Thoughts from CPI Professionals

What is it YOU do?

2014-04-23T18:47:00.001-04:00

Over the weekend I was catching up on some Couch Potato time and started watching some movies. The movie that caught my attention for this post was the 2006 Rom-Com, My Super Ex-Girlfriend. The two main characters were on a first date and were discussing what it is they do for a living. The first, spoke solely about their position and how it supports the company. The second, spoke about their position title, but what it is their company does.

How many times when you talk about your job is it your position responsibilities, or what your organization does as a whole? Lately there have been a lot of industry talk regarding Silos of Excellence. Atul Gawande, renowned author and surgeon, even brings light to this subject in his book, The Checklist Manifesto. He speaks how we work in many silos, and as such, we have people/companies of the same caliber achieving different results.

In renowned periodicals such as The Harvard Business Review, there have been several points made on how to break down silos of excellence. However, I say it all starts with You! If You care, and You expect a change, then You should first evaluate Yourself.

Are you person 1 on this first encounter speaking solely about what it is You do for the organization, or are you person 2 who speaks about what We do as an organization. To break down silos, we must first exit the Silo ourselves. Start recognizing that we all have a part to play in the success of the organization and what our part is. It is not what You do for the organization, but why the organization exists in the first place. Therefore, next time you are ready to bring the sledge hammer to your silos, first look to see how you talk about yourself. We work for the company, not our title. Leaders lead through action. Are you ready?

Moneyball and Process Improvement

2013-02-22T23:58:00.000-05:00

"You get on base, we win. You don't, we lose. And I *hate* losing...I *hate* it. I hate losing more than I even wanna win."
- Billy Beane, Moneyball (2011)

In the world of process improvement aka process excellence, Lean, Six Sigma or whatever else you want to call it there is one common thing I have found; everyone is after the low hanging fruit. That piece of fruit that is easy to grab that will get us a big win. For some organizations, the low hanging fruit gets picked off, and as the fruit disappears from arms reach, so does their initiative to build a culture of excellence.

Let's look at this just as was depicted in the 2011 cinematic sports/drama, Moneyball starring Brad Pitt. The movie highlighted how organizations typically sought after the star player. The one who could hit the home-runs, put points on the board (profit) and win them the games (competitive edge). However, one statistician (Change Agent) had a new philosophy and got the general manager (Champion) to buy-in.

The idea was simple, focus on percent of times on first base. If my budget is small, I can't afford the star players. However, if I can find the players who can consistently get on first base, well then naturally, they will round the bases and get the points. This practice is generally cheaper too as there was no correlation of high percent on first and high home-runs.Therefore, I can run my operations cheaper, get points on the board through natural progression, win the games and maintain my competitive edge. Brilliant! Why don't we do that?!

If we stopped focusing on the big home-runs (the typical million dollar saving improvement initiative), and started to look at what small savings, if achieved would naturally add up to large savings, then we too can earn profit and maintain our competitive edge at a cheaper operating cost.

As a Black Belt, I consistently hear from my Green Belt candidates, "I don't know what I can do a project on to earn my certification." Their leaders, when asked, will usually answer in kind. This is where the Moneyball philosophy can be put to use. If you are like most organizations, you probably have a small progression rate from candidate to certified. Get them to not focus on the home-runs, but instead the base hits. How can they reduce that internal Quality Assurance fail rate or re-flow operations to even get one more patient in the door. These base hits, when combined with other base hits, earn you points. Moreover, it is a cheaper investment too as scope of initiative remains small.

Next time you see stagnation in your improvement efforts, think about applying the Moneyball principle.

Applying Sales Techniques to the Improvement Consultant: Lesson 2

2013-02-09T23:25:00.000-05:00

How often do you find yourself trying to push process improvement? Would you like people to Pull change management from you instead?

Ladies and gentlemen, we are in the selling business. This means we must be personable, knowledgeable and able to provide what our customer wants at a cost they can afford. How well do you know your product? How much does it cost to do business with you? Do people run and hide from you when you are in the neighborhood as if you were a shark in the water?

If you don't know the answer to these questions, chances are, you probably don't stay that busy when it comes to being a change agent. So how can we change that? How can we make your product the hottest commodity on the market?

I recommend learning some selling tools and techniques:

Lesson 2: Overcoming the answer "No"

Statistics tell us that about 3% of the population is ready to buy. The remainder of the population either hasn't thought about it, is still researching it, or is totally against it. Therefore, if 3% are ready to buy, how often should you expect to hear the answer no? Well, about 97%. Therefore, recognizing how to overcome the no is more critical.

First, you have to identify why the person said no in the first place. Generally, there can be three reasons why a buyer (your potential customer), would say no: They are skeptic you can deliver what you say, they don't completely understand and a misconception is lurking, or you can't completely provide exactly what they are looking for. I would say, the first two are the easiest to solve to the novice seller, but all three can be overcome.

The Skeptic:

Here is the individual who just doesn't quite believe what you say. Maybe you have no credibility consulting in this person's industry and they just don't understand how all processes are the same to you. Regardless, this person is a non-believer. Therefore, you must have proof. Bring charts, data, testimonials, etc., that show you can help this person achieve what they are looking for. Sure, you can run circles around the person with your intelligence in process improvement, but doing that won’t make the person understand you any better. Visually seeing legitimate successes within the point of value he/she is looking for (see Lesson 1 on recognizing value in the sales process) will help seal the deal. Therefore, you must be prepared, and you must have examples for all different aspects of potential value. Maybe they want short projects instead of the typical 5-day initiatives. Maybe they want to achieve a specific target within a specific time frame. Regardless, be prepared and show the value.

The Misconception:

Things get lost in translation all the time, therefore isn't it safe to assume maybe some of your words were misunderstood by your potential buyer? When you hear the word no, that isn't time to pack up and go. That is time to do Root Cause Analysis. Start asking why. You will be shocked how many times you find out they believe it takes X to achieve Y, when in your business, it doesn't. Maybe they hired a previous consultant who required a contract fee up front, and when they didn't deliver, company lost out. Since that company isn't in the business of consulting how do they know that you collect after the savings, not before. So again, find out why they don't want to purchase, and when you discover it is because of a simple misunderstanding, you will see just how easy it is to overcome the no.

Lack of Value:

Sure, you won’t be able to please everyone. But if you listened to lesson 1 real well and heeded the advice of determining the root need, chances are, you can still show that what you do provide far outweighs what you don't. Maybe this company wants to not only improve some of its processes, but wants to certify its people to do what you do. Sure, you can help their improvement, but you just aren't a certifying body and therefore, can’t provide that service. Well, remind them of what you can do (again based off value identified in the root need analysis from Lesson 1) and how it will impact them. You will find that chances are, they are willing to recognize the value you provide far outweighs the value you don't.

So, next time you hear those dreaded words remember, it isn't a No you are hearing, but an opportunity to understand more about your customer. If nothing else, you will learn more about your customer's needs, and may identify a service you need to start providing.

Lesson 1 Link: http://shishido3iconsulting.blogspot.com/2011/11/applying-sales-techniques-to.html

A model to help design solutions

2012-10-31T13:40:00.000-04:00

As leaders and managers, we are constantly handed problems to solve. Understanding the problem, is more important than the solution itself, but when you are ready for solutions, let me offer a model to help. The SOLUTION model is one that allows the person, or team, responsible for putting into place countermeasures at solving the problem. This model, if followed, will ensure that the solutions you have prioritized for maximum impact, can be easily implemented. Let’s begin:

SOLUTION is broken down as such:

S – SMART Characteristics

O – Opportunity for Improvement

L – Limited Resources

U – Understandable by all

T – Technology Limited

I – Increases Efficiency and Effectiveness

O – Owned by the team

N – No New Waste

S – SMART Characteristics. An Acronym, within an acronym, I know, if it wasn’t obvious before, it is obvious now, a military person designed this. In the problem solving world, SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Results-Focused, and Timely. Essentially, that must mean that our solution speaks to exactly what needs to be in place, that it can achieve the target we are looking for, has an action or an action plan that can be put into place and a timeline that meets our time requirements for problem solving.

O – Opportunity for Improvement. Your solution must achieve a gain rather than add fuel to the fire you are fighting. Quite frequently common solutions I hear include things like additional inspections on top of the inspections currently in place. This does nothing but add another way to catch process defects rather than actually solving the defect to begin with. Alternatively, and even worse, can add to the pluralistic ignorance that occurs when multiple inspections occur in the same phase of the process (usually at the back end) but by different people. The effect to this, or the pluralistic ignorance, is that as one inspector realizes someone else will be inspecting the product, there may be limited emphasis on the quality of inspection. Furthermore, as an inspector towards the end of the inspector chain reviews the product, they may put limited emphasis as it has already been reviewed many times earlier. Ultimately this creates a lesser quality inspection during each review.

L – Limited Resources. A solution shouldn’t cost an arm and a leg to implement. The number of people, funds or equipment needed to make it happen should be scarce, better yet, shouldn’t cost a dime. As I always say, it costs nothing to stop doing things that bring no value.

U – Understandable by all. If people don’t understand why the change is being made, it is unlikely you will get their buy-in to see it through. Therefore, don’t just develop the countermeasure, but be sure you can explain why adequately to those affected by it. Share the data, concerns, and what was championed to you to begin with, and this will help generate that buy-in you need.

T – Technology Limited. Similar to the limited resources, technology limited infers your solutions should require as little technology as possible. Although technology helps us at our efficiencies, in some aspects, it does nothing but complicates matters further. What good is it to have a database to track things if the database used is complicated to enter information into, keep it updated, or spend money and time in back-ups and upkeep. If you can make your idea limited in tech, chances are it is an idea that will pass the test of time.

I – Increase Efficiency and Effectiveness. Remember you are here to solve a problem. This means the solution should make us better. It shouldn’t be more time consuming, or create greater risks for introducing defects and other types of wastes. Moreover, it should actually solve the problem that means our output of the process is more effective, or better quality, then the current state.

O – Owned by the team. Whoever is responsible for seeing these solutions through, whether an individual or a team, ownership must be there to see it through, and to help work out any of the bugs developed into the system. Furthermore, ownership keeps it credible, as the solution stays current with the evolution of the process or requirements. If no one is willing to own the countermeasure, ask yourself, “is it worth implementing?” If the answer is no, then it may not be meeting some of the other characteristics of the SOLUTION model.

N – No New Waste. If your process used to take 100 steps before and yet you are here trying to solve inefficiencies within the process, it wouldn’t make sense if your new process now takes 150 steps. After you are done designing the solution, re-map out the process with the solution implemented and validate it against this and the remaining aspects of SOLUTION.

By following this model, you can ensure that not only will your countermeasures to your problem be a simple and a quick fix, but it will also help to ensure it stays fixed. The worst kind of solutions are ones that don’t solve the problems. That I think we all get. The second worst kind of solutions, are ones that don’t keep it solved. This is where the SOLUTION model comes into play.

The Consumer is a Stakeholder

2012-09-16T13:59:00.000-04:00

The goal of any business is to make money. The methodology one business goes about it can be different from the next. Let's look at one type of business and show the differences of a stakeholder approach and the win as much as you can approach. For this blog, we will look at car sales.

One business model, the traditional, stereotypical used car salesmen, is designed to sell a car so the dealership makes a big a profit margin as possible on the vehicle. They buy wholesale, and try to sell over retail and negotiate down as applicable to their bottom line. In this model, the customer has no relationship with the dealer, nor the dealer with its customers. Its a one-night stand if you will. However, that dealership will call you back in a couple of years when it gets in a little performance slump.

Generally what you find is with no relationship with the dealer, the relationship ends up being with the manufacturer. I could go to ABC's Used Cars and buy a Nissan, Volkswagen, or Ford. Regardless of what I buy, it is the vehicle I end up having the relationship with as my dealings with the sales staff is generally a forcible one. I am too busy trying to save my own skin, it is hard to imagine having a pleasant relationship with the actual dealer. How many people have you met who are Ford people, Toyota people, or even Chevy people. They love their brand. However, have you ever met anyone who is an ABC Mitsubishi Car Sales people?

Furthermore, with the advent of the internet and at-your-fingertips-information, it makes the traditional dealer even more desperate to retain profit margins from the good ole' days before the commonplace of the internet. Finally, you tend to see savvy customers enter into the process as if it was a battlefield and try to pit dealer against dealer in a bidding war. Therefore, if the whole process is seen as a battle, how then can we expect repeat business or even referrals (the life blood of any service/goods provider).

The next model of car sales would be your non-negotiating dealers. This is your car dealership who has more of a model of a retailer then a car dealer. This type has been popularized by Carmax. Carmax has no sales staff on commission and will not negotiate a dime off the price. They pride themselves in how they provide value to the customer; the right car, with the right amenities, at the right place and the right time. Does this sound familiar? Well it should, these are a few of the principles of Lean: Voice of the Customer, Pull, and Flow.

Generally when a person purchases a vehicle, they tend to say how they got one over on the dealer, but what do you think the average customer from a Carmax might say? Would it sound more pleasant about the dealer? Would you rather have your consumer based advertising happen in a more positive tone ("I found the perfect car at...and got a great deal too without even the need to haggle; saved me a couple of hours too.") or a negative tone ("I totally stole this right from under their noses.")

This consumer first mentality provides a stakeholders approach to the sales model. What it does is put both parties at the advantage more as if both parties were a stakeholder in the product or commodity. Generally what you have is a loyal customer at the end not just of the product, but of the distributor as well.

Therefore, next time you find yourself in a position where you can sell something, ask yourself this question, "Do I want this person to come back and send me people, or do I want to take advantage of them for my own gain?" In both scenarios you gain, but in one (the former) you gain more over time. As they say, patience is a virtue; don't be so quick and greedy and you may find you will get more than you bargained for.

Defend Your Own Castle – Gaining Strength Even in the Toughest of Times

2012-09-11T22:07:00.000-04:00

Taizo Ishida, former President of Toyota, coined the phrase “Defend your own castle.” He led during the most tumultuous times, restoring the brand using his business acumen, leadership, and adhering to company values to rise above the crises.

These are tough times, regardless of what anyone says, we are feeling the effects of a double dip recession. These economic challenges are felt in every industry: Manufacturing, Service, Medical Care, Technology, and even, the Government. Not new news right?! What I find interesting is that when the going gets tough, many organizations and their teams start to do irrational things. Not only do they stop growth strategies, they even stop their own improvement strategies. And now, I have witnessed this behavior within members of Continuous Process Improvement Departments (insert whatever name your organization uses).

I do understand that crises create turmoil, but they also help generate change. Remember change is destruction of the old ways, so your teams will go through the Denial-Anger-Bargaining-Depression-Acceptance. If you are lucky, they will make it to acceptance. And this is where your team will gain strength each and every time they successfully change. Within my own team, I began to see how the team was starting to show signs of stress and this is when I remembered “Defend your own castle” (The Toyota Leaders by Masaaki Sato).

The team understood and strived for our vision, purpose, goals, values, and objectives. As usual, we communicated often (many times daily) and at the most transparent level, but yet there was strife. That is when I introduced “Defend your own castle.” They had to understand that this was not about becoming insular and isolationists (a titanium silo in the organization), but more about doing what we had to do as individuals to become a stronger team. After 3-5 days of stressing, re-communicating, and personally demonstrating this mantra, it stuck. And now, we are stronger for it.

About the Author: Ernie Shishido is the Director of Performance Improvement at Asante Health System and Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt. He has consulting experience with the US Air Force’s Smart Operations Office and the US Navy’s Education and Training Command with 29+ years of uniformed military service. Ernie can be found on LinkedIn @ http://www.linkedin.com/in/ernieshishido or by email at er.shishido@gmail.com.

Are You "That Guy?"

2012-07-27T21:35:00.000-04:00

Recently the Department of Defense has sponsored an ad campaign to show how binge drinking can make you look pretty, well, stupid. It’s titled, “That Guy,” where images of young people are taken in compromising positions (drawings on face, sleeping on toilets, etc) to show people it isn't cool to be “that guy.” (www.thatguy.com)

In my world however, the world of being a Continuous Process Improvement Consultant, it is imperative to be “that guy.” No, I don’t mean binge drinking, I mean making an impression on those around you that is lasting, even if you feel you may be coming across a little crazy.

As a consultant, you must be passionate for your work. Otherwise, why would you be offering your knowledge to others? Furthermore, when you speak with passion, to others this is something new and different for them. Most people don’t wake up in the morning and ecstatically exclaim,” YES! I get to go to work today!!!!” So when they see you talking excitingly about how their organization can be improved upon through the successful implementation of some tool sets you have. Well then, they are going to listen. Even if they don’t buy right away, they heard you, they remember you and next time, they may just buy from you.

Countless times I find myself in new organizations with people I am meeting for the first time, yet they have already heard of me. They tell me they have heard about me because I am the guy passionate about my job. It doesn’t hurt that where I go, organizations become more successful. However, that isn’t the first thing I hear. Instead it is my passion and enthusiasm that I bring that makes people want to work with me.

Therefore, next time you hear yourself talking with negativity, disbelief, or even condescending; keep in mind, you attract more flies with honey. I am not a fan of flies so I say instead; be “that guy.”

Disclaimer: These are the viewpoints of the author only and do not necessarily represent the views of the United States Air Force, Department of Defense, or the United States Government.

Random Thoughts on Culture Development:

2012-07-07T00:44:00.000-04:00

Disclaimer: These comments do not represent the opinion of the Air Education and Training Command, United States Air Force, or Department of Defense. These are merely observations and opinions of the author only and are not meant to incur discredit to anyone or any branch of service or the US government itself.

Taiichi Ono said, "Companies performing reasonably well will not adopt the Toyota system," AKA Lean Production, "although they may showcase isolated elements of lean production."

Chet Richards, author of "Certain to Win: The Strategy of John Boyd applied to Business," says that “because lean production depends on a certain cultural foundation, businesses, like the military, are reluctant to make the radical changes demanded by a full commitment to the doctrine.” He later references McDonnell Douglas who he said, “…like the Army, adopted lean production with much fanfare, yet ended up selling the company to Boeing. “

Therefore, is it the words we say, or the actions and values we live by that create a culture? General Rice, commander of Air Education and Training Command (AETC) of the United States Air Force, just stated that AETC is about to develop a new culture, a "culture of cost consciousness" that will utilize elements of AFSO21 (Continuous Process Improvement, CPI) to help achieve that culture. A culture where each Airman asks what the cost is in time, money and manpower for each task performed; something similar to that of a Lean Production Culture.

General Lorenz, the previous commander of AETC, added a new core competency to AETC’s mission during his tenure of command. For years, AETC’s mission was to Recruit, Train and Educate. General Lorenz chose to add Innovate to that list. He felt each Airman should think. I know, revolutionary. He expected Airmen to think about the cost, think of better ways, more efficient ways. He expected us not just to obey blindly, but to obey intelligently.

AETC recently closed out their Annual (now to become biannual) symposium. In all the banners, you saw Recruit, Train, Educate and Innovate. However, in every speech you heard Recruit, Train, and Educate. Is it possible to have a culture of Cost Consciousness, or even CPI, if you remove the one core competency that lent itself to that type of culture development, innovation? Isn’t that a demonstration of what Mr. Richards was referring to, a lack of full commitment to doctrine. Sure, there was no doctrine specifying Innovation, but what is a core competency if not something as so basic as doctrine?

My formula to developing a culture is as such: Senior Leaders must direct change. We are seeing it now with General Rice in his new direction for a cultural change. Next, those who do the processes should change the processes. Airmen are intelligent. They know the difference from right and wrong, but over time, the current culture makes them complacent and oblivious to those ideals they once had of “There’s got to be a better way.” Finally, process supervisors must support, manage, and continuously commit to the change. No longer rejecting ideas at face value because it doesn’t fit with big pictures or regulations, but instead ask, “Why did they make this recommendation to begin with?” The idea proposed may be to adjust schedules to allow a 4-day workweek. As supervisors, we know this isn’t going to happen if we have operations to support on the 5^th day. Instead, what is it about their current condition that made them request that anyways? Do they work too many hours now and are looking for a way to reduce it? Well, evaluate the processes they are performing, find and eliminate the waste, and get them their time back (a form of their original idea).

Sometimes though, it is not just rejecting ideas, but rejecting change. Countless times I find it is the supervision over the process who demand to revert a process back to the traditional norm under the guise of serving the as the voice of the people. However, the people make no such claims. Therefore, if you can take senior leader direction, add in process workers making the change, and add in process managers sustaining and supporting the change it can equal to a culture of CPI. So where in the equation are we lacking?

We complain the death of Total Quality Management/Quality Air Force was the incessant push by leadership to fulfill aspects of lean production. However, does that mean we should avoid leadership push all together for fear of another CPI uprising and elimination thereof? Or rather than micromanaging the culture, leaders should just lead towards it instead. Is it even possible to develop a culture of CPI within the armed services when it appears the ends are more important than the means? Finally, since we consistently get bombs on target, are we therefore a company who is performing “reasonably well” and as such will not successfully adopt a lean production culture?

Going to the Gemba - In Healthcare: Purposeful Rounding and Observing Processes

2012-06-23T15:18:00.000-04:00

First things first: Healthcare is no different than manufacturing when it comes to the power of “Going to the Gemba.” If I had to make a distinction, it is even more powerful and purposeful. Why? In most cases, when visiting a healthcare Gemba you almost always encounter the real customer too, the PATIENT.

Before going on with this blog post, I am amazed how everyone in healthcare can easily state that the patient is #1 and is the customer, but they do not behave that way. Ok, I needed to get that out of my system. I said it. The turd is on the table and I have pointed at the elephant in the room. So, back to the Gemba……

In this post, I will focus on Purposeful Rounding. Rounding is a time honored tradition in Healthcare. Unfortunately, it is more about leaders spending time with people. Great intentions, but not moving the needle in the right direction (sorry about the pun). There are so many opportunities and methods to round, so that is why I emphasize purposeful rounding. As a leader, step back from the daily trash can fires, take a deep breath, and analyze where does your sphere of influence lie? Categorize the Good, Bad, and the Ugly. Let’s start with Case #1: The Good.

In this case, we have an outpatient clinic that has a trend of near perfect patient satisfaction: 98%-100% “Top Box” scores over a year period. This is amazing!! So, I decided to go see them. If they had found out the formula to make the secret sauce, then we should go see it. Let me cut to the chase: They were amazed when I tried to schedule the rounding and were even amazed when I showed up. NO ONE, I mean NO ONE, had ever come to their gemba to see how they performed even though they had figured it out!!! I was literally appalled when I found this out and I let our Quality Council know that.

To make this short, rounding with them was a great experience. Then talking to the manager AFTER THE FACT, to discuss how she did it was very enlightening. What we brainstormed was:

1. Get the People right. She worked hard at getting the right people. All new possible hires were told up front on how tough it was to work there and that if they didn’t work out, no problem, they could go elsewhere.

2. Get the Workflow right. A woman after my own heart. She knew that process was king, so get it right while keeping the patient at the center of the conversation.

3. Get the Environment right. Set up the physical environment in a way where it was purposeful to the process AND pleasing to the customer. They hit the nail on the head!

Amazing!! Once I learned this, I shared it throughout the executive staff. Will we learn? Only time will tell. Now, on to the bad………

Understanding the Healthcare Culture – A must for a Lean Healthcare Change Agent

2012-06-09T00:34:00.000-04:00

What a great week this has been! Learning about healthcare and growing a lean culture is a very rewarding journey. To use a common expression: A Labor of Love.

Being the change agent in a lean transformation is a demanding position to be in. A first thought: Know the environment you are in. In healthcare, I have found that there are six distinct communities that together comprise the healthcare environment :

1. The Executive body. This includes the C-Suite, VPs, and Directors.

2. The Nurse leadership and their constituency

3. The Staff – both bedside and non-clinical

4. The Physicians – Hospitalists, Surgeons, Intensivists, and Radiologists

5. The Patients. Yes, the Patients.

6. The Board.

I have found that at the beginning of your journey, you must engage the first 3 communities and make your peace. If you are unable to communicate with them and beginning building the bridges, then your effort will become very arduous. As for the physicians, they are important as project sponsors and champions, but they are so busy with their practice that they will not give you the time of the day until you prove that you are value-added. You have to earn their trust.

The patients. Incredible as it seems, you would think this would be one of the first populations to engage and entrust. And believe me I do, multiple times daily. But their minds are so engaged in trying to receive quality healthcare and deal with their medical “worries.” I am almost 100% certain that the key to success lies in earning the trust of that community. But the patient community in a hospital doesn’t have a concrete “center of gravity,” so engaging them in a direct way is no easy task. My mind continually wonders about each and every patient I cross paths with. I know I must solve that mystery………..

So, my first instinct is to “Go to the Gemba.”

Lean for Healthcare

2012-06-03T15:37:00.000-04:00

So I’ve done it once again – A long delay between postings due to a career change. An easy excuse, all I can say is that it has been a steep learning curve. But here is the catch: The growth has been AWESOME!

I’ve learned a lot about how the culture within a hospital can work. I learned that there are different echelons of people and that the gaps are understood and not talked about. No difference than many other industries, right? Well, I was wrong. As a non-medical care background dude, it is all surreal as I’ve always assumed that in healthcare it was understood that your customer was the patient. You hear many discussions about patient satisfaction, that the customer is at the heart of everything and that “zero errors” is the goal, but there is not much behavior that demonstrates that target.

As a patient myself, when I walk into a medical facility, I expect good medical care from professionals with no defects. Period. With this new mindset, the performance improvement team is creating great results in just 10 weeks since we’ve started! The results are concrete and have been validated. But here is the bottom line:

What is really happening and is more valuable: The culture is transforming in a visible and tangible way.

Destruction, Death and Growth?

2012-02-26T16:15:00.000-05:00

Call it serendipity (Webster’s: the phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for), but yesterday I was reading a book about the psychology of life and the author spoke about Kubler-Ross model. I always thought the model was about change, but it was a study done about death and dying; the stages of grieving by the people. Most of us know about or have heard about the five stages:

Denial — "I feel fine."; "This can't be happening, not to me."
Denial is usually only a temporary defense for the individual. This feeling is generally replaced with heightened awareness of possessions and individuals that will be left behind after death.
Anger — "Why me? It's not fair!"; "How can this happen to me?"; '"Who is to blame?"
Once in the second stage, the individual recognizes that denial cannot continue. Because of anger, the person is very difficult to care for due to misplaced feelings of rage and envy.
Bargaining — "I'll do anything for a few more years."; "I will give my life savings if..."
The third stage involves the hope that the individual can somehow postpone or delay death. Usually, the negotiation for an extended life is made with a higher power in exchange for a reformed lifestyle. Psychologically, the individual is saying, "I understand I will die, but if I could just do something to buy more time..."
Depression — "I'm so sad, why bother with anything?"; "I'm going to die soon so what's the point... What's the point?"; "I miss my loved one, why go on?"
During the fourth stage, the dying person begins to understand the certainty of death. Because of this, the individual may become silent, refuse visitors and spend much of the time crying and grieving. This process allows the dying person to disconnect from things of love and affection. It is not recommended to attempt to cheer up an individual who is in this stage. It is an important time for grieving that must be processed.
Acceptance — "It's going to be okay."; "I can't fight it, I may as well prepare for it."
In this last stage, individuals begin to come to terms with their mortality, or that of a loved one, or other tragic event.

Here is my point, the author helped me make the connection that the final stage of acceptance was analogous to the final acceptance of a change/destruction in that it leads to growth. The proverbial “light at the end of the tunnel” is such a powerful metaphor. Once change is accepted, you can now grow with the innovation and change and make things happen for the better. What a key concept!!!!

I am not the type to be morbid, but this connection of gaining the ability to learn and grow tied to the acceptance of change/destruction/innovation/death is one that is perfect for change agents. My last blog post spoke about the connecting the dots between innovation/change to destruction, this one takes it the step further: From destruction to learning and growth.

About the Author: Ernie Shishido is a Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt consulting in the US Air Force’s Air Combat Command's Smart Operations Office and the US Navy’s Education and Training Command with 29+ years of uniformed military service. Ernie can be found on LinkedIn @ http://www.linkedin.com/in/ernieshishido or by email at er.shishido@gmail.com.

Change, Innovation, and Destruction?

2012-02-23T17:17:00.000-05:00

Many people can connect the dots when it comes to change and innovation. “Not all change is innovation, but all innovation is change.” If your understanding is only at this level, then any discussion above and beyond this are merely superficial arguments on how change is inevitable and if we can make innovation by checklist or is it by luck.

What I find is how many people haven’t connected the dots that any change/innovation is destruction. Understanding this as a leader, facilitator, and/or supervisor making sure that you are cognizant of the ramifications to your people, then as a leader/facilitator/supervisor, you can ensure you are empathetic to how the change/innovation will feel like to the workers. Relationships matter and that is how you can bridge the gap and help make the “destruction” easier to absorb. This is all about Emotional Intelligence. But enough on that.

My point: Destruction is not a bad thing. Enhancements are good for people when innovative change happens, remember:

1. Cassette tape killed the 8-track.

2. Mp3s almost killed the music industry. (big innovation is called category killers)

Never forget, that there is almost always opposition (passively or actively) to innovation/change. Growth is born from the destructive tension and conflict of opposing forces of old - new.

Lastly, as leaders, supervisors, and/or facilitators, we need to ensure everyone needs to bring ideas to the table, and let them compete – that is the secret to allowing destructive forces and innovation do well.

As Joseph Schumpeter wrote: “Out of destruction, a new spirit of creativity arises. “ WOW, this takes this discussion to a new level – Destruction leads to creativity. From Change/Innovation – To Destruction – To Creativity. Take that and chew on it some.

The CPI Practitioner’s Best Mindset: “Non-Expert”

2011-12-14T10:35:00.000-05:00

This is the final installment from Dr. Jung’s book, Modern Man in Search of a Soul (do I hear sighs or applause?). From the beginning of the book down to the final pages, his insights are so appropriate and applicable to today’s reality almost a century later.

Page 239

“He must have no fixed ideas on what is right, nor must he pretend to know what is right or what not – otherwise he takes something from the richness of the experience.

Page 243

“…., yet I would be the first to warn people against generalizing from their own experiences in an injudicious way.”

What a great concept: Don’t come in with all the answers.

I deal with this in the majority of the improvement projects. Whether I am mentoring a green belt, green belt student, black belt, or black belt student, the “facilitator” feels like they must have the problem solved prior to walking into the door. If that was the case, why go through the problem solving project?! As CPI practitioners, we help the people who do the process – yes, the ones who know how to do it best, to improve it. Period.

However, I do understand why that happens. It is because most people are not comfortable with chaos. People feel like they must be in control. You know when you growing as a CPI Practitioner when you can walk into a project, after disciplined preparation with the team, and go through the problem solving process willing to let the team create the solutions. That is a great leading indicator of a great event.

Bottom Line: Don’t come in thinking you are the expert – otherwise you lose something from the experience because you have blocked your senses of listening and thinking about that mindset/idea.

Finally, one must not generalize from their own experiences. This is not paradoxical, but you must know when it is good to open your mind to things that go against to what you’ve seen before, but apply those things that truly should be applied when seen. This is very easy to say/write, but doing it is a very tough thing. Facilitating, there are times where I fundamentally disagree to what is being said, but I still listen first to fully understand where the person is coming from before saying “in my experience…..”

About the Author: Ernie Shishido is a Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt consulting in the US Air Force’s Air Combat Command's Smart Operations Office with 29+ years of uniformed military service. Ernie can be found on LinkedIn @ http://www.linkedin.com/in/ernieshishido or by email at er.shishido@gmail.com.

Innovation in the Eyes and Mind of Dr. Carl Jung

2011-12-13T11:06:00.001-05:00

There have been so many insights from Dr. Jung’s book, Modern Man in the Search of a Soul when it comes to philosophy. Imagine my amazement when I came across his ability to perceive innovation and change from so far back in the early 1900s.

Page 211:

“Great innovations never come from above, they come invariably from below. Just as trees never grow from the sky downward, but upward from the Earth. However true it is that their seeds have fallen from above. “

AND

Page 215:

“…..new ideas/philosophies….create a healthy reaction to something that threatens destruction. It is true that nature tears down what she herself has built up – yet she rebuilds it once again.

From these passages, 2 key concepts emerge:

1. Innovation comes from the people who actual the most familiar with the work – the people who do the work. Senior leaders and managers need to put away their arrogance (sorry about the harsh word here) believing that they are smarter ones and come up with the better ideas. As CPI practitioners, we must always keep this fact firmly in the forefront of our thinking, never believing it will be us who comes up with the right answers. That is why we are called facilitators.

2. Innovation is really change. Dr. Jung’s insight about new ideas (innovation) and how they create a reaction is so insightful. The bottom line that many “change agents” forget is that change is destruction. You tear something down to create something new. It is just that simple. And when you attempt to destroy something that someone has held on to for so long (a process that a person has done for several years), you will get resistance. You must accept this human aspect and help individuals work through their reactions – no matter how strong they may be. This is why a “Grade A” CPI practitioner is so valuable.

Failure, Problems, and Growth – The World According to Dr. Carl Jung

2011-11-23T10:25:00.000-05:00

A Paradox we should embrace.

From Modern Man in Search of a Soul:

“But the psychotherapist (practitioner), learns little or nothing from his successes, they mainly confirm him in his mistakes, while his failures on the other hand, are priceless experiences in that they not only open up the way to a deeper truth, but force him to change his views and methods.

#5 Dictum: WOW! Failures help us grow and change our views and methods!

Page 96.

“Problems drive us to consciousness. If we only live in instinct and still submerged in nature we remain unconscious. Every problem, therefore, brings the possibility of a widening of consciousness."

#6 Dictum: We can live in isolation and close our eyes to problems, but it is a fairy tale and to grow, we must confront problems to help us grow.

Studies show that people, who are rewarded for success and only see success, are very prone to not taking any risks. They only do what they know they can achieve. It is with failure, that we go beyond our comfortable boundaries and stretch our minds. We open the way to a deeper truth.

The follow on statement from page 96 equating problems with consciousness is very similar to failure and growth. The analogy is that if we never step outside of our normal routines and stay “ignorant” of the real world and its unpredictability, we will not gain a wider consciousness of reality. I see it all the time with teams I am doing CPI work with. They only know their routines and processes and do not open their eyes to a broader scope of reality. It is always a breath of fresh air, when a person opens their mind to a new thought, much less a new way of thinking : )

What a concept!

Certification – Really?!?!

2011-11-19T18:40:00.000-05:00

Dr. Jung in “Modern Man in Search of a Soul”

“The Medical diploma is no longer the crucial thing, but human quality instead. This is a significant step. “

#6 Dictum: It isn’t about the certification, but about the person.

This is such a hot-button subject now in the AF CPI program. It should be such a non-issue, but it has really become an area easy to throw spears at. People have always argued that a certification is just a piece of paper; people should care more about being capable of applying the skills and doing the work. And I believe that wholeheartedly. That is why I believe it is all about you, the person.

However, and please don’t come down on me too hard, people are people. And many of them like the distinction of having a piece of paper that says they “can do it.” Worse yet, it is a self-fulfilling prophecy and viscous circle, as organizations and higher management expect the certification to get your foot in the door and to be “acceptable.”

What a quandary.

So, my final words are: Get it, but don’t flaunt it. Just like Dr. Jung said, “The piece of paper isn’t crucial – but he never said don’t pursue it, but it is about the person.” Be humble and let your results speak for themselves.

Doctor (Practitioner) Heal Thyself

2011-11-17T22:34:00.000-05:00

Dr. Jung – Modern Man in Search of a Soul.

I truly want to move on and start blogging on the book “Innovation You,” but there are so many truths that come from Dr. Jung that are as important now (maybe more so due to our Free Agent Nation), as they were in 1913.

Page 50:

“A Single Rule: Be the Man through whom you wish to influence others. Mere talk has always been considered hollow. “

And

And in dealing with himself the doctor must display, as much relentlessness, consistency, and perseverance, as in dealing with his patients.

These two passages really speak to the same truths:

#4 Dictum: Walk the talk and Actions speak louder than words.

#5 Dictum: You must work on yourself as hard as you work on your clients! Doctor, Heal thyself.

After working in the Pentagon – the real ivory tower for the Department of Defense, I found that people tried to rule with an iron fist “This comes from the PENTAGON” or “General (insert name here) proclaimed to do it.” Guess what, change/real transformation never happened. Yes, things got done, but real progress was always glacial. READ: Very Slow Movement.

To really influence situations, you had to work with integrity. That meant:

1. Doing things that you said you would do, and

2. Actually commit to doing the things you asked of everyone else. In the case of CPI practitioners, using the tools you asked everyone else to live by.

Truly, it is harder than you think – well, less common than you think. How many CPI offices (internally) use visual management, real standard work, strategic alignment, 6S, and Voice of the Customer? Not many, and not to the level we EXPECT our customers to use when we are facilitating. I am not trying to be preachy, but I want to highlight that subconsciously, we will come across better to the teams we facilitate if we use our own medicine. Somehow, someway, they see through us and sense if we really use our own tools and methodology. You may not think so, but they do.

Carl Jung – A Metaphor about Influence

2011-11-11T17:25:00.001-05:00

Continuing from one of the most important book on psychology: Modern Man in Search of a Soul

Page 49.

“The meeting of the two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: If there is any reaction, both of them are transformed. We should expect the doctor to have an influence on the patient in every physic treatment, but this influence can only take place when he too is affected by the patient. You can exert no influence, if you are not susceptible to influence. It is futile for the doctor to shield himself from the influence of the patient and surround himself with a smokescreen of a fatherly and professional authority. “

#3 Dictum: 2 things –

1. Transformation happens when people are open to each other.

2. If you don’t go into a situation willing to grow and listen, you will not exert any influence. FAIL.

This is another key principle I take into every project, meeting, and facilitation opportunity I have. When you work with others, it can be mutually transformational experience – only if you keep yourself “susceptible/open” to influence. It is up to you as the “conscious one” to not only be open to influence, but be the one who establishes the connection. Only then, can there be a transformative reaction. Yes, it a lot of work to take on the majority of the responsibility, but then as a leader and professional, that is your role and responsibility. People define your success.

I know this is “soft” stuff, but this is how people and cultures change. You cannot change a person, they have to change themselves. Connecting with them and listening is the catalyst that can produce that change. Otherwise, you are in for a lot of unpleasant work trying to change their minds and not their hearts.

Applying Sales Techniques to the Improvement Consultant: Lesson 1

2011-11-06T19:16:00.005-05:00

How often do you find yourself trying to push process improvement? Would you like people to Pull change management from you instead?

Ladies and gentlemen, we are in the selling business. This means we must be personable, knowledgeable and able to provide what our customer wants at a cost they can afford. How well do you know your product? How much does it cost to do business with you? Do people run and hide from you when you are in the neighborhood as if you were sharks in the water?

If you don't know the answer to these questions, chances are, you probably don't stay that busy when it comes to being a change agent. So how can we change that? How can we make your product the hottest commodity on the market?

I recommend learning some selling tools and techniques. Let’s start with one lesson, and see what it does for you:

Lesson 1: Don't be too quick to provide value
Countless times, you will run into customers (project champions) who know nothing about you or your product (Continuous Process Improvement Methodologies). It is very easy to start explaining to this customer all the great things you can do for that person. However, without truly knowing what their need is, how can you truly provide value? For instance, I had a potential champion who I knew could benefit from Lean principles, but in his eyes it was a time waster rather than a time saver. I could have easily approached him and expressed how much time I have saved for other organizations, but that wouldn't have meant anything to him.

Instead, I asked the potential customer what is the one thing he wished he had more of. It turns out he wanted more availability of his instructor pilots. Now, if I didn't apply lesson 1, I could easily explain how I have saved X hours for X organizations. However, saving hours may not be his goal. In addition, how can he relate to X unit. Therefore, I apply some 5-why analysis and figure out the root of his need.

Asking why a few times, I realized this champion was losing his Instructor Pilots to the overburdening of additional duties. Now that I understand what his root need is (eliminating time spent on additional duties to allow more time spent in the air training pilots) I knew where to provide value. I expressed to him savings achieved from other organizations that had additional duties similar to his and all of a sudden I had a believer. This from a person who was one of the biggest non-believers in the organization.

That meeting provided us an opportunity to discover 15-20 projects all aimed at the root need of this Champion. Now I have a customer who will seek me out for their improvement needs rather than me having to peddle my wares.

Try this lesson on for size, and see how much of a virtue patience really is. Finally, if you apply your own tools in the sales call (root cause analysis transformed to a root need analysis), then you can find more than just one sale; you can find a life-long customer.

About the Author: Mark Adams is a process improvement consultant for the United States Air Force. A certified Black Belt in continuous process improvement methodologies, Mark has helped save over 135,000 hours at cost avoidance of $3.1 million dollars in just one fiscal year. Mark has a special knack of approaching projects and adapting tools to achieve results. Mark can be found on LinkedIn @ http://www.linkedin.com/in/tsgtmarkadams or by email at mark.adamsusaf@gmail.com.

Carl Jung and Emotional Intelligence: Self Awareness and Social Awareness – Part 2

2011-11-06T12:14:00.000-05:00

Awareness

Carl Jung continues with the emotional intelligence theme and fills in the gap the other 2 elements of emotional intelligence:

Page 49

“Two primary factors come together in treatment that is two persons. Neither of whom are a fixed or determinable magnitude. For this reason, the personalities of the doctor and the patient have often more to do with the outcome of the treatment, than what the doctor says and thinks.”

#3 Dictum: You must be self-aware and socially-aware to have the expected outcome. It is not just about how smart you are.

It is remarkable that Dr. Jung had already understood each piece of the Emotional Intelligence triad decades ago; he just didn’t coin the phrase. Through his profound work, he ascertained that outcome of any joint venture (teacher-student, doctor-patient, mentor-student, etc.) creates the outcome more than just what the “doctor” prescribes. I know that I harp on this everywhere I go, and I do realize that doesn’t mean the practitioner can be uninformed. Believe me, I do worry that we (practitioners) must be somewhat well-rounded and not just have 1 great aspect or approach. We must pull from all aspects, but must follow these well researched truths. We should not be 1-trick ponies.

Yes, it does sound like a paradox (You don’t have to all-knowing – But – You have to be well rounded), and that is why it is so salient :)

Here is the slide I used when speaking at the 2011 Air Force Recruiting Service Senior Leader Conference:

Carl Jung and Emotional Intelligence: Social Relationships – Part 1

2011-11-03T18:52:00.000-04:00

Empathy!

Page 49:

“It isn’t the Doctor’s whole task to instruct or convince the patient, he must rather show him how the doctor reacts to his personal case. The relationship between patient and physician remains personal and within the frame of the impersonal and professional treatment.”

#2 Dictum for me: You must demonstrate empathy. Demonstrating empathy is a key concept to building the social relationship pillar of Emotional Intelligence.

This is so important for CPI practitioners to understand that you must establish the relationship with the champion, team lead, and the team immediately. And remember dictum #1: Don’t try to be the problem solver with all the answers! That is not how you establish a good relationship.

The best way to establish a relationship with new teams and groups is by demonstrating empathy. This doesn’t mean sympathy, where you agree with everything, but empathy means you can feel where they are coming from and you visibly, emotionally, and vocally demonstrate it with compassion.

Just this week, I facilitated 3 separate teams (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday) that I met for the first time. The first group was somewhat hostile; they used many of the 15 defense mechanisms used by teams/groups. It took about 45 minutes to work through their conscious and unconscious “pushing back” techniques before we were actually communicating, which meant we started to be productive. This was accomplished by demonstrating empathy with them and their mindsets. In the end, we weren’t all bosom buddies, but we were able to meet expectations and develop the required deliverables.

Fits and Starts

2011-11-01T20:57:00.000-04:00

Yes, I have not written in the blog for almost a year. No excuse. I will tell you that changing jobs and moving locations on 1 January 2011 to create value for a different boss has been very time consuming, but VERY fulfilling. After almost 30 years of military service in the Air Force, starting fresh has been liberating and an awakening to a whole new way of life. Two words: Retirement Rocks!!!

So, here we are, 1 November 2011. What has driven me to start sharing these thoughts again? A book that was first published in 1933 and translated for a 1968 publishing in English: Carl Gustav Jung’s book “Modern Man in Search of a Soul.” I have read over 400 business books in the last 2 or 3 years, but this one book made me feel so ignorant, but so fortunate to find it. Only 50% of the way through with this book and I know there is so much to share. I will start with the first key concept that grabbed me:

Page 49:
It is wise for the doctor to renounce any premature assumptions. (Don’t throw them away, but consider them hypothetical ).

As a lean six sigma practitioner, this has been Dictum #1 for me. Don’t try to be the problem solver with all the answers! I see so many well-meaning practitioners that are either just starting out or ones that truly believe that this is their main job: To be the smartest person in the room and give the answers to the team. It is great to think ahead of the team; my mentoring statement is always to “think 4 hours ahead of the team,” but only on what you will do to help guide them.

Many will disagree with me, but long term success is built on a foundation of helping the team help itself succeed, period. Giving the answers, if successful, is a short term recipe for failure.

Falling Up vs. Burning Platforms: Culture, Mindset, or Stimulus?

2010-12-04T23:08:00.000-05:00

(Perspective 2 in a series of weekly perspectives on Structured Problem Solving)

Last week in Part 1 of this series on Structured Problem Solving, we introduced the Turning Adversity into Opportunity Mindset. This week we will enlarge our knowledge of “Falling Up” and discuss its lesser cousin “burning platforms.”

Do you remember the 3 Paths in Falling Up?

There are two scenarios to illustrate this concept:

Scenario #1: Falling Up. Think of yourself as an employee (or company) in today’s tough economic times and you’ve just been laid off (if a company, you’ve just declared bankruptcy). Conventional thinking leaves you with two outcomes:

1. How can I survive this? Reactive in nature. Not very positive.

2. Woe is me! Worst case scenario and very negative.

However, there is a third option!

3. Use this adversity as a way to not only pick yourself up, but as an opportunity to get better than before. You create your own future! Real transformation happens here.

Remember, we often undermine our ability to tackle our challenges when we don’t use other options. We become helpless. We create self-fulfilling prophecies. This is a sure fire route to failure and what positive psychologists call “learned helplessness.”

Scenario #2: Burning Platforms.

This is similar to scenario #1, except the adverse event hasn’t occurred yet and you face a looming black cloud (for the Federal sector this is the Secretary of Defense’s Efficiency Cuts). Again, conventional thinking leaves you with the same two outcomes:

1. How can I survive this? Reactive in nature. Not very positive.

2. Woe is me! Worst case scenario and very negative.

Again, there is a third option!

3. Use this looming adversity as an opportunity for growth and get even better.

However, the difference in this scenario is the “looming” condition. This is where I disagree with many change advocates who enjoy using (or just talk about) burning platforms as catalysts for change. When working with teams, there are differing levels of social engineering going on. Using looming, negative events is a very reactive and poor way to get teams to gel for lasting success. Yes, they may band together to get the problem solved, but once the looming event passes or a decision is made, most teams go back to business as usual.

Is that real change? Have you affected the culture? In my book, NO.

But I digress, the key here is that we must create an organizational culture that considers problems (even looming ones) as an opportunity to improve, which leads to the key methodology in our Lean Six Sigma Practitioner Professional toolbox: Structured Problem Solving. Perspective three in this series will look at Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA), Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control (DMAIC), and Observe-Orient-Decide-Act (OODA). I will leave you with a thought from Shawn Achor, the author of The Happiness Advantage:

“…..And above all remember that success is not about never falling down, or even simply about falling down and getting up over and over. Success is more than about simple resilience, it is about using that downward momentum to propel ourselves in the opposite direction. It is about capitalizing on setbacks and adversity to become even happier, even more motivated, and even more successful. It is not falling down, it is falling up.”

About the Author: Ernie Shishido is a Master Black Belt with the US Air Force’s Business Transformation Office with 29+ years of uniformed military service. Ernie can be found on LinkedIn @ http://www.linkedin.com/in/ernieshishido or by email at er.shishido@gmail.com / ernest.shishido@pentagon.af.mil (until 10 Dec 2010).

Delving Deeper: Levels of Culture

2010-12-02T22:39:00.000-05:00

(Perspective 2 in a series of weekly perspectives on Building a Culture based on CPI principles)

Last week in Part 1 of this series on Building a Culture based on CPI principles, we introduced the concept of Your Culture is Your Brand. This week we will define “culture” and critically analyze the significance of addressing cultures in the context of “levels.”

Culture is everything. Good culture= Zappos success. Bad culture= Enron failure. Good culture neglected= Toyota quality problems. Do I have your attention now?

Defining Culture. To practice what I preach, I attempt to start every kaizen event or enterprise-level project by defining the major term for the week in order to baseline foundational assumptions. Predictably, a gap exists amongst team members. To define culture (and delve deeper), the guideline I use comes from my Sensei (John Allen of TSD) who had me study Edgar Schein:

“[Culture is] ... a pattern of shared basic assumptions (values, beliefs, norms) that was learned by a group as it solved its problems of external adaptation and internal integration, that has worked well enough to be considered valid and, therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think, and feel in relation to those problems.”

As you look at the words in bold, the definition seems straightforward enough, but the rub comes in during the analysis. Most people talk about culture in broad terms, knowing that it is important, good for success, a great goal to strive for, and requires a decade to develop. That is ok, but those are superficial interpretations. To truly undertake a culture change effort, one needs to analyze and differentiate the level in which the culture manifests itself, as it is crucial to creating and executing a successful change effort. I cannot stress this enough.

I’m a visual (and auditory) person, so let’s show the chart again to point out the different levels of culture:

1^st Level – Artifacts. Sees, Feels, Hears. I am sure you’ve seen places where signs hang that say “Quality is Job#1” and “Think Safety 1^st,” or you hear a certain type of music playing in the hallways, you see everyone wearing a certain style/type of clothing, or notice how everyone communicates to each other. Can you make a good assumption about the real culture at this company? It is like judging a book by its cover. You can, but is it wise? Would it be fair or smart to think a company was not innovative because their office layouts and their dress were stodgy? That is what is meant by hard to decipher.

2^nd Level – Espoused Beliefs and Values. This is straightforward and must not be misunderstood. To be an espoused value or belief, it cannot solely be trumpeted by the CEO, but evolve by:

1. Actual joint action on the belief/value by the group (not just the CEO)

2. The proposed value/belief action must create real success in solving problems.

3. Finally, it achieves social validation. I.E. If you don’t comply, you become part of the “out” group (excommunicated).

Essentially, these are your company’s strategies, goals, and philosophies acted out. However, there still can be some large areas of behavior still unexplained.

3^rd Level – Underlying Assumptions. This is where actions stemming from company beliefs and values are taken for granted. These assumptions are non-confrontable and non-debatable!

Now, you can see why analyzing culture and developing change actions by understanding levels is so powerful. Understanding culture at this level helps us understand what the true culture is and what we are up against. Understanding at this level is priceless, but we seldom delve this deep.

So, for an organization to learn something new in this realm (the deepest level of culture), requires us to resurrect, reexamine, and possibly change some of the more stable portions of our cognitive structure – How we think. And that is the subject of Part 3 of this series: Current way of thinking vs. a Continuous Process Improvement mindset.

P.S. Let me know and I will gladly work with you to share Edgar Schein’s book, Organizational Culture and Leadership. Once you read it, it will change your thinking about culture.