I have been discussing my thesis with some Value practitioners from the UK. They raise some interesting questions which I will deal with shortly, when I find the time. I have posted them here to consider, and to share.
Richard
Good to find someone being so rigorous. I'm intrigued by your findings and the way that you present them, as far as I've been able to understand them from your blog. The outlines for HBR make good sense and it is time they paid proper attention to customer value as opposed to their usual cursory nod. I hope they take them.
I have few questions and observations which I hope might stimulate a dialogue:
1.I wondered about the impact of experience with similar or competing products - or from product trials - is that embodied in attitude in your model or am I looking in the wrong place?
2.In my non-rigorous work on this I have found it useful to separate strictly social (family and peer group interactions) from network enablement (community, society) as very different motivations seem to apply. Do you make such a distinction?
3.Further I have found that fit with complementary products and services is a strong driver. I tend to refer to systemic values when exploring these issues. Your research does not seem to have thrown up this concern (or am I missing something?)
4.You identify context, or relevance, as an influence but not narrative integrity (by which I mean the story I have about myself - does this product fit with my self-perception? will it help me build the story of me?) Again anecdotally I have found this to be significant and I usually try to explore this dimension with clients. Do you accommodate such a concept?
Finally I have found it useful to categorise items like necessary tasks and complexity as costs (usually in terms such as effort and cognitive load)/. This allows me to place them on the cost side of the value equation along with price, social exposure, status risk etc. I'm not clear how you envisage the benefit / cost trade-off working. Or is this too analytical for your model?
As a further aid to my understanding I wondered how your values compare with the set of universal values identified by Schwartz and summarised in the rather fuzzy image I attach.
Great work! I'd love to read the thesis.
Best wishes
D@IVM
Earlier comment from KS@IVM:
The origins of the IVM lie in the promotion of value analysis/value
engineering as originally developed by L.Miles. VM has however developed
from those origins where the focus was on manufactured products to encompass
all types of "products" and organisations. It is argued that QFD,
benchmarking and lean are all developments from VM approaches. More recently
VM has encompassed soft systems methodology and has considerable affinity
with systems thinking and concepts of the learning organisation. It is not
directly associated with earned value. I assume from your reference that
you are referring to what in the UK we call earned value analysis (EVA)which
looks at the ratio between percentage costs incurred and percentage
activities complete; as opposed to economic value added(also EVA!)as
proposed by Stern. I would argue that the latter involves a narrow
definition of value, while the former is only related to value if planned
activities can be shown to be relevant to achieving organisational
objectives whose achievement at an organisational level underpin value.
There is in Australia an equivalent organisation to the IVM
(www.value-management.com.au), and there is an Australian standard on VM.
The leading VM academic in Australia is Roy Barton(RTBarton@aol.com).
Institute of Value Management
1-3 Birdcage Walk | London | SW1H 9JJ
Tel/Mobile: 07919 470566
Our mission is to enable our members to develop and promote the professional
practice of managing sustainable value to secure and ensure economic and
social wellbeing for organisations and citizens in the UK and
internationally.
Find out more at ivm.org.uk
Further academic discussion of Value Management from this perspective can be found at:
Managing value as a management style for projects
International Journal of Project Management, Volume 25, Issue 2, Pages 107-114
S. Male, J. Kelly, M. Gronqvist, D. Graham
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