Page 33 - MetalForming August 2011

Use the Measurement of
Leadership,
Communication
and
The concept of measurement orig- inated in approximately 3000 BC when humans sought to move from independent units to groups. Such socialization required establishing a set of norms in order for trade and commerce to flourish. Weights, sizes, money and time continue to be some of the more prevalent measures in our society, all of which are essential to business.
Value of Measurement
Fast-forward several thousand years and the pervasive nature of measure- ment is evident—a direct result of its proven cultural value. In business, measurement serves countless func- tions. Specifically, measurement:
Guides behavior. People’s actions reflect the measurement used. Con- sider a recent manufacturing client who could not understand why his pal- lets were being shipped partially loaded. A quick investigation deter- mined that a middle manager had recently implemented a new measure of performance: number of pallets shipped. It was to that very specific new
Susan Lesser is cofounder of nPlusOne Consulting,West Hartford, CT, a company that works with c-level executives to trou- bleshoot human-resource and organiza- tional-development challenges. Susan successfully has targeted organizational deficiencies associated with succession planning, ineffective communication, con- flict resolution, lackluster teamwork, deci- sion-making and talent management; www.nplusoneconsulting.com.
Teamwork
...as a catalyst for sustainable culture change to ensure that your company ends up on top. If you only measure, manage and improve the same items as your competition, you will not differentiate yourself.
BY SUSAN LESSER
measure that employees in shipping and receiving were responding. They increased the number of pallets shipped, innocently shrugging their shoulders as they explained: “You didn’t say you wanted them to be full pallets.”
Increases the visibility of perform- ance. Performance is in and of itself intangible. Measurement offers a way
for this invisible result to be seen. How many? How frequently? What is the level of quality?
Focuses attention. Amidst the myr- iad of e-mails, text messages, phone calls, meetings, reports and people vying for other people’s attention, it is inevitable that some activities will pass unnoticed. Measurement is a concise,
The root cause of any per- formance struggles can be attributed to the quality of leadership at all levels of the organization; the effectiveness of internal communication; or the ability of employees to work well together. Leadership surrounds and impacts commu- nication, which influ- ences the inner circle of teamwork. While it is possible to isolate each intangible for the sake of conversation, in practice it proves impossible to disentangle them.
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Organizational Performance Drivers
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