Post by yycandrew on Sept 16, 2019 9:15:18 GMT -8
I am in a senior management position in a small, family-held manufacturing business. The owner / GM and I go back some 30+ years. I joined the business 8 months ago with the handshake agreement that I'd buy in to a 50% stake.
My role was to offload the bulk of the administrative functions, while introducing some process and procedure controls without bogging down the operation in overhead. There was, and remains, tons of areas for improvement. We introduced a more effective ERP system, hired a QC manager who drafted up a comprehensive yet straight-forward quality control system that was rolled out, we hired new staff, coached those that wanted to grow and set free those that couldn't or wouldn't. We made great strides in improving the bottom line, but there remained some glaring omissions. As a result, I've been hesitant to put my money on the line, and the terms suddenly changed to 40%, leaving me in a subordinate ownership position if I moved ahead.
The production floor is dirty. DIRTY. While manning one of the machines on a Saturday, I pulled out the mop and bucket and spent the next 8 hours scrubbing down the floor around me. The difference was substantial and hard to miss. "I'd like the guys to be doing a quick mop at the end of every shift" I asked. "That's too much. They won't run the machines, they'll spend their time cleaning. Once a week is enough" was the response. Even that doesn't get done under pressure to get one more cycle out.
Despite numerous discussions, learning-lunches and reviews, our delivered quality continued to generate non-conformances from our customers. We were failing on simple things - not completing clearly-defined requirements and not meeting the letter of the requirements. We'd spend weeks running around putting out the fires and correcting the issues, only for them to crop up again. The more I dug into the specifics of each one, the more one individual's name cropped up. The boss.
He'll review a finished product and give it a pass because "that requirement is too onerous" or "I know how this is used, they don't actually need that" and on, and on. Then when the NCR comes in, he points at everyone else - "Employee A screwed me!" is the favourite response. Sometimes it's the QC manager he holds responsible, or a production employee or even the customer - "they're out to screw us because <insert nonsense>". In almost every single case, he is the root cause, pushing things out the door that don't meet the customer's requirement.
I've tried several times to address it, from different directions, all seemingly to no avail. "All of the rules, regulations and processes mean nothing if you subvert them" I said. "I can lay down the law and hold every one accountable, but if you tell them it's good enough, that's what they do". He nods and agrees and talks about being his own worst enemy. Then it starts again. Nothing changes.
The morale as a result is in the tank. All of the best employees have left, a trend I thought I could reverse, but it's fighting a relentless tsunami of mediocrity from the top level. In the last week alone, three different employees have relayed their dissatisfaction, one via resignation. "He's a hack, and I don't want to do that".
If there were no friendship involved, I would likely have already joined the ranks of the departed.
I've given him Extreme Ownership, I've tried covert and overt methods to point it back in the right direction, I've enlisted other management and floor staff, even a discussion with his wife. The company is headed for disaster and he's got a firm grip on the controls. How do I get through to him? How do I help him understand the direct impact his actions are having?
At what point do concede defeat and walk away?
My role was to offload the bulk of the administrative functions, while introducing some process and procedure controls without bogging down the operation in overhead. There was, and remains, tons of areas for improvement. We introduced a more effective ERP system, hired a QC manager who drafted up a comprehensive yet straight-forward quality control system that was rolled out, we hired new staff, coached those that wanted to grow and set free those that couldn't or wouldn't. We made great strides in improving the bottom line, but there remained some glaring omissions. As a result, I've been hesitant to put my money on the line, and the terms suddenly changed to 40%, leaving me in a subordinate ownership position if I moved ahead.
The production floor is dirty. DIRTY. While manning one of the machines on a Saturday, I pulled out the mop and bucket and spent the next 8 hours scrubbing down the floor around me. The difference was substantial and hard to miss. "I'd like the guys to be doing a quick mop at the end of every shift" I asked. "That's too much. They won't run the machines, they'll spend their time cleaning. Once a week is enough" was the response. Even that doesn't get done under pressure to get one more cycle out.
Despite numerous discussions, learning-lunches and reviews, our delivered quality continued to generate non-conformances from our customers. We were failing on simple things - not completing clearly-defined requirements and not meeting the letter of the requirements. We'd spend weeks running around putting out the fires and correcting the issues, only for them to crop up again. The more I dug into the specifics of each one, the more one individual's name cropped up. The boss.
He'll review a finished product and give it a pass because "that requirement is too onerous" or "I know how this is used, they don't actually need that" and on, and on. Then when the NCR comes in, he points at everyone else - "Employee A screwed me!" is the favourite response. Sometimes it's the QC manager he holds responsible, or a production employee or even the customer - "they're out to screw us because <insert nonsense>". In almost every single case, he is the root cause, pushing things out the door that don't meet the customer's requirement.
I've tried several times to address it, from different directions, all seemingly to no avail. "All of the rules, regulations and processes mean nothing if you subvert them" I said. "I can lay down the law and hold every one accountable, but if you tell them it's good enough, that's what they do". He nods and agrees and talks about being his own worst enemy. Then it starts again. Nothing changes.
The morale as a result is in the tank. All of the best employees have left, a trend I thought I could reverse, but it's fighting a relentless tsunami of mediocrity from the top level. In the last week alone, three different employees have relayed their dissatisfaction, one via resignation. "He's a hack, and I don't want to do that".
If there were no friendship involved, I would likely have already joined the ranks of the departed.
I've given him Extreme Ownership, I've tried covert and overt methods to point it back in the right direction, I've enlisted other management and floor staff, even a discussion with his wife. The company is headed for disaster and he's got a firm grip on the controls. How do I get through to him? How do I help him understand the direct impact his actions are having?
At what point do concede defeat and walk away?
