Assuming the task of leadership can change you positively or negatively. It can make you a demon or a saint, and it will make or break your effort to implement lean manufacturing in your organization.
A colleague of mine used to be a plant manager, and he earned a reputation for treating the people who worked for him very well. After several yeazars as their manager, he was promoted to a vice presidential position with the same company. Six months into his new position, we got together for lunch to discuss my plans to write this book. My friend was a much different person from the man I remembered. Corporate life had taken control of his identity, and he seemed genuinely disappointed with himself.
I remember clearly one of the things he said to me that day: “When you accept an executive position in corporate America, you have to leave all your ethical reasoning behind you.” He explained that while working at the plant level, he still had some control and was able to create a pleasant work environment for his people. Now, as an executive, he had to play the role of a greedy, selfish, ruthless businessman. Although he realized that he could simply walk away from the company, it wasn’t easy for him to do because the money and career opportunities were very beneficial. Therefore, he found himself in a continuous struggle, trying to maintain his former value system in a position that was in total opposition to his personal beliefs.
I realize his situation is not representative of all companies, but it got me to thinking about guiding employees through a lean journey. Can a company’s past behavior toward its people affect the success of a lean effort? Are employees forced to work excessive overtime and placed into positions that make them unsuccessful and over time create a negative culture? My friend’s company was beginning its lean journey, and he was experiencing a conflict between the way the leaders operated the organization and the way they were being taught lean manufacturing by lean practitioners like me. Lean journeys require investment, time, commitment, patience, and tolerance of mistakes. Managers controlling the day-to-day operations of the company were far from accepting this approach to business, and my friend eventually found himself looking for another job. It was a personal choice.
My experiences over the past ten years in the lean field have taught me a lot of valuable things, especially about how to treat people. The companies I have assisted quickly realized that a new approach to leadership would be needed if they were to ensure success in their lean endeavors. I was, by no means, a perfect employee in the years before I founded my consulting company, Kaizen Assembly. In fact, I was a bit resistant to lean. However, I always believed that my resistance was normal, and I appreciated my great lean leaders. The most important principle I’ve learned is that the way we treat people in our lean journeys is the cornerstone of lean leadership.
I now use what I’ve learned to lead companies in a manner that seems fair and just, and I hope that this approach trickles down through their organizations. Organizations embarking on a lean journey need effective leaders who understand the importance of employee contributions and realize how much their efforts and attitudes affect the company’s success or failure. Certain corporate leaders need to realize that even though aggressive practices may achieve short-term financial success, they also place the company on the path to a precarious future.
My colleague’s perspective on leadership was altered dramatically after only a few months in an executive position. Although he realized the negative personal changes that were occurring, he simply had no choice except to acquiesce—to conform. But when lean was brought into the picture, he knew it was time to leave.
Many executive leaders are breeding a middle management culture that is willing to sacrifice the rights of employees. This is an opinion developed from observations I have made. Again, not all leaders, but a good handful of them lead their organizations with too much negative reinforcement. Profits are necessary, but to help deal with the culture change in a lean organization, a mind-set that places profit before improvement can become an obstacle to success. Once the management level of a company has been indoctrinated, younger leaders are then trained to be loyal to the company at all costs, relinquishing their personal lives. The company becomes their lifeblood, and their identity becomes defined by a prestigious title and by their “loyalty and dedication” to the company (which translates into how much of their personal lives are sacrificed).
Lean leaders are only human beings; therefore, they typically conduct themselves in a manner that reflects their authentic personality. If an individual is generally grumpy and negative about change, his management techniques will demonstrate that, and he will affect the morale of others through his body language as well as his words.
In contrast, individuals who are happy and positive tend to lead in a happy and positive manner. Lean leaders who do not let negativity influence their actions will create a following of positive thinkers.
Because leaders’ personalities are reflected in their management techniques, poor leaders can be categorized as follows.
This is a manager who accepts the credit for work done by her group but doesn’t accept the blame when things don’t go as planned. I experienced this management style when I worked for someone who took credit for my successes by informing superiors that I had done the tasks under his direction. On the other hand, he was sure to point out any mistakes that I made, especially when we were in the company of his fellow managers.
A delegator is a master at setting up others to fail, because it diverts attention from her and disguises her own inabilities or poor work ethic. Delegators often give the impression of overwhelming self-confidence, but in reality they usually have very low self-esteem and a fear of failure.
People who answer to this type of manager should exercise caution, because the moment they show any sign of being able to multitask, they will quickly be assigned many projects and possibly overwhelmed—the more they do, the fewer responsibilities for their boss.
A yes/no manager appears to be busy all the time and yet rarely accomplishes much. This type of manager doesn’t care to engage in meaningful, intelligent discussions because it robs time from his schedule and requires him to think. Therefore, he reduces all output to a simple yes or no answer, something that can be very annoying to employees who are seeking guidance. A boss is responsible for leading his employees and providing assistance when required. Simply answering yes or no indicates to employees that the boss has no time for them and that they are not valued. Often, this manager’s “busy bee” buzzing is a smokescreen to hide the fact that he rarely does anything.
Subordinates must be on their toes with this one, because under this type of manager they will work late at night or on the weekends (or both). A crisis junkie typically postpones acting until the last minute and then panics and starts hunting for someone to help her meet her deadline. An individual like this lacks time management skills as well as a true understanding of the job or department she is responsible for. Workers are often required to drop what they are doing, regardless of their own deadlines, to assist her in meeting hers. Everything is of equal—and utmost—importance, and her panic indicates that. Of course her subordinates want to help her, but they should be warned that often little planning has been done, and the project is a disorganized mess. It would be funny if it weren’t eating up so much of the workers’ personal time.
These managers seem to have obtained their positions of power by default. There are many reasons they can never seem to make a decision completely on their own. One reason is that they are probably incompetent. Another reason, and probably the most common, is that they fear making a bad decision. They take input from everyone around them and do not make a move until they have polled all possible sources. These poor decision makers can also be mistaken for crisis junkies, because they often wait until the last minute to place a call for help, and then subordinates are in the position of following them around while they hover and panic until the job is completed.
In a way, many leaders have lost a sense of reality. After all, treating people ethically is not like performing open heart surgery. You don’t need week-long seminars and workshops to learn how to be nice.
Although leading a company is a monumental task, leading a group of employees is relatively easy. I enjoy leading people because of its simplicity. What follows is my concept of how to make lean leadership easy and pleasant for yourself as well as for those you lead.
When a member of your staff does a good job, notice it, and praise her for a job well done. Many managers don’t praise employees, because they feel employees are paid to do their jobs well and praise is unnecessary. That is a cop-out. It doesn’t require much effort to say, “Good job,” and that is all that is required. Don’t miss an opportunity to praise a piece of good work.
Go to your employees for advice, and engage them in problem-solving issues. Using the talent that is available to you is a key ingredient in building a positive and helpful team. One person may have the solution, or perhaps members of the department can resolve the problem together. In either case, involving your workers promotes trust as well as professional interaction.
Train your employees adequately, and give them all the tools they need to be successful. Explain all job responsibilities clearly, and encourage questions and feedback. New employees need your attention and deserve your support and encouragement while they are learning. Don’t leave them hanging or looking for answers, because it will indicate that you are not a manager they can rely on. Be sure to spend sufficient time getting to know each individual contributor so that you are able to assess everyone’s skills accurately. In this way, you can make sure that people are assigned appropriate responsibilities and are challenged and inspired by their work.
If you are annoyed with someone on your team or if he has done something wrong, keep your cool and bring it up when you are alone with him. Embarrassing your people in front of others does not show that you are a good leader, but instead exposes you publicly as a tyrant. Always wait until you have an opportunity to discuss the sensitive issue with the employee in private.
Mistakes are learning experiences and should be embraced as such by leaders of an organization. Typically, mistakes are made when an employee is in a learning curve. Beware of those employees who never make mistakes, because it usually indicates that they are not stretching or reaching out for new opportunities. Treating mistakes as a part of growth, rather than something to be ashamed of, allows your employees to feel comfortable taking risks on your behalf.
Spend adequate time getting to know your employees. They have a variety of interests outside work that if known may open the door for better relationships between staff and management. Showing interest in your team as people, and not just as workers, sets you apart as an effective and well-liked leader. Who knows? You may even find a new golf buddy in the process.
Be genuinely friendly with your people. Put aside your concerns and issues to simply say, “Good morning. How was your weekend?” A morning greeting may not seem like much, but it makes a world of difference in the work environment. Don’t hide in your office during the day, but instead make yourself visible and available. Stop by the cubicles or offices informally to say hello or find out how everything is going for each of your people. You would be surprised by what can be gained from this type of interaction. Standing together as a team allows people to support and encourage each other when times are tough.
Maintain an open-door policy. Allow your staff to come to you whenever they need to talk about sensitive issues, difficulties outside work, or even simple smalltalk. This is one of the most valuable leadership tools I learned from my manager at my first manufacturing job. Whenever I walked into his office with questions or concerns, he would stop whatever he had been doing and give me his full attention.
If you are wrong, admit it. Managers are not perfect—they are human—and showing human qualities and frailties is a plus in any organization. Good leaders always take responsibility for their errors and never blame personal mistakes on others on their team. Demonstrating that errors are an expected part of the experience allows employees to feel less threatened and to respect you as a leader. Your team learns that honestly admitting mistakes is the best way to strategize and identify effective remedies or solutions.
Management intimidates many employees, so good listening skills are crucial to promote honesty and open communication among your team. Make sure you listen whenever an employee needs to share, and show her that you are willing to listen by stopping what you are doing and giving her your full attention. Don’t prepare your answer while she is talking. Instead, let her finish her dialog, and then think about what she has said. If you need time to provide feedback, ask her whether you can get back to her. If you do have a ready answer, you can tell her after she finishes talking. Let people know that they are important and worthy of your time, and don’t be too busy to listen.
It is your responsibility to communicate effectively to your team members so that they will be certain what you need from them. Clear direction will enable them to get the job done efficiently and with fewer interruptions or confusion. After delivering a message, always ask whether your team members have understood everything or whether they need further explanation or clarification. No one likes to be given poor direction or misleading information, because it makes the job infinitely more difficult and increases the chance for error. Remember, your job is to facilitate work, so communicate clearly.
Supporting your team is a critical part of good leadership, and it can be challenging, especially when an employee fails. Nevertheless, it is important that your team feels it has your support in all circumstances. If a worker feels that you will not stand up for him, then you have failed as a leader. One manager I knew was not seen as an effective leader because he sacrificed his team whenever something went wrong, even if it meant he needed to lie. If one of the team made a mistake, he left the bumbler standing alone in the cold. This is exactly the opposite of how a good leader should handle this situation.
Employees respect a manager who can articulate what they did wrong without blaming them. Often, mistakes are made because of unclear direction, so look to yourself first for possible reasons for any mishap. Admit your mistake and responsibility first before explaining theirs.
Employees look for a leader who is not secretive and who will pass on important information about the company. Honest communication blunts the power of the rumor mill, and it promotes trust among your team.
I have been surrounded by all types of leaders my entire life. I have participated in team sports since childhood, and that gave me many opportunities to lead and be led, as did my many years in academic institutions. I have always had a healthy respect for effective leadership, and I know that people like to be led, to have structure and discipline, and to be asked to do things that have importance and relevance.
Poor leadership of your lean program results in lack of motivation, poor performance, high absenteeism, and, ultimately, high employee turnover. Poor leaders are easily recognizable because they have all or some of the following characteristics:
They practice negative reinforcement.
They are focused on their own personal needs rather than the professional needs of their team members.
They are pessimistic rather than positive.
They are poor listeners.
They lack motivation.
They are closed to new ideas.
They are slow to adapt to change.
They blame others rather than take responsibility.
They provide unclear or uncertain direction.
They have no idea who their people are.
They are secretive.
They are seldom available.
Their door is usually closed.
They fear failure.
They do not stand behind their people.
They have difficulty developing their employees.
They exercise leadership by control, manipulation, and coercion.
In contrast, effective lean leadership is not based on control, coercion, and manipulation. Lean leaders are focused on the future rather than the past. Lean leaders gain respect by their ability to inspire others to work toward specific goals. Effective leaders help others to become better people and create workplaces that attract good individuals and keep them happy and motivated to excel.
The first step in being a successful manager is to admit that you don’t have all the answers. Admitting that you are not all-knowing gains the respect of your employees, as well as their trust. Being realistic is also a positive characteristic. Realize that it isn’t possible for you or your team to solve every problem that exists, and know how to establish boundaries for yourself and your organization. Be yourself, be authentic at all times, and remember that any failures will be forgiven if you are honest and always try to do the right thing.
Many leaders lack fundamental leadership skills. I believe that leaders are born, and managers are trained. Businesses have made gross mistakes by trying to turn managers into leaders, something that is not always possible because leadership characteristics cannot always be learned. The major distinction between leaders and managers is that leaders recognize the value of people, whereas managers drive business. Managers are listened to, but leaders are followed.
Poor leaders create a variety of problems for a company. Often, their actions require operators to work overtime in a work environment that is already unpleasant, because they simply don’t understand the problem and don’t know how to solve it effectively. Many poor leaders cannot identify skill sets in their organization, and therefore work is assigned to the wrong persons, resulting in hampered morale, poor production, and eventually lost revenues. Lost revenues lead to downsizing and layoffs, which then prompt poor leaders to burden the remaining staff with unreasonable workloads and more responsibilities that don’t match their skills, education, or training.
Assigning work to employees who cannot perform it creates overtime, as well as confusion and anxiety for those trying to achieve the company goals in unrealistic situations. Work should be distributed based on the skill level of employees, and leaders should develop plans to provide the appropriate tools and resources to those on the team who need more development. This is not an exact science and not an easy task, especially when companies are focused on the bottom line. However, good leaders are attuned to their people and know how to keep workers doing the right thing—for themselves as well as for the company. Effective leaders know that every employee has something to offer and acknowledge their responsibility to use that talent with projects and assignments that correlate to their ability.
How do you know when you are dealing with flawed leaders? Often, poor managers can leave the impression that they are valuable. Human resource professionals have the difficult task of identifying poor leaders within a company. It can be a painful activity, ending in no results.
I have developed a checklist that can help pinpoint those who may struggle to become lean leaders. I call it “Ten Signs of Incompetent Leaders.”
Incompetent leaders do these things:
They delegate work rather than balance workloads.
This practice diverts attention from the leader in case of failure. The leader may feel that he is managing his people, but in reality he is creating work imbalances within the group. These imbalances can create unnecessary overtime for some workers, and underuse of others. A good manager is aware of his people’s skills and allocates work accordingly, to exploit their talents as well as promote learning and career growth.
They reduce all answers to yes or no rather than explain their reasoning.
This is an example of a crisis manager who cannot think farther ahead than a few hours. A yes/no manager finds it a waste of time to discover the real answer through intellectual effort. She is already thinking about the next crisis.
They do not separate their personal lives from their professional lives.
This manager brings his personal problems to work. Working for this type of manager can be dramatic. He does not set aside his emotional troubles while trying to manage people. He is less focused and does not give you the attention and direction you need for success.
They are always managing crises.
If you are a company that has crisis managers, then you can say goodbye to innovation and progression. Proactive thinking is critical to the success of any company. If you are not finding ways to stop or reduce the amount of crisis that must be managed, then your competition will pass you by.
They create an environment where mistakes are unacceptable.
Being held accountable for wrong decisions is a fear for this kind of manager. I use the analogy of a basketball player who has no fouls. If he is not going for the ball and taking chances with the opponent—actions that risk being called for a foul—then he is not trying hard enough. Managers need to take a chance and not be afraid to make a mistake.
They humiliate or reprimand an employee in front of a group.
This is a clear and visible sign of a poor leader. A good leader takes employee problems away from a group setting to a more private one. If you have a boss who berates her people in public, it is time for a visit to human resources.
They do not stand behind subordinates when they fail.
Never leave your people out to dry. Always back them up—right, wrong, or indifferent. If an employee tries his best and fails to come through, he should be commended on his effort and not punished for the failure.
They encourage hard workers, not smart workers.
I am not impressed with hard workers. A hard worker is usually defined by the number of hours she puts in. Smart workers are the ones I hire and embrace. Smart workers understand the concept of time management and multitasking. Poor leaders miss this connection. Smart workers are methodical in their thinking and can generally be successful because of their abilities to manage many projects at a time. Hard workers may take twice as long to do the work. It is important to assign work according to people’s skills and personalities to ensure their success.
They judge people on hours, not performance.
This is similar to number 8. Again, I am not impressed with overtime junkies. They have lost all perspective on a healthy family–life balance. Bad managers promote employees who work the most hours and discard the smart ones who work less, meaning that they have better time management skills. Stop watching the clock.
They act differently in front of their leaders.
This is an indication of low self-confidence. Such managers have doubts about their own ability to lead, and they act like little children when authority is present. A confident person acts the same around everyone. Effective managers have respect for their bosses but also have self-respect.
The challenges faced by leaders are tremendous, especially when an organization begins its lean journey. I have always felt that people are crucial to the success of a company. My lean leadership approach is different from traditional management techniques, and it can be defined in five simple rules. I call it “Five Lean Leadership Rules for Successful Lean Implementations.”
Hire people who have passions outside work.
It is good to surround yourself with employees who understand the importance of family and leisure life. Generally, people who have passions in life have a good work ethic. I want well-rounded employees on my staff, because creating an environment with diverse people is exciting.
Do not hire workaholics.
I am not interested in hiring workaholics. Workaholics create imbalances within a group. My people are allowed to have a life outside work, and their colleagues should respect those lives. If you have imbalances, you create animosity between people. Tension can build because those who work excessive overtime will start to question the loyalty of others. I do not want to hear someone say, “Leaving already?” I do not encourage this type of behavior. In addition, I work very little overtime myself. I do not want to give a bad example to my people.
Create a comfortable interview.
My interviewing process is centered on job candidates as people. I ask prospective employees what kinds of interests they have outside work. Do they ski? Are they affiliated with organizations and clubs? I ask them what kinds of hobbies they enjoy.
I try to create an interview process that encourages a sense of self-worth and that recognizes the importance of their personal lives. Toward the middle of the interview, I talk about my family and how I enjoy being home with them. The positions in my department are highly technical, and job candidates come to me with all the necessary skills needed to perform the work. My job should be to balance their workloads to ensure that they can enjoy life away from work.
Be a result-driven leader.
When I was corporate lean champion for a large manufacturing company, I tried to be a result-driven leader, and I did not care about hours. Most of my employees were salaried and I paid them for results, not time. If someone could get her work accomplished in 35 hours a week, great! If she felt that she needed to work 45 hours one week to get caught up on an assignment, so be it. However, it was my responsibility as a leader to identity my employees’ positive qualities and to balance their workloads so that they could be successful and get away from work to enjoy their lives.
Create an efficient workplace.
It is difficult to have a balanced work environment when the company operates inefficiently. Create structure and organization within your department so that people know precisely what needs to be done. My employees did not walk around looking for things to do. Their assignments were given to them every week. An inefficient workplace automatically creates overtime because employees participate in wasted work.
Following this philosophy allowed my department to have the lowest turnover and absenteeism in the company. My people were at work and on time every day. They were able to leave work for family emergencies and could adjust their hours as needed as long as their work was complete. I was result driven, so I expected my people to complete their work as required, and if they slipped it was addressed. They were given a lot of freedom, and when that freedom was abused, it was dealt with in a positive, professional manner. Turnover is expensive, and I did not have the time to constantly be hiring people.
I encourage you to try this lean leadership philosophy. You will be surprised by what can happen.
Poor leadership surrounds us. It is a fact of life. It is unfortunate when employees stop caring because of bad managers. I implore you to challenge your managers to become better at what they do. We as leaders need to realize that people are the number 1 asset in a company. Stockholders do not show up to the company to work; the employees do. Being a lean leader requires very good balancing skills, because we have a tremendous amount of responsibility not only to improve the bottom line but also to be ethical in the manner that we improve it. Through ethical and sane leadership, you can help your company grow.
I felt it was fitting to place this chapter at the end of the book. The book provides a number of guidelines, so it is important to talk about leadership in general. Often, lean practitioners see issues in management very early during their partnerships with other companies. We recognize that employees are already overloaded with work or report to a poor leader. They can already see problems or resistance from their superiors. How you approach your people and help them embrace the change to lean manufacturing starts with identifying how you treat them.
Lean leadership is nearly impossible to teach, but I hope I have shed some light on the obvious. I want your journeys to be successful. Lead as needed.