A Book Report By Kareem Sumner Who Moved My Cheese? A Book Report By Kareem Sumner April 25, 2017 Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. 770.627.71

Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. Agenda Brief Summary of Book Why the book was chosen Character comparisons to Dell and IBM Conclusion/Recommendations Questions? April 25, 2017 Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. 770.627.71

Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. Book Summary Four Beings two simple-minded mice, Sniff and Scurry two complex-minded, ‘little people’, Hem and Ham, who were similar to you and I ‘Cheese’ not only food for nourishment (esp. Hem & Haw) represented every aspect of their lives (success, social status, achievement etc.) ‘Maze’ the place where you look for what you want (organization, community etc.) April 25, 2017 Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. 770.627.71

Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. Book Summary Deals with change and the fear many people have when faced with unexpected change A tale of four beings living in a ‘maze’ who loved ‘cheese’ The cheese disappeared unexpectedly and the four beings react differently Four Beings two simple-minded mice, Sniff and Scurry two complex-minded, ‘little people’, Hem and Ham, who were similar to you and I ‘Cheese’ not only food for nourishment (esp. Hem & Haw) represented every aspect of their lives (success, social status, achievement etc.) ‘Maze’ the place where you look for what you want (organization, community etc.) April 25, 2017 Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. 770.627.71

Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. Why I chose this book? Short reading Very short reading Strategic plans – ‘living document’ My strategy find the book with the least amount pages if the reading was boring, the pain I would endure would be short lived Strategic Plans always being adjusted/modified Industry/Technology changes April 25, 2017 Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. 770.627.71

Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. Dell vs. Sniff & Scurry Lived on the edge and took risks Experimented a lot early on and made many mistakes Never got too comfortable with success Did not ‘waste time noodling over a decision’ Living on the edge both took risks it was a risk for sniff and scurry to run off in the maze (the unknown) Made mistakes wrong turns in the maze – getting lost dell learned from the mistakes Dell not comfortable with success set goals, achieved them and set new goals Haw realizes this a while later Dell was not simple minded like Sniff and Scurry, but he kept things simple. s&s did not overanalyze things – no more cheese, find new cheese April 25, 2017 Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. 770.627.71

Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. IBM vs. Hem & Haw Both were complex in nature and very successful early on Hem said ‘there’s enough cheese here to last us forever’ John Akers, ‘successful beyond our wildest expectations’ They paid little attention to what was going on around them and never considered that their cheese supply would run out Complex held on to their beliefs IBM – 20,000 BU’s, 5,000 hw prods., 20,000 sw prods Paid little attention Hem and Haw - ‘...Hem’s and Haw’s confidence grew into arrogance of success’ they did not realize their cheese stock was slowly decreasing IBM - They did not want to participate in the client/server and Internet revolutions IBM - saw their mainframes as their ‘cheese’ and was reluctant to move away from mainframes ‘managers could not bring themselves to cannibalize mainframe sales by pushing replacement technologies’ watched Dell, Microsoft and others dominate the new market April 25, 2017 Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. 770.627.71

Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. IBM & Haw Turnaround Haw began to envision himself finding and enjoying new cheese ‘If you’ve got an idea that is really powerful, you’ve just got to ignore the people who tell you it won’t work, and hire people who embrace your vision’ – M. Dell IBM hired a new CEO outside of the company and he brought with him a new vision Haw’s vision The vision gave him confidence, courage and motivation to put aside his fears and take the risk of venturing out in the maze to search for new cheese Haw was beginning to accept that things had changed and he needed to do something about it Hem refused saying, ‘I like it here. It’s comfortable. It’s what I know. Besides its dangerous out there ‘Sometimes, Hem, things change and they are never the same again’ IBM hired a new CEO outside of the company (Gerstner) and he brought with him a new vision ‘One IBM’ made numerous organizational changes and merged divisions into groups to focus on new strategies Not everyone at IBM met the reorganizations with enthusiasm persons who resisted the changes either left, or were forced to leave Many people in the middle, ‘…didn’t want to have anything to do with it. They just wanted it to go away. They wanted it to be the way it used to always be - Harreld April 25, 2017 Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. 770.627.71

Conclusion and Recommendations The more important your cheese is to you the more you want to hold on to it If you do not change, you can become extinct What would you do if you weren’t afraid? Smell the cheese often so you know when it is getting old The quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you can enjoy new cheese Read the Book! The more important your cheese is to you the more you want to hold on to it. the more you are dependant on something; the more difficult it is to give that something up. Even if that certain something did well for you over the years, one must realize when to let go. If you do not change, you can become extinct. those who do not move with the change either leave or are left behind. This is true in every part of life and not just the corporate world. What would you do if you weren’t afraid? Fear causes many people or organizations to remain immobilized. If one would ‘put away’ their fears and take the necessary (and mostly calculated) risks, they can overcome almost any situation. Smell the cheese often so you know when it is getting old. Always monitor the changes going on around you. Even if they are minor changes, adapt to the changes and one will be better prepared for any future, unexpected changes. The quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you can enjoy new cheese. Haw found this out during his long, arduous journey through the maze. If he had noticed the change sooner, he would have had more energy to search the maze and probably find the cheese sooner. Read the Book pertains to almost every aspect of one’s life If its too simple, buy it and read it to your children etc. replace the word ‘cheese’ with an expletive, book becomes much more amusing April 25, 2017 Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. 770.627.71

Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. Cheesy or what? April 25, 2017 Strategic Planning For Info. Sys. 770.627.71