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The Stop Button

6 April, 2014 by James Lawther 8 Comments

How does your stop button work? If you walk around a manufacturing plant you will see that every machine has a stop button. They are easy to spot.  They are big, round, red, attached to a bright yellow box and bear the legend STOP. Hit the stop button and the machine will come to an […]

Filed Under: Blog, Process Improvement, Tools & Techniques Tagged With: andon, best practice, customer focus, process control, rework

The Minimalist

3 April, 2014 by James Lawther 13 Comments

Simplicity

It does just what it says on the tin Have you noticed that the simplest things are often the best? Diamond earrings One line gags A stop sign Pencil drawings A wind up alarm clock Walking on the beach We love simple things, we love things that “do just what it says on the tin”. […]

Filed Under: Blog, Process Improvement Tagged With: simplicity

Do You Have to Control Everything?

31 March, 2014 by James Lawther 7 Comments

Command and Control

If there is one thing that upsets me… Really upsets me it is being controlled.  Being told where I have to be, when I have to be there, what I need to do, which meeting I need to go to… I hate being controlled. Of course it cuts both ways.  If I am hell-bent on […]

Filed Under: Blog, Employee Engagement Tagged With: beliefs, command and control, do as I say, empowerment, human nature, management style, trust

Snakes, Rats and Your H.R. Policies

26 March, 2014 by James Lawther 3 Comments

Unintended Consequences

Have you heard of the Cobra Effect? In Victorian times, at the height of the British Empire, the governors of Colonial India were very worried about the number of cobras in Delhi — no self-respecting bureaucrat has a liking of venomous snakes. The governors came up with a plan.  They offered a reward for every […]

Filed Under: Blog, Employee Engagement Tagged With: bad process, cheating, cobra effect, employee performance measures, human nature, incentives, nothing new under the sun, performance management, reinforcing behaviour, systems thinking

How to be a Amazing Manager

20 March, 2014 by James Lawther 7 Comments

remarkable manager

I am going to teach you how to be an amazing manager.  These are the secrets that will make you the world’s best boss and put you on the career path to greatness — would I lie? The amazing manager’s 5 point plan: What you need to do is… Get out of your office Talk […]

Filed Under: Blog, Employee Engagement Tagged With: best practice, do as I say, management by wandering around, management style, motivation

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