LEANing yourself out of a job?

Do all Lean initiatives exist to make life better for the workers? It would be naive to think so. So, before you decide to accept or reject the idea of improving your workplace, consider the culture and decide if you really belong there. There are certainly managers out there who have low regard for their workforce. Some of us landed in places we'd rather not be because of downsizing or outsourcing, but if you honestly believe that your company doesn't care about you, maybe its time to move on anyway. If your job is mutually beneficial, you'll want to give Lean a chance.

A business with a common sense approach knows that their people are their most important resource. As continuous improvement efforts are implemented properly and ethically, the changes should lead to better processes and more growth, leading to more work. More work requires more people, and those already trained in the work will be needed to acquaint new employees (presenting a new opportunity to streamline the training process).

Think of it this way: if you owned your own small store with 12 employees, it's fair to say that you would want them to be working smart and staying busy the entire time you were paying them. If you observed that a staff performs the work you require in 5 1/2 hours while you are paying him for 8, not only would you recognize that you are under-utilizing your resources, but you would certainly want him to cooperate when you asked him to take on additional tasks to fill his shift.

In his blog, Leadership Freak, Jim Parker holds company leaders accountable for the success of the business. Instead of blaming others, leaders are "responsible for creating, enabling, or tolerating bottlenecks." He goes on the list the following ways leaders suffocate their organizations:

1. Talking too much.
2. Acting too little.
3. Hoarding decision making authority.
4. Delegating too slowly.
5. Excusing incompetence.
6. Rejecting dissent.

He explains the last (somewhat surprising) point in this way:

Dissent, disagreement, and contradiction are the tools of innovation. It’s most challenging in top-down organizations where agreement is reward and dissent is punished. In my opinion, many top-down organizations create cultures where people waddle around like ducks getting in a row.

Leaders may tap into the talents of their team by:

1. Calling for decisions more quickly. Complex problems have more than one solution. Pick one and make it work.
2. Leveraging the power of deadlines to create urgency.
3. Authorizing others.
4. Identifying new individuals as first-delegates.
5. Leadership development. Remember, people learn to lead by leading.
6. Exploring dissent. "What if" is better than no way.

Source:  http://leadershipfreak.wordpress.com/2011/03/01/bottlenecks-busters/