Lean gone wrong - Unintended consequences of some misguided attempts at Lean

[Randy Stewart]

The really scary part is imagining that if this guy were a crook instead of just a jerk,

Wes, the really scary part is that most of these call centers are located in prisons. The guys are not only jerks but they are crooks!
60 Minutes did a story on this a couple months ago, it was eye opening.

 

[tomvehoski]

[*]add CRM software to identify incoming callers and give the operator a full history of the customer's relationship to the company to shortcut asking customer for repetitive information (ever had an operator ask you to repeat a fifteen digit ID code [credit card number] AFTER you had just laboriously typed it in on the automated menu? CRM software allows operator to ask, "Is this Mr. John Doe? What can we do for you today?")
[/list]

I've seen the automation make things worse, especially with new voice response systems. It takes me five or six tries to get the correct flight information from Delta because their system wants you to speak the flight number, not punch it in on your phone. With the background noise of a busy airport, it was impossible for the system to understand what I was saying.

 

[Caster]

Please - how?

Their goals all related to handling a greater number of calls each year.

After several meetings I was able to lead them to understand that their goals were inverted. The goal of any complaint center should be to work towards reducing/eliminating calls, not handling more each year. [The `ole root cause corrective action ploy - as Maxwell Smart would say.]

Great stuff!

So, can you please elaborate how you "made change happen"?

I assume these were people who had some firm opinions, how did you bring them around? Appeals to logic, offers of money, threats?

How long did it take to change their minds? Did it stick after you left?

My only wins occur when I plant ideas and let them come back as someone elses idea.

It is a bit hard on the ego to have to sit in a meeting and heartily agree to support "the bosses" great new idea. But, I can get over it (mostly).

I am trying to improve my success rate at change...I am finding some of these things take a very, very long time, unless there is a crisis. Any ideas to speed things up?

 

[David Hartman]

Great stuff!

So, can you please elaborate how you "made change happen"?

I assume these were people who had some firm opinions, how did you bring them around? Appeals to logic, offers of money, threats?

How long did it take to change their minds? Did it stick after you left?

My appeals were made on the basis of the logic behind them. In a meeting with the applicable directors and managers, I began by asking them to define the purpose of their organization to me (as an outsider).

BTW: Here I started leading them slighty (to get them thinking in the direction I was headed). This was accomplished by asking some pointed questions such as: As a company, what should I be expecting of my call center? How should the recipients of the information your providing react? What should be the end result of their efforts (the recipients of the information)?

After listing these purpose statements, I ask for them to define their current metrics (those that the managers, as well as their bosses (also present at the meeting), were using to determine their organizations effectiveness). Here I had to make my plea a little more direct and asked what performance factors their personal reviews were based on.

We as a group then began classifying their metrics against the purpose statements and noted some gaps when it came to those statements involving the corrective action/complaint closure aspects.

I then led an interactive discussion regarding the corrective action/complaint closure process (giving them the opportunity to wrap their minds around how that process really was the ultimate purpose of their organization).

Then they began discussing the lack of processes/systems that would support this "real" goal of their organization.

This meeting was wrapped up with action items assigned to begin developing these processes/systems (including scheduling meetings to involve those organizations that were the recipients of their data).

The development and implementation of the resultant process/system took several months, involved personnel from several other organizations (Reliability, Design Engineering, Procurement, and Manufacturing), and more than a few iterations to "work out the bugs". But overall they made it their process, it is now a part of their metrics, and yes it is still in place (I speak with them often).

The reason it is still in place: They have witnessing improvements in new product design (fewer customer complaints, increased new product reliability) and much of this is due to the data provided by the call center to the Reliability Engineers that are a part of the product design effort.

They are also seeing fewer call-backs (calls received by the same customer, for the same problem).

Did we have our nay-sayers? Yes, in the initial stages of the process development. How were they handled? If they could not be convince that this effort was the right thing to do, management was brought in and their "participation" was made mandatory (the value of selling management first). BTW: Even these nay-sayers are no longer arguing in the face of the results (eventhough some still don't like the "additional" work that is being required of them).

 

[asutherland]

I also applaud ddhartma on leading his client to focusing on corrective action / complaint closure. I am not sure if everyone saw the real bottom line here because it tends to be a little hidden.

What is the real reason anyone is in business?

To understand and satisfy the customer needs.

Since this statement seem's a little cliche. Let me rephrase it more clearly.

"It's not the employer who pays the wages.
Employers only handle the money. It's the customer
who pays the wages" Henry Ford

good job dd

 

[Wilf from Sask]

survey conducted - five level recommendations

I look on the internet on on lean manufacturing and found a survey conducted in 2005 of managers and employees. Some of the key finding is that communcation was a problem and clear message. Key recommendations for implemenation 5-1 (p 38) were.
http://www2.oakland.edu/oakland/ouportal/file_repository/pawley/ResearchResults.pdf

The following five level recommendations are a result of the employee and manager survey responses and the analysis of the collected data. These recommendations are suggested as a beginning point in the lean implementation process.
1. Prior to lean implementation baseline measurements are taken and communicated to all employees.
2. Develop metrics that:
a. are calculated on a regular basis
b. are shared on a regular basis
c. are understandable by all employees in the organization
3. Create and implement a communication process that supports:
a. the message of the purpose of lean implementation at all levels
b. the understanding of the employee’s role in implementing lean
c. managers and employees working together to solve problems
d. departments staying in constant communication with each other regarding the implementation of lean
e. the reduction of artificial boundaries between departments
f. employees taking calculated risks
4. Determine the tools needed to implement lean and:
a. provide to all levels of employees in the organization
b. train all levels of employees on how to use the tools
c. maintain and update the tools as needed
5. Celebrate the successes related to lean implementation throughout the organization as they occur.

Many of us forget step 5

 

[Jim Wynne]

Lean, schmean

I took the liberty of doing a little editing, and removed all references to "lean." I also added #6, which is perhaps the most important part. Surprise!! It still makes good sense!! Good management practices don't need to be named.

1. Take Baseline measurements and communicate to all employees.
2. Develop metrics that:
a. are calculated on a regular basis
b. are shared on a regular basis
c. are understandable by all employees in the organization
3. Create and implement a communication process that supports:
a. the message of purpose at all levels
b. the understanding of the employee’s role
c. managers and employees working together to solve problems
d. departments staying in constant communication with each other
e. the reduction of artificial boundaries between departments
f. employees taking calculated risks
4. Determine the tools needed
a. provide to all levels of employees in the organization
b. train all levels of employees on how to use the tools
c. maintain and update the tools as needed
5. Celebrate throughout the organization as successes occur.
6. Go to #1

 

[Helmut Jilling]

I also applaud ddhartma on leading his client to focusing on corrective action / complaint closure. I am not sure if everyone saw the real bottom line here because it tends to be a little hidden.

What is the real reason anyone is in business?

To understand and satisfy the customer needs.

Since this statement seem's a little cliche. Let me rephrase it more clearly.

"It's not the employer who pays the wages.
Employers only handle the money. It's the customer
who pays the wages" Henry Ford

good job dd

It is unfortunate that for a while, Ford (and GM, DCX, airlines, Hotels, etc.) has forgotten that to a degree...

 

[Helmut Jilling]

Good posts, all.

Wes, in fairness to the call center industry, poor performance and your last paragraph of questions (similar questions) could apply to many businesses. I recognize one of my weaknesses as being too naive in many situations. In this day and age I am still amazed when I come across a case of terrible management -- especially when it is on the part of a mid-to large company and not a Mom and Pop startup -- despite the fact it happens relatively often.

Poor management is often more common at the biger companies. They have more talent and fat paychecks, so they are better at shucking and jiving to hide their sins. Managers at smaller companies frequently feel more secure and are willing to admit they made a mistake.

 

[Daveo]

Yikes! That's not lean, that's cost cutting!

It has me wondering, though, how DOES one eliminate waste at a customer call center?

Understanding variation and not to set arbitrary targets based on volumes of calls that have to be processed. With call centers as one example of a service industry as with others, demand variation is at the point of transaction, the customer is part of the process. By setting arbitrary targets of how many calls have to be processed the operators use there skills in a negative fashion to please the measure and do what they can to move the call on (like the comic bomb scenario), dump the call etc leaving unhappy customers, unhappy operators, and failure demand on the system as the customer inevitably has to call back again (rework!). A large percentage of demand on the system is from this rework. This is one of the biggest issues facing service and call centers today. Trying to use manufacturing techniques and measures to standardise operations and forgetting why they are there in the first place, to satisfy the customer. Variation in this case is part of the process, standardise with arbitrary measures at your peril!

Control charts may be the best way to measure, over time you will see an in control process with normal variation. By analysing the system, start to remove failure demand, ask why that customer could not get what they wanted on the first call and start looking at the system to address. Get the best out of your people by understanding that they will have the best ideas to improve the system, instead of letting them use there ingenuity and ideas to beat the system which they undoubtably will when the arbitary target based mangement stick is wielded!