Manufacturing
Factors that affect this industry include
- Lack of young talent entering the industry
- Supplier costs in comparison to overseas competition
- Legacy of outdated working culture in many organisations
- Lack of integration of modernisation with leadership and management
Expressions has worked with and continue to work with a number of manufacturing and engineering organisations in the UK and across Europe to realise the existing culture, and define the desired culture aligned to a vision of meaning and purpose.
The Case in Point
A recent intervention had straightforward objectives to achieve in a manufacturing environment:
Improve the efficiency of the operation and thereby the sale value of the organisation.
- Reduce the product reject rate
- Increase profit margins
Symptoms:
- The current situation was a reject rate of 0.45%
- Staff turnover was high in recent joiners and low in established personnel
- A culture of ‘Them’ and ‘Us’
- Spiralling costs for re-work, overtime and wastage
- A strong order book
- No financial staff bonuses for over a decade
Contrary to perceptions manufacturing pay is around 12% higher than other sectors and can offer exciting, often hi-tech career options.
How the industry is meeting the challenge
Approach
Stage one of our approach was to engage first with the Senior Leadership team from the MD through to the established directors. The challenge for any business leader is to balance their technical specialism with inspirational leadership. This is heightened when your business leaders are engineers as they have a specific mindset which is exceptional in the logical flow of product design and manufacturing. A simple shift in appreciation for the role each and every department played in the production was quickly established and the leadership team were more visible on the production floor instead of camped on the first floor.
Stage two was to work with the middle Managers as they had been promoted through longevity of service or on merit for their technical expertise.
The final stage was to work with the remainder of the workforce focusing on cultural architecture creating shared values to enable the organisation to arrive at its visual destination. Inevitably a few extinct mindsets who were not willing to de-crease left the organisation whilst others entertained a different approach. The intervention in a top-down/down-up engagement realised the “Team” as part of a production business where:
How the industry is meeting the challenge
Approach
Stage one of our approach was to engage first with the Senior Leadership team from the MD through to the established directors. The challenge for any business leader is to balance their technical specialism with inspirational leadership. This is heightened when your business leaders are engineers as they have a specific mindset which is exceptional in the logical flow of product design and manufacturing. A simple shift in appreciation for the role each and every department played in the production was quickly established and the leadership team were more visible on the production floor instead of camped on the first floor.
Stage two was to work with the middle Managers as they had been promoted through longevity of service or on merit for their technical expertise.
The final stage was to work with the remainder of the workforce focusing on cultural architecture creating shared values to enable the organisation to arrive at its visual destination. Inevitably a few extinct mindsets who were not willing to de-crease left the organisation whilst others entertained a different approach. The intervention in a top-down/down-up engagement realised the “Team” as part of a production business where:
Business Metrics
- The rejects rate went from 0.45% to 0.03%
- Bonuses were given for the first time in years
- The profit margin was a healthy one
- Controllable staff retention increased and people were developed from within the organisation to achieve their potential
Human Metrics
Management and Staff engagement allowed them to:
- Enjoy what they do
- Have reduced episodes of ‘Sunday night syndrome’
- Contribute to the bigger picture
- Appreciate the contribution of all within the organisation
- Fulfil their career potential
This specific case study is not unique in this sector.
We work with individuals and teams to help them identify their limiting and sometimes outdated beliefs often held for 40+ years and shift their beliefs and associated behaviours to a more beneficial working environment for all employees.