Checklist Manifesto - Review
Atul Gawande's Checklist Manifesto describes the profound impact of the simple checklist. Complex systems and procedures are tackled more effectively when approached through a series of steps. Gawande describes his personal discovery of the checklist as a medical doctor and how the implication of these deliberate steps had a profound effect on healthcare around the world. The book is story driven and written from the perspective of the author. We follow Atul through his own discovery process and implication of a new checklist system on a large scale. Principles are embedded in the narrative and are less than forthcoming. Gawande resists prescribing a deliberate checklist creation tool but shares from his own experiences.
Gawande doesn't tell you how to make a checklist.
I would not recommend reading this book; it is not worth your time. When you accept the fact that a checklist is an efficient way to approach complex systems then you have absorbed the major premise of the book. When you see how checklists must be simple, task specific, and clear then you have the rest of the ideas down. If you are on the fence about deploying checklists in your own workflow then, sure, grab the book. But most intentional leaders, or project managers, have jumped over to greener pastures.