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Workers Are
Industry's Most Important Resource:
Harness Their Power
by Mastering the Art of Serving |
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Charles J. Latino,
President, Reliability Center Inc., Hopewell, VA
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A realization that appears to be taking hold in corporate America today
is that the answer to increased productivity and higher profits lies not
in downsizing or even computers. Rather, it is the people who operate our
plants and build our products who are our most precious assets. |
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they must be nurtured, encouraged, and supported. Managers must create
cultures and environments that unleash the power of learned skills, innate
intelligence, and natural instincts. Properly instilling this new culture
requires a radical shift in the way the role of the manager is defined.
We must understand what workers need to perform and provide it. |
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Training, incentives, rewards, and recognition are only a few of the ways
to promote this culture. Workers must also be given the freedom to think,
and the time to do it. Managers must be willing to abandon rigid traditions
that hinder worker creativity, initiative, and productivity. Once expectations
have been set, we must serve the needs of our workers rather than expecting
them to fulfill subservient roles. |
Managers can serve their workers and their companies in several ways.
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Train workers to think logically
and provide them with the analytical skills needed to identify and solve
problems.
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Know what employees are learning
and support them by creating an environment that encourages problem-solving.
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Provide champions to remove
barriers as they surface and mentors to guide and reassure employees as
they begin to implement new ways of thinking and working.
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Eliminate rigid systems that
waste time and hinder innovative thinking. Replace them with systems that
support creativity and initiative.
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Recognize and reward those who
have embraced the new culture and achieved success.
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| Train Workers To Think
Analytically. |
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Every worker possesses the innate ability to be a problem-solver and most
want to bring more to their jobs than the routine tasks they are asked
to perform day after day. Solving problems efficiently and consistently
through the application of analytical thought processes requires learned
skills. |
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When workers acquire these skills and apply them routinely in the field,
the results can be remarkable in terms of increased productivity, reduced
down-time, and higher profits. |
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Nowhere is this more demonstrable than in failure analysis. It is estimated
that maintenance could be reduced 40% to 60% by eliminating chronic equipment
and system failures. Employees trained in basic analytical skills can better
identify and eliminate these chronic failures. Trained workers develop
more confidence, a stronger sense of self-worth, and a feeling of contributing
to the company's growth and well-being. |
| Understand and Support
Workers. |
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At some point in almost every training class, students ask, "Have our managers
attended this class? Do they know what we are learning here?" When the
answer is no, enthusiasm drops. The students know from experience that
what they learn in class is unlikely to be applied in the field, because
management has had little or no involvement in the process and has not
supported it. Management must serve employees by setting up and supporting
an infrastructure (including management systems) to facilitate the application
of training in the field. |
| Champion and Mentor the
Cause. |
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Employees may embrace new skills enthusiastically, but hesitate to use
them because they are uncertain of success. To eliminate the fear that
their efforts will not be supported, they need a management-level champion
to oversee the failure analysis/problem-solving efforts, provide resources,
and eliminate organizational barriers to success. They also need mentors
to reassure and guide them toward robust and powerful solutions. |
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Mentors and champions are people who oversee the training and assist in
its implementation. Although this task sounds easy and logical, it is often
a paradigm shift, because it puts management in a position of serving the
educational and analytical needs of its workers. When the newly trained
employees and their champions and mentors work together, they produce what
may be called trophies, or models of success that serve as standards for
the rest of the organization. |
| Eliminate Rigid Outmoded
Systems. |
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One difficult challenge in establishing this new environment of worker
initiative and creative thinking is removing the barriers that impede performance.
Too often, managers recognize and act on mechanical failures but ignore
process and administrative failures. These failures may range from outmoded
and time-consuming chores to administrative processes that promote competition
rather than cooperation. |
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Remember, many systems and processes used today were instituted to serve
perceived administrative needs. In a new environment of worker-generated
innovation and creativity, they are now outmoded. If they get in the way
of progress, they should be eliminated. New systems should be implemented
that support employees' new skills, enthusiasm, and initiative. |
| Reward and Recognize
Workers. |
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Rewards and recognition are distinctly different but equally important
ways to reinforce management support. Rewards do not have to be financial.
If they are, they must be given uniformly regardless of the dollar impact
of an action. Reward an employee for implementing a process successfully,
however big or small the result may be. |
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While rewards add something to the pocketbook, recognition nurtures the
heart and the soul. It builds pride and self-esteem. It reassures and affirms
to workers that management genuinely understands, appreciates, and supports
their efforts. Recognition takes many forms, but whatever it is, it should
be genuine and consistent. |
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Workers are the most important assets in any company. When managers realize
the potential for savings that exists from optimizing processes and minimizing
costs is far greater than that achieved by reducing the workforce, genuine
quantum leaps in profitability can be made. Then we will all serve our
companies and ensure a profitable, competitive future for all. |
RCI Offers the full
range of Reliability Consulting Services and Training Programs for Industry.
We conduct facilitations, reliability assessments, FMEA & Root Cause
Failure Analysis Training - Public & On-Site.
For more information
contact:
Reliability Center, Inc.
P.O. Box 1421
Hopewell, Virginia 23860
Phone: (804) 458-0645
Fax: (804) 452-2119
Website: http://www.reliability.com
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