11 - The Checklist Manifesto, by Atul Gawande
WHY I PICKED IT: A client of mine uses it
ELAPSED TIME: 10 days
RATING: Good
Dr. Gawande, a surgeon, makes the case that the simple checklist is a mechanism that can help improve communication and teamwork, reduce errors, and improve the operation of a highly technical operation. Leveraging checklists from aviation, he shows how they can be applied, not just to his field of surgery, but also to making investment decisions, large scale construction projects, and beyond.
Taking us through the case of US Airways Flight 1549, Dr. Gawande shows how the use of checklists helped Captain Sullenberger III and First Officer Skiles safely land their Airbus A320 on the Hudson River. These two pilots, who had never worked together before, had key reminders of things that needed to be done in that crisis, executed them perfectly, and saved the 155 people on board.
Dr. Gawande shows how checklists have been developed by his research team for broad deployment around the globe by the WHO.
Dr. Gawande also highlights the biggest challenge with checklists: Getting buy-in. Developing a useful checklist is a significant challenge, but getting people to agree and use it (despite overwhelming evidence to their usefulness) is a significant roadblock. Next up, a book on change management? :)
This blog is a simple review of every book that I read... For all books I’ll tell you why I picked it, how long it took me to read it, and give it a rating (burn it, not good, meh, good, very good, and required reading). I ask (encourage?) all readers of my blog to post their thoughts of any of the books in my comments :). Thanks!
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