A fender bender at rush hour.

     A pebble tossed in a calm lake.

          A minor stop on Production Line 3.

These minor events all have things in common. They ripple and cause other events to carry on. They magnify in their effect as more and more events occur.

A traffic jam is an example near and dear to us all. Conditions change each day based on factors like fender benders, thruway design, construction and inclement weather. The more these factors combine, the worse the traffic jams gets — the good days and the bad days.

Traffic jams can catch us off guard with unexpected delays. They make us late for events. We make plans to avoid them or choose to simply stay put. The larger the jam, the larger the disruption.

Good news: when people are aware, they can work together to overcome by sharing their own views.

Traffic jams can be reduced and made more predictable, using analytics. Thruway designs can optimize their flow. Expenses for night-time construction can be justified. Procedures can be implemented for crash sites. Salt can be applied when ice is in the forecast.

When the right people get together, many different challenges can be identified and solved as one team effort. Machine stoppages is a topic that impacts the entire company.