Fix That Business Book by John Wiig Review By Steven Bonacorsi

1. Fix That Business
Finding the hidden money in nearly every business
In Transactional, Services, and Manufacturing Business
- By John H. Wiig
I found Mr. Wiig’s book “Fix That Business” extremely valuable in guiding practitioners through the subtle
differences and intricacies in delivering successful and rapid results.
The book is divided into six different parts. Part 1 is a quick background of the past
40 years, summarizing business markets and the role Process Improvement
Initiatives, like Lean and Six Sigma, but more importantly, why businesses pursued
these markets and Initiatives. Part 2 is focused on Strategic Planning, which I found
extremely valuable. John walks the reader through the process of Strategic
Planning, leveraging his personal experience while working at GE. Now I actually
worked at GE during the periods John discussed the approaches used and can
John H. Wiig
vouch in his accuracy and clarity in explaining what we did, from Employee
Performance Reviews, engaging leadership throughout the Strategy to Execution process, goal setting linked
to strategic levers, and creating a shared vision.
Our ability to see is limited by our ability to measure and we cannot understand
what we cannot measure. Part 3 dives into the tools for change that I found
very clear and concise. John does an outstanding job in crisply defining those
critical tools he has successfully applied. His personal experience in applying
Sales Force Effectiveness, Pricing Strategies, Customer Retention, Lean, Supply
Chain Management, Statistical Process Control, Data Distributions and Six
Sigma in various Industries and Process situations, helps the reader see the
critical process improvement areas to focus. John continues in what I would
refer to as Deployment Planning areas that include Identifying Six Sigma
Projects, Selecting and Training Six Sigma Practitioners (Belts), Influencing
Leaders, the Six Sigma Methodology, and pulls things all together with a final
case study involving General Electric’s use of the concept called Span. Each
chapter in Part 3 is filled with real-world examples!
Part 4 Up to this point, John has not taken his eyes off the prize, defined with the Business Strategic
Objectives, while executing business transformation using various process tools. Since these process
improvements all involve various stakeholders impacted by the change, John focuses next on managing
people and change. Some of the topics he highlights include managing headcount, training the right key
employees, and effectively managing people through the change. Part 5 ties the business change back to the
Strategy, but more importantly, the key focus areas in executing that change. Turnarounds, Communications
Strategy, and the role of Information Technology, specifically leveraging Call Centers, are all explored in the
execution of change. Part 6, called “Pulling it all Together”, is where John shares his final thoughts, speaking
directly to the leadership on their role in “Fixing That Business”.

2. I recommend “Fix That Business” to Business Owners, Leadership Executives, Business Champions,
Consultants, and Transformation Change Agents. I am confident you will find the book as valuable as I, in
achieving ever increasing success and results. I also recommend the book to all those needing an Introduction
to business process improvement. The book is broad, not too deep into any one particular method, taking a
more aerial or 50,000 foot view. The practical and real-world examples make the book a fun and easy to read.
This is not a reference book, but one that provides hope in what can be done, what has been done by others,
and best practices and cautions to consider when transforming your business into a customer focused, data
driven, and continuously improving value creator.
Book Review by Steven Bonacorsi, President of the International Standard for Lean Six Sigma
(ISLSS). Mr. Bonacorsi is a Certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt (MBB), ITIL Master,
Project Management Professional (PMP), and Agilest. He holds a Masters in Computer
Information Systems and MBA. He is the owner of the LinkedIn Lean Six Sigma Group and
author of the Lean Six Sigma Tollgate Templates.
Respectfully,
Steven Bonacorsi, LSS MBB, President
International Standard for Lean Six Sigma
Cell: 603-401-7047
skype: sbonacorsi
E-mail: sbonacorsi@comcast.net
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