At Pleasant Precision, we know that continuous improvement and development is necessary for being a successful manufacturer. For continuous improvements to be made, every employee has to be on board. It’s not just random bursts of improvement efforts, it’s a mindset for what you and your company do every day. Sometimes it sounds like a good idea on paper, but getting each and every employee on board can be a struggle.
Here we go over some of the most important steps you can take to make continuous improvement top-of-mind in each employee. By doing this, manufacturers can not only go along with continuous improvement, but they can also help employees work as a team to get to a common goal, faster and more efficient than ever before.
To learn more about how the cycle of improvement works, be sure to check out this article.
Identify the goal
This obviously the first step. The goal of a project needs to be clear and understandable. But there also needs to be the broader goal, the goal or the mission of the company, which every everyone should be striving toward.
A clear and attainable goal is easy for everyone to understand and keep in mind. It should be present enough to stay in each employee’s subconscious, and influence the workplace decisions they make every day.
Share a passion
Sharing a passion between management and employees begins with teamwork. You are all working toward a common goal, and although the roles you play are different, the ultimate impact of improvement will benefit everyone.
Speaking with employees face-to-face is important. It helps to know that management is not an all-seeing eye, but a real team of people. It might take time to get a large number of employees on board, but answering questions and being present with them is a step in the right direction.
Share excitement with results
When things begin to improve and new solutions are working out, communicate your excitement and pride with how things are changing. Employees should know that the work they are doing is extraordinary and has started to produce great results.
This will keep every employee involved with the process, even if they play a smaller role. Everyone loves to hear about success. And knowing that things have resulted in improvement will motivate employees to continue working toward future goals.
Set an example
Continual improvement should be a mindset, as you know. And it should be used to make your company a model of success. Make continuous improvement a priority in meeting discussions, allocating resources, prioritizing plans, and among the daily habits of employees working to produce results.
Make improvement a priority by increasing the visibility. It may take months or years to establish a company culture focused on improvement, but being patient will pay off in the end. Boasting significant improvement, and happy and productive employees is a great way to be a role model in the manufacturing industry.
Our Process
PPI’s process of ongoing improvement is called POOGI, which conveniently stands for Process Of On Going Improvement. The DMAIC Process is a cycle that ensures we are constantly improving and the idea of ongoing improvement is a daily mindset. To learn more about how we implement POOGI, be sure to check out What makes improvement a steady, continuous cycle?
