How Godzilla beat the Americans...

...and the British...

In the 1950's the world was still reeling from the effects of the Second World War, and for the axis economies there were new rules of industrial engagement that were imposed by the victorious allies.

So for Japan and Germany, this meant that manufacturing of military hardware was effectively banned; the controls extended to the media and entertainment sectors too.

In Japan military forces were confined to the Japan Self Defence Force or JDSF and instead of making war movies, the action movies that were "allowed" had to be "non combatant"; so Godzilla was born...

First coming to the screens 60 years ago in 1954, he became one of the most regular icons of Japanese culture and even has his own Star on the Walk of Fame in Hollywood.

The same constraints that led to Godzilla, also had a dramatic effect on other manufacturing sectors too; namely the motor industry...

Japan recognised that it had to compete with the traditional US and European Brands, and that as the economies were being rebuilt, there would be huge potential for sales. The challenge was how could they compete with the established car companies - especially when their reputation in their target market was somewhat tainted...

Enter Mr Edwards Deming...

Deming had told the US Car manufacturers that in this brave new world economy, they would have to compete on quality and durability not just aesthetics. The US companies politely told him where to shove his ideas...

In 1947 he was seconded to Japan to help the US military conduct a census, due for 1951. It was while he was in Japan that his ideas came to the attention of the Japanese Union of Scientists and Engineers. 


He was invited to give a series of lectures to the membership, the most notable being
delivered at the Mt. Hakone Conference Centre in August 1950; his ideas for Total Quality Management gave the Japanese an edge - they could compete on quality and reliability and displace the arrogant established manufacturers.

Seen as the Father of TQM, Demings seminal book Out of the Crisis, he defines 14 Key Principles for Transforming Business Effectiveness.

And here they are...

1. Create constancy of purpose toward improvement of product and service, with the aim to become competitive, to stay in business and to provide jobs.
2. Adopt the new philosophy. We are in a new economic age. Western management must awaken to the challenge, must learn their responsibilities, and take on leadership for change.
3. Cease dependence on inspection to achieve quality. Eliminate the need for massive inspection by building quality into the product in the first place.
4. End the practice of awarding business on the basis of a price tag. Instead, minimize total cost. Move towards a single supplier for any one item, on a long-term relationship of loyalty and trust.
5. Improve constantly and forever the system of production and service, to improve quality and productivity, and thus constantly decrease costs.
6. Institute training on the job.
7. Institute leadership. The aim of supervision should be to help people and machines and gadgets do a better job. Supervision of management is in need of overhaul, as well as supervision of production workers.
8. Drive out fear, so that everyone may work effectively for the company. (See Ch. 3 of "Out of the Crisis")
9. Break down barriers between departments. People in research, design, sales, and production must work as a team, in order to foresee problems of production and usage that may be encountered with the product or service.
10. Eliminate slogans, exhortations, and targets for the work force asking for zero defects and new levels of productivity. Such exhortations only create adversarial relationships, as the bulk of the causes of low quality and low productivity belong to the system and thus lie beyond the power of the work force.
    1. Eliminate work standards (quotas) on the factory floor. Substitute with leadership.
    2. Eliminate management by objective. Eliminate management by numbers and numerical goals. Instead substitute with leadership.
11. Remove barriers that rob the hourly worker of his right to pride of workmanship. The responsibility of supervisors must be changed from sheer numbers to quality.
12. Remove barriers that rob people in management and in engineering of their right to pride of workmanship. This means, inter alia, abolishment of the annual or merit rating and of management by objectives.
13. Institute a vigorous program of education and self-improvement.
14. Put everybody in the company to work to accomplish the transformation. The transformation is everybody's job

So, the environment that created Godzilla, also led to the creation of the Deming Philosophy - the Deming Prize continues to be awarded in Japan - was used to effectively wipe out the UK Car Manufacturing Sector, and enable Toyota to become the best selling brand in the USA...

And, the same principles can be applied in your business with the same dramatic effects. Remember, I have read the books so you don't have to; if you'd like to discuss how we can introduce these disciplines into your business, drop me a line back..

Have a great week...