| T.R | Title | User | Personal
Name | Date | Lines |
|---|
| 1769.1 | cant do without a Boss, who will give you a raise? | STAR::ABBASI | | Sun Feb 16 1992 05:14 | 26 |
| I would think that It all depends on the nature of the work, for example in
an Engineering environment, there will be different project going on , and
each project is handled by a group, with a group leader , the group is
essentially an autonomous entity in handling the Engineering work at hand ,
from design, reviews, documentations, implementation etc.. (except for Bug
fixes, that is handled by a different support group ..just kidding..)
this set up is what seems to be the norm , at least in DEC Engineering as
far as I can see.
Do you you mean something more than this?
If you mean the group should have bestowed on its shoulders additional
privileges such as the task of establishing guidelines on the amount of the
salary increases given to its own group members, I'd say , what a brilliant
idea !, I fully support it, and encourage it to the full extent ,
but I do doubt that the management would allow us this extra degree of freedom,
even if we promise to be really fair about giving raises to ourselves.
So it looks that we cant do without a Boss around, also they are needed to
establish a meaning to the rolling down hill theory that my project leader
keeps reminding me about.
Thank You.
/nasser
|
| 1769.2 | see CAPNET::PARTICIPATIVE_MANAGEMENT | SGOUTL::BELDIN_R | Pull us together, not apart | Mon Feb 17 1992 11:11 | 6 |
| Jim,
There's a conference on CAPNET call PARTICIPATIVE_MANAGEMENT which may
have some interest for you.
Dick
|
| 1769.3 | Bad vibe on HPO | FSOA::ASKIEST | | Mon Feb 17 1992 12:35 | 24 |
| Hi Jim
When I was working at the Houston ACT. We started forming Teams. Our
group of consultants worked extremely hard and dilegently to come up
with our charter. I believe we were the first in Sales Support to
attempt a High Peformance Team approach. This was spearheaded by our
ACT manager.
Needless to say it was all in vain! The ACT was disolved prior to our
implementing this new approach. My reaction to the team approach was
positive, except the review process we felt would be very difficult,
it was planned that the entire team would review each of its members.
Our team consisted of 6 players.
I would be very leary to attempt to form a High Performance Team in DEC
today. I felt we put a lot of time into the formation of the team only
to find out our job's went away! I don't feel the time in DEC is right
to attempt it today. Lets get to work in a more meaningfull Revenue
producing way!
Alan
|
| 1769.4 | CSC/CS TBU | VMSVTP::S_WATTUM | OSI Applications Engineering, West | Mon Feb 17 1992 15:35 | 11 |
| Such teams do exist within DEC. The Technical Backup Unit at CSC/CS is one
example that's been in business for a number of years (I think more then
7 years now, but i'm not sure of the exact number) and from all appearances,
is still going strong.
If you want to see an interesting process at work, you should see the team
go through the process of finding a Management Consultant. Actually, the
whole team process is interesting and challenging.
Former TBU member
--Scott
|
| 1769.5 | Article in 'Training' | WMOIS::BOHNET_B | | Mon Feb 17 1992 16:14 | 10 |
| As a brief reply to .0 request for more information. There was an
article in the December 1991 issue of 'Training', titled: 25 Stepping
Stones -- For self-directed work teams.
Good Reading. If you would like a copy, contact me off line.
Have a nice day,
bon
WMOIS::BOHNET_B
|
| 1769.6 | Resources for SDWT | CAPNET::RONDINA | | Tue Feb 18 1992 12:07 | 40 |
| I work in the DELTA Program Office, whose official mission is to spark
(meaning influence employee involvement and empowerment via teams and
suggestions for improvement). I am working on a small project, which is
a brief guide for moving towards self-directed work teams (SDWT).
There is a lot of literature on this topic. I found the following
books in the DEC corp. library system.
Self managing teams: A guide for Creating and Maintaining self-managed
work groups, by Robert Hicks, Los Altos, CA, Crisp Publ, 1990
Cutthroat Teammate; achieving effective teamwork among professionals,
by Donald Heany, Homewood, Ill, Dow Jones-Irwin, 1989
The Facilitator Handbook for employee involvement teams, by Donald
Dewar, QCI International, 1991
Teaming for Quality Improvement, by David H. Shuster, Prentice Hall,
1990
Internal Resources:
Sue Milne HR Manager in IM&T, consultant who specializes in SDWT
establishment
John Savageau, a consultant/trainer in the Quality Education Group in
PKO, he trains in how to set up teams
Right now in DEC, there seems to be a growing interest in SDWT. Laurie
Orlov, a manager in IM&T, moved her traditionally managed group to SDWT
methods with much success.
Here in the DELTA Group we practice what we preach as we operate as
team and are utilizing some of the SDWT techniques for ourselves.
I'd be happy to share the brief guide I am writing, but it is only a
summary of what I found in a scan of the existing books and articles in
our corporate libraries.
Paul
|
| 1769.7 | | CSCOA1::CONNER_C | | Tue Feb 18 1992 18:27 | 13 |
|
Paul,
I would be happy if you would send me your summary.
Thanks,
Craig
cscoac::conner_c
|
| 1769.8 | Some experience | ZYDECO::MCABEE | Fishing for minnows | Thu Feb 20 1992 21:20 | 106 |
| My group is referred to as a self-managed team, though we're not quite all
the way there yet. We have an assigned manager but she also manages a
separate tradionally organized group and has practically no involvement in
our day-to-day business. Our business involves interaction with customers,
individuals in the field and with other organizations within Digital. We
use our assigned manager mainly for liaison with the layers of management
within our own organization and for cooperatively handling some touchy areas
that we haven't taken over yet.
As a team, we do the following (and more):
o Write policies and procedures for running our business
(Within limits and definitions set by upper management)
[This includes scheduling, work assignments, working from home,
defining administrative tasks, defining acceptable performance,
decision-making process, etc.]
o Take turns running weekly business meetings
o Assume responsibility for monitoring and accounting for our
business metrics
o Submit hardware requests directly to the Capital Review Board
,
o Approve training for members
o Aprove vacation requests
o Provide each other with regular performance feedback
o Approve individual job plans
o Interact and negotiate agreements with other organizations
We don't do salary planning, but we have been studying the process and have
discussed possibilities with management. This could evolve into a
cooperative effort with our manager, but is moving very slowly for two
reasons.
1) Some individuals are very reluctant to get involved
2) Management will *always* proceed very slowly in giving over this
responsibility
We don't write official Performance Appraisals and give ratings, but we
do participate heavily in the process. We write unofficial evaluations
for each other and recommend ratings. The manager combines these into
an official PA.
We don't give promotions but, by agreement with management, they are given
based on our collective recommendation.
We don't have signature authority but, by agreement with management, our
non-capital purchase requests are essentially rubber-stamped.
The Down Side:
Being unaware of training and consulting available on the subject, we
proceeded to "invent" self-management. This has considerable value and
considerable pitfalls. We were too ambitious in our schedule and bit off
some bites we weren't ready to chew. As a result, wounds were suffered
which are still not healed.
Some members are good at doing evaluations, some are not and some have
trouble handling criticism.
Being in-between traditional management and self-management can sometimes
seem like the worst of both worlds. The line between the manager's
jurisdiction and ours is not always clear to everyone, and it's too easy
for either side to assume that the other is taking care of the grey area
or to blame the other for not handling something.
Self-management consumes time, especially during the formative phase.
Some managers are afraid of letting go. All things considered, I would
have to say that our independence is recognized and respected more by other
organizations than by our own middle and upper management. It's not clear
whose fault this is.
We carefully devised a decision-making process which, in part, requires
two-thirds majority for business decisions. Management sometimes insists
on unanimous agreement.
Some Lessons:
Define the decision-making process and test it before making important
decisions. Consider classes of decisions. A simple majority vote may
be adequate for some things. Two-thirds or even unanimity may be required
for others. Get buy-in from management.
Before taking on any new management function, carefully consider the level
of commitment, openness, trust, etc. necessary to make it work. If you're
not sure it's there, work it out before taking another step. Get help or
training.
Don't expect change to come quickly.
Bob McAbee
|
| 1769.9 | This may help some of you . . . | CAPNET::CROWTHER | Maxine 276-8226 | Fri Feb 21 1992 11:11 | 33 |
| TAKE "THE PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE PATH TO QUALITY"
IN HALF-DAY COURSE
DELTA is sponsoring "The People-to-People Path to Quality," a
half-day course to be held at the Stow, Massachusetts, site on
Wednesday, March 11, from 9-12. There's no cost or prerequisites
for the class. Anyone is welcome who wants a better
understanding of the total DELTA employee involvement process at
Digital.
What You Will Learn
Through lectures, interactive discussions, demonstrations, and
hands-on training, you'll find out how to start up and implement
DELTA employee involvement. You'll discover what a lift employee
involvement can give your organization by learning how:
o to make employee involvement the foundation of your
Total Quality Management (TQM) programs.
o to manage team improvement activities
o to foster and handle individual ideas
o to learn more through the many resources and materials
available through DELTA.
Call for more information, or register through the DELTA Program
Office, DTN 276-8226, or send electronic mail to
IDEASCENTRAL @OGO or SONATA::IDEASCENTRAL.
|
| 1769.10 | good job - some questions | SHALOT::EIC_BUSOPS | | Fri Feb 21 1992 16:04 | 7 |
| re.8
Sounds like a terrific success story.
How many are in your group? What's their occupational makeup? Do you
have any feel for limits on size of unit?
Jack
|
| 1769.11 | | ZYDECO::MCABEE | Fishing for minnows | Fri Feb 21 1992 18:38 | 48 |
| RE: .10 (re: .8)
It doesn't feel like a terrific success story. It feels more like a painful
learning experience. I suppose it's easy to lose sight of the accomplishments
when you're bogged down in the painful parts. We are somewhat stalled right
now because it's hard to find the time (and energy) to put into the
self-management effort. Whe you can't keep up with today's work, it's hard
to get interested in devising ways to take on more management work.
> How many are in your group? What's their occupational makeup? Do you
> have any feel for limits on size of unit?
For years, we had eight people in the unit. We just lost one, which is part
of the reason we're bogged down. One person out of eight is a big hit,
especially to the four who formed a sub-team with that person.
We support realtime products and are called System Support Specialists. This
is equivalent to Software Specialist. We have lots of years of experience
and the average age is mid-to-late thirties. Most of us have been in the same
unit for eight years or more.
Having been together so long, we've survived several managers and we know
our business pretty well. One reason that it doesn't seem like so much an
accomplishment is that we had been gradually taking over management functions
for years. A lot of the formal process has just been official acknowledgement
and sanctioning of what was already reality. I think it's important to grow
organically into self-managgement. You just can't do it by fiat.
Group size is an important factor, but it's hard to make generalizations.
I think the important thing is to look at each proposed step in the
evolutionary process, before taking the step, and try to see how group size
would come into play.
When the management work takes too much manpower away from the core work,
you've reached a limit. Then you either draw the line there, or get more
creative.
If the members are going to evaluate each other, then a certain amount of
homogeneity is neccessary so that everyone has some understanding of everyone
else's work. This can limit the size.
If the group is too big and the peopole are motivated toward
self-determination, then I would think that self-directed teams within the
group would tend to evolve. Without that motivation, it could become chaotic.
What is too big? My intuitive feeling is that thirty is too big for a single
homogenous team. To begin the process, I think ten to fifteen is about right.
|
| 1769.12 | here are some articles... | ROM01::CIPOLLA | WHY did we(?) scrap PRISM? 8-( | Wed Feb 26 1992 17:49 | 205 |
| Here are some articles on the subject....
Bruno
--------------------------------------------------
PRODUCTIVITY
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Beyond teamwork"
Chris Lee
TRAINING June 90 p. 25-32
All teams are not created equal. At some companies -- this article
highlights Johnsonville Foods in Sheboygan, WI -- workers really do run
their own show. Accounts of companies that have achieved seemingly
miraculous results by instituting a team approach to producing their
products or services have begun to trickle into the mainstream business
press over the past few years, and these accounts are citing productivity
increases in the double digits and an equally large leap in quality
improvement. Work teams and the potential they hold for producing wondrous
results are being billed as the productivity breakthrough of the '90s. But
whatever these new workteams are called -- self-directed, self-managing,
high-performance -- they are changing the way work is organized and
functions.
[PRODUCTIVITY, TEAMWORK, WORK STYLES] 900619
"Ignite team spirit in tired lions"
Robert Bookman
HRMAGAZINE June 1990 p. 106-108
"In order to compete in world markets, companies must use creativity and
competitiveness as the new weapons in an organization's arsenal. Creative
managers already exist but organizations must give managers the signal that
inventiveness is the new norm." Imagine a human resource program that trans-
forms employee stagnation into energy, and organizational lethargy into
profits. One such program is called the Lions' Den, a team-oriented process
that encourages employees creativity and shows organizations how to channel
the random energy of small groups. It creates an environment in which
people want to become part of the team by encouraging work units to spend
30 minutes of each regularly scheduled meeting "fiercely" helping one of
their own sub-groups solve a pressing problem.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Title: Managing the Bossless Team: Lessons in Distributed Leadership
Author(s): Barry, David; Syracuse Univ.
Journal: Organizational dynamics
v. 20, n. 1 Summer 1991 pp. 31-47
Abstract: 708 JA
Subjects:
LEADERSHIP
ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE
"The use of self-managed teams (SMTs) in work settings not only
has gained momentum but appears to be at a record high. These
teams appear in many forms, such as quality circles, task forces,
communication teams, new venture teams, and business brand teams.
They are widely used among such companies as Digital, FMS,
Frito-Lay, GE, General Foods, GM, Hewlett-Packard, Honeywell, and
Pepsi-Cola, as well as among many smaller firms. SMTs have been
credited with saving hundreds of millions of dollars, achieving
conceptual breakthroughs, and introducing unparalleled numbers of
new products. Increasingly, these 'bossless teams' seem the key
to solving complex problems, increasing productivity, and
heightening creativity." Several basic forces will continue to
make teams an increasingly popular organizational device in the
1990s: the technological information explosion; the increased use
of extremely expensive equipment and technology in all industries;
and lastly, as a means of reducing middle management costs and
fostering more rapid product innovation. "Despite the growing
popularity of SMTs, a significant question has gone unanswered:
How should leadership be exercised in these leaderless settings?"
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
MANAGEMENT
Title: Managing Self-Managed Workers
Author(s): Carr, Clay
Journal: Training and development journal
v. 45, n. 9 Sept. 1991 pp. 36-42
Abstract: 775 JA
Subjects:
INDEPENDENT WORKERS
MANAGEMENT TRAINING
SELF-DIRECTED WORK TEAMS
"Self-managed workers, especially in self-directed work teams,
are a lot like gyroscopes: the system empowers them and sets
their direction, and then they function on their own. Workers
who manage themselves are largely immune to the normal controls
of traditional organizations. Try to reassert these normal
controls, and your self-managing workers may resist, revert to
more passive roles or leave. But what about their supervisors?
What does an organization do when it intends for some or all of
its workers to be self-managing? Is it dealing with an
unresolvable contradiction in terms? Not really, but the
organization must change its entire orientation significantly.
Empowered organizational players still need managers, but the
managerial roles are different -- they are based on influence,
not power. Here are five new roles for former supervisors."
---------------------------------------------------
Title: IS Without Managers
Author(s): Stokes, Stewart L.; QED Information Sciences Inc.
Journal: Information strategy
v. 8, n. 1 Fall 1991 pp. 11-15
Abstract: 810 JA
Subjects:
EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION
GLOBAL COMPETITION
INFORMATION SYSTEMS
ORGANIZATIONAL FORMS
"The self-managed work team -- a product of the quality circle
movement in global manufacturing companies -- is beginning to be
used in IS departments willing to gamble on internal
reorganization for the sake of increased flexibility,
creativity, motivation, and quality, as well as reduced
employment and the concomitant reduction in overhead. This
article explains self-management and the scope of authority
possessed by self-managed IS employees, reviews the business
benefits and risks of self-management, and recommends a strategy
for implementing a team. It outlines the self-managed IS
experiences of General Electric Canada Inc., a $1.6 billion
manufacturer of lighting and electronic equipment in Ontario,
and Corning Inc., a $2.1 billion manufacturer of glassware and
chemicals in NY."
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Title: Leadership in a Team Environment
Author(s): Zenger, John H.; Musselwhite, Ed; Hurson, Kathleen; Perrin, Craig
Journal: Training and development journal
v. 45, n. 10 Oct. 1991 pp. 46-52
Abstract: 889 JA
Subjects:
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE
SKILLS
New style managers are delegating many of their traditional
duties to self-directed work teams. In today's business
environment, managers must be more strategic, more
collaborative, and more responsive than ever before. Like an
orchestra conductor, the manager of a self-directed work team
cues employees and helps them tune in to organizational
cross-currents. These five skills -- developing self-motivating
people; helping diverse people generate ideas; building
self-managing teams; championing cross-functional efforts; and
managing change -- form a new mandate for managerial survival
and success.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Title: Managing Without Managers
Author(s): Krass, Peter
Journal: InformationWeek (Manhasset, N.Y.)
n. 346 Nov. 11, 1991 pp. 44-51
Abstract: 957 JA
Subjects:
INFORMATION SYSTEMS
PRODUCTIVITY
SELF-MANAGEMENT
"A management trend borrowed from the plant floor is exploding
in information systems departments. That trend is 'self-managed'
teams and it is spurring dozens of large companies to experiment
with fundamentally reorganizing the way work is done and overseen.
They include IS groups at corporations as diverse as computer
maker Digital Equipment Corp., appliance manufacturer Whirlpool
Corp., medical researcher Humana Advanced Surgical Institutes, and
the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Some self-managed IS teams have only
3 members, other have more than 800. Self-managed teams are part
of a prophesy come true. Management experts have predicted for
years that the widespread use of computers and digital
communications would enable companies to remove numerous rungs
from the corporate ladder, eliminating middle management jobs in
favor of self-managed specialists linked to top management and
each other by networked computers. Many US corporations, doubly
pressed by the recession, are bearing out that reality. The
movement has spread into IS groups, as CIOs flatten their
organizations and try to work in self-managed teams. In the
process, some IS chiefs' jobs are being substantially altered,
with some welcoming the changes, and other voicing caution."
Title: New Rewards for New Work
Author(s):
Journal: Enterprise (Digital Equipment Corp.)
v. 5, n. 3 Winter 1991/92 pp. 20-24
Abstract: 1002 JA
Subjects:
COMPENSATION
DEC
EMPLOYEE BENEFITS
"Like many companies, Digital had started using self-managed
teams as part of an employee-involvement program designed to
increase worker satisfaction and, in the process, improve
productivity and quality. The Westminster plant had disbanded
the assembly-line approach. Much of the responsibility of
supervising was handed over to small teams of cross-trained
workers, responsible for nearly all stages of the software
distribution process. But Digital and other firms are
discovering that this innovation in job design cannot be a
lasting success without an innovative compensation system."
|
| 1769.13 | | CSSE32::DICKINSON | | Thu Feb 27 1992 18:01 | 7 |
|
Also see an article in FORTUNE June 17, 1991 entitled "The Bureaucracy
Busters". The use of teams is alive and well in digital.
Peter
|
| 1769.14 | | XCUSME::KENDRICK | | Fri Feb 28 1992 16:30 | 9 |
| I am a member of the Organization Technology Consulting Group located
in Merrimack which provides consulting services to both internal DEC
groups and external customers in self-managed work teams,
change management and organization re-designs. Contact me off-line if
you would like a copy of the DEC publication which describes these
concepts.
Terry
|
| 1769.15 | is this them? | GUIDUK::GREEN | | Tue Mar 03 1992 01:00 | 7 |
| re:14
Are you refering to the marketing brochure part #EC-f0377-76
or the Human Factors notebook (green cover) or something else?
|