|
|
Like this article? PLEASE +1 it! |  |
|
Give the supervisor what he needs
| Guest post by: Jack Greene |
Article Overview: Or what she needs, to be productive. But what the supervisor needs may not be what your system stresses, what it spews out. Here are points to consider.
 |
Free Download - Risk Assessment Techniques for Valuation and Due Diligence of Operating Companies By Jack Greene |
Give the supervisor what he needs
Give the supervisor
what he needs
Or what she needs, to be productive. But what the supervisor
needs may not be what your system stresses, what it spews out. Here are points
to consider.
My friend Ralph who knows his way around a production floor
is disdainful of consultants who help management to adopt the latest new buzz
words, those they picked up at the seminar at Greenbrier or Palm Springs or
even Davos. To help the supervisor, provide useful information to allow the
supervisor to manage; generally of two categories, "what am I do
to?", and "how did I do against the plan?"
Of course,
anyone on the organization chart needs useful information in order to perform
their job well, from the CEO on down, although the information will be
summarized at a different level for the supervisor and the CEO.
A. What am I
do to?
1. What are
my objectives, including definition and timetable and quantity? What tasks,
when are they due, and how many?
2. What are
the limits of my responsibility? What authority do I have to correct problems?
3. Who else
is going to provide what? The classic supervisor's problem is that materials
are not available, or received, or inspected, or to spec. Management must hold
each person responsible for their part of the situation. And the system has to
call for logical action; if the policy is to start a process although
components are not ready then the production supervisor will be penalized
(through rework, or retrofit) because of the failures of those whose duty is to
provide accepted materials.
4. What is
the specification? No uncertainty, please especially for something new. In any
transition, assure that the new entity is developed, through pilot runs,
debugged with correct specs and expectations, before asking the next function
to take over.
5. What is
the priority of the different tasks on my plate?
Now, since a
person can give only one item at a time the highest priority, someone will
eventually make the priority decision. If management does not do so, the person
with the wrench or keyboard in their hand will. And if management has not made
the assignment, it can hardly blame the one who takes the initiative and
chooses. And if it does blame the chooser, management earns the scorn of those
who understand the results of it's failure.
6. What is
the unit by which the supervisor is measured?
Be careful
here. For a supervisor, the unit will usually be pieces, not dollars. A
supervisor usually doesn't have any say in the cost of component parts, so
isn't responsible for material purchase price variance. Usage variance, yes but
not purchase price. The same is true of labor cost, be sure to hold the
supervisor responsible for labor hours used but not the price of labor. And
overhead cost is usually allocated and beyond the control of supervision. An
actual cost report, off the financials, may be useless to measure a supervisor.
Pieces produced, pieces scrapped, labor hours spent and earned, will usually be
key factors for a supervisor.
7. What
quality level is required?
All
employees have to meet accepted quality levels, and a supervisor has to confirm
that of his subordinates as well. In my opinion the demand for the defined
quality level is non-negotiable. Having said that, management must select and
define that quality level. Some quality standards are more suited for
pharmaceuticals and some for thumbtacks; make sure you choose correctly.
8. Which
pieces are produced?
Does the
supervisor have the ability to select the output of his group, to start the
product of his choice down the line? Or does a material department buy
components and issue the parts for production?
The answer
to that will determine a supervisor's responsibility for which pieces are
produced. I had to decline to accept the blame for sales backlogs, from a very
astute boss. "Hey Dick, I don't set the schedule nor order the parts. I
only assemble the products I have been issued material for." But with
that answer, I had to be sure that I ran the batch scheduled on the date, with
good quality, high yields and productivity.
9.
Objectivity
I am an
engineer, and I crave objectivity, numbers, black and white. But there are
shades of gray in the world I have noticed; others point them out to me. But
try to quantify as much as possible, try to provide specific information so
that the objective will be clear, and mid course corrections will be likely to
have the desired effect.
Relate daily
and long term goals so that a supervisor's day by day record of achievement
will feed the longer term record, with similar terms and expectations.
B. How did I
do against the plan?
Results
count, as my boss Dick stressed. So be sure to feed back results to the people
who made them happen, or didn't. When? Next day, early morning, so the
supervisor can correct problems right now. In a few pages, not reams of
numbers.
Tailor the
results by supervisor. There are plenty of measures possible in this computer
age, so tell production about units and man hours and scrap rates; tell
materials about backlogs and inventory turns and purchase price variance; tell
credit about day's sales outstanding and overdue accounts; tell anyone of
planned and actual output.
Anticipate
that an employee's record may not match the organization's results. Sometimes a
supervisor does a fine job coping with unexpected difficulty, just to break
even or limit losses. Sometimes a supervisor may do well although the rest of
the organization does not.
In such a case, continue the feedback, and adapt the
goals and objectives to match the particular situation.
Thanks for
your attention; I'm happy to add to your perspective of
industrial engineering and productivity.
Jack
Greene Jackson
Productivity Research Inc.
You and Your Supervisor
Making the Transition from the Employee to the Supervisor
Successful Transitioning from an Individual Contributor to a Supervisor Role
Supervisor Training
How Management’s Promotion Policies May Create Super Failures
Article Tags: cambria, compatibility, div, endif, family auto, font definitions, gte, mso, o company, pages 1, panose, paragraphs, pitch, signature, style definitions, xml, zoom
|
About the Author: Jack Greene RSS for Jack's articles - Visit Jack's website Mr. Greene's articles demonstrate how principles of industrial engineering and productivity achieve results, and reflect consulting assignments with Fortune 250 companies, and much smaller ones, in industry, construction, government, service, and hotels. Jack Greene is the author of books on Amazon in print and Kindle editions; click these links and read about the books and what's inside. Plant Design, Facility Layout, Floor Planning. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Plant+Design%2C+Facility+Layout%2C+Floor+Planning&x=17&y=18 Cost Reduction How to Survive, Recover, and Thrive, Time and Motion Study What, Why, and How-To A client will expect certain results from a consultant, and these articles outline what may be expected from JPR because they reflect our experience, business approach and services. We offer hands-on consultancy, to lead or participate in activity; or if you choose we can train your resources to perform the work in-house. Jackson Productivity Research Inc., at http://jacksonproductivity.com, welcomes inquiry about practical actions to accomplish your organization's objectives and scope, within your timetable and budget. Please email jack@jacksonproductivity.com
Click here to visit Jack's website   Offshoring and the tough questions to answer Manufacturing productivity tool belt Piece work and piece rate payment Is this a strategy for your organization Plant Design Layout Plant Factory Layout Design Factory Floor Plan Plant Layout Just In Time or Just In Case |
Related Forum Posts
Disaster Planning
- [quote="jvprosperity":3o70alwf]In my previous job the company had a manual that listed all the backup procedures so that business go go on as usual without much disruption.
e.g. if something were to happen to the call center what steps needed to be taken so that agents can go t a new location to continue taking calls.
Also, once a quarter or so the organization would practice the Call Tree notification. e.g. the VP would call their directs and advise that this is a test and those directs would then call their people and so on till it hit the front lines.[/quote:3o70alwf]
THose are the kind of things I would think should be done in businesses to prepare for the unexpected. I used to be a department supervisor at a local hospital and we did quarterly disaster drills -- every supervisor was involved and we had to report back to our departments about what was expected of others. Made very good sense that hospitals would do this and there were repercussions for problems in the drills - if there is a disaster, the hospital has to be ready. It made for a tense couple of days for everyone in the building.
Shri
Motivating
- I've seen a lot of employees working for others and loosing their motivation because of a owner/supervisor/manager that didn't do their share or pull their weight. Its horrible to see a motivated employee lose that spark because of the way they are treated.
Chris
Re: Have a Security Clearance Question? But are afraid to ask?
- I think I've already addressed your topic in another forum or thread, but I think the easiest way to generate additional traffic to your web site is to provide content that is fresh, new, and insightful. Give users a reason to access your web site besides purchasing your services. Give them a reason to gain knowledge and they will come back and give you business when they can. Good luck in your campaign, and I hope everything turns out for you! One question I have is do security clearances check your family information as well (family criminal offences, etc).
Re: Why Did You Become An Entrepreneur?
- Hi Evan,
I started my own business because I learned several years ago that I do not have the "employee" mindset. I have too many ideas that I would like to implement, and I don't like the idea of being told how to do things by someone who would be my supervisor.
I also have more freedom. Since I am the accountable type already, having everything fall back on me doesn't bother me.
With all of its ups and downs I think being an entrepreneur is great!
Re: Should you hire ambitious workers or employees with no goals
- I think its ok to hire an ambitious person,if he doesnt have a personal goal but understands the company's goal and ready to learn the principles of the company.Ambitious workers are always craving for success but they need to be well supervised because ambitious workers don't need much movitation but must be guided by experienced supervisor.
Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.
Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.
by: 
4 Building Blocks of an Effective Talent Management System
Simon Fuller Quotes
Lesson #3: “Tell ‘em quick and tell ‘em often”
Searching for the Stars: How Yang and Filo Took Their Business to New Heights
Salesperson Wimp-Out: I Need Help 
Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!
Do You Deserve To Be Happy and Successful?
Tips for the Novice Traveler
International Employment Background Checks
Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.