How To Run A Semiconductor Company By Tsuyoshi Kawanishi
How To Manage A Semi Company Part II By Tsuyoshi Kawanishi
How To Run A Semiconductor Company Part III By T. Kawanishi
'Semiconductors are like a new hit song composed on an old classical theme', writes the legendary former CEO of Toshiba Semiconductors Tsuyoshi Kawanishi in his book 'Chip Management, 'What I mean by this is that the applications for semiconductors are nearly infinite, but the basic technology itself is classic'.
Kawanishi continues: 'Given this situation the flowing three principles are important in semiconductors:
1. Always be ahead of the competition.
2. Transfer new technology from engineering to production in as short a time as possible.
3. Create an atmosphere among the development and production engineers where they see their contribution to the organisation as one of constantly challenging new technology.'
Kawanishi went about implementing these principles with a three tier structure.
The top tier develops technology needed five years out.
The second tier works on technology which will be implemented in three to five years.
The third tier works on current products or products which will be in production within three years.
Kawanishi said there must be overlap and exchange of information between the tiers, and the best way to achieve that is to rotate the engineers between the tiers.
'If the engineers in the three tiers trust eachother', writes Kawanishi, 'the engineers in the factory who are working on the production problems of the current device will have some confidence that the engineers in development are working on the next generation. On the same token, the engineers in the development groups will be confident that the engineers in the factory will produce results from their newly developed devices. The three tiers must be aware that they share a common fate."
This sounds totally sensible…obvious even. I wonder how many non-Asian semiconductor companies have such a philosophy….certainly none that I know. I spent many years selling to Japanese OEMs and was always impressed how they proactively manage career succession to fit alongside development processes in their engineering base. It makes chip design-in and selling to them more complex and lengthy, because you need relationships across the whole chain from R&D, design & development, test, quality control, and production engineering. But, it also means when you meet a senior person in the company they have worked in every area of that chain so have the necessary experience and understanding of any issues that might be on the table…which all adds up to a better overall development process for the company.
By comparison the Western HR approach to career progression in engineering appears to be far more chaotic. Those who start on the engineering side and wish to stay there have a fairly prescribed path to follow on their own initiative. They can rise through the ranks available, to Fellow and Senior Fellow, or turn to man-management by managing teams, projects, programs, and departments, but for some that is not far enough. The prognosis for those with egos so big they need a wheelbarrow to carry it around can be very damaging for the company. Often they are left standing unchallenged on their own exalted pedestal, to define their own agenda, airing their unassailable opinions and knowledge at corporate events and strategic business meetings, whilst consuming substantial budgets on globe-trotting to industry events in order to stay “connected and informed”. Or - even worse – with zero commercial experience they are suddenly catapulted sideways into a Business Unit as VP of Strategic Marketing. Gulp…no need to expand on where that’s going to go.
From what I've seen, I think you're right, Big Softie
Actually, the way things are done, largely, in semiconductor companies is to encourage a kill or be killed mindset where "teamwork" is temporary at best. I used to work for a fellow who helped build Motorola-SPS (pre-Freescale) into a powerhouse of a company, Tom G. Tom knew his people and had them mapped out into what they used to do, what they do now, and their next job. Like Patton planning an invasion, Tom G. was a master chess player and his people rewarded him with their loyalty, because they knew he was keeping an eye out for them. Those days are *long* gone in most semicon companies where they can't wait to (fire) North American and (just don't replace) European workers while hiring in the Far East. Loyalty is a two-way street, something that we managers growing up in the 1980's with our first teams and staff used to have hammered into us. Remember "In Search of Excellence" and "Theory Z" and "Total Quality Management" and W. Edwards Deming? I do. Today you get a large guffaw/laugh if you mention the word "loyalty." Rather a pity. I run my company "old school" and it works, but then again it might just be I'm old-fashioned. :-)
Alan in Austin
Alan, That's a pretty bleak picture which explains a lot about why it is the big companies which seem to be in the worst trouble.