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Handout No. 7 Employee Involvement

Mar 01, 2018

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    MPLOY INVOLV M NT

    Employee involvement is one approach in improving quality and productivity. Employee

    involvement is not a replacement for management nor is it the final word in quality

    improvement. It is a mean to better meet the organizations goals for quality andproductivity at all levels of an organization.

    Motivation

    Knowledge of motivation helps us to understand the utilization of employee involvement to achieve

    process improvement.

    Maslow Hierarchy of Needs

    Abraham Maslow eed !heory" it states that motivation could best e#plained in terms of hierarchy

    of needs and that there were five levels. It states that higher order needs cannot be satisfied until

    lower order needs cannot be satisfied. It also states that once a given level is satisfied it can no

    longer motivate a person. !hese needs are shown in figure below$

    Level-I (Survival)

    %urvival means food& water& clothing& shelter which is usually provided by a 'ob. In the

    wor(place& level)I needs include proper lighting& heating* Air conditioning& ventilation&

    phone system& data* +oice access and computer information system.

    Level-II (Security)

    1

    Survival

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    %ecurity means a safe place to wor(. ,hen the organization demonstrates an interest in the

    personal well)being of employees& it is a motivating factor. A threat of losing ones 'ob

    certainly does not enhance motivation. -evel)II is not limited to 'ob security. It also

    includes having privacy on the 'ob such as being able to loc( ones office door or having

    loc(able storage for personal items as well as having a safe wor( environment that may

    include ergonomic ad'ustable furniture.

    Level-III (Social)

    It relates our need of belongingness. It ahs been said that cutting someone out of the group

    is devastating to that individual. Isolation itself is an effective punishment. onversely&

    giving an individual the opportunity to be the part of the group by feeling important and

    needed will motivate that person. If possible employees should be provided with both

    formal social areas such as a cafeteria& conference room etc.

    Level-IV (Esteem)

    It relates to pride and self worth. Everyone regardless of position or 'ob assignments wants

    to be recognized as a person of value to the organization where possible employees should

    be given offices or personal space with aesthetics. /usiness cards& wor( space size and office

    protocols also provide employees with a certain level of self)esteem within an organization.

    %ee(ing advice or input into business or production procession is a good way of telling

    employees that they are of valve. !his activity requires giving employees control and

    freedom of their 'obs by providing trust.

    Level-V (Self-Actualization)

    It says that individuals must be given the opportunity to go as far as their abilities can ta(e

    them.

    Teamwork and Empowerment

    It is interesting to note that the managers perception of employee wants differs from what

    employee actually wants. /y involving employees through the use of teams in meaningful

    wor( and by providing the proper reward and recognition& managers can reap the

    advantages of greater quality and productivity long with employee satisfaction.

    The manufactures Alliance for Productivity and Innovation stated that:

    0rganization that empowerment employees as a part of their total management effort are

    twice as li(ely as other firms to report significant product or service improvement. !he

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    purpose of empowerment is to tap the enormous reservoir of potential contribution that lies

    within every wor(er

    An Oerational !efinition of Emo"erment #ollo"s:

    Empowerment is an environment in which people have the ability the confidence and thecommitment to ta(e the responsibilities and ownership to improve the process and initiate

    the necessary steps to satisfy customer requirements within well)defined boundaries in

    order to achieve organizational values and goals. Employee empowerment requires that the

    individual is held responsible for accomplishing a whole tas(. !he employee becomes the

    process owner thus the individual is not only responsible but also accountable.

    Teams

    Employee involvement is optimized by the use of teams. !eams however are not a panacea

    for solving all quality and productivity problems but in most instances they are effective.

    Definition of Team

    A team is defined as a group of people wor(ing together to achieve common ob'ectives or

    goals. !eamwor( is the cumulative actions of the team during which each member of the

    team subordinates his individual interests and opinions to fulfil the ob'ectives or goals of

    the group. !he ob'ectives or goals may be$

    %olve a problem

    Improve a process

    1esign an equipment

    2lan a conference

    Audit a process

    2lease a customer

    !he needs of team be clearly defined have milestone set have resources provided and use a

    systematic approach.

    Types of Teams

    !he development of quality control circles by the 3apanese in 4564 is considered to be the

    beginning of the use of teams to improve quality.

    7 87uality ontrol ircles9 are groups of people from one wor( unit who voluntarily

    meet together on a regular basis to identify& analyze and solve quality related and other

    problems within their area. !hey choose their own problems and focus on quality of wor(

    life and health:safety issues rather than on improving wor( processes. 0ften they remain in

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    e#istence over a long period of time wor(ing on pro'ect after pro'ect. A ma'or drawbac( of

    7 was a lac( of middle management support and as a result member frequently were

    not able to persuade management to implement their recommendations.

    !eams can be divided into four main groups$

    Process Improvement Team

    !he members of the process improvement team represent each operation of the process or

    sub)process. !he scope of the teams activity is limited to wor( unit. A team of about 6)4;

    members will come from the wor( unit. 1epending on the location of the sub)process an

    internal or e#ternal supplier and internal or e#ternal customer would be included on the

    team. 1uring the course of the teams life additional e#pertise from other wor( areas may

    be added the life cycle of this type of team is usually temporary 8It is disbanded when the

    ob'ective has been obtained9

    Cross-functional Team

    A team of about 6)4; members will represent a number of different functional areas 8such

    as engineering& mar(eting& accounting& production& quality and

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    . Team %harter:A team charter is document that defines the teams mission&

    boundaries& the bac(ground of the problem& the teams authority and duties and

    resources it also identifies the members and their assign role& recorder& time)(eeper& etc.?. Team %omosition: !he time of the team should rarely e#ceed 4; people e#cept in

    the case of natural wor( teams or self) directed teams. -arger teams have difficulty

    maintain commitment and inter)personal aspects become difficult to control. !eams

    should be diversed by having members with different s(ills& perceptive and potential.

    8,here appropriate& internal and e#ternal customers and suppliers should be included9

    @. Trainin&: As the need arises& members should be trained in problem)solving

    techniques& team dynamics and communication s(ills.

    . 'round rules:the team must develop its rules of operation and conduct& there

    should be open discussion on what will and will not be tolerated. 2eriodically the

    ground rules should be reviewed and revised when appropriate6. %lear O()ectives:,ithout clear ob'ectives and goals& the team will have

    difficulty. In addition the criteria for success should be agreed on with management.

    B. Accounta(ility:!he team is accountable for its performance. 2eriodic status

    report should be given to the quality council. In addition the team should review its

    performance to determine possible team process wea(ness and ma(e improvements

    C. *ell+defined !ecision Procedures: Effective acceptable and timely

    decisions have to be made by the team

    5. ,esources:ot only is funding and employee release time for the pro'ect is

    important but access to information is also important. !he team cant be e#pected toperform successfully without the necessary tools

    4;. Trust$ Management must trust the team to perform the tas( effectively. !here must

    also be trust among the members and a belief in each other

    44. Effective 2roblem %olving$ 1ecisions are based on the problem)solving methods

    4>. Oen %ommunication$ Members actively listen without interruption to other

    members & spea( with clarity and directness as( questions etc

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    4?. Aroriate Leadershi$ All teams need leadership whether imposed by the 7

    or someone emerges from within the team and sometimes the leadership changes as the

    team matures

    4@. -alanced Particiation$ All members must become involved in the teams

    activities by voicing their opinions& lending their (nowledge and encouraging othermembers to ta(e part

    4. %ohesiveness $ Members should be comfortable wor(ing with each other D act as

    a single unit not as individuals or sub)groups.

    Team Mem$er %oles

    !eams are usually selected or authorized by the quality ouncil.

    A team will consist of$

    - !eam leader- acilitator- =ecorder- !ime Keeper- Members

    All team members have clearly defined roles D responsibilities.!he team leader& selected by

    the 7& sponsor or the team itself has the fall.

    Roles:

    - Ensure smooth D effective operation of the team& handing& assigning record (eeping&

    orchestrating activities& overseeing 2reparation of repots D 2resentations.

    - acilitates team process & ensure that all members participate during the meeting s

    prevent other member from dominating

    - %erves as an interface b:w tem D the %ponsor :7c- 0rchestrates the implementation of the change recommended by the team within

    organizational constraint D !eam boundaries.

    - Monitor the status D accomplishment of member & assuring timely completion of

    assignment s

    - 2repares the meeting agenda including time date D location stic( to the agenda or

    modifies it where appropriate D ensure the necessary recourses are available for themeeting

    - Ensure that team decisions are made by consensus where appropriate & rather than by

    unilateral decision& ma'ority Frule decision or minority F rule decision

    &acilitator

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    !he acilitator is not a member of the team" he is a neutral assistantD may not be needed

    with a mature team. =oles of facilitator are$

    - %upport the leader in facilitating the team during the initial stages of the team.- ocuses on the team process F in concerned more with how decisions are made rather

    than the decision itself.- Act as a resource to the team by intervening when necessary to (eep team on trac(.- 2rovides feedbac( to the team concerning the effectiveness of the team process.

    Team %ecorder

    !eam recorder who is selected by the leader or by the team and may be rotated on a

    periodic basis. !he roles are$

    - 1ocuments the main ideas of the teams discussion& the issue raised& decisions made&

    action items and future agenda items

    - 2resents the documents for the team to review during the meetings and distributes them

    as minutes after the meeting in a timely manner

    - 2articipates as a team member

    Time 'eeper

    ,ho is selected by the leader or by the team and may be rotated on a periodic basis& has the

    following roles$

    - Monitors the time to ensure that the team maintains the schedule as determined by the

    agenda- 2articipates as a team member

    Team Mem$ers(

    =oles are$

    - ontribute best without reservation by actively participating in meetings and sharing

    (nowledge& e#pertise& ideas and information

    - =espect other peoples contributions)dont criticize& complain or condemn- -isten carefully and as( questions- !olerant of individual differences- !rust& support and has genuine concern for other team members- Encourages feedbac( on own behavior

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    - Ac(nowledge and wor( there conflict openly- arries out assignments honestly- 2rovide loyal and sincere appreciation

    !u##estion !ystem

    %uggestions systems are designed to provide the individual with the opportunity to be

    involved by contributing to the organization. Most of the ideas for continuous improvement

    will come from the team approach. 0nce the foundation for a !7M organization has been

    established a suggestion system can operate effectively and in parallel to the team

    approach. !he (ey to an effective system is management commitment. Management must

    ma(e it easy for employees to suggest improvements. Managements should then review

    them promptly and if feasible implement them. %timulating and encouraging employee

    participation starts the creative process. !here are five ground rules$

    4. /e productive$ by regularly as(ing your employees for suggestions. Merely putting up

    a suggestion bo# will not create the necessary motivation

    >. =emove fear$ by focusing on the process and not on the person. ,hen employees (now

    that punitive actions will not occur they are more li(ely to respond

    ?. %implify the process$ simplify the process so it is easy to participate. %tamp out

    superfluous paper wor(& review and procedures

    @. =espond quic(ly$ respond quic(ly to suggestions and within a specific period of time.

    !he evaluation process must be simple and effective. !he response in writing has three

    possible responses$ Acceptance& =e'ection& and =eferral 8to a committee for further

    evaluation9. If accepted a time frame for implementation should be given. If re'ected the

    reason for the re'ection should be stated if referral to a committee the evaluation time

    should be stated

    . =eward the Idea$ ,ith published recognition everyone will come to (now the value of

    the contribution.

    Individual ideas are a vast untapped resource. !he five steps approach helps to create an

    environment that opens communication between employees and mangers. Idea generation

    is a s(ill that requires practice. It supplements the team process.

    %eco#nition and %eward !ystem

    =ecognition is a form of employee motivation in which the organization publicly

    ac(nowledge the positive contribution an individual or team has made to the success of the

    organization. !his ac(nowledgement is delivered using verbal and written praise and may

    include symbolic items such as certificates and plaques. =eward is something tangible such

    as an e#hibition tic(et& dinner for two or a cash award to promote desirable behavior.

    =ecognition and reward go together to form a system for letting people (now they are

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    valuable members of the organization. Employees should be involved I the planning and

    implementation of the recognition and reward program. !his activity should be performed

    by a cross)functional team that represents all areas of the organization. %ystems that are

    developed with employee involvement will most li(ely succeed. !he system should be

    simple& fully understood by the employees and reviewed periodically in order to

    continuously improve the system.

    !he policies and procedures must be consistently and fairly applied throughout the

    organization. =ecognition should be valid& genuine and meaningful for the giver and the

    recipient. It should not be used to manipulate the people. 2eople li(e to be recognized&

    either as a team or individually. A persons feeling of achievement value to the organization

    (nowing the organization cares and having peer recognition may be more important than

    any reward.

    In addition to the plaque or framed certificate given at formal banquet or informal pizza

    party there are other forms of individual and team recognition. 0ther forms of recognitioninclude pictures on the bulletins board& articles in news letters or newspapers& letters to

    families& ma(ing a presentation to top management& passing along compliments from

    others& personal phone calls compliments from others or notes& placing notes in folders etc.

    !here are many different forms of individual and team rewards. Individual rewards

    include better par(ing space& dinner out& gift certificates& washing an employees car during

    lunch hour& trips and tic(ets of clubs etc. group rewards are also similar

    Performance )ppraisal

    !he purpose of performance appraisal is to let employees (now how they are doing and

    provide a basis for promotions. %alary increases& counseling and other purposes related to

    an employees future.

    !here should be a good relation between employee and the appraiser. Employees should be

    made aware of the appraisal process what is evaluated and how often. Employees should be

    told how they are doing on a continuous basis not 'ust at appraisal time. !he appraisal

    should point out strengths and wea(nesses. A (ey factor in successful performance

    appraisal is employee involvement.

    An employee should always be given the opportunity to comment on the evaluation.

    2erformance must be based on standards that are developed and agreed upon the

    appraiser and employee. %tandards normally contain an idea level and an acceptable level.

    %tandards should change when the situation changes. %uch as when equipment changes or

    new production techniques are developed.

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    2erformance appraisals should be viewed as a positive way to get employees involved.

    Every effort should be made to avoid errors in performance evaluations. ulture& ethics&

    education level and predetermined opinions can affect evaluations.

    An unfair evaluation would prove costly to an organization to lose a valuable employee

    even. !he traditional performance appraisal system has been criticized as being counterproductive and unnecessary by such quality e#perts as 1eming and %choltes. !here are a

    number of arguments to support their opinion. Appraisals nourish short term performance

    and destroy long)term planning. requently long)term gains are sacrificed by ma(ing the

    individual loo( good in the short)term. !his outloo( is especially prevalent when we loo( at

    the emphasis on the quarterly profit and loss statement. Another criticism states that

    individual appraisal destroys team wor(. It teams are to become a cohesive unit of Gall for

    one and one for allH& and then individual ran(ing would undermine the entire concept. !he

    end result would be a team that performs poorer not better. A third concern is the

    assumption that an individual is responsible for all results. In reality the results are

    frequently beyond an individuals control such as processes and equipment. 1emanding

    has stated that C of the problems are the result of the system. -ast& there is a concern

    that appraisal are frequently based on sub'ectivity and immeasurable. !hey should be

    based on ob'ectivity" however it is difficult to measure some attributes such as customer

    satisfaction and leadership. =ather than scrap performance appraisals& a number of

    practitioners have suggested that the performance appraisal system be improved. %ome

    improvements suggestions are$

    4. Jse =ating %cales that have few rating categories. It is difficult to differentiate the

    middle range of performers appro# 6B& whereas its relatively easy to rate the 4; to

    >; at each end. !herefore scales should be limited to between ? and .

    >. =equire wor( team or group evaluations that are at least equal in emphasis to

    individual)focused evaluations. !he increased interdependence of tas(s associated with

    !7M in the wor(place dictates that team performance be utilized. !his action will

    encourage team members to help& support& and cooperate with each other.

    ?. =equire more frequent performance reviews where such reviews will have a dominant

    emphasis on future performance planning. ,or( team and individual performance

    data should be collected and reviewed with an evaluation of results and lessons learned.

    It may be necessary to have two reviews)one immediately after completion of the tas(

    and when the performance cycle of the tas( allows evaluation of results. More

    frequently reviews with emphasis on improvement are much less threatening than the

    annual appraisal.

    @. 2romotion decisions should be made by an independent administrative process that

    draws on current)'ob information and potential for the new 'ob. 2lacing too much

    weight on current performance in the selection process can force well)intentioned

    appraisal to ma(e poor decision. or e#ample the highest performing teller in a ban(

    may not be the best person to promote to loan officer.

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    . Include inde#es of e#ternal customer satisfaction in the appraisal process. In order to

    accomplish this process& the customers and their requirements will need to be

    identified" performance metrics determined using a rating scale and the improvement

    process initiated. Evaluation will be based on the change in the metrics once the base)

    line has been established.

    6. Jse peer and subordinate feedbac( as an inde# of internal customer satisfaction.

    Initiation of this activity would be similar to the previous item.

    B. Include evaluation for process improvement in addition to results. 2rocess behavior

    tends to be more within the persons control. 0ne of the basic of !7M is continuous

    process improvement" therefore& if this concept is to be achieved it must be appraised.

    !here is frequently a lag between process improvement and the results from that

    improvement.

    *nions and Employee Involvement

    In general& unions support quality improvement programs but e#press concern regardingmanagement e#ercising too much control over employees. Jnion representatives must be

    involved in any program involving employees. Although employee involvement has been

    widely accepted it could be a problem if not properly addressed. !eams should not discuss

    wages& rates of pay& hours of employment& or conditions of wor(. In some cases these

    limitations will adversely affect the teams ob'ective.

    /oth management and unions must e#amine long)held views of what constitutes proper

    union)management relationships. 1esire for unilateral power must be changed to share

    power for benefit of employees and organization. A 'oint process of determining how best to

    proceed to effectively meet the competition especially from foreign organizations is the onlysensible solution. Management must recognize and respect the unique role unions play in

    employee involvement. A feeling of trust must be established and a partnership developed

    between management and the union.

    Jnion involvement improves the continuous improvement process" however union

    leadership runs the ris( of criticism from the members if it is perceived as wor(ing too

    closely with management. !he nature of the relationship will be determined by the

    bac(ground and history or the labor management relations in the organizations and the

    willingness of the union to participate. Ideally the leadership of the organization will see(

    early involvement of the union and ma(e the nature of the involvement as specific aspossible.

    )dditional Comments

    Employee involvement should not be loo(ed at as a fad that will go away soon. It is a way

    of life crucial to !7M and it can mean the difference between being competition and going

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    out of business. Employees& not senior management hold the future in their hands. !he sign

    over the plant entrance that says& through these doors pass our most important asset our

    employees does not ring true when employees have a feeling no one really cares. More

    involvement might be encouraged by the sign$ no one us (nows as much as all of usH

    As the organizational culture begins the process of change resistance to this change willcertainly be present. Keeping people informed will reduce resistance especially when they

    see the benefits. hange is an ongoing process that must occur if an organization is to

    continue to e#ist in the competitive world. 2eople dont necessarily resist change they resist

    being change and problems arise when a persons comfort zone is disturbed.

    Much of the information in this chapter has related to the role of management.