you'll never get promoted again. And the company's screwed, because they lost a great widget builder, a very good manager, and a good store manager, and now they're stuck with a mediocre or incompetent general manager.
You're miserable. They're miserable. The whole "promotion" system is doomed to fail, because good people are promoted up to their level of incompetence.
That's why you don't promote from within. When you're a $3 billion multinational heavy equipment manufacturer and you need a CEO, you should look for the best CEO of a multibillion dollar multinational heavy equipment manager you can find, and if you find a successful one who also happens to love motorcycles, that's who you hire.
If you're a multibillion dollar multinational motorcycle maker, what you DON'T DO is hire a CEO climate zealot who wants to ban all fossil fuels and eradicate all gasoline engine vehicles and who pisses away all your money on electric motorcycles that nobody wants and closes hundreds of dealerships, who has a stated goal of selling fewer motorcycles!
If you're a good worker, you'll get a promotion, which means you'll be doing a different job. Building widgets on an assembly line is an entirely different job and requires an entirely different skillset than managing people who build widgets on an assembly line. If you make the adjustment and are a good manager, you'll get promoted to store manager. Which is an entirely wildly different set of skills, managing the flow of every department rather than managing just the workers you used to work shoulder to shoulder with. But if you pull it off and do a great job, they'll promote you to General Manager. And by that time you're supposed to do profit and loss statements, accounting, forward projections, regulatory compliance, health and welfare benefits, hiring and firing, and on and on. What, exactly, does being a good builder of widgets qualify someone to be general manager?
At some point you're not going to be great at the new job, it's a step too far. So you're screwed, you're stuck in a job you can't do well, and you'll never get promoted again. And the company's screwed, because they lost a great widget builder, a very good manager, and a good store manager, and now they're stuck with a mediocre or incompetent general manager.
You're miserable. They're miserable. The whole "promotion" system is doomed to fail, because good people are promoted up to their level of incompetence.
That's why you don't promote from within. When you're a $3 billion multinational heavy equipment manufacturer and you need a CEO, you should look for the best CEO of a multibillion dollar multinational heavy equipment manager you can find, and if you find a successful one who also happens to love motorcycles, that's who you hire.
If you're a multibillion dollar multinational motorcycle maker, what you DON'T DO is hire a CEO climate zealot who wants to ban all fossil fuels and eradicate all gasoline engine vehicles and who pisses away all your money on electric motorcycles that nobody wants and closes hundreds of dealerships, who has a stated goal of selling fewer motorcycles!
While I agree that a Janitor becoming a CEO is a stretch, but anyone that has good work ethics and half a brain is capable of moving up. A few years at each level and you pretty much know your bosses job.
If you don't promote loyal employees they'll figure out they have no future with the company and go elsewhere and instead of your widget assembler being a good manager you have to replace him, train the new guy and "maybe" someday he'll be as good as the guy you screwed over.
Todays business put way to much emphasis on education and not on knowledge.
Road Warrior
Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 1,347
Likes: 1,494
From: Santa Barbara
The MoCo is in play. Given the world tariff situation, it would behoove the Indians to buy into the U.S. market and the company's domestic manufacturing base.
I still think the brand has become the Buick of motorcycles, and that ain't good.
I still think the brand has become the Buick of motorcycles, and that ain't good.
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2017
Posts: 4,251
Likes: 3,134
From: Texas
But I think you're speaking too broadly. Being a good entrepreneur in no way qualifies you to be CEO of a multinational multibillion dollar conglomerate.
A few years at each level and you pretty much know your bosses job.
If you don't promote loyal employees they'll figure out they have no future with the company and go elsewhere and instead of your widget assembler being a good manager you have to replace him, train the new guy and "maybe" someday he'll be as good as the guy you screwed over.
Todays business put way to much emphasis on education and not on knowledge.
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2017
Posts: 4,251
Likes: 3,134
From: Texas
Thread Starter
|
Tourer
Joined: Dec 2022
Posts: 262
Likes: 112
From: Queens NY
Let's hope it doesn't become the Oldsmobile or Pontiac of motor bikes.
Club Member
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 66,126
Likes: 51,458
From: Niles Canyon Ca.
China's going to get a piece Harley in the end, the moco sold off the rights to the sportster design to China long ago, China's been making a direct clone a few years now. That move was delibrate to push the Street and the new engine design on buyers and conditioning the younger new buyer base to accept the idea of the bikes being made outside the US. Long game folks, think long game, none of what's going on is new, this has all been in the works well over a decade. They outright said as much in the Dealers only Expo in 2016.
