Back to those 20 boxes you need to store, and the consideration of only two resources we need to manage at the moment, space and money.

We get a break – all 20 boxes are the same size and shape – a trucker’s dream.  This should be cinch.

In deciding to go horizontal, using lots of floor space, or to go vertical, using less, you, the manager have to make a decision that entails some considerations other than box size and shape.   You don’t get all the breaks.

Tell you what – let’s try for as much verticality as possible, saving as much of that expensive floor space (money) as possible.  Can we go 20 straight up?

To do that, what else must you consider?  Can’t be much of importance — after all, we’re just talking about boxes…

Well, let’s begin with load strength. 

How strong are those boxes? 

How heavy are they?

How many can be stacked, one on top of the other?

When you run out of that capability of vertical stacking, you run into another decision, and it has three options from which to choose. 

Good grief, all we wanted to do was stack 20 boxes, then we had two options, horizontal or vertical, and now we have three options as a result of choosing vertical?  Yep.  That’s management.

When you run out of vertical stacking because of sheer weight of the boxes, you have three options.

First, you can install shelving.  But shelving isn’t free; it costs money to purchase and more money to have it installed.  Ah, but you don’t want your decision about space to impact your other resource of concern at the moment, money, correct?

Well, consider option two, having the supplier use stronger boxes.  That too will of course cost you money.  Maybe we’d better look for another option.

Option three is to abandon the idea of verticality, at least to some degree, and go a bit horizontal.  That will use more floor space, which also costs money.

You may think of another option, but I’ll bet it will cost money one way or the other.  Are we getting the idea that no matter how you adjust your use of the one resource, space, the other resource, money, is affected?

That is an important point.  In my opinion it is the singularly most important point in all of management.  Those who are poor managers have lost sight or it.  No matter what other faults a poor manager may have, I assure you that person has lost sight of the interoperability, the intrinsic relationship among resources.  You simply cannot view the use of any resource in isolation. 

You must consider all resources when considering a change of one. 

Burn it into the brain – no matter if it is your personal life or your business/professional life, it always holds true.  It is as definite as death and taxes.  One cannot be a successful manager without being constantly aware of the interplay of resources.

Let’s settle on 10 boxes high by 2 boxes wide.

That will work.  The bottom box is straining a lot, but it’s still under the rated load bearing capability.  You did remember to add up the weights of all nine boxes stacked on top of it, didn’t you? 

Turn the lights out and go home.  It has been a stressful day in the manager’s office, but you’ve survived it.  Your 20 boxes are safely stacked in two neat columns, side by side.  No shelving is needed and the compromise between vertical and horizontal, or to put it another way, the compromise between space and money, has been a reasonable one. 

Well, at least it’s been one you can live with. 

The world is a good place.