Question 55
of 100
We have created, maintain
and support an environment where people volunteer their enthusiasm,
creativity and resourcefulness aligned with the organization's
goals and objectives.
We recommend that you answer the questions in the order determined by the "next" button below. However, to allow you flexibility, the links below allow you to jump to different Principles.
Where to next
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You need to decide for which level of your business
you are answering these questions. We suggest that you first
answer for your most immediate work group, (If you are part
of a large organization, you may later choose to answer as part
of the larger group of which your work group forms a part.)
The information to the right is provided for
your guidance. You can answer the question without reading
any of it if you wish.
Information is presented under the following
headings.
Why this is important
Success depends on
knowledge, skills, innovative creativity and motivation
To "harness" means to "control"
Treat employees with respect
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Avoid doing these poor practices
No systems to encourage and ensure increased internal responsiveness.
A culture of blaming people when things go wrong - scapegoats.
(This significantly discourages risk taking and innovation.)
Blame people when innovations do not work.
A culture that equates working long hours as a demonstration
of real commitment to the company.
Staff do not take initiative to find out how to solve problems
– difficulties are simply passed up the hierarchy.
A culture that uses people up.
Overuse of overtime.
People do just enough to get by, arrive just on time, leave
on time, contribute minimum effort (grudging compliance).
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Do these good practices
Employees are prepared to try new ideas, experiment, innovate
and take reasonable risks. People are encouraged to take initiatives
and be pro-active.
In unusual circumstances, people can confidently take actions
that fit the company's needs.
People work with few rules and can decide things.
An attitude of trust from the senior executives. People are
trusted to work towards the benefit of the company. "Keep
going until I tell you to stop". Few approvals are necessary.
A clear process for all employees to contribute to developing
company values. (Employees have a tendency to make the values
stronger than the managers would.) This is enabled by providing
necessary skills, knowledge, power and `space' to contribute
to the stated values.
All staff can articulate the values of the company and how
they are based on the Business Excellence Principles, and can
give examples of how the values are used to drive behavior (especially
by the senior executives).
People have pride in what the company stands for.
People delight in telling how things have improved - and the
stories demonstrate they are discerning about ethics and innovation.
High degree of ownership of the company's image and activities.
Staff indicate that values are integrated throughout the company.
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Principle 7: Enthusiastic People (Item 1)
Potential of an organization is realized through its people's
enthusiasm, resourcefulness and participation.
Research shows that Principle 7 is in the group of Principles that
correlate strongly with KPI improvement.
Principle 7 forms one point of the major strategic triangle. In order
to make money now and in the future (the Goal of most companies), you
need customers who are so delighted with the value they get from you
that they recommend. You must also have employees who are so enthusiastic
about working for the company that they volunteer to help you make money
by providing value to customers and by improving the company.
This makes the enthusiastic volunteering employee a major driver in
the company. Extremely important! Without the enthusiastic volunteering
employee, you do not get customers who recommend, you do not get a better
company and you do not get to make more money.
Which is why many argue that Principle 7 is the main driver
for company improvement.
(We have shown only the major driving forces in the diagram. We know
that influence travels back along all the arrows.)
A company's success depends increasingly on the knowledge, skills,
innovative creativity and motivation of its work force.
Companies are increasingly realizing that in competitive, dynamic environments,
its people are its most important resource. People provide the
brain and heart of the company. They provide the intellect for thinking,
the emotional capacity for commitment, the enthusiasm to create and
the energy for action. Only people can initiate and sustain the relationships
that allow the company to function. The employees talk to the customers
and work with alliance partners and community groups. The employees
get the work done. There are no other resources available to the company
to do this.
When people are truly involved, they become committed to what they
are involved in. When people become committed, they want to become actively
involved. Companies can use this energy to achieve whatever they wish
to achieve.
Principle 7 is concerned with
- creating, maintaining and supporting an environment that enables
people to reach their full potential
- aligning people's objectives with company's objectives.
More than lip service must be paid the concept that "people (including
their creativity and knowledge) are the company's greatest asset".
(A phrase that, through misuse, has lost considerable credibility.)
- How do you enable your people to grow and contribute?
- How do you free your people to phpire to high ideals?
- How do you generate goodwill within the company?
- How do you develop professional capabilities that are consistently
applied?
- How do you enable personal growth and encourage difference?
- How do you enable learning and its exchange?
This is another thinking shift. The old thinking was that employees
are inherently lazy and unreliable, and need close supervision in order
to achieve the company's goals.
The new thinking is in two parts.
- All employees would like to do good work. They want to bring their
hearts and minds to work. They want to volunteer.
- As we have seen in Principle 4 (`To Improve the Outcome, Improve
the System'), the system people work in – its rules, procedures,
power structure – usually prevents people from being able to
do their best work. When you enable your employees to fix the systems,
processes and procedures that prevent them from doing their best work,
you get a better company. However, because, the employees have the
knowledge of what is wrong with the system but not the power to fix
it, bosses must work to improve systems – with active enthusiastic,
volunteering help from employees.
Be careful. Words have accumulated considerable baggage and have very
different meanings. For example, "harness" as in "companies
can harness this energy" has the connotation of a horse
being controlled by a "harness". Usually, when people
use this word they might not mean control, but they imply it.
Rosenbluth goes so far as to suggest that "The customer comes
second". Second behind the employees. Employees will treat your
customers the same way as they are treated by the company. If you want
your employees to treat your customers with respect – valuing their
needs, then you must first treat your employees with respect –
valuing their needs.
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