Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Manufacturing Systems: EMP-5179 Module #10: Teams, Decisions & Change Management Dr. Ken Andrews High Impact Facilitation Fall 2010

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP EMP-5179: Module #10  Teams & Teamwork  Decisions, Decisions  Priority Setting  Change & Resistance

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP True Confessions of a Team Person  “I have the best solutions – it’s obvious what we should do.”  “If they would just listen to me, they’d understand.”  “They talk too much.”  “There’s too much debate – it’s a waste of time.”  “Meetings last far too long.”  “If everyone else did their job properly, I’d be able to work better.”  “Oh, yes! They should also build team spirit and improve communications.”

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Teams are Organic  As relationships develop, interactions change.  A new arrival changes the molecule.  Prescriptive team “rules” don’t work!  Your Customers will receive excellent service only when every team member does a perfect job. Team Molecule

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Toxic Teaming Atmosphere “There is no such thing as friendly competition. The competitor who wins gets the reward today; the loser tries harder to get even tomorrow.” Competitors are opponents. Collaborators are colleagues. Also …. teams are fine, but people like to have their ‘own space’ too!

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP When the task requires: –multiple inputs and perceptions –problem solving –cross-functional implementation –coordinated roles and responsibilities Teams are not for everything When Do You Use Teams?

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Effective Team Characteristics  Goals and objectives are clear to all members  Communication is open and informal  Roles within the team are clear  There is a high degree of cooperation and a low degree of competition  Creativity and innovation are frequent  Productivity is high

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Team Meetings Meetings are most effective when participants arrive with lots of ideas, which they hope will be improved with team brainstorming. Meetings are least effective when participants come armed with “their solution” or “the answer.” ‘Getting to Yes.’ & other sources.

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Perceptions Influence Decisions  Organizations tend to emphasize past experiences.  The past looks more logical.  People over-estimate their own roles in events.  It is always assumed that bosses know more, have more experience and/or are smarter.  People attribute bad outcomes to enemies or bad luck; they attribute good results to themselves.

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP  Most decisions are not commandments engraved in stone – usually temporary organizational rules.  Commit to enforcing the rule until it proves itself no longer effective (use metrics).  Decisions are really ‘educated guesses’.  Avoid ‘violent agreements’.  Evaluate decisions/options using all relevant criteria “Research on group effectiveness has demonstrated that decision-making processes that encourage the expression of alternative views produce superior decisions.” Making Decisions – Good Ones

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Decision-Making Tools  Flow Charts - let everyone see what’s really happening  Options Development  Force Field Analysis  Decision Matrix

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Option#1Option#2Option#3Option#4 Evaluation Criterion (A) Evaluation Criterion (B) Evaluation Criterion (C) Evaluation Criterion (D) Evaluation Criterion (E) Decision Matrix

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Facilitating Consensus After discussing the +/- of an issue, ask each team member how he/she feels about the proposed decision by selecting one of the following options: 1. I can say an unqualified “yes” to the decision. 2. I find the decision acceptable. 3. I can live with the decision, while not very enthusiastic about it. 4. I do not fully agree with the decision, but I don’t wish to block it.  5. I do not agree with the decision – let’s explore other options

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Facilitating Consensus “What information do you need so you can support this decision?” “What results/effects of this decision do you think we have neglected to consider?” “How can we jointly build on this idea so we can reach a decision you can support?” “Can we ‘park’ your concerns, move on, and re-visit them at a later time?”

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Options for Team Decision Making There is a spectrum of decision-making strategies available to managers, depending on the nature of the problem and the skills of the team:  Directive: manager decides.  Consultative: manager asks for input, then decides.  Option development: team develops several options, makes recommendation, manager chooses.  Team empowered to reach a consensus decision, within boundary conditions - requires patience.  Team empowered to reach a “majority” decision - usually for less important issues.

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Traditional Approaches to Change  Vision/Strategy-Based Change –high level, conflicting goals, single event  Structure-First Change –decentralize, consolidate, fast-fix, people?  Process-Based Change –talk vs. action, too busy, no implementation  Technology-Driven Change –data is king, imperfect processes, defined by IT

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Laws of Change  People fear pain & loss, more than change.  The further the demand for change is from the point of implementation, the greater the resistance to the change. (Law of Distance)  The more complex the change, the greater the need to introduce it slowly.  The more simple & straightforward a change seems, the more complicated it will really be.

Kenneth J. Andrews EMP Rule “The secret of managing is to keep the guys who hate you away from the guys who are undecided.” Casey Stengel NY Yankees Manager In a change situation: 20% will be for it 50% will be neutral or undecided 30% will resist it