Help Workers Get What They Need

Article extract from ReliablePlant newsletter:
http://www.reliableplant.com/Read/29268/what-workers-need

If you are like me, you've listened to the Rolling Stones over the years. Their contemporaries, the Beatles, became more artistic and lyrical as they evolved, but for driving party music, the Stones are still hard for any band to beat.

I even heard the words to one of their songs quoted recently: "You can't always get what you want." This much I already knew, but what follows has a lot of meaning in continuous improvement: "But if you try sometime, you might find you get what you need."

So many times in problem-solving work, you do all of the analysis with the really smart, expert people and come to what you truly believe is the right answer — one that you really want to work. But then you find when you implement it, "You know, it just didn't work," or "It just didn't last," or "Nobody would buy into it."

Most people tend to get hung up on what they want rather than what they need. They want their elegant solution to work. They fall in love with it. For engineers, this is usually the technical solution. Having found that perfect solution, well, let's not waste any time getting it in place. Forget all of that soft-skills stuff; just make people do it now.

For some, change management is simply convincing people to do things that, for various reasons, they don't seem to want to do.

Others have talked of the frustrations and time consumed in hunting down and eliminating the wily, elusive, supposed single root cause, as opposed to just implementing some of the many solutions to various, fairly obvious contributing causes that just make things quickly better. This isn't saying that structured analysis isn't necessary, but rather that it's not the biggest part of fixing or improving.

Unfortunately, because they tend to address fundamental issues, too many of the "best" solutions become larger, which usually means expensive and time consuming. That's also frustrating, as managers will usually push back at the thought of expensive.

I remember a problem that was aggravating and constantly frustrating plant personnel (as well as affecting productivity and quality) that could have been fixed for about $2,000. The solution had been developed with some help, but there was another, much more extensive engineering project in the works with a price tag of $80,000 that also would have taken care of that problem, among other things, so why spend the $2,000? Besides, adding in the fix on the small issue would help justify the big project.

Unfortunately, after a number of months of management pushing back, the $80,000 project was abandoned. Sadly, the $2,000 project seemed to have been forgotten by then. Months of productivity and an opportunity to build some ownership were lost. It was their solution; they would have made it work. Instead, there was ongoing frustration at the needless waste and at being ignored. Of course, management again paid the price of being tagged with "too cheap to do the right thing."

The real trick in all of this is finding the way to "what we need." So, what is missing? What do you have to "try sometime?"

Well, how about listening to people? How about giving them the opportunities to make changes? How about helping them rather than telling them? Amazingly, people really know a lot about what the issues are and how to deal with them if asked and given the opportunity rather than being pushed aside while the experts deal with it.

Implement a process that uses communication to build ownership. This doesn't just happen, and you can't just do it now and again when you have some time. It takes a routine, everyday, structured process that will go on forever. Issues and improvements are identified and discussed. Actions (including communication) are decided on, along with any necessary follow-up.

The daily, small-unit shift exchange meetings can be the most powerful way to get this to happen. It also takes the involvement of supervision, maintenance personnel and even engineers to get to what you need. Although people know what they need, they usually require some help getting there and are typically receptive to genuine attempts to assist them. Engineers and managers are there to help people find their way to the right answers and, in doing that, develop to their potential.

Remember, the right approach is not to get people to do things that they probably don't want to do, but just to help them get to what they need.

About the Author

John Crossan

Currently working as a consultant, John Crossan retired after spending 30-plus years with the Clorox Company. His roles for much of the past 14 years were mainly focused on improving operations by ... Read More

Communicate to Build World-Class Culture

Article extract from ReliablePlant newsletter:
http://www.reliableplant.com/Read/29089/communicate-build-culture

What is the real objective of Lean Six Sigma? When I ask this question, I usually get responses such as increased quality, improved speed, reduced cost, reduced errors and many other tactical improvement measures. Those are all benefits to continuous improvement (CI). The real goal of CI is to build a culture or improve a culture. As Dr. Womack wrote in Lean Thinking, the fifth principle of lean is culture.

So what does it mean to build a culture or to enhance the culture? How does a world-class culture behave? A world-class culture has an engrained tendency to seek out, identify and drive improvements at all levels of the organization. It moves from a culture where lean and Six Sigma are something to be done (like a project) to a place where Lean Six Sigma is simply the way things are done.

As you are engaging your CI plan, ask yourself what your culture is like. Are you doing CI or is CI simply the way things are done? This shouldn’t be hard to figure out, so don't spend a lot of time dwelling on it. Either you are or you aren't. Either answer is OK. Just recognize where you are and where you are trying to go.

Part of the equation in building a world-class culture is to engage people at all levels of the organization. Leaders must tie everyone into the plan for the CI process. They must get people involved, ask them for help and support them through the change. In short, leaders must lead them through the process. Communication is the first step to doing this.

Once you have developed your CI plan for the division, plant or department, tell people about it. Share it with those around you and those who work in the processes that will be affected. Tell them what you (with their help) are going to do. In so doing, you are absolutely obligated to two things:

1. Tell them why you have this plan.
2. Tell them what is in it for them.

I can’t stress these two items enough. If you are going to build a culture and truly reach where you are trying to go, you must get everyone involved and singing from the same sheet of music. You must get them onboard with the plan if they are going to support it.

Too many management teams still employ demand and direct tactics. They use pressure to get things done. While this can be effective, it usually does little to engage the culture or endear the personnel to the organization. Engage and empower your team members if you want to accelerate the velocity of the CI plan.

Another part of the communication process is to post the information on the wall, on the shop floor and wherever you have a facility board. Put the plan, targets, progress and results together in one place. As you can, have communications at that place and talk about it. People want to know how they are doing, what is coming up next and how they are involved. People want to hear about results and plans. They want leaders to point out when things are going well and when things need to be improved or changed. People want to know where they stand. It is the leaders’ job to have open and honest communications with them as much as possible.

After you communicate and post the plan, you are almost ready to start executing. Before you do, however, you also need to make sure that all of this work doesn’t become "window dressing." How are you going to communicate going forward? How are you going to share the wins, challenges and opportunities going forward? How are you going to hold yourself and your team accountable? What are you going to do to keep people fully engaged?

I am not going to tell you the answer, but I will offer some very strong advice:

1. Communicate clearly.
2. Communicate frequently.
3. Communicate consistently.
4. Communicate honestly.

As I once heard about cowboy leadership principles, "If you are leading a herd of cattle, take a look around every once in a while and make sure they are still following you."

Learning Conflict Resolution for $1

Article extract from ReliablePlant newsletter:
http://www.reliableplant.com/Read/29086/learning-conflict-resolution

In my seminars and speeches, I sometimes use audience participation to drive home a point or to interrupt the "I've heard it all before" mind-set. It is important to put what follows in the context of problem-solving or conflict resolution. An example would be with a contentious team or when discussing the issue of Band-Aiding a problem or fixing it right the first time. You have my blessing to use this exercise if you promise not to let the cat out of the bag if you are ever in my audience or class.

Begin by saying, "I am going to auction off a dollar bill. Here it is: a real greenback. There is a slight catch; the second highest bidder also has to pay me. Does everyone understand the rules? Who will start with a nickel?"

(If someone starts with a dollar, explain that some folks would like to make some money, and you would like an opening bid of a nickel or a dime.)

Once you have your nickel bid, you can proceed with: "Great, you have a bargain. Is there anyone who can bid a dime?"

At this point, I'll usually get a dime, and someone else will chip in with a quarter. If not, get into the audience and encourage people to bid higher. The more bidders, the merrier, although my experience is that it quickly becomes two bidders.

I now go back to the dime person and say, "You are now out a dime. Be the higher bidder and you are ahead." Or, I will say, "Are all of you going to let this guy have 75 cents when you could get into the process?" Someone will enter the fray. You have to keep going to the lower bidder to goad them into bidding higher. Use words like pride, loser, power, winner, make easy money, etc.

When two people are over 50 cents each, someone will make the astute observation that you are now ahead and making money. Ignore it. Keep after the bidders by asking the lower bidder, "Are you going to let the other bidder get away with you holding the bag?"

At some point, each will realize what they are doing. Most times, the bids will go over a dollar if you work them. When one finally quits, it is lesson time. (Do not collect, but give the dollar to the highest bidder.) Ask them and the audience to explain what was going on.

They are trying to reduce their losses by raising the ante, which is getting more costly for both at the same time. Is pride an element? Was your constant harassment a factor? Is winning at any cost a mind-set?

Can you relate this experience to real life? We see it every day — from not being upfront with other people and telling half-truths to making assumptions, getting our backs up against the wall, winning at any cost, not disclosing information, distrusting, looking good at someone else's expense, compromising and so on.

Seek out examples in the workplace.

To close, tell them, "Sometimes Joe will lean over to Helen and say, 'You bid a nickel, I'll bid a quarter and we'll stop bidding.'" This is a win-win situation and leads you to discussing another lesson. What the two bidders have done this time is demonstrate that it is possible to buy a dollar for less than a dollar, and all the emotional and personal baggage can be eliminated if there is direct communication between the parties with a desire to get it behind them and move on.

In most cases of conflict, it is important to revisit the facts and causes without the blame finger to gain understanding before deciding to expend ever more energy and resources trying to resolve a problem that is getting ever larger. This is why there are mediators, arbitrators, psychologists and effective leaders. Otherwise, damage control overcomes moving ahead and may be the demise of a person's career or even the existence of a corporation. An opening bid of $1 would replicate one of two parties possibly realizing they are the problem and deciding to seek a correct solution from the outset.

I have sold the dollar for as much as $3.50. The professor who introduced this to me used a $10 bill in a bar and quickly left after earning $15. Good luck. Remember, people should realize this is more than a game and should be able to see themselves and their organization in the example.

The saying goes: Change is the only constant in life

You may have read them at some point in your life that 50% start up companies doesn't go past the 5 years mark; up to 75% companies doesn't reach 10 years. Most of the more established companies also fail later in their life due to un-adaptability, which make the case for change a must!

I have walked into organisation with so much internal complains that it does themselves more harm than good. Do ask the complainers, are you part of the solution? If you're not, then you're part of the problem.

Complaining doesn't make a difference, if you don't make a difference to improve, then you are just part of the contributing problems.

First, the leader(s) would have to be a visionary. He would have to teach the organisation how to dream. Without a dream, without a vision, without knowing what they want to be and what they can be, they would not know how to get there.

Second, cost-cutting is so yester-years. Stop unnecessary cost-cutting. Invest in your people's development, coach the right leadership into them. Also, invest in implementation of efficient system that streamline and make work easier. Employees are your biggest asset, without them, your company is just a shell. Invest in them! Be very wary of managers who are cost-cutting experts, they are likely bringing the company to la-la land.

Third, remove those who don't embrace the improvement drive. Stop the blaming culture, stop it right there and then. Instill back ownership, instill back quality right from the top. It's not an employee's fault if he/she made a mistake, it's because your mismanagement of the system which allow him/her to make that mistake possible. In the era of huge generation gap, low population growth, high human resource turnover, the only thing that will stay there and do the job is the system. So it comes back again to invest on your system!

Fourth, reward competency, reward ownership, reward high-performance. Discourage blaming, discourage cost-cutting, and discourage poor workmanship. Only there and then, the hull will start to take a turn for the better.

The "micro-skill" that drives Change in Culture

A good article from Reliable Plant newsletter in regards to Change.
http://www.reliableplant.com/Read/28886/communicating-effectively-change
Communicating Effectively During Change

Dave Berube, Life Cycle Engineering

I have never been known to be musically inclined, but I can recognize a great song when I hear one. One of these great songs is “I Heard It through the Grapevine.” This particular song has been recorded and re-recorded numerous times over the years by many different artists, and although it may bring thoughts of animated raisins to people in my generation, it is more closely associated with Marvin Gaye.
“Oh, I heard it through the grapevine,
Oh, and I’m just about to lose my mind,
Honey, honey, yeah.”
Just as the grapevine in this song had a strong impact, the communication grapevine remains an extremely powerful medium for corporate communications. The effectiveness of grapevine communication and its use – both intentional and unintentional – should not be ignored.
When coaching clients during major change initiatives, we continuously stress the importance of effective communication. Experience has shown that clients who struggle to communicate also struggle to successfully implement major change. Even post-project analysis of very successful projects often finds the company could have communicated more frequently and effectively at some point in the project.

One of the key success factors in successfully implementing a major change initiative is creating a comprehensive change-management strategy and then integrating it into the project-management plan. Creating a communication plan is one of the most critical elements contained within this change-management strategy. In this plan you identify target audiences, determine key messages, choose the preferred sender and select the appropriate communication channel for that message.
The majority of communication channels typically chosen are formal communication channels. The communication channel that is often forgotten is the informal communication channel, and this brings us to the topic of the infamous grapevine.

So what is the grapevine, how does it work and how can you use it to effectively communicate during major change? I am sure that the grapevine is as old as time itself, but I will discuss its context within modern organizations.

Grapevine Decoded

Every organization has both an informal and formal organizational structure as well as formal and informal communications. Simply stated, the grapevine is a type of informal communication channel. It’s all about people communicating directly with other people outside official channels of communication.

Your background and experience influence how you view concepts. For example, my background in electronics and submarine nuclear power often leads me to relate concepts to equations to enhance understanding. Personal experiences over the years related to the grapevine can also be translated and simplified into an equation to help us understand how the grapevine works. The amount of communication or “chatter” on the grapevine can be explained by the following equation:
Grapevine Chatter = Information Void + WIIFM + Recent News + Insecurity

Information Void

The laws of supply and demand apply equally to grapevine chatter and economics. An information void exists when the information demanded exceeds the information supplied. The supply and the demand of the information are not defined by the organization but by the individual person who desires the information. An information void will be filled with something – either rumors or valid information. The larger the information void, the greater the amount of chatter in the grapevine.

WIIFM

What’s in it for me (WIIFM) seems to show up in many places when we are talking about organizational change. Regardless of the situation, when change occurs our natural tendency is to translate this into a WIIFM context. This is what you are listening for. How does this change affect me, my pay, my family, my free time, etc.? Whether that WIIFM is good or bad, it creates a vested interest. When people have a vested interest, they will want information. The greater the impact on WIIFM, the greater the amount of chatter on the grapevine.

Recent News

Many organizations are stunned at how breaking news hits the grapevine at breakneck speed. Even something as simple as an office remodeling (occurring in our offices right now) can generate significant grapevine chatter. The fresher the story, the greater the chatter on the grapevine.

Insecurity

The impact of the WIIFM factor is exponentially compounded by the level of insecurity that exists. The greater the amount of insecurity that exists within the organization, the greater the amount of chatter that will exist on the grapevine. For example, with the current fragile state of the economy, one can easily see how this factor can become extremely high.

Rumors

As stated earlier, an information void will be filled. When the desire for information is high and the number of facts that are known is low, the number of rumors flying is huge. Most of us have experienced this firsthand, and sometimes it is not a pretty sight. Regaining control of information in the midst of flying rumors is extremely difficult. The longer a rumor is allowed to fly, the more difficult it is to replace it with valid information. While some people try to fight rumor with rumor, the only effective way to combat rumor is with facts. When a large number of rumors exist, an even larger number of facts must be communicated to combat the rumors.

Leveraging the Grapevine

Knowing the factors that make up grapevine chatter – information voids, WIIFM, recent news and insecurity – you can proactively intervene with frequent and effective communication. Fill information voids with accurate information before rumors materialize. Proactively communicate when breaking news is expected. When information (such as impending mergers and acquisitions) is about to be communicated, be prepared and react quickly after the message is released. When communicating change initiatives, ensure that you communicate the impact of the change on the individual.

Addressing the factors associated with grapevine chatter can minimize but never totally eliminate the amount of informal communication occurring. However, by better understanding the grapevine, you can successfully leverage it as part of your overall communication strategy.
One of the tenets of a good communication strategy is evaluating the effectiveness of your communication. This is accomplished by obtaining feedback. What better way to gather feedback than to take advantage of an existing channel of communication?

Tapping into the Grapevine

Over the course of my career, I have been able to tap into the grapevine at your typical places — the water cooler (scuttlebutt in Navy terminology), the coffee pot and the smoke break area. Tapping into the grapevine is not normally achieved overnight. Grapevine communicators are a very selective bunch. They will not share all information with everyone. There must be some level of relationship and trust established, and building relationships and trust takes time. To accomplish this, you must get out of the office, talk to people and most of all listen.

But while the traditional grapevine is thought of as being a face-to-face or oral type of communication, this is no longer the case. Advances in technology and recent trends in social networking have significantly transformed the modern grapevine. Informal communication now occurs through email, texting, Twitter and on social-networking sites such as Facebook.
Implementing major change in an organization is a complex and challenging task. In the end, creating organizational change is about cumulatively creating change in individuals. Successfully leading major change requires successfully leading individuals. To successfully lead individuals through change, you must be able to communicate effectively. You must find new ways to connect to people and communicate in every imaginable way. That includes tapping into the grapevine. Without it, you just might lose your mind. Honey, honey, yeah.

About the Author
Dave Berube, a senior consultant for Life Cycle Engineering (LCE), has more than 30 years of experience in leadership and management. His expertise includes behavioral change management, project management and development, and process improvement within various types of organizations. You can reach Dave at dberube@LCE.com.