A discourse on understanding

We had fun sometime back when we took interns to a posh hotel for a three month internship. After about a month or two, I was told of the interns frustrations at being told to work in the kitchen and service departments at the lowest ranks. When the students complained to me they reminded me that we trained them to manage these areas not to be cooks and waiters. I promised to find out. When I spoke to their supervisors, I obliquely enquired about what I had heard. The answer reminded me of a story about a rich man who introduced his sons to his business empire from messenger positions and they then had to work their way up. “They need to understand the business,” was the response in both cases.The word ‘understand’ is a difficult word to define. Yet it is, at the same time, a word that all seem to comprehend. For example, there are things that we are taught as we grow up that are absolute gems. Among these are being kind, considerate, sympathetic, thoughtful, perceptive, and appreciative (remember mama telling you to say ‘thank you’ for the gift you got from your visiting uncle?). Incidentally all the words are synonyms of ‘understanding’ yet none of them is not quite similar in meaning.The bigger question is; does ‘being understanding’ make sense running enterprise? The answer is ‘an absolute “Yes”. Indeed, it is not just good character; it is a ‘weapon’ or ‘tool’ for business success.The business and its environment: From the onset, let us make it clear that ‘knowledge’ is not ‘understanding’. The former is but just a subset of the latter. Knowledge is an appreciation of ‘what’ the facts are in the business and its environment. ‘Understanding’ on the other hand is appreciating and perceiving ‘what’ and ‘why’.We know that the short rains in Rwanda begin in September but if we do not understand why this is so, we will every now and then be caught off guard, to our detriment, when there are climatic changes that occasion otherwise. It is that deep appreciation of the world weather conditions and patterns and their causes that would make us ‘understand’ what is happening. Business is likewise; an understanding of the business and its environment, immediate, secondary and tertiary will prepare us to better run the business.The environmental appreciation, be it through tools like SWOT analysis and other environmental scanning tools should not only see the ‘network’ but rather the ‘networking’. It is in the perception of the business ‘elements’ as a living and interactive matrix of possibilities that ‘understanding is effective and outstanding.Actions and decisions: From the above, we can see that ‘understanding’ the business guides your actions and decisions. As such you are able to notice and harness opportunities before your competitions and avoid risks before they occur. But it is not all good. When you burn your fingers, it is important to understand why that happened before you decide your next course of action.Resource utilization: Naturally, if you are fully aware of your environment, you will efficiently utilize your scarce resources more productively (Remember the economic mantra, needs are unlimited but resources are limited? It is true).People management: People are the most important resource you have. Unfortunately, it is also the most complicated, at the same time. People management begins with you. Do you manage yourself? Are you what we call in Kiswahili ‘mfano wa kuigwa” (Literally, example worth emulating), a role model. The unreformed reformer inspires no reformation. Management and team building especially require understating both from the logical but as well as the normative (emotional sense). This is where the crux of the matter is.Clearly, being understanding in business is more than a moral question. It is follows the laws of production (nothing comes from nothing).One of the tragic comedies that happen in the work place is the boss with no technical skills and little, if any, managerial skills. You can feel the manager’s agony as they manage a technically superior, but your sympathy will be wiped away as soon as they insist, typically due to ego, to play boss!So, do you understand? (Pun intended).