"Though it's tempting to [always] blame the government for getting in the way of business, there's a lot about Kiwi business that is about getting in the way of itself."

"[T]hough it's tempting to [always] blame the government for getting in the way of business, there's a lot about Kiwi business that is about getting in the way of itself. ... The Mood of the Boardroom Survey & recent remarks by some of this nation's CEOs reflect on the (dubious) quality of New Zealand's boardrooms more than anything else. Namely that most are woke & weak. ...
    "NZ's Big Corporate CEOs will not themselves push productivity-enhancing reforms in their own firms ... They'd prefer, instead, to be Mr Nice Person. Look at the qualifications of many of them - the typical one being in Accounting. Other than that, its law. Lawyers often get on Boards because Kiwi firms want someone to help with compliance - not a person with imagination about where the future of the company should be. ...
    "Before the Productivity Commission was de-commissioned, it identified lack of 'managerial capability' as a contributor to our low productivity. ... Many of our CEOs & Boardrooms are not capable. ... The staff can't make up for a boss who is the wrong boss. ... "

~ Robert McCulloch from his post '"The Mood" of NZ's (Weak and Inbred) Boardrooms reflects on their own ineffectiveness, which has cut productivity, not on our MPs' quality'

"...'A Lister' management types who have no in-depth knowledge of the technical, engineering workings of their industries?"

 

"The Board Chair of Kiwi Rail, David McLean, is a lawyer. He did a Bachelor of Law degree at Victoria University. The CEO of Kiwi Rail, Peter Reidy, has a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Accounting from Auckland University, where I work. 

    "Both were asked about what caused the Inter Island Ferry to crash. I assure you - nothing about how trains or ferries work is covered in law or commerce degrees. 

    "Why is productivity low in NZ? Could it be so many of the Boards & CEO positions in NZ are made up of 'A Lister' management types who have no in-depth knowledge of the technical, engineering workings of their industries? ... 

"Was Google started by accountants & lawyers? Was SpaceX started by lawyers & accountants? Was RocketLab started by lawyers & accountants?"

~ Robert MacCulloch, from his post 'Who does NZ call when its Ferries, Planes and Electricity Supplies are Broken? Lawyers and Accountants (!?)'

She's the Patron Saint of Geeks

Dr. Maria Montessori, pedagogical pioneer and "patron saint of geeks"

 

"The patron saint of geeks is probably Maria Montessori, who about 100 years ago got obsessed with the problem of how you educate young children best, and came up with the Montessori educational method, which is this radical departure from the industrial scale model of schools that was dominant then, and sadly still dominant now. Think about Maria Montessori when you think about a geek."

~ MIT Sloan School of Management principal research scientist Andrew McAfee, author of the book The Geek Way: The Radical Mindset that Drives Extraordinary Results. He defines geeks as “obsessive mavericks,” people who become obsessed with hard problems and are willing to pursue unconventional solutions – to avoid the dysfunctions that have traditionally plagued companies as they expand. In his interview with the Harvard Business Review, from which the quote above comes, he sets Maria Montessori alongside many technology disruptors and management icons in this regard.
Hat tip to Lynn Lawrence, who cites in support Angeline Lillard's recent and brilliantly argued conclusion that "It is time for a paradigm shift in education, on a par with the Copernican revolution."