Other Mandibular Challenges

Flopjaw aside for a moment, other communications elements can go badly wrong. One prime example is the disease of flapjaw. This is the condition of taking refuge in vain hopes when projects or processes go all pear-shaped, the propensity to mumble platitudes as dead certainties that will rescue fading or failing prospects.

Charles Dickens' memorable character, Wilkins Micawber, was famously and incurably optimistic in the face of endless setbacks. Confident to the end, he once again reassured that "something will turn up" as the cart took him away to debtors' prison.

Our SCM universe, all business, in fact, is overpopulated with Micawbers. They flapjaw their way into organizational oblivion with repeated reassurances. They may get away with the act for quite a while, frustrating those who know what's really happening. But, reckoning seldom misses catching these warm fuzzies on some schedule.

Long before the ultimate humiliation, however, the Micawbers lose credibility, trust, and confidence - at all levels. Internal embarrassment is bad enough, but false promises can do unimaginable damage to both customer and supplier relationships.

Here's a tip. Fix or get rid of the Micawbers as soon as they reveal themselves. You don't need to try to manage this risk on top of everything else that might go wrong.