Owner of Company Doesn't Understand Corrective Action....

[Jennifer Kirley]

I'm aware that construction on the turnpike is causing delays. Logistics can tune into 1610 AM radio and hear the updates, and plan a re-route. If it can keep from setting production behind for a day, why not plan to go around the turnpike bottleneck instead of just sitting in traffic?

Your boss's approach reminds me of Pee Wee baseball league when my son was young. The little kids would be positioned out there on the field; the coach would hit a ball out there and they'd all run after it and pig-pile on the ball. The coach would hit another ball and the entire group would run after that ball: a clot of little arms and legs - and they'd pile on it again. One kid would meanwhile be crouched out there somewhere, picking and eating wild strawberries - completely oblivious to the Keystone Kops routine happening elsewhere.

The Post Attachments List has some attachments dealing with Cost of Quality, including calculators. The ones I put in were pretty complex but not all the fields need to be populated for the calculations to occur. They can help you calculate ROI for resolving issues. You can make histograms and ask your boss which ones he'd like you to pursue.

Once you line up these issues it may help, in the same way as making a budget, to understand where the issues are. What would it look like if they were added up - is a "death by 1,000 cuts" set of operator (can''t fix stupid) problems going on? Maybe these nuisance issues are actually more than a nuisance.

Then there are the basic facts that issues like recalls naturally have urgent priority, and that others could help solve select problems. Where is the production supervisor? If Boss Man wants the operator to more completely fill out the paperwork, maybe the supervisor can deal with that... unless the paperwork itself is a nightmarish affair and it's really important. Is it? Such a question doesn't fit neatly on the quality cost calculator except to consider the consequences of this-or-that not getting done in your regulated environment.

[Ninja]

In Reply to Parent Post by JQuality

...For instance, the data entry deficiency issue could certainly be fixed by requiring the data to be entered into a database that won’t allow the job to be finished until all data entry fields are completed. ...

In Reply to Parent Post by NikkiQSM

...Excuse the phrase, but sometimes you simply can not fix stupid....

Take a step back and look at the situation systemically (as opposed to looking at individual roles or people).

You are correct, you can't fix stupid. But you CAN build a system that won't allow 'stupid things' to cause significant harm to the business. JQuality's example is a good example of the system preventing omissions...even if they happen for stupid reasons.

We all have stupid days...well, at least I do anyway.

But as Jquality also points out, there is a cost involved in changing a system. It's the owners choice whether the value is worth the cost...it's yours to present him with the choice.

[Ninja]

In Reply to Parent Post by JLang

Best bet is probably what NINJA mentioned. Put it in terms of $. "It cost you $50-100 worth of my time to fill out a full CAR on this simple human error. Is that really the best use of your money?"

I understand exactly where you're coming from JLang, but I think I would phrase it more towards the cost of the improvement, not the cost of my time. People spend money on results (at least they WANT to spend it on results).

Putting it in terms of spending for paperwork doesn't focus on results, and it positions the discussion toward how much the owner is paying you to disagree with them...

focus on the result instead, it will be easier for them to swallow and you'll likely get a better response.

If the Boss is going to be frustrated, don't help them point that frustration at yourself.

[insect warfare]

In Reply to Parent Post by Ninja

I understand exactly where you're coming from JLang, but I think I would phrase it more towards the cost of the improvement, not the cost of my time. People spend money on results (at least they WANT to spend it on results).

Putting it in terms of spending for paperwork doesn't focus on results, and it positions the discussion toward how much the owner is paying you to disagree with them...

focus on the result instead, it will be easier for them to swallow and you'll likely get a better response.

If the Boss is going to be frustrated, don't help them point that frustration at yourself.

Exactly how much am I paying you again to make me look like a fool?

Check and mate...

[BradM]

Owners of companies sometimes tend to be a different sort of folk. Sometimes they seem to be on a different wavelength than everybody else.

Some owners are very cost/profit sensitive.
Some... aren't (where they probably should be). They become obsessed with perfection; with quality; with customer service. Obviously those are good things, but if they aren't making money, they aren't the top priority. Maybe he/she went through an audit once, or read an article about an audit once, where the company was shut down/lost business/ whatever because they did not have a good Corrective Action program.

All that blathering to suggest that like trying to figure out what a spouse/ mate/ is thinking or means, is sometimes a challenging endeavor; they may say one thing but mean another. It might be worth it to make sure you have clearly identified what the owner wants and expects.

By truly developing an understanding of what they are expecting and what they perceive about Corrective Action, you will be able to better respond.