Hi Matt!
 MS> "Internal customers" in private industry have a 
 MS> different relationship with "internal suppliers" than 
 MS> anything existing in the public schools, because there is 
 MS> no equivalent to the taxpayer's right to quit paying (by 
 MS> voting down school tax hikes), set payment (the same way), 
 MS> or get the service elsewhere (private school, 
 MS> homeschooling, Sylvan).
Deming said that *everyone* must *first* understand "the system".
...what if we educated the school board, teachers, those who attend 
school board meetings, the voting public in general, about what 
the system *is* and what kind of flexibility is *needed* in it 
after a few Deming-like tweeks with the rank-and-file educator 
in on it.  As a group, with Deming-like equity of power, suppose 
they decided they needed admin services from a competing outside 
source -- and had the power to reject "in-house garbage" and out-source 
if need be.   mmm!  An internal customer with some RADICAL NEW CHOICES!
I just picked up an AM radio transmitter (Radio Realty) to help with 
local voter registration.  I'm thinking of picking up two more for 
additional language capability, they're available to me @ $20.00 ea. 
at a local thrift store -- probably because of the terrible seller's 
market in real estate right now.
...living in an access area off the freeway for traffic through to 
the rest of my region, it only makes sense.  ...a wonderful empty 
lot on the corner could have drive-in registration. ...on evenings 
before school board and city council meetings the little units could 
really "do a job" informing / updating the ariving public on what the 
hottest issues are -- all in perfect comfort from inside a motor home!
...'course, my home is on the final traffic "flyway" to McGeorge 
School of Law (UOP) but most students would be from outside the area. 
"Little lawn signs" saying "tune to 610 (or whatever) for..." might 
work.  I wouldn't want to override R.L.'s broadcast on the station 
that hatched him but ya gotta admit it'd, ummm, catch some attention. :) 
I suspect that alot of Deming's frustration in the later years was 
that he never could catch the interest and attention of the American 
Business Sector.  What I'm saying is that there is a need to educate 
the American *Private Sector* on the need for and value of Deming TQM. 
I'm also saying that there are innovative ways to do that availible 
and that they should be exploited by responsible education rank-and-file. 
In educating the masses Deming was a failure in life.  He did well when 
he had a captive audience that was desperate and groping for answers 
though. ...well, today's society is desperate and groping for answers 
but they're not captive.  ...I'd suggest to educators that they might 
want to get the answers to 'em "on-the-hoof" kinda like fast food. :)
I'd like to apologize for using my own neighborhood as an example but 
we just had a major effort to unseat half of the SCUSD school board 
that was successful.  ...we've been going through superintendants like 
they were popcorn with *very* expensive buy-outs when school rooms are 
leaking like seives.  ...said board thinks they need to meet in the 
Taj Mahal too when they could have done as well or better sitting on 
five gallon buckets in the National Guard Armory. 
You usually are in opposition to educator unions and public admin.
What would you think of INDIVIDUAL (and small groups of) EDUCATORS 
having this kind of *CONSUMER POWER!* over their support?
oops!  Are the teachers customers now?  ...you bet they are, as 
related to their support and admin services. ...you have to put aside 
the rigid traditional concept of subservient employee to envision 
how this works.  Those accepting only the rigid slave / overseer 
model really choke on this but that's one example of how TQM might 
be brought to fruition in a community "from the gate".
...one thing for sure, Dr. Deming had flexibility in mind.
...he believed in granting that kind of authority to the underlings 
   after educating them thoroughly on "the system" and how they have 
   it as their best interest to be responsible about making it work.
...maybe American educators *need* that flexibility! 
   They know what "a crock of stuff" is. ...what works, what doesn't.
...Carnegie inspired competition in his steel mills by granting that 
   the tenders w/ best production could plant steel rakes at the 
   top of their furnace stacks.  The US Navy awards "efficiency 'E'" 
   in various department colors on stacks of warships.  To think that 
   the educator wouldn't respond with pride in the ultimate outcome 
   of their effort would be short-sighted indeed.  This stuff works!
Best,
 
-frank:)
--- Maximus 2.01wb
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