Conference 7.286::digital

        What is a "self-managing team"?
        

    Carla,
    
    We have a prime example right here in Westminster.   Talk to Jim
    Kane or Jim Curley about the teams working in SDC's Media Production.
    It may not be exactly what you're interested in, but it will certainly
    be a good start at learning about team approaches.
    
    -Don-

    Don,
    
    I do have info on what is happening in the media room -- which
    is EXCELLENT by the way!
    
    I am meeting with some of our people in the Business Development
    group, but I want as much information as I can get... specifically
    that which applies to administrative/support groups, ie, Human
    Resources, a.k.a. Personnel.
    
    Regarding "what is a self-managing team?"
    
    It can run an entire spectrum  ... from merely directing own work
    to a full-blown group operating day-day without direct supervision..
    a group that plans its own work, that performs salary planning on
    each other, delivers performance reviews on/to each other, hires/fires,
    goes thru corrective action on others when needed....
    
    As Don said, Westminster does have some groups using teams to do
    the work.  Employees are expected to work together as a team and
    take on multiple tasks and responsibilites to carry out the work.
    
    We also have groups working as teams to include cross-functional
    tasks (but not in work teams).
    
    I do have information on Enfield...
    
    I just want AS much information as I can get... I do feel that
    there are MANY pluses (spelling), feeling good about what you do
    empowerment, etc... BUT, I recognize there has to be a downside
    and I want to know WHAT that is.
    
    Thanks,
    
    Carla
    

    
    re. .3
    
    Carla, part of your description of the Self-managing Team included
    a statement about them doing their own salary planning and reviews.
    I'm curious as to which Corporate Policy and Procedure covers this.
    I have never read anything that talks about peers reviewing each
    other, just the traditional manager to subordinate scenario.
    
    The reason I ask is that my group (Salem IRM) is gravitating toward
    self-managing teams, but we couldn't get through the knothole of
    the salary planning and review situation. In fact, we were told
    that there wasn't any precedent for this. Do you know if Enfield
    operates this way? I'd like to get more details if that's the case.
    
                                                        Thanks,
                                                        Paul
    

    Our (NPO/SSM) HRP&D group just became self-managing (salary 
    planning, performance reviewing and all).  I'm not sure I would 
    want to declare "Here's how to do it. . .", but I'd be happy to 
    share� what we've been doing - please feel free to contact
    me, Carla, at dtn 223-5435.  
    
    Among other things, our situation has been an evolutionary 
    process - a "next logical step" in the growth of our group.  
    When we look back, we find that we'd been operating as a cohesive 
    team and when our manager left for another job, self-management 
    just seemed like the sensible thing to do.
    
    Since our plant is traditionally structured, the change has brought
    some, um, interesting challenges with it, but hopefully, we'll rise
    to the occasion.  Among other things, the issues around money were
    handled with the utmost caring and respect for one another; this
    entire scenario probably could never have developed had we not all
    cared a lot about each other both as colleagues and friends.
    
    Steve
    
    � share (with tongue firmly in cheek) - we Personnel folks *never*
      "tell" people things or "say" things, but boy can we *share*
      stuff. . .
    

    First.. Steve, I will be calling you in the near future, plus there
    are a couple of you out there I need to get copies of some material
    I have out to you.  Self-Managing teams are on hold for a couple
    of weeks until JEC training is over!
    
    Yes, self-managing runs the gamut from limited to the whole thing,
    and I don't think the Oranage Manual states you CAN't do it, just
    that Performance Appraisals, Salary Reviews and Salary Planning
    has to be done!  Don't forget, you are now all managing yourself
    and others.  I have some quick and dirty (well, actually lengthy
    but interesting) information of "characteristics of self-managing
    work teams" that I will post.
    
    Also, some interesting info regarding creativity and innovation...
    if you want these, don't expect a self-managing team to do this
    for you, they (the smt will Maintain, Improve and Operate) the
    howevers are, for Creativity and Innovation you could also have
    a SGIA (small group improvement activity), in fact I am going to
    a workshop on this in Acton next month.
    
    Enough,
    It's getting late so I will sign off,
    
    Carla
    

    The following is an example of Performance Evaluation/Salary Planning
    as done in several "team" type groups:
    
                Phase II           Phase III          Phase IV
             manager directed    participative team   self-managed
    
    CHANGE   annual salary      management does draft   change to fewer
             plan exercises      evaluation              job level ie
                                                       manufacturer
                              employee does draft
                              evaluation, compare    peer evaluation
                              and then final evaluation
                              salary planning driven
    
    MEASUREMENT
            evaluations       work plans
            via corporate     development plans       -training
            salary plan       competency models       -performance
            rating 1-5        certifications
    
    
    WHO     management        management and         team members
                              and employees          (facilitator)
                              equally                 (if needed)
    
    
    
    I have more matrix type info available.
    
    Carla
    
                                                    
    

    re: .6/.7
    
    Many thanks, Carla; I'll be glad to hear from you (whenever).
    Although we feel we're doing pretty well with the process, if
    any of us were asked "Could you use some help?", I'm pretty
    sure our answer would steal the Gene Wilder line from "Blazing
    Saddles":  ". . .oh, only as much as we can get. . ."  :-D
    
    I believe one of the key reasons for our various individual
    successes and our success as a group is that we make very few
    assumptions about the world, but one is that we *don't* have
    all the answers.  Consequently we all feel that our jobs entail
    a good deal of what I'd call the "poke around" factor - actively
    seeking other's experiences and expertise.  Conversely, we also
    believe that to achieve maximum success our roles involve "giving 
    away" as much of our knowledge as humanly possible; ideally, we'd 
    all work ourselves out of a job within the next few years as our 
    manager did this year.  
    
    Part of the, um, "fun" for us is that our group, which serves
    a manufacturing plant, is made up almost entirely of ex-manufacturing
    people (Production Supv., Mat'ls & Mat'ls systems Analyst, Mat'ls
    & Production Ctl. planner, Production & Production Ctl Supv.), all
    of whom have well over five years experience each in their previous
    "lives".  One effect this has had is that we all came in with what
    a former manager of mine called "the proper tone of disrespect"
    
    (I suppose it's a kind of character flaw of mine, but I just can't
    resist poking fun when the "touchy-feelies"/"new age thinking" stuff
    starts to become its own raison d'�tre. . .)
    
    The upshot of this attitude was twofold:  1) we all shared a common
    "hard-nosed" manufacturing view of the world, a fact which tends
    to help bond us as a team, and 2) since we couldn't keep our big
    mouths shut (e.g. "Share/schmare. . .gimme some numbers, some commits,
    something *real*. . ."), we got what we "asked" for.  Between managing
    our re-skilling spending (forecasting, act vs. plan, etc.), managing 
    the macro --> micro issues of the (very specific) development plans 
    for our workforce, management of employment and Affirmative Action
    plans, development and implementation of a self-paced instruction
    program and the dozen or so other details that elude this boggled
    brain for the moment, there are days we wish we were back in the 
    operational groups. . .at least we wouldn't have as much number 
    crunching, resource (esp. $) managment, and fewer line items of 
    details to resolve. . .what's that old line about being careful
    about what one wishes for. . .?
    
    In any case, I think it's fair to say that we all find the new 
    environment exciting and challenging.  Looking back over the
    last couple of years (who we were and who we've become) I'm 
    struck by the notion that, at least for the team members, it needs
    to feel like an evolution - like something that just sorta happened;
    I know enough to know that such is not often the case; it certainly
    wasn't here.  But, for the concept to work, it has to *feel* like
    a natural, "just-seems-like-the-sensible-thing-to-do" type of thing.
    
    Steve