Management's Attitude:

It is the hidden wastes of space, time and energy, existing throughout a company's entire operations, which management frequently fails to understand. Diagnosing and prescribing for business complexities is not magic, conjecture or guesswork.

It is definitely not a job for the novice. It is a science, a highly skilled profession. Presidents, production managers, foremen and supervisors, when they realize that fact, welcome the professional skills of the specialist on waste elimination. Progressive management has come to realize that an outside viewpoint on the subject of management is refreshing and stimulating to internal thinking.

One of the greatest problems is the attitude of management itself. Pointing out examples of inefficiency often has the same effect as challenging a business executive's ability, honor and integrity. Here is an impenetrable barrier as long as the executive persists in refusing to face the facts. No longer can any businessperson afford to have such a shortsighted, thin-skinned attitude. It must be realized that a detached, objective viewpoint is necessary.

Another common reaction is, "Well, we've always done it this way and our profit statement has always been pretty good." That is the type of self-satisfied management which will likely find itself lost in the shuffle of an economic recession.

Still another objection of management-and a more valid one-is the fear of lost time and cost in making internal adjustments. A company may be tremendously busy on existing contracts, with production up to schedule and prospects favorable. Why disturb what seems to be a satisfactory condition? That is a fair question and deserves a straightforward answer.

In most cases, the businessperson is simply penny-wise and pound-foolish if they don’t make the changes. The reward is usually far greater than the cost of revision. However, a trained specialist on waste elimination considers all angles of such a problem. An accurate estimate of the cost of any recommended changes must be made and weighed carefully against the savings to be accomplished. The waste control specialist must figure out ways and means of making a smooth change with the least disruption of present facilities.

For example, in a battery company, 25 percent of the grids coming off the line were defective due to old equipment. Because of production pressure, the production executives felt the work could not be halted on any of the machines to have them repaired. This condition had persisted for along time. A specialist on waste elimination worked out a schedule whereby a sufficient bank was built up behind each machine to tide over the period of the machine's inactivity. One by one, the machines were repaired without the slightest disruption. With other factors corrected, production jumped at once from 320 to 400 batteries per day.

Management's Responsibilities

On every hand is seen startling evidence of management's failure to recognize and to take active measures in eliminating some of the most elementary sources of waste.

Frequently, management recognizes that flaws exist but attempts to correct them by decree. Such executives may know the operating end of the business only superficially. In some cases, they are simply getting out from under their own responsibilities and shifting the blame. At any rate, they overlook the importance of the human element. They fail to obtain the interested cooperation of intelligent personnel who are most familiar with the business and its practical problems. The active interest of managers, supervisors and foremen is of prime importance in any program of waste reduction.

For example, consider the case of the company with about 250 employees whose operations for forty years had been in the manufacture of hardware items and automotive equipment.

Analysis disclosed the typical condition emphasized in this article - the failure of management to live up to its responsibilities. Management had not adjusted to meet a changing situation.

In expanding, this company had vastly increased its personnel, but no thought had been given to reducing the work of others, or consolidating jobs and departments. Many employees were doing work needed 10 years ago but no longer necessary. Duties and functions were overlapping and conflicting. While management realized that corrections were necessary, it had lacked the necessary drive and knowledge to put scientific controls into effect.