{"id":54717,"date":"2026-08-24T11:41:18","date_gmt":"2026-08-24T09:41:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.turner.nl\/uncategorized\/column-by-peter-de-bruin-sequence-of-events\/"},"modified":"2026-08-24T11:41:25","modified_gmt":"2026-08-24T09:41:25","slug":"column-by-peter-de-bruin-sequence-of-events","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.turner.nl\/en\/blog-en\/column-by-peter-de-bruin-sequence-of-events\/","title":{"rendered":"Column by Peter de Bruin | \u201cSequence of Events\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Column by Peter de Bruin<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\"Sequence of Events\"<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Peter de Bruin argues in his recent column that much factional strife and endless debate over organizational issues and seemingly fundamental conflicts can be avoided by recognizing them primarily as a matter of priority. What order did we choose yesterday in the seemingly political left-right dilemma? <\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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At my gym, it\u2019s customary to disinfect the equipment after use. All gym-goers faithfully do this with wipes and spray bottles. It\u2019s therefore noticeable when someone isn\u2019t aware of that unwritten rule and leaves a used piece of equipment without cleaning it. There are also gyms where people clean the equipment before use, as they see fit. Whether you clean it before or after is a matter of preference; one isn\u2019t necessarily better than the other. You could call one approach a bit more courteous than the other, but it doesn\u2019t really make a difference. <\/p>

In the Netherlands, we drive on the right. The steering wheel is on the left. In some other countries, it\u2019s the other way around. It always takes a little getting used to when you drive away from the airport in a rental car in another country :). When we look at traffic statistics, we see no demonstrable difference between the two systems\u2014neither in ease of use, nor in traffic flow, nor in the number or severity of accidents. Left or right is simply a matter of convention. It really doesn\u2019t matter. <\/p>

The decision to adopt a system like this shouldn’t, therefore, lead to a lengthy debate. Any choice is fine as long as we all follow it together, make it a habit, and don’t keep revisiting it. <\/p>

Another type of organizational issue, for example, is how organizations deliver a product or service to a market. Often, the key choice regarding organizational structure is whether to be market-oriented or product\/service-oriented. There is a lot of internal conflict within organizations over how to make this two-axis matrix work. This is an unwarranted competition, as both are important and inextricably linked. Customer-focused sales and delivery, as well as excellent products and production, are both essential in an iterative process. Organizing them is primarily a matter of sequence. The only question is where to start: building the excellent product or addressing the needs of the key customer. <\/p>

I\u2019m not doing justice to the complex world in which we live and work with these simplified examples, but I want to make it clear that we have many discussions with one another about things that are all, in fact, equally important, equally good, equally beautiful, equally interesting, \u2026, equally whatever. We have to organize things in order to live, work, drive, cook, perform, provide healthcare, and so on, together. That organization is often nothing more or less than a sequence among dimensions that are all at play. An order of precedence.<\/p>

We waste less time and energy by not spending too much time endlessly debating whether to drive on the left or the right, or whether to disinfect exercise equipment before or after use. And the order of the two axes in the matrix organization doesn\u2019t matter as much, as long as we use both of them consistently. Just as a speed skater shifts to the other leg in time to keep moving forward. <\/p>

The recent election campaign also involves such a question of classification\u2014at least to the extent that the political landscape can be simplified into a dichotomy between left and right. Both sides are relevant; a one-dimensional approach never works in the long run. Today will reveal which order we chose yesterday. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Meet the Author<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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