Line of sight: A buzzword defined
A FOSE speaker revisits a story from the Kennedy era to explain a management concept.
Scott Cameron, senior vice president at R3 Government Solutions, advised an audience at FOSE to create "lines of sight" in organizations so that all employees understand how their work contributes to the organization's mission.
To illustrate the point, he told a story about President John F. Kennedy visiting a NASA facility after the race to reach the moon had begun. Encountering a janitor, Kennedy asked what his job was.
"I'm here to put a man on the moon," the janitor said.
"Now that's a line of sight," Cameron said. "He's there to put a man on the moon, not to sweep the floor."
It's an old story, one that's been incorporated into business speeches time and again to illustrate principles of self-worth and inspired employees. It may be apocryphal. But it is a good one.