Page 171 - TPM A Route to World-Class Performance

Planning and launching the TPM pilot 149

Skills de

Total
environment
‘A. clean, bright working environment, where people WANT to continuously
challenge and change the way we do things here.
’Working together to make a good company great’
Figure 7.4 Site improvement strategy for sustainable growth

We need to get a measure of individual and collective strength of feelings
and to pinpoint things that will hinder change or progress as well as the
things that will positively help. The assessment takes the form of in-depth
interviews and discussions to ascertain existing attitudes and, in due course,
to influence those attitudes.
WCS has developed a 28-statement format in which employees (whether
they are managing directors, design engineers, operators or maintainers) are
asked to rank the statements from their own perspective and perception. For
example, the statement might say:
’From my viewpoint, Production and Maintenance operate as separate
empires.’ Do you think this statement is very true, partially true or false?
Fourteen of the statements measure the employee’s perception with regard
to the degree of management encouragement in the organization or plant,
and the other fourteen statements measure the degree of workforce involvement
(see Figures 7.5 and 7.6).
It is far better to carry out these perception interviews on a one-to-one
basis rather than simply giving out the questionnaire to be completed by the
employee, since it gives the interviewer a chance to explain the TPM and
how and when it might affect the employee. Also, it allows the interviewer
the opportunity to ask a supplementary question to each of the 28 statements,
such as ‘Why do you feel so strongly about this statement?’. The response
will often give some key directions and insights as well as, perhaps, an
improving or occasionally worsening perception over time.
The subsequent analysis clearly shows the differences in strength of feeling
between, say, members of management compared to key contacts and, of
course, comparisons with operators and maintainers. Similarly, the strength
of response across the spectrum of employees will show up quite clearly for