1. Align performance improvement projects to your improvement strategy
We usually recommend that a successful PIP should lead to a sustained improvement of at least 12 months. All too often though, we see PIPs failing due to a lack of momentum and commitment, and teams are redirected to firefight elsewhere in the business.
Selecting a project that is closely aligned to the business improvement strategy and priorities, and where the financial benefits are clear, will reduce the likelihood of teams getting redirected by leadership toward firefighting elsewhere. If you get into that situation, you need to remind leadership of how critical the project is to achieve the business priorities.
Also, by directly involving leadership in the PIP team they will be invested in the project and therefore less inclined to want to redirect resources.
Download the how-to guide Making time for operations improvement to learn more about launching successful PIPs.
2. Select the right team for the job and recognize and reward team members
During the webinar, I received at least two questions around how to get the team to foster commitment and accountability for the improvement projects.
My recommendation here is to ensure that you select the right team. It’s important to have the people who work in the improvement area where the project is happening to serve on the team as they are closest to the project. This way they are invested in sustaining the improvement in their area.
Foster commitment by involving those you wish to be committed at every level. As mentioned above, leaders should actively demonstrate commitment by being involved in all required governance activities.
Sticks are great; carrots are even better — so make sure that you set in place a recognition and rewards program to keep the team motivated and sustain behavior change. A simple “thank you” from leadership can go a long way.
3. Prevent project deviation by implementing sound governance structures
For improved performance, make sure your measure of improvement becomes a standard KPI that the team looks at every day, week and month, and quickly identify the root cause whenever the KPI is not performing to target. Again, ensure you recognize and reward great behavior as this helps sustain behavior change.
If you are expecting people to commit to a PIP in their own time, it won’t happen. Be sure to allocate time upfront, for example, two hours a week for a machine operator.
The key is to establish a rigorous management and governance process, and use visual management to drive accountability of team members to meet timelines. Because this process creates transparency of the project progress, it makes leadership accountability more public to the rest of the site or organization. This visibility is an incentive for leaders to “walk the talk” and is the only way to realize the results.
Conclusion
Overcoming common obstacles in performance improvement projects requires a strategic approach. Leadership buy-in, reward and recognition and alignment to strategy are three key points to keep a PIP on track. With this in mind, you can navigate the challenges and achieve timely outcomes in your PIPs.
Contact us and find out how you can achieve rapid performance improvement in just 12 weeks.
About Mary Williamson
Mary Williamson, Head of Client Experience Standardization and Consulting Capability, CCi, has 35 years of manufacturing experience in CI, quality, production operations and manufacturing development, and has held various leadership positions at SABMiller, Kimberly-Clark, Quaker Oats, United Signature Foods and Miller Coors. She has been a senior consultant and key account manager at CCi for over 11 years and supports numerous North and South American key account managers that represent clients at over 300 sites.