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Supervisor Engine Warranty

Establishing a Mindset for Excellence

 

 Many quality managers fail, not because they do not have the tools, but because they do not use them properly.  While documenting during an inspection, instead of using respectful evaluation tones that lead to establishing trust, rapport, and positive change, some use negative tones which cause resentment and distrust.  With inspection sheets in hand, they tear through processes searching for everything that they perceive as wrong, without taking into consideration the labor involved or the worker's input.   And by doing so, miss golden opportunities to redirect, educate, and lead toward excellence.  Instead, and ironically, they end up contributing to unhealthy outcomes and a downward spiral in morale. 

As Quality Assurance Manager of a well-known marine manufacturing organization, my responsibilities exceeded product quality alone.  Of course delivering products that met engineering standards was the given expectation.  But there were other considerations as well—such as the feelings of those performing the tasks, their understanding of expected outcomes, and more important, my tone of communication, which could be useful in establishing trust and creating a learning environment.

"Inspections performed with good inter-personal skills foster learning environments."

One tool I found helpful in improving processes and creating cohesion was the in-process inspection.  I realized the importance of maintaining positive tones while inspecting a particular process one afternoon in a boat manufacturing facility down in Louisiana.  As I was evaluating a part, the female employee whose work I was evaluating, said, "Don't be writing nothing bad, Ruben."  That sentence, coupled with the non-verbal messages that she was projecting, led me to perceive that: A) she wanted to do the job correctly but was not completely sure how, or B) she was indeed 100% sure and wanted me to recognize her efforts.

 And there it was—that golden moment! This was my opportunity to either look at the glass as half-full, praise progress and appropriately redirect with positive tones, or choose to look at the glass as half empty, and disregard her feelings and trample on her efforts. I chose to praise her progress and appropriately redirect with positive tones.  I knew the manner of which I handled this interaction would end up being a topic during her lunch break with other key players within the manufacturing process.  So it was important for me, as an inspector / coworker to do the right thing in order to create cohesion and set ourselves up for success.

Consider the reality of the big picture

I had to consider the reality of the big picture.  This was a 24-hour operation, which meant there were several other employees on other shifts assigned to the very same tasks, which also meant there were possibilities for greater variation within the overall process. When we consider the reality of the big picture, the opportunities for success are endless.  With multiple shift operations, completing corrective improvement can take several shifts before overtime created by rework begins to diminish.  But, if in-process inspections were not performed on a regular basis and improvements not implemented, substandard parts would continue to generate extensive rework lists, stifle progress, lead to costly overtime, and diminish morale.  Keep the big picture in mind.  It's not about catching people doing things wrong—it's about congratulating them for doing things right, and guiding them toward continuous improvement within the framework of strong leadership support.

"Partnering leadership yields the best results toward establishing a mindset of excellence."

Management partnering is critical in a manufacturing setting, as each department is responsible for their contribution toward the success of the entire operation.  Which means, each department manager, and I mean all managers, must partner and lead, because partnering leadership yields the best results toward establishing a mindset of excellence.   One of the greatest and most challenging obstacles for a manufacturing operation is having managers with silo mentalities. Silo mentalities between department managers lead to dissension, and are a recipe for failure.

I'm reflecting on how well partnering worked in a boat facility in Maryland.  As quality manager, I would team up with each department supervisor.  Together we would review processes, look at parts, and work together to find best practices.  We were aware that employees were watching, so we made sure that our facial expressions and body language supported our goal of demonstrating cooperation and encouraging excellence.  Through our cooperative efforts, we achieved the highest honor given for quality by our corporate office: The President's Award for Quality. Every employee received a steak dinner and a company jacket. But, the best part is, a mindset for excellence was established. And the workplace, which at one time was a place laden with apathy, poor communication, high absenteeism, and poor housekeeping practices, became a place of competence, improved communication, increased perfect attendance and teamwork—a work place we were proud to represent.

All this attention to caring for people resulted in increased customer satisfaction ratings, lower warranty claims, quality awards, employee led plant tours, and visits to other facilities as helpers.  I've tried this approach and it works.  It's not an overnight process and it requires leadership commitment.  But, here's what I found; you'll never go wrong if you treat your people right!

 The A, B, C Path to Excellence

Here are 3 sure ways to nurture excellence and create an environment that encourages excellence:

A)   Assessment – I found that we had to begin by first knowing where we were in terms of measureable outcomes.  If I were lost and telephoned a friend for help, the first question from my friend would be "Where are you now?"  And the next question would be, "Where do you want to go?"  The first step then, is to make an assessment to find out what is and isn't measuring up against established guidelines.  Customer warranty information, surveys, inspections, group meetings, all can be helpful in determining where you are now. 

 B)   Build on Strengths - Your assessment will highlight both strengths and weaknesses.  Build on strengths and shore up vulnerable areas with leadership support.  My experience has taught me that some obstacles to employee performance are related to processes and systems found outside of the employees' control. It becomes the leader's responsibility to find solutions to remove these barriers.

C) Create a Learning Culture – Excellence is an attitude and attitudes change.  Therefore continuous improvement requires continuous education.  This is where leadership mentoring is so important.  Leaders must be grounded to the present while managing toward the future because change is constant.  And because change is constant, succession planning is a must for future stability and growth.  Succession planning involves taking the knowledge of one person, and pouring that knowledge into another in order to maintain momentum and stability during the change process.  One way to get started is to initiate an effective cross-training emphasis.  Cross-training helps create and raise awareness.  When we begin to understand how our work impacts the success of the next person or process, we want to deliver our best so that they can succeed.  When this kind of awareness is created, the whole organization is raised to a higher performance mindset of competence. 

About the Author

Ruben Colón currently resides in Houston, Texas. 

Core Competencies:  Relations and Quality Excellence Facilitator

Background: Marine Manufacturing and Healthcare

Manufacturing Experience:

• 15 years with US MARINE-BAYLINER
• 10 years with General Motors

Healthcare Experience: 7 years with St. Luke's Rehabilitation Institute, Spokane, WA.

Professional Memberships: Toastmaster's International

Currently pursuing a career as a service excellence coach and motivational speaker.

For information contact Ruben @ ruru8249@yahoo.com

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