| When is the best time to change? It's when | | | | The operation was implemented within a week - |
| preparation and the opportunity to create interest | | | | with only the President, the Security Chief and |
| and urgency come together around some incident | | | | the VP of Administration aware of it. The |
| or condition that can focus attention and effort. | | | | company was in a hiring mode - and undercover |
| That's when real lasting change occurs. Use that | | | | operatives were placed on open jobs. Within 60 |
| answer to focus your own personal and | | | | days they were able to identify suspects. Within |
| organizational change efforts for maximum impact | | | | 90 days of the start of the undercover operation, |
| and value. | | | | action was taken and suspects were interrogated |
| The best time to change is when you don't have | | | | and, in most cases, terminated for theft. |
| to - when you're not forced to - when events | | | | Most of the organization was relieved that the |
| and circumstances provide the opportunity and | | | | thieves had been identified - many people knew |
| momentum for change. It's also the most | | | | theft and other bad things were happening, but |
| effective time to change. It's when astute | | | | they didn't feel they could come forward. |
| leadership has prepared for change and acts when | | | | The near term fixes that followed were replacing |
| the opportunity presents itself - as it almost | | | | the contract guard force and putting increased |
| always will. | | | | security procedures in place. Most people felt the |
| I learned that lesson from one of the best leaders | | | | issue was finished. And that could have been the |
| I ever worked with. He knew how hard change | | | | end of the story. |
| without a pressing need can be. In the | | | | But the FBI and local authorities had been |
| organization he lived in anything that wasn't | | | | informed by the Security Chief about the |
| pressing and proximate got zero attention. He | | | | undercover operation as soon as action was |
| dealt with that behavior by identifying potential | | | | taken against the suspects. He had established |
| problems and then working - quietly - to develop | | | | relationships with the FBI and local law |
| solutions. He kept a low profile on his preparation | | | | enforcement on a just -in - case basis and had an |
| and solutions until the inevitable crisis or | | | | effective working relationship with them. They |
| attention-getting problem occurred. When it did he | | | | started their own investigation within that part of |
| was ready to work to solve it. His rationale for | | | | the industrial community that could have profited |
| quietly preparing was that if he presented a | | | | from the kinds of things stolen. They started |
| problem and a solution prematurely, they would | | | | recovering all kinds of components from repair |
| be dismissed as unimportant, and trying to | | | | shops that the company didn't know had been |
| reintroduce them later was made much more | | | | stolen! The company had to admit that their |
| difficult by the earlier dismissal. | | | | material control processes were outdated and |
| His point? In order to be heard, you've gotta | | | | ineffective. The FBI and local police ended up |
| know when the situation has the attention of the | | | | recovering over $500,000 worth of parts. but |
| organization. | | | | they lost interest when it became apparent that |
| The alternative to his approach are short term | | | | the company couldn't take legal action - the |
| fixes, rather than long term solutions. It's the | | | | admission that they didn't know the parts were |
| buying of something that has the promise of | | | | missing made prosecution almost impossible. |
| solving something, it's the 1000 calorie diet that | | | | And then the long term benefit kicked in. The |
| gives a weight loss quickly, but with no hope of | | | | realization that Material Control needed to be |
| long term benefit. It's the program introduced to | | | | improved led to positive change. It started with a |
| solve a "morale" problem that ends up causing a | | | | study to determine what steps could be taken to |
| morale problem. And that behavior - short term | | | | integrate and improve work flow, inventory |
| fixes - results in frustration and cynicism. | | | | control, production control , parts tracking and |
| But those short term fixes can lead to long term | | | | assembly. It ended with the phased |
| solutions, if change is handled on a constructive | | | | implementation of an integrated Materials |
| basis. | | | | Requirement Plan system that completely |
| An example of how long term change grew out | | | | changed the dynamics in the manufacturing, |
| of a crisis, a near term fix and a long term | | | | procurement and processing of the parts. The |
| solution. | | | | result was lower inventory, shorter lead times on |
| A manufacturing company made commercial | | | | purchased parts, shorter work - in - process |
| airplane components. Part of their business was | | | | times for components, and improved |
| building replacement parts for older airplanes. Over | | | | performance to commitments. |
| a Christmas shutdown period, a critical component | | | | Big positive change started with a Security Chief |
| - a one of a kind replacement - disappeared from | | | | prepared to work a theft problem - but needing |
| the stand where it was awaiting final inspection. A | | | | the credibility of an in - your - face problem to |
| replacement had to be made at great cost - | | | | get the ball rolling. And once the ball was rolling, |
| other versions of this part didn't fit this particular | | | | having the President use the information gained to |
| aircraft - though the thieves probably didn't know | | | | create positive lasting change in the organization. |
| that. But the fact that it was a one - of - a - kind | | | | That required communication from the top. It |
| was crucial to identifying and highlighting the theft. | | | | required the cooperation and dedication of |
| Shortly after that event the head of Security got | | | | everyone. But everyone could see the benefits |
| an anonymous tip that high value plating metals | | | | and the worthiness of the changes - so everyone |
| were being stolen. The Security Chief had | | | | pitched in. They were open to change. It was a |
| suspected that theft was a problem for some | | | | real success story. |
| time, but he had no way to put his finger on it | | | | Back to the original question. When is the best |
| and cause real action to be taken. The | | | | time to change? It's when preparation and the |
| combination of the missing component and the tip | | | | opportunity to create interest and urgency come |
| on the theft of plating metals were the triggers | | | | together around some incident or condition that |
| that got the President's attention. | | | | can focus attention and effort. That's when real |
| The Security Chief recommended an undercover | | | | lasting change occurs. |
| operation that he had planned for some time. He | | | | Use that answer to focus your own personal and |
| laid out how it should be done, using a private | | | | organizational change efforts for maximum impact |
| investigative agency the Chief had vetted and | | | | and value. |
| maintained contact with for just such a situation. | | | | |