Space Junk – The Final Frontier?
I recently heard a news article on the BBC Global Podcast that there’s an increasing amount of ‘space junk’ flying around above earth. Do we have a new ‘Final Frontier’? What could it actually mean for us down on earth?
We may not realise how much we depend on ‘stuff in space’. Weather information, new celestial bodies forming or old ones collapsing, increases in our knowledge about ‘what’s out there’, the GPS systems we use in our cars all depend on some kind of instrument orbiting earth ‘somewhere up there’. We even have global space stations inhabited by humans carrying out various experiments for the benefit of mankind.
This stuff all has to be put in place ‘up there’ – usually by rockets launched from various points on the globe. Occasionally, a ‘Space Shuttle’ has been used (although not for some time, except to re-supply the space stations with personnel, supplies and equipment).
The result of sending stuff up (and more of it) is now upon us. A lot of bits of metal hurtling around at tremendous speeds, all capable of inflicting damage on anything that gets in its way. Some will just be ‘space litter’ – parts of previous rockets used to launch equipment that are still up there. They don’t do anything, just like litter down here on earth. In a worst-case scenario, their orbit may decay, and they fall back to earth, hopefully not landing in a built-up area. Even then, the chances are higher that they will burn up in our atmosphere on re-entry.
Our problem is now, what to do with it all. Some of it may, as mentioned above, simply be ‘junk’. Other bits may be equipment that is no longer functioning or has been superseded by more modern equipment.
The problem is cleaning it up. It would mean either launching new vehicles capable of collecting and bringing back said space junk or destroying it so that it no longer poses any kind of threat or obstacle. Could there be a market on eBay for ‘Used Space Junk’?
I’ve spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Crisis Management, Leadership, Risk
Wasting Value
Occasionally, organisations and individuals looking to ‘do things better’ ask me to facilitate ‘Productivity Workshops’. ‘Productivity’ means different things to different people: the way we use our time, how we carry out certain processes, the availability of certain services and others. One concept that is frequently overlooked but comes within the ambit of ‘Productivity’ is ‘Value’.
The reason that many want to increase productivity is to increase actual value delivered to their customers. ‘Value’ again can mean different things to different people. Take, for example, a free meal on a 2-hour flight. For some, this has no value, for others, it’s part of the ‘in-flight experience’ that they’ve paid for. Low-Cost Carriers (LCCs) have recognised that not everyone wants (or needs) a free meal and plenty of legroom on a 2-hour flight and have developed business models that deliver on-time, low-cost flights with quality service between destinations to travellers prepared to do without meals and legroom.
One aspect of value that goes unnoticed is waiting – one of the single most common (apart from checking) occurrences. We can spend considerable time waiting: in queues, in offices, at meetings. Whilst we wait, our time is slipping away and, if we should be at work, our colleagues and office are also losing the benefit of the work we could be putting in there. This costs our business money.
The advance of technology is eroding (or even eliminating) waiting times in many cases. With no end to the current coronavirus pandemic, it’s even more important now that we spend as little time as possible waiting in crowded areas.
If we were to count the number of hours spent waiting in our day, it would come as a shock. We need to eliminate as many processes as possible if they increase waiting times, especially if this is for no good reason (from the customer’s and operator’s point of view).
What can we eliminate from our processes? What’s not adding value, or duplicates what’s been done before or will be done after? How many cases have we seen where that extra step has actually resulted in catching an error, or are errors rare? What would be the consequences of the error slipping through? If it can be corrected easily and with little to no cost to customer and operator, why not remove that step?
Save time, reduce waiting, increase efficiency and reduce costs.
I’ve spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610. Labels: Customer Care, Financial, Leadership, Productivity, Strategy, Teamwork
