The First Rule of Lean Culture Change September 20, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in 5S & Visual Management, culture.Tags: 5S, culture
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5S is simplest, most straightforward lean culture tool, according to Rick Bohan at IndustryWeek. Culture change is easy to talk about, but difficult to do. A simple workshop will not do the trick. Follow-up, and a system to follow up making sure 5S is applied correctly and consistently, is a good way to help make sure that a serious attempt at 5S is being made.
Read Bohan’s article and thoughts on culture change here.
Straight Talk: Avoid the Con of Quick and Easy Lean March 29, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, lean.Tags: culture, lean
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Lawrence Miller, writing at IndustryWeek, makes the case that lean is a multiyear process more akin to a lifestyle change than a diet. Some lean gurus present lean as if it was a system of quick, painless fixes. Lawrence provides some helpful hints about how to avoid such false promises. Among them, saving money comes at the expense of trimming the workforce. Lawrence also provides some truthful information about lean, including the need for active leadership.
For Lawrence Miller’s informative article, please head here.
Culture vs. Strategy Is A False Choice March 29, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, strategy.Tags: culture, strategy
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According to Bob Frisch at FastCompany, the growing trend in business literature has been that culture is a greater determining factor in success than strategy. But Bob contends that this is a false set of choices. Both matter. Bob provides a number of case examples, including Southwest Airlines. Sure, their workers are friendly, funny, and encouraging, but their strategy of a young fleet and short flights is an important and successful strategy.
To read Bob’s article, please go here.
If Your Company’s Culture Needs A Shot In The Arm, Do The Huddle February 27, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, personal productivity, workforce.Tags: culture, personal productivity, workforce
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A FastCompany article by Eric Ryan reveals that huddles can be a great way to motivate a company. A huddle is a company meeting that keeps everyone connected to the culture and the business. Things like objectives, sales wins, financial challenges, and personal success stories, births, birthdays, and other individual accomplishments are discussed and heralded. This builds trust, communication, and camaraderie between coworkers. Eric also offers some huddle tips, such as allowing a different person to lead the huddle each time.
Check out the rest of Eric’s suggestions here.
So You Want to be a Change Agent: Are You Weird Enough? January 30, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, leadership.Tags: culture, leadership
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Lonnie Wilson, the founder of Quality Consultants, has penned an interesting article over at Industry Week. In it, she discusses how those seeking to change a company must be a mix of two things: different enough to change the company, and credible enough to change the company. A simple, yet logical and credible way of being both, is asking questions about the company’s culture. By asking challenging questions, one can be viewed as both objective and “weird”.
Read Ms. Wilson’s article here.
So You Want to be a Change Agent: Are You Weird Enough? January 30, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, leadership.Tags: culture, leadership
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Lonnie Wilson, the founder of Quality Consultants, has penned an interesting article over at Industry Week. In it, she discusses how those seeking to change a company must be a mix of two things: different enough to change the company, and credible enough to change the company. A simple, yet logical and credible way of being both, is asking questions about the company’s culture. By asking challenging questions, one can be viewed as both objective and “weird”.
Read Ms. Wilson’s article here.
Sharpen Your Focus by Selecting the Vital Few Breakthrough Objectives with Hoshin Kanri January 30, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, lean.Tags: culture, lean
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Tim McMahon, writing at A Lean Journey, talks about the two kinds of changes that occur: small, incremental changes, and large, dramatic changes. While both matter, sometimes the larger, more dramatic changes are what lead to real breakthroughs.
Check out Mr. McMahon’s informative post here.
Sharpen Your Focus by Selecting the Vital Few Breakthrough Objectives with Hoshin Kanri January 30, 2012
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, lean.Tags: culture, lean
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Tim McMahon, writing at A Lean Journey, talks about the two kinds of changes that occur: small, incremental changes, and large, dramatic changes. While both matter, sometimes the larger, more dramatic changes are what lead to real breakthroughs.
Check out Mr. McMahon’s informative post here.
How to Change a Culture: Lessons from NUMMI December 19, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in automotive, culture, Lean Thinking, Workplace Design.Tags: automotive, culture, Lean Thinking
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In an excellent article at Sloan Review, John Shook analyzes the joint-GM/Toyota factory endeavor (the New United Motor Manufacturing Inc.) which totally changed the workforce there. The Toyota Production System was employed, getting people to change how they behaved. Training, the way things are done, and organization all influenced a cultural change at the plant. The workforce there wanted to prove they could turn out quality products, so among the changes made was to use the stop-the-line andon process.
For a link to purchase the complete article, head here.
How to Change a Culture: Lessons from NUMMI December 19, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in automotive, culture, Lean Thinking, Workplace Design.Tags: automotive, culture, Lean Thinking
add a comment
In an excellent article at Sloan Review, John Shook analyzes the joint-GM/Toyota factory endeavor (the New United Motor Manufacturing Inc.) which totally changed the workforce there. The Toyota Production System was employed, getting people to change how they behaved. Training, the way things are done, and organization all influenced a cultural change at the plant. The workforce there wanted to prove they could turn out quality products, so among the changes made was to use the stop-the-line andon process.
For a link to purchase the complete article, head here.
Financial Incentives Won’t Deliver Culture Change December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, workforce.Tags: culture, workforce
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In an interview at IndustryWeek, lean expert and writer Lonnie Wilson explains that cash incentives are not always the best way to handle changing culture. Often, cash incentives are actually short-term fixes, and don’t properly address poor management. Often, finding ways to make work meaningful in order to give workers a sense of accomplishment works far better. An environment to encourage creativity and productivity must be properly maintained.
Check out the IndustryWeek article here.
Financial Incentives Won’t Deliver Culture Change December 18, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, workforce.Tags: culture, workforce
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In an interview at IndustryWeek, lean expert and writer Lonnie Wilson explains that cash incentives are not always the best way to handle changing culture. Often, cash incentives are actually short-term fixes, and don’t properly address poor management. Often, finding ways to make work meaningful in order to give workers a sense of accomplishment works far better. An environment to encourage creativity and productivity must be properly maintained.
Check out the IndustryWeek article here.
13 Ways of Looking at a Story June 2, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in change management, culture.Tags: change management, culture
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Mark McGuinness, writing at Lateral Action, provides a list of thirteen ways of looking at a story. A story is a shortcut to the emotional brain, for example, by using passionate language and relating personal experiences to have a profound impact on an audience. A story is like the Trojan Horse –it gets an audience to lower their defense to get a point across. And stories can also be rallying cries for greater causes and action.
This post is especially important for leaders and change agents!
For these and other ways of looking at a story, check out Mr. McGuinnesses’s post here.
13 Ways of Looking at a Story June 2, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in change management, culture.Tags: change management, culture
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Mark McGuinness, writing at Lateral Action, provides a list of thirteen ways of looking at a story. A story is a shortcut to the emotional brain, for example, by using passionate language and relating personal experiences to have a profound impact on an audience. A story is like the Trojan Horse –it gets an audience to lower their defense to get a point across. And stories can also be rallying cries for greater causes and action.
This post is especially important for leaders and change agents!
For these and other ways of looking at a story, check out Mr. McGuinnesses’s post here.
That’s the Way We (Used to) Do Things Around Here April 20, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, customer focus.Tags: culture, customer focus
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With a desired endpoint in mind, leaders must transform their company to meet that goal. To do this, people working at the company must change their behavior and their practices. To change culture, ingrained practices of how things were once done must be set aside. But how? A number of case studies are presented in this article. The agriculture company Cargill, for example, sent representatives to its customer industries. One of those companies, a packaged-foods manufacturer, said that Cargill continually sent people out to them who never sought to understand how they used Cargill’s ingredients. By bringing those people together, much more could be offered. Cargill did just that, by having its employees collaborate.
Read more in the Strategy+Business article here.
That’s the Way We (Used to) Do Things Around Here April 20, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, customer focus.Tags: culture, customer focus
add a comment
With a desired endpoint in mind, leaders must transform their company to meet that goal. To do this, people working at the company must change their behavior and their practices. To change culture, ingrained practices of how things were once done must be set aside. But how? A number of case studies are presented in this article. The agriculture company Cargill, for example, sent representatives to its customer industries. One of those companies, a packaged-foods manufacturer, said that Cargill continually sent people out to them who never sought to understand how they used Cargill’s ingredients. By bringing those people together, much more could be offered. Cargill did just that, by having its employees collaborate.
Read more in the Strategy+Business article here.
(Complaining About) Resistance is Futile April 20, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, leadership, workforce.Tags: culture, leadership, workforce
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Mark Graban highlights a common problem on his Lean Blog. He speaks of how leaders complain that their employees are resistant to change. Quoting writer Stephen Parry, Mark explains that resistance to change is due to a lack of leadership. Indeed, he notes, blaming others for lack of change is a convenient excuse. Instead of complaining about resistance, leaders should seek to understand specifically why their employees are resistant.
Check out Mr. Graban’s post here.
(Complaining About) Resistance is Futile April 20, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, leadership, workforce.Tags: culture, leadership, workforce
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Mark Graban highlights a common problem on his Lean Blog. He speaks of how leaders complain that their employees are resistant to change. Quoting writer Stephen Parry, Mark explains that resistance to change is due to a lack of leadership. Indeed, he notes, blaming others for lack of change is a convenient excuse. Instead of complaining about resistance, leaders should seek to understand specifically why their employees are resistant.
Check out Mr. Graban’s post here.
Six Questions for Company Transformation April 20, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in change management, culture, workforce.Tags: change management, culture, workforce
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The difference between businesses that have and have not been able to handle the recession of 2008 has been their ability – or inability – to evolve. David Shaner, writing at IndustryWeek, says if you have one last shot at change, do it. If you are going to change, you must first answer six questions. For example, you must be able to answer the question of just whose culture it is that is changing. You must be able to make your people believe that their culture is theirs to own.
Check out Mr. Shaner’s article here.
Six Questions for Company Transformation April 20, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in change management, culture, workforce.Tags: change management, culture, workforce
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The difference between businesses that have and have not been able to handle the recession of 2008 has been their ability – or inability – to evolve. David Shaner, writing at IndustryWeek, says if you have one last shot at change, do it. If you are going to change, you must first answer six questions. For example, you must be able to answer the question of just whose culture it is that is changing. You must be able to make your people believe that their culture is theirs to own.
Check out Mr. Shaner’s article here.
Learning Zone vs. Comfort Zone April 20, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, personal productivity, workforce.Tags: culture, personal productivity, workforce
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In a guest post on lean thinker Jamie Flinchbaugh’s blog, Shawn Patterson (who manages continuous improvement at DTE Energy) writes about how workers he observed, facing change, consistently seek a return to “normal”, or the comfort zone. But to a company seeking excellence, employees will constantly be challenged in a learning zone that doesn’t always resonate with normality. Mr. Patterson explains that while a good part of the day should be spent within a comfort zone, there should also be a push into the learning zone.
Read his post here.
Learning Zone vs. Comfort Zone April 20, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, personal productivity, workforce.Tags: culture, personal productivity, workforce
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In a guest post on lean thinker Jamie Flinchbaugh’s blog, Shawn Patterson (who manages continuous improvement at DTE Energy) writes about how workers he observed, facing change, consistently seek a return to “normal”, or the comfort zone. But to a company seeking excellence, employees will constantly be challenged in a learning zone that doesn’t always resonate with normality. Mr. Patterson explains that while a good part of the day should be spent within a comfort zone, there should also be a push into the learning zone.
Read his post here.
Individual NFL Player Incentives: Why Are They Necessary? Do They Distort the Game? February 21, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, leadership.Tags: culture, leadership
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Mark Graban over at Lean Blog has taken to analyzing an ESPN discussion about individual NFL player incentives. Some maintain that individual incentives are necessary for performance, but others maintain that they distort play and corrode the intrinsic worth of the game itself (winning and making it to the playoffs).
Check out Mr. Graban’s analysis here.
Individual NFL Player Incentives: Why Are They Necessary? Do They Distort the Game? February 21, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, leadership.Tags: culture, leadership
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Mark Graban over at Lean Blog has taken to analyzing an ESPN discussion about individual NFL player incentives. Some maintain that individual incentives are necessary for performance, but others maintain that they distort play and corrode the intrinsic worth of the game itself (winning and making it to the playoffs).
Check out Mr. Graban’s analysis here.
Managing Risk in the Era of Behavior February 4, 2011
Posted by Jeff Fuchs in culture, workforce.Tags: culture, workforce
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In an article at Businessweek, David Greenberg asserts that rules and regulations can hamper risk-taking and corporate culture changing. So averse have leaders been to risk-taking that they have constructed an elaborate system of safety –to avoid catastrophes. But the problem is that such methods take away the risk factor in human behavior. The trick is engendering preferable behavior.
Check out the Bussinessweek article here.
