Improving Company Performance

All improvement programmes run out of steam unless you make conscious efforts to review and support staff in their work. Improvements come from repetitions; and greater gains come from focused strategic planning, implementation and staff development and training.

Total Quality Management (TQM) was built around the idea that individual employees can always improve their work by learning new techniques and applying them to their work.

In TQM workshops staff must learn to master techniques such as the “Six Management and Planning Tools” required to resolve issues.

These are:

1 To describe what is (going wrong) and not working;

2 To collect and analyse facts on the issues that are not working (going wrong);

3 Ability to decide, plan and implement solutions;

4 To confirm that solutions work;

5 To incorporate solutions into a refined process and

6 To re-examine the solution process and find any weaknesses in it.

Delegation (Handing Power Down the Management Line). 43.

For delegation to be effective, you must set out the agenda for particular tasks, decide on the powers you must keep, and select people whom you think will carry out the delegated duties.

The delegatees must have clearly defined roles that they helped to establish; they must choose their own working methods, make decisions and be responsible for meeting agreed goals.

The “Six Management and Planning Tools” to ensure quality products and services that every company should aim are:

1 You should aim to improve the quality of all company processes.

2 Your employees should focus on quality work that produces real customer benefits.

3 You should use training in TQM to increase employees’ general abilities.

4 You should concentrate on single initiatives at a time so as to avoid confusion.

5 Listen to all staff contributions and hear what they say, and ask for their improvements ideas.

6 Expect and encourage employees to continue achieving better company goals all the times.

7 Learning curve studies show that intensive development is followed by a “leveling off” stage.

8 Select new themes for training and development every year if that is appropriate.

Introduce Self-Management

The really good aspect about staff self-management is the concept of “Getting it Right the first time”. The more you allow staff personal responsibility is the more they will get things done right the first time, and the greater will be their interest for better and higher productivity because they will be inspired to maintain and produce only high quality first products. With high first time quality production inspired workers, you will NOT need quality inspectors and thus you will cut down on production costs and increase your bottom line.

Furthermore, “Getting it Right First” staff-work-attitude raises staff morale which is essential for maintaining TQM. High staff morale can enrich individual motivation and performance even in times of company crises because; individual objections and objectives are by-passed for the collective good of the company.

To instill the “Getting it Right First” staff-attitude and “Raise staff Morale” you need to ask yourself and positively answer the following questions.

1 Do I enable employees to take pride in the quality of their own work in my company?

2 Do I constantly look for ways to increase staff group morale with my employees?

3 Have I considered setting specialist group projects and tasks within my company?

4 Am I making the best use of a staff deployment policy and annual review findings?

5 Am I setting (smart) achievable, measurable, time limited objectives that motivate my staff?

If your answers to the above questions are “Yes”, then you a progressive modern manager, you should continue on the same lines. But, if your answer to the above questions is “No”, then you need to re-think your management methods, strategy and style to be able to answer the same questions with a “Yes” in future.

Advice for managers

To Get it Right First and Raise Staff Morale you should:

1 Make “right first time” the key strategy and aim for every member of staff team.

2 Expect all staff members to supervise and monitor the quality of their own performance.

3 Encourage implicit changing company-processes and a desire to move forward with times.

4 Ask questions to find out if every employee is aware of the team or company strategy.

5 Develop a company future vision with input and participation of the entire staff group.

6 Involve your entire staff group to devise and incorporate company slogan “Getting it Right First time” and (“TQM”) policy.

7 Increase the company’s “Competitive Advantage” by coining a lively vision statement.

7 Involve everyone in the corporate plan and vision to enrich jobs and increase motivation.

8 Use outsourcing strategies if necessary to reduce costs and increase profitability.

Together with your staff’s participation, establish a lively exciting corporate vision to develop extra associated improvements themes, to devise plans to realise company objectives and to regularly review plans and make necessary adjustments and additions.

You should be aware that neuroscience research shows that the slogans which people use in communicating with others shape peoples’ thinking and behaviour. Avoid using negative feeling causing phrases such as problem solving instead of this; you should use Can-Do phrases like finding solutions which excite adrenalin to find solutions. Create an invigorating atmosphere which is appreciated and valued by all your staff as an essential feel-good-factor of the organisation.

Advice to managers

1 Encourage the workforce to consider themselves a knit team as a football team.

2 An employee who feels neglected and excluded from the group is likely to be unmotivated.

3 If a group grows too large divide them into tow or more smaller cohesive groups.

4 Publicly celebrate the achievements of individual employees, staff groups in your company.

5 Initiate employees in one person “Quality Improvements Projects” (QIPs) if that is possible.

“Closed Minds” is syndrome called “Not Invented Here” (NIH) when employees disagree with any new ideas from outside the company or from other sections of the company. Be aware of the “Closed minds” syndrome and counteract it because its consequences are often expensive and disastrous for your company. 50.

You must welcome all ideas; accept those that are good to ensure the flow of new ideas. You must explain the reasons why any ideas are rejected because some ideas come from staff who act as your spies on any good practices spotted from your competitors.

Advice for managers

1 Clearly emhasise to your staff that new ideas will only be rejected after due consideration.

2 Ensure that creative contributions should be discussed and decided only in staff meetings.

3 Always insist that opportunities are seized after risks have been fully assessed.

4 Stress that not taking risks is worse than taking risks and is due to lack of self-confidence.

Create a staff open-mind set by following these steps:

a) Establish special creative projects to encourage initiative; b) Build a non-managerial effective staff team; c) Insist that such new initiatives are recognised throughout the company; e) and openly celebrate positive creative efforts.

Dealing with Staff Conflict in your Organisation

Conflict will always arise when several people work together. If you are faced with conflict, adopt a positive rational approach to defuse any heightened emotions; and then look for a resolution based on pragmatism and compromise. You cannot avoid dealing with staff conflict as a manager.

Guilt and anxiety are common negative emotions that you must manage very carefully. Even if you believe that one staffs’ position is correct, you should be prepared to consider the other point of view and then go for a compromise solution.

When Conflicts Arise ask Yourself the Following Questions.

1 What is exactly the problem; where does it lie and what has caused it now?

2 What are the potential alternative solutions to the problem?

3 Which is the best solution out of all the alternatives?

4 How is the chosen solution to be implemented?

5 Do I provide an environment where disagreeing employees can openly voice their opinions, and then work towards solutions?

6 Can resolutions to general conflicts come from frank airing of grievances?

7 Do I give myself enough time to consider the above questions before making my decision?

Advice for managers

1 Remember that you are concerned with the behaviour not the character of the person.

2 Carefully analyse presented problems as they arise and start by resolving them in your mind.

3 If anger or animosity persists ask a close colleague to help you to defuse the situation.

4 By addressing the reasons and emotions first you can help staff reach a compromise.

5 Avoid demonising trade unions or any one person and deal with issues on their merit.

6 Demonstrate your people management skills so that they are accepted by your staff.

7 Never give into black-mail or demands that are unreasonable, always seek compromise.

Managing the Change Process, Work Patterns and Culture in Organisations. 58.

The modern business environment changes so fast because of advances in technology therefore every business organisation manager must constantly cope and accept change as normal before the INVISIBLE HAND OF CHANGE itself changes the whole organisational environment in the way it wants.

Many managers often focus on the mechanics of change concentrating on ensuring that plans are followed. Change in business management refers to life-transitions in the manner in which companies conduct their daily business activities. Change refers to the evolving ethos and culture of management style and work patterns that must evolve with changing times.

Nowadays you always need to improve patterns of working and employ new ideas and technology. NB. Changing business working-patterns is not for weak managers, it is for bold managers who realise that old patterns die hard, and that if their organisation is to survive in the modern competitive market old patterns and work-behaviours must evolve and change.

Organisational change can only be greatly assisted by you, showing concern for your staff anxieties, coupled with your strong interest in their welfare and future wellbeing. Also remember that appropriate Change will only happen with the cooperation of your staff; therefore staff must understand why change is necessary for the company’s survival. This means that, you the manager must inform them fully and effectively communicate the need for change in habits, culture and work-patterns of your employees.

Advice for managers

1 You must motivate your staff by acting positively on their creative new ideas about change.

2 Use continuous change process, stimulate staff and avoid stale ideas and work patterns.

3 Understand that resistance to change is a common normal reaction to new situations.

4 Show staff how they will gain individually from changed work-patterns that are necessary.

5 Involve as many employees as possible in producing strategies and plans for change.

6 Tackle key-role-staff resistance as early as possible because change can block change

7 Identify “change agents” such as:

a) Employees capable thinking laterally; b) Employees driven to improve and transform the organisation; c) Employees who are strong and emotionally in control; e) Employees who can think forcefully and independently; f) and employees who can create new frames of reference.

Employ these “change agents” to assist you in lobbying for the introduction of change; they can also help you to use all other members of staff in implementing the change process.

Assessing and Rewarding Employees.

Staff are employed to deliver results for your company and their pay rates and success are intrinsically linked to how they are managed, reviewed, rewarded and trusted by management. When choosing methods for assessing your staffs’ performance, always make sure that the end results have positive effect on motivation and they increase employees’ sense of self-worth.

Keep in mind that staff assessment, appraisal and rewards are methods of communicating with your employees; they can raise or drop staff morale, motivation and enthusiasm to work for you.