Good, Fast, or Cheap: Pick 3?
They call it by many names: the Iron Triangle, the Project Management Triangle, the Triple Constraint, etc. But the premise is always essentially the same. Your customer can have it “good, fast, or cheap,” so they need to pick two. In other words, you can give them a product or service, and it will be good and cheap, but not fast. Or it will be fast and cheap, but not good. Or it will come good and fast, but not cheap.
Most of us in business are aware of the constraint and we operate our businesses this way.
So what about the disruptors? Companies that bring all three are cleaning up in the “new economy.” AirBnB gives you all the three; good, cheap, and fast. So does Amazon. And that’s just the As. And it’s not just start-ups and tech companies. I talked about Wawa last week, and many of you responded that you “loved” them. Southwest Airlines has done this for years, and kept me happy with service, speed, and price. Why can’t United or Delta?
Our expectations as consumers are pretty low. We are constantly disappointed by something:
It isn’t good enough.
It isn’t fast enough.
It isn’t cheap enough.
But some companies have said we’re going to break the Iron Triangle. We’re going to disrupt the status quo and we’re going to win. We’re going to deliver on our brand promise.
How can you break the Iron Triangle? Or do you disagree, and think it can’t be done. I always welcome your feedback.
It must be getting close to the holidays. All we can think about this week at M+M was food.
Monday, October 20 – Hard Shell Monday
Thanks to our friends at Comcast Spotlight – Leslie Dolliver, Mary K. Butler, and Adam Stubbs – who fed Communications Manager Kent Brockwell and Media Buyer Meredith Mason on Monday. I was going to buy McDonald’s, but TV folks must have more $ than me, so they took them to The Hard Shell.
Tuesday, October 21 – Maola Milk Tuesday
Sr. Account Manager Kaitlin Thomas and Creative Director Art Webb got milk Tuesday… from the source. They shot video at Al-Mara Farm in Midland, Virginia. Al-Mara is one of the local dairy farms that make Maola Milk. The event was called Cows ‘n’ Corn. You have to go.
Meanwhile, Project Manager Matt Ong and I travelled down to Brandermill Church, where we conducted an “Introduction to Communications Seminar” for 38 church leaders and marketing folks. Special thanks to Leslie Dunkin, wife of Dr. Jim Dunkin, for laying out such a great spread, complete with cupcake quiche. #realmeneatquiche The seminar was sponsored by our friends at the Presbytery of the James, and we thank them for having us out.
Wednesday, October 22 – Green Bean Casserole Wednesday
Several Madison+Main-iacs attended PRSA‘s lunch event Wednesday, where speaker Michael McDougal, of McDougal Communications spoke about the importance of visual communications. #weagree
Matt celebrated his birthday Wednesday. I bought him a happy meal. #seriously And Sr. Graphic Designer Kaity Carr baked him a greenbean casserole, complete with candles. Unbelievably, Matt had never eaten a green casserole in his life. He loved it. #mustbearedneckthang
Thursday, October 23 – Pumpkin Bread & Biscuit Thursday
I decided to feed the team with a bag full of Hardee’s biscuits Thursday morning, but VP of Brand Strategy Kara Forbis won them over with homemade pumpkin bread she brought in from Blacksburg. I know anything pumpkin is the all the rage right now, but as for me, I’d rather eat ANYTHING else…even a salad.
The Calendar!
Madison+Main’s 8th Annual Chili Cook-Off
November 8
Join the Madison+Main-iacs, our clients, and our partners as we tailgate to celebrate our 8th Annual Chili Cook-Off at the new Atlas 42 with tasty chili, fierce competition, and good times! There will be food, fun, and celebrity judges! RSVP today.
Friday, October 27 – Empty Table Friday
This morning there was nothing on the conference room table, which is a good thing. I probably gained five pounds this week. The salad I had for lunch was great… thanks for asking.
“Do not look for approval except for the consciousness of doing your best.”
– Andrew Carnegie