productivity
-
How Do You Coach a Reluctant Employee?
- December 13, 2023
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Business, Leadership, Management
No CommentsThe problem with nearly every leadership and management book and philosophy is that they make one dangerous assumption: that your employees are willing and eager to be a part of your vision. They teach you how to communicate, how to lead, how to describe your vision, and how to get people to follow you in
-
Sustainability’s Vital Role in Modern Manufacturing
- September 30, 2023
- Posted by: Nanette Gregory
- Category: Business, Leadership, Manufacturing
Sustainability has become more than just a buzzword in manufacturing circles: it’s a fundamental consideration and often the cost of doing business. The government lodges heavy fines, people protest and boycott the companies, and there are costly lawsuits against companies and prison sentences for executives. So how can your manufacturing operation embrace sustainability and still
-
How to Handle Firing Someone: A Practical Approach
- September 20, 2023
- Posted by: Nanette Gregory
- Category: Business, Leadership, Management, Manufacturing
Firing someone can be a challenging and emotional task for any employer or manager. You often have empathy for the other person, you're worried about their future and their family, and some small part of you (hopefully) is concerned about their well-being. But as the leader, it's your job to protect the company. You have -
How to Improve Your Workers’ Skills in the Digital Manufacturing Era
- July 12, 2023
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Digital Transformation, Productivity
A friend once told me a story: He worked for a software company as their sales and marketing director. This was a small company serving a small niche audience. The owner of the company insisted that my friend enhance his skills to cover different roles at the company. So he wanted my friend to learn
-
Why You Should Provide Cross-Training to Your Employees
- June 28, 2023
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Management, Manufacturing, Productivity
Cross-training is going to be a critical function of the work you do in your factory. Not only does it help your workforce and their mental health, it increases their skills and makes them more valuable to your organization. But more importantly, it also reduces the risk of injury. Years ago, when I was at
-
When Should You Do Maintenance and Repairs On Your Machines? Why?
- June 21, 2023
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Manufacturing, Productivity, Safety
Your factory’s maintenance program should be ongoing, not as a repair-as-needed reactive process. You need to be as proactive and preventative as possible. Basically, there are two kinds of maintenance you should be doing: 1) Heavy maintenance and 2) Running maintenance. Heavy maintenance:Once a year when you check everything and do all the heavy stuff
-
Increasing Productivity Doesn’t Always Mean Working Harder
- June 14, 2023
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Innovation, Management, Manufacturing, Productivity
As much as I hate to say it, the key to increased productivity really is “work smarter, not harder.” But it’s more than just finding little tricks and hacks that help people do their job much faster, or having people start working a little faster than they were before. If you really want to increase
-
Remote Work is Hurting Professional Growth
- August 10, 2022
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Leadership, Management, Productivity
Last week, I wrote about how remote work is ruining water cooler conversations and making it harder for people to have those simple conversations that lead to great innovations. I said: Or they have a company culture where it’s acceptable to pop in on a colleague at their cubicle or desk. In open-concept offices, people
-
We’re Missing the Water Cooler Conversations
- August 3, 2022
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Management, Productivity
The American workforce has been largely working remotely for the last two years, and for the most part, everyone has loved it. (Well, almost everyone. I’m not a fan of it.) They love working at home, they don’t miss the commute, and many people are even leaving their jobs (without another one in the wings)
-
The Person Closest to the Problem Often Knows How to Solve the Problem
- July 14, 2021
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Management, Manufacturing, Measurement
A recent article in IndustryWeek, Once Led Through Fear, a Small Manufacturer Reimagines Itself, got me to thinking about who I often relied on to solve problems in our manufacturing plant. Last week, I talked about how as a manager, I had learned early on to ask people to “show me” whenever they were dealing