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A newsletter of the
Work in Northeast Ohio Council (WINOC)
January 2008
This Issue:
Foseco Forum/Tour a Success... fifty attendees hear and see Foseco's Lean journey.
Meet Rick Bohan... meet long time WINOC Advisor and now Partner Rick Bohan.
The Fourth Discipline... you have probably heard of the Fifth Discipline... what about the other four?
Situational Leadership... the four roles of leaders... directing, coaching, supporting and delegating.
Skill Standards for Future Workers... beyond reading, writing and arithmetic.
Lean Manufacturing: Where to Start... If you have not embarked on your Lean journey yet, where should you start?
Coming Events... see right panel.
[TOP]
On December 4th, 2007 over fifty attendees from manufacturing companies across northeast Ohio had an opportunity to benchmark a leader in applying Lean productivity and quality processes... Foseco PLC. Attendees heard presentations from top executives and then were taken on a plant tour that included stops at nine different stations to see Lean in action. Of special interest was the "Recognition Wall" on which award winning individuals and groups were depicted on wall plagues. [Continued below]
[TOP]
Rick Bohan for many years was WINOC's Director of Advisor Services and a key WINOC Advisor serving many WINOC clients. Now, as owner and principal of Chagrin River Consulting, Rick continues to be a key WINOC service provider.
Rick works with small and medium sized organizations, helping them get better at what they do. Though specializing in manufacturing, Rick has much experience helping organizations in healthcare, education and government "get better" as well.
Getting better means reducing costs, increasing revenues, improving safety, improving innovation, improving teamwork and collaboration, solving problems, making better decisions at all levels, improving customer service, improving leadership skills and improving strategy. [Continued below]
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In Peter Senge's book The Fifth Discipline he suggests that becoming a learning organization requires five disciplines to be mastered, the fifth of which is Systems Thinking. Quality guru Dr. Deming might certainly agree. He declared that all change is completely reversible until an organization masters statiscal thinking.
What are the other four disciplines? They are Personal Mastery, Team Learning, Shared Vision and Mental Models. We suggest that a journey toward Systems Thinking occurs in that order; that is, hire/train people who are masters of their jobs, get workers to solve problems in teams, get everyone on board with the organization's vision, break down mental model barriers and then you are ready to master System Thinking.
We further suggest that for most organizations the real challenge is the fourth discipline... Mental Models. [Continued below]
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In a prior issues we wrote about Servant Leadership (see the April 2007 COMMUNICATOR here) as one of 110 leadership theories and we wrote that most leadership theories can be placed into eight main classifications (see October 2007 COMMUNICATOR here).: In this issue we write about Situational Leadership and present a model of Situational Leadership based on the four situational roles of leaders: directing, coaching, supporting and delegating.
Situational Leadership theories propose that leaders choose the best course of action based upon situational variable. Different styles of leadership may be more appropriate for certain types of decision-making. [Continued below]
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Skill Standards for Future Workers
"Welcome to McDonalds, may I take your order?"
"Yes. I'd like a quarter pounder with cheese, no onions, small fries and a coffee with cream only."
'Okay. I have a quarter pounder with cheese and onions and a coffee with cream and sugar. Would you like some French Fries with that?'
We know employers want employees that can listen, but what other skills do they need from employees? [Continued below]
[TOP]
Lean Manufacturing: Where to Start
Through our forums, public programs and advisory services activities WINOC has worked with manufacturing clients who are beginning, well along or quite advanced in their Lean manufacturing practices. When we ask these manufacturers where they started their Lean journey the answers are as unique as the companies we serve.
Some have started Kaizen team events. Some started with Value Stream Mapping. Some started out cleaning shop using 5S (or 6S). Why did they start where they did?
A Lean journey is a major change program and we know from the work of John Kotter (in his book Leading Change) that there are two important criteria relating to this question of where to start: 1) guiding coalition and 2) quick hits. [Continued below]
[TOP]
Energy Productivity Seminar
Spring 2008
Amid the pressures of rising prices, sky rocking demand, limited supply and pending deregulation, the electric industry is undergoing a sea change in how it delivers electricity.
Now is an excellent time to make energy productivity a priority for your business.
Specifics on this seminar to be co-sponsored with WIRE-Net will be available soon and will be emailed to COMMUNICATOR subscribers.
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WINOC Annual Meeting
March 27, 2008
11:30 AM to 1:30 PM
Weymouth Country Club
Medina, Ohio
If you would like to attend WINOC's Annual Meeting please contact Bob Meyer.
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For other programs and events of potential interest to WINOC COMMUNICATOR Subscribers, such as those sponsored by WINOC Partners, go to our Partner News and Events page.
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For further information on Programs and Events contact us at
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[TOP]
Foseco's Lean Journey [Continued from above]
Foseco PLC is a world leader in the supply of consumable products for use in the foundry and steel making industries. The products represent a small element of the overall cost of the foundry and steel making processes, yet they are key to the overall quality and yield for the customers. The group operates in 32 countries across the world and operates 29 production facilities in 17 countries. It employs approximately 3,200 staff. The Cleveland site, Foseco Metallurgical Inc., employs 150 employees at its Sheldon Road plant near Hopkins International Airport. The plant has been in operation since 1957, has two buildings on 25 acres with over 400,000 square feet of space. The Cleveland plant is unionized by the International Association of Machinist and Aerospace Workers. The Cleveland site, in addition to being a manufacturing plant, is the corporate office for the Americas.
The Cleveland manufacturing plant is very proactive in Lean Manufacturing. It started its Lean journey in 1988 with initiatives in the areas of teams, ownership, Continuous Improvement and Preventive QA. Foseco introduced cellular manufacturing in 1996 and today has 100% of its employees involved in team activities. The results of their implementation include: ¨
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Tool change time reduced from 20 minutes to 1-2 minutes .
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Inventory reductions of 55%.
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Waste reduction costs reduced over 87%.
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Dry scrap reduced 72%.
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Over 3 years 100% of employees on a problems solving team.
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Hourly absentee rate of 0.5%.
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Turnover rate of 0.01%.
A key to Foseco's success is a corporate culture of customer dedication characterized by participative management, employee involvement, open communications, teamwork, supply management and recognition for contributions to success.
This free forum was co-sponsored by WINOC and WIRE-Net and subsidized in part by a grant from the Ohio Department of Development's Office of Labor and Management Cooperation.
For more information on this and other WINOC sponsored forums/tour please contact us.
[TOP]
Rick
Bohan [Continued
from above]
WINOC is very appreciative of the work Rick has done for WINOC clients, big and small, over the years...
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Hundreds of clients have been taught basic Supervisor and Facilitator training by Rick over the years.
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For two decades Rick has been implementing WINOC's Total Quality Process (TQP), as described in WINOC's 1997 book People Make the Difference, with WINOC clients... most notably Lamson & Sessions and its plants nationwide.
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Rick has used his Baldrige and OAE Examiner knowledge and experience with many WINOC clients... most notably with the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) and especially District 12, the Governor's Ohio Award for Excellence winner in 2005!
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Rick led a major productivity improvement project for WINOC at Accuride Wheels in Cuyahoga Falls in 2004/2005.
Thank you, Rick!
Whether TQM, Productivity Enhancement, Lean, the People Side of Lean or Agile Manufacturing, what Rick likes to call it, it is all about helping organizations get better!
Rick has a B.A. in Psychology from the University of North Carolina and an M.S. in Organizational Development from Case Western Reserve University.
For more information about how WINOC can help your organization get better using service providers like Rick Bohan please contact us. To learn more about Chagrin River Consulting go here and check out Rick's Agile Manufacturing Update here.
[TOP]
Mental Models - The Fourth Discipline [Continued from above]
Once upon a time a manager in a large corporation was taught by his superiors a management technique that they unabashedly called "rock management." In rock management subordinates are asked to bring forward their work based on sketchy direction so it can be reshaped into the desired form after being critiqued... i.e., you brought me the wrong rock, bring me another rock. Rock management is an iterative yet time saving (only for the superior) process.
Years later this manager was exposed to a new technique called employee empowerment. Rock management, of course, is a dis-empowering technique so embracing employee empowerment presented a dilemma. That dilemma is how to overcome one mental model in favor of another.
Mental models are deeply ingrained assumptions, generalizations or even pictures/images that influence how we understand the world and how we take action.
They are powerful things. We all have them. Some people try to create them in others, e.g., politicians. Most are our own doing. Some are a good thing. Some are wrong and need to be changed. Good luck! As long as it took to get them ingrained is how long it is going to take to change them.
In our work with our clients we see mental models all the time. "This is how we do it here." "They [management] don't have a clue about what is really going on here." "The union is there to be an obstacle." "Productivity improvement means fewer jobs." You, no doubt, can name a few of your own.
Name the improvement initiative, from embracing diversity to rearranging the shop floor, mental models may well be in the way.
Mental models that are in the way of changing for the better (improvement) need to be surfaced and challenged through inquiry and advocacy. Leaders and employees can be facilitated to look inward (introspection) to identify these models and surface them. Education and training have a very beneficial role in dealing with mental models. Through practice based on the new models, the old models can be set aside.
An organization can not master the discipline of systems thinking (the Fifth Discipline) without first mastering mental models (the Fourth Discipline).
[TOP]
The Four Situational Roles of Leaders [Continued from above]
This is a term that can be applied generically to a style of leadership, but that also refers to a recognized, and useful, leadership model. In simple terms, a situational leader is one who can adopt different leadership styles depending on the situation. Most of us do this anyway in our dealings with other people: we try not to get angry with a nervous colleague on their first day, we follow up on tasks with some people more than others because we know they'll forget otherwise.
But
Ken Blanchard, the management guru best known for the "One Minute
Manager" series, and Paul Hersey created a model for Situational
Leadership in the late 1960's that allows you to analyze the needs of the
situation you are dealing with, and then adopt the most appropriate
leadership style. It has been popular with man
agers over the years
because it's simple to understand, and it works in most environments for
most people. The model doesn't just apply to people in leadership or
management positions: we all lead others at work and at home.
The model is shown to the right and the four roles are described as follows.
Directing Leaders define the roles and tasks of the 'follower', and supervise them closely. Decisions are made by the leader and announced, so communication is largely one-way.
Coaching Leaders still define roles and tasks, but seeks ideas and suggestions from the follower. Decisions remain the leader's prerogative, but communication is much more two-way.
Supporting Leaders pass day-to-day decisions, such as task allocation and processes, to the follower. The leader facilitates and takes part in decisions, but control is with the follower.
Delegating Leaders are still involved in decisions and problem-solving, but control is with the follower. The follower decides when and how the leader will be involved.
Blanchard and Hersey extends their model to include the level of competence and commitment of those being led. Presumably, for example, we would not want to delegate to people of low competence and commitment.
This model is not unlike Adaptive Decision Making, which we wrote about in a prior article that you can find here.
[TOP]
Skill Standards Framework for Future Workers [continued from above]
On May 22, 2006, DOLETA (U. S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration) and the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) jointly released the Advanced Manufacturing Competencies Framework. This Framework addresses worker competencies in Tiers.
Tier 1 - Personal Effectiveness: Integrity, Motivation, Dependability/Reliability and Willingness to Learn.
Tier 2 - Foundation Academic Competencies: Applied Science, Basic Computer Skills, Applied Mathematics/Measurement, Reading for Information, Business Writing, Locating and Using Information and Speaking/Presentation,
Tier 3 - Workplace Competencies: Business Fundamentals, Teamwork, Adaptability/Flexibility, Marketing and Customer Focus, Planning/Organizing, Problem Solving/Decision-Making and Applied Technology.
Tier 4 - Industry-wide Technical Competencies - Entry Level and Technician Level: Manufacturing Process Design/Development, Products, Maintenance, Installation and Repair, Health and Safety, Supply Chain Logistics, and Quality Assurance and Continuous Improvement.
In an ideal world parents can take care of Tier 1, our public schools can take care of Tier 2, our colleges can take care of Tier 3 and industry can take care of Tier 4. In the real world, with some exaggeration (you decide how much), parents have not mastered Tier 1 themselves, public schools teach what is to be covered on achievement tests, colleges over value academic freedom in the classroom and industry needs to get today's production out.
No wonder there is a role for government!
Federal and Ohio government agencies recognize that workforce development is key to economic development and have been taking a more active role in providing resources to address workforce skills and competencies. Check out some of these links to learn more.
Manufacturing Skill Standards Council.
Working for America; the AFL-CIO Working for America Institute, the Working for America Toolkit.
U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration (DOLETA); Workforce Investment Act (WIA); the President's High Growth Job Training Initiative.
Ohio Department of Development (ODOD); the Ohio Investment in Training Program (OITP); Ohio Incumbent Worker Training Program.
See also our article on managing the workforce of the 21st century in the April 2007 COMMUNICATOR.
[TOP]
Where to Start Your Lean Journey [Continued from above]
John Kotter's research found that companies that lead change the best do these eight things (and in this order!):
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Establish a sense of urgency.
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Create the guiding coalition.
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Develop a vision and strategy.
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Communicate the change vision.
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Empower broad-based action.
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Generate short-term wins (quick hits).
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Consolidate gains and produce more change.
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Anchor new approaches in the culture.
We suggest that number 2 and 6 above relate to our question of where to start the Lean journey.
Suppose you would like to start with Kaizen team events but a key person, e.g. the union president, is against it, then that is probably not the place to begin. On the other hand if everyone, including all leaders, agree that the shop floor is a mess and needs to be dealt with, than maybe beginning with 5S is a good place to start. The point is that wherever you start you can not have any anchors... people who resist and are in a key position such that their resistance can defeat the effort.
The
second key criteria for where to start is the idea of getting a quick hit.
If your start-up project is complicated, will be difficult, could take a
long time to get done and/or has a fair chance of failing, than that is
not a good place to begin. On the other hand, if your start-up project is
straight forward, can get done quickly, will have obvious impact and
surely will succeed, than that is a great place to begin. The point is
that success breeds success.
WINOC's model for a Lean journey is as shown to the right. Assessment provides the initial map from which the leadership can drive the organization (i.e., establish urgency) toward Lean operations. Through the Executive Overview leaders develop a shared understanding of Lean (i.e., guiding coalition with shared vision and strategy). In the Leadership Planning phase leaders learn, select a start-up project (quick hit) and lay out a master schedule of Lean initiatives.
And then it's off to the races!
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