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The culture of any organization influences the net output of any product or service it produces. That being said, the manufacturing of products brings complexity with an order of magnitude that can affect the net output at any given point along the build cycle, starting with the sub-component supply chain to final pack. Manifestations of breakdowns along this chain are failure to make schedule, poor quality, scrap, excess labor (rework) and field returns. External ramifications are loss of revenue, loss of customers and inability to win new customers. In this article, I will try to show the interrelationship between a plant’s culture and its final product, which are not only the shippable goods, but also customer service, revenue and profit. The four cornerstones to a manufacturing plant’s culture are discipline, training/tools, motivation (plant citizenship), and self-worth.
These four cornerstones need to be set in that order, and they are constructed by elements that make them weaker or stronger in supporting a culture that functions optimally. Each one mutually supports the other, which can create a self-reinforcing effect.
Discipline By far the most important, discipline, when properly implemented and maintained, starts the process. Discipline must be all-encompassing to be employed properly. Management must be fair and consistent across the board, with no distinction between salaried and hourly employees. The implementation, or changes as to how accountability in the factory will change, needs to be clearly communicated. A date of implementation should also be set and a grace period of no more than a week, where employees are verbally warned for infractions that had in the past been ignored by management.
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the October 2015 issue of The PCB Magazine.
