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Re: Structure vs Substance?

Subject: Re: Structure vs Substance?
From: Dan Emory <danemory -at- primenet -dot- com>
To: SteveFJong -at- aol -dot- com, "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Tue, 13 Jun 2000 10:54:12 -0700

At 01:28 PM 6/13/00 -0400, SteveFJong -at- aol -dot- com wrote:

But can process
help? I think so, if the whole organization buys in to them.
=====================================================
Your statement reminded me of something I already knew, but failed to
dredge up as the ultimate response to those like Plato who think
structure, process, and standards are often counterproductive.

I doubt if any of those anti-process folks would grant that same freedom from
restrictive processes to other departments of the company in which they work,
particularly the engineering groups upon which they rely for the information
they require. So, as I suggested in the post which started this thread,
anti-process folks want to be able to blow smoke up their own ass (as well
as everyone else's) without a reciprocal smoke-blowing entitlement granted
to the other departments. They think they're entitled to some kind of plenary
indulgence that liberates them from the restrictive processes imposed on others,
because "writing is so much more creative than anything else done in my
company."

The chef in the cafeteria probably feels the same way. But suppose the chef
also decides to transcend policies and processes so as to unfetter his creative
juices. If the result is that the food is not ready at the appointed
time, it will be the anti-process folks who'll scream the loudest, demanding that
the chef must submit to discipline and process, and his creative urges will have
to suffer if it means they don't get to eat on time.
====================
| Nullius in Verba |
====================
Dan Emory, Dan Emory & Associates
FrameMaker/FrameMaker+SGML Document Design & Database Publishing
Voice/Fax: 949-722-8971 E-Mail: danemory -at- primenet -dot- com
10044 Adams Ave. #208, Huntington Beach, CA 92646
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