Forget Process, Focus on People - Peter Leeson

@ITCAMPRO #ITCAMP17Community Conference for IT Professionals

FP2

Peter Leeson

Quality Manager White Clarke Group

[email protected]

@PeterLeeson

Forget the Process;

Focus on the People!


Many thanks to our sponsors & partners!

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What are we trying to achieve?


The Deming Quality Chain

"Companies ... tend to focus only on the end result –return on investment. This viewpoint is like trying to keep a dog happy by forcibly wagging its tail."


Foundations of Quality

People

Process Technology


What do you need?


How do you make people happy?


Living Wages


Resources


Skills


Continuity


Stability


Plan


Methodology


View the Product


Vision


Environment


Leadership


Respect


Team


Support


Control


Voice


Recognition


Feedback


Trust


Eustress


Freedom in Framework


PUTTING IT INTO CONTEXT

This is not new


Maslow

Breathing, food, water, sex, sleep, homeostasis, excretion

Security of body, employment, resources, morality, the family,

health, property

Friendship, family, sexual intimacy

Self-esteem, confidence, achievement, respect of/by

others

Morality, creativity, spontaneity, problem solving, lack of

prejudice, acceptance of facts

Creativity

Problem Solving

Lack of Prejudice

Acceptance of facts


SO, WHAT DO WE DO WITH THIS?


RESISTING CHANGE

Understand why people don’t want to change


Budget

If I do not meet my delivery date and budget, I am the

one who gets into trouble. Improving future projects is

a nice idea, but in the short term, I need my people do

deliver products.


Sales

Long-term investment in improvement programmes is

very nice, but I have short-term sales and delivery

figures to satisfy. The improvement programme

cannot take any resources or attention away from our

immediate priorities.


Control

This is my business, I am responsible, I made the

investment to get this business running. If I want an

engineer to work for me, today, I can ask that and get

it. I decide on the priorities because I am the only one

ultimately responsible.


Certification

The goal is simple: by being certified according to a

well-known standard, our quality will increase, won't

it?


Team

I know who are the good people in my team and I am

not ready to let them go. When there is no work, I will

keep them busy rather than let the other teams know

that my best people are ready to be poached away.

I know what my team members are doing, I can

control them without all that extra stuff.


Fear

The change is ignoring my experience in favour of

some theory. I have estimated and delivered projects

successfully for many years, now I need to fill in forms

and justify every decision. It only demonstrates a lack

of trust from management.


Documentation

Basically, it seems that this whole change programme

focuses on more documentation and bureaucracy and

the implementation of a whole lot of new buzz-words

which I do not understand, even though they all end-

up on my invoice.


Objectives

I am not really sure what is the ultimate goal of the

project on which I am working; there is no clear

outcome that I can deliver. My success is based

entirely on my faith in a consultant.


Image of Done

I am told that the objective is to improve our quality

and reduce costs, but I am also told that this will be

measured based on passing an audit at the end of next

year, and we need to have all the boxes ticked.


Sharing

This new approach is seeking to make me explain to

everyone else my personal knowledge and strengths -

as a result, my added-value will be lost and they can

make me redundant and send my job to Asia.

In addition to this, you are going to tell me that my

way of work is not valid and I have to work according

to your unproven theories.


Measurement

Measurements are being implemented to identify who

produces too little. They say it is to measure the

process and not the people, but I know my

management...


Understanding

I don't know why we are doing this. It is just the latest

fad...


ESTABLISHING DIRECTION

Deciding what to change

Deciding how to change

Deciding to change


Focused Change

Stable basis for change

QA


Always remember

• Performance Improvement is a culture change

– It is not easy

– It is completely dependent on management

– It can be highly successful if done correctly

– It requires you to change (and not only everyone else!)


But it’s worth it!

• The result will make life more predictable for you in

your daily work

• The result will remove the barriers that keep you

from being proud of your work

• The result will focus on fixing the system instead of

blaming the people


Q&A


Resources

• “Forget Process; Focus on People” (FP2):

–http://prezi.com/qm4wcnk_5hnb/forget-process-focus-

on-people/

• Can Process Make You Happy?

–http://www.slideshare.net/PeterLeeson/can-process-

make-you-happy-13828882

–http://vimeo.com/47411278

http://prezi.com/qm4wcnk_5hnb/forget-process-focus-on-people/

http://www.slideshare.net/PeterLeeson/can-process-make-you-happy-13828882

http://vimeo.com/47411278