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How Mirrorless Leaders Never Realize Their True Value…

I might sound like a broken record, but time and time again when I meet someone new or perhaps an old colleague who has reconnected, I see them in ways that they cannot see themselves. This is what I call Mirrorless Leadership; when they think they know their value, but can’t really see their true self.

It’s like being the picture of someone else’s narrative. They sound like they’re a leader and their doing leader-like things, but it sounds like an empty recording of what others are saying about themselves. It contains nothing unique and can quickly fade until people don’t really know you.

I will also say that if you’ve been fortunate to have a 360 review of your performance or received actionable feedback, sure you can change your mindset and behaviors, but it’s only a partial mirror. The problem with this is people are measuring you against their expectations for which the bar may be too high or it’s the wrong bar.

Infrequently do people listen to you and find the nuggets of value that you bring to people and your environment. When we can see our unique gifts, it opens up our eyes to greater possibilities and builds confidence in yourself. If we don’t have a mirror, we accept the judgement of others who are not seeing us, but simply telling us what they expect.

So how do we solve this?

Find a trusted partner and do the following:

  • Start sharing with them what gets you excited; tell a few stories.
  • What are the the things that you’re most proud of?
  • How have you helped people either at work, in your family or community?
  • Where have you made an impact and people have thanked you?
  • What environments stifle your creativity?
  • What have you done differently that has changed the lives of others?
  • What frustrates you about your current situation and what would you like to do to change it?

That trusted partner becomes your mirror and if they have the gift of deep listening and can reframe what it is that makes you unique, you start to see yourself differently and regain your confidence to move in the direction you decide.

Sure, I’m offering you a bit of coaching right now and I hope you can go away and do this yourself or find a partner who can work with you. But if you don’t have a support system, let me be your mirror and help see yourself for who you really are.

Until we meet, I wish you well and much success!-Deb

Can I be of further support to you? Could my interview skills help to elevate your impact by providing you an opportunity to share your insights to realize your true value?  Message me for some potential offers that can elevate your impact. Remember my first 30 minutes with you is complimentary because I want to provide you immediate value. If you would like more, I’d be pleased to extend to you these offers:

  • Reinvent Yourself offer: So many of you have asked how did I reinvent myself. Give me an hour with you and I’ll help you to find your value proposition and evolve your 30 second elevator pitch.
  • Promote Yourself: Recorded interview to obtain valuable content to share on social media or use for applying for a new position.
  • Guest on the Drop In CEO Podcast: with numerous assets to promote your brand
  • Message yourself: Help you to find what you stand for and key messaging for when you show up for a presentation or other communications. Two (2) sessions to elevate your impact offered at
  • Sponsor the Drop In CEO Podcast: and gain valuable reach for 4 months.

10% of all proceeds from these offers go into the Drop In CEO Scholarship Fund for Reinventing individuals who cannot afford to Reinvent their Career and a Resume Makeover.  Thank you in advance for your support

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The Networking Conundrum: Warding off unwanted connections and those that will pay dividends.

We’re bombarded on Linkedin and Email with people offering services for pain points we don’t have; we become numb to all people knocking on our door.

The result of all this noise is most people ignore or close the door on everything when in fact you might be hurting your career by not building a network.

The other thing I see wrong is we’re so isolated by our career and other activities, we don’t invest in a network. So many of the people I’ve met soon realize that is their demise when they need a network to further their career opportunities.

My advice to you is to find a way to triage the unwanted messages you get and delete those. The rest of the ones that seem like real humans, be open to vetting them if they’re open to just getting to know each other and schedule those conversations. More importantly, if it’s an old colleague who you were on good terms on, most definitely open the door and let them in.

Just yesterday, I had a conversation from someone I worked with over 15 years ago and it was like we never stopped talking. The conversation flowed and the experience was rewarding. Whether we connect again or not, it was memorable and that is enough.

Another person was brave enough to accept my invitation to connect; someone in my field and I was curious about them. The conversation was amazing and I am pleased to have found my next inspirational leader to drop in on my podcast. I never would have found such talent unless a) I was curious and sent the invite and b) the individual being open to networking and unknown possibilities.

Oh, and one other piece of advice… never burn a bridge.

Sometimes we leave bad cultures or bosses and leave behind people. Nurture those relationships too. I have found career and business opportunities from people that reconnect with me after 5-10 years. These have been some of the best opportunities I’ve experienced.

Be open to receiving new invites, be proactive in seeking new connections and always nurture the ones from the past. This is your networking capitol at work and your best in vestment in your future.

If you haven’t figured it out, I’m a huge proponent of networking. After being in business over 5 years, this has been one of the pillars of staying viable.

If we have not met, this is an open invitation to connect and form real human connection.

If you enjoy my content, please consider signing up for my weekly newsletter for more insights and resources to support your career.

Until we meet, I wish you well and much success! – Deb

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How Career Transitions Become The Best Time of Your Life

Recently, I’ve me with three people in my network who are at a cross roads in their career. The themes are very similar for which I think there is great value in sharing them with you. While for most, it feels like the end of a chapter, I’d like to propose that this is perhaps the best time of your life. Don’t let these moments get away from you by throwing yourself into the game again to find your next gig. You may miss the bigger opportunity.

When I left my corporate job, I took the time to reflect on what I was good at and where I could provide value. Had I not done that, I would have been another Director of Quality in a large corporation. Instead, I have had the opportunity to interview hundreds of people on The Drop In CEO™ Podcast , written a book, The CEO’s Compass, created a business and brand, The Drop In CEO, a Newsletter and now a YouTube Channel to share my insights with C-Suite Leaders of Today and Tomorrow. I’m far from conceited and bragging about my accomplishments. I’m trying to share with you that given time and space, the future for you can be vastly different than what was in your past! And by the way, I’m having so much fun!

Crossroads and Clarity for Dan…

… and yes, I’ve changed the names to protect their privacy!

Dan is a highly accomplished C-Suite leader, but the future of the company and leadership styles is no longer aligned with his values. He goes to work because of the people he cares about and of course providing financial security for his family. Dan has so much energy and value to provide, but as you listen to their voice, there is so much dissatisfaction. They reached out to me and they’ve asked me to keep my eyes open for an opportunity & introductions. Sound familiar?

The problem with the situation is they’re seeking the same type of role. As I listen to them, I know they are ready for a CEO role and while he believes it as well, he is not ready to take that leap unless presented to him. I get it, it’s a matter of time, place and opportunity. However, they do have clarity that they want to work for a small or medium size company so they can have a great impact. Through self reflection, he knows what he wants and what he doesn’t want. While I know he’s eager for his next role he does have clarity (mostly) in what the future might look like.

Robert broke away from a culture not aligned with his values, but now what…

Robert is an old colleague of mine for which I’m grateful for our professional relationship and benefits I’ve realized from it. Now he’s at a crossroads for which he has great clarity in what he wants. He too wants to work for a small or medium size business where he can make an impact using his many years of C-suite leadership expertise. However, he’s taking his time.

He left without his next opportunity lined up. For someone who I thought was not a risk taker, he had the courage to walk away with full support from his family. He’s also taking the time to rekindle his network and consider all opportunities in pursuit of where he wants to work next both industries and geographical location. I admire him for taking a risk, but it was calculated. Some never take the leap into the abyss. However, what makes him different is the confidence that with time and networking, the right opportunity will come his way. How many people simply stay and remain miserable? For Robert, when we spoke, he sounded liberated and at peace. How often do you achieve Peace of Mind amid a career transition? Robert is one of a few that is willing to navigate uncertainty with calm.

Sarah has been making the best of a bad situation, but is ready to move on…

I’m grateful to guide Sarah during a very challenging time at work. It’s really, really bad, but amid the chaos, she’s realized the opportunity to learn, grow and expand her leadership impact. She has the awareness that while some leaders are leaders in title only, she has gained confidence to be the leader that others are not. During the chaos, she’s developed skills needed for the next step; a career accelerator that not many have had the opportunity.

However, there comes a day that she will need to move on. While it is noble to be the leader to change the culture and be what others need her to be. Sometimes you have to say it is enough. It is time to recognize her value and assess where to use it for greater impact. So often, people hope to stay under the radar during while in an organization in chaos. It’s safe to be there, but they’re losing valuable minutes and hours of their life in service to an organization that cannot realize their value. Is this you? Do you know someone who is stuck? Could you take a moment to realize your value and make the decision to be courageous and move to a place that gives you joy. Sarah is about to take that leap and so can you, if you have faith in yourself.

For Dan, Robert and Sarah, they are all at a crossroads for which I’m grateful they reached out to me. The insights from their stories that I want you to realize are:

  • See the value in who you are meant to be, not what you’ve done in the past.
  • Have the courage to walk away and take the time to gain clarity in what the future looks like.
  • If you have to endure a challenging career, leverage the best to your benefit to set you up for the next role.

I’m not advising you to jump off a cliff without a plan. I’m sharing insights that you can gracefully exit a bad situation and use the time for self discovery, self improvement and realize what gifts you have to give to others. You have one life to live to make a lasting impact. If you need a guide that can help you, just like I’ve supported Dan, Robert and Sarah, reach out to me. I’d love to be your compass to get you back on track!

-Deb

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Avalanche Leadership: How to avoid sending your team into a crisis

So many leaders never learn their lesson. They see snow and they send their team out to shovel. They see a blizzard and they give their team more shovels. They see an avalanche and realize they don’t have a crisis plan and see the team get swallowed up by the catastrophe. Once the people dig out, he gives them a shovel to clean up the mess. The lucky ones escape to warmer climates where it doesn’t snow.

Short sighted leadership ultimately causes the crisis because they have not put on their ski goggles to see what the real issue is.

Recently I dropped into a client who had a crisis and we’re solving the issue to get them back on track. They’ve even hired a top talent who will help them evolve their quality systems so they don’t have the same issue again. When they shared they hired this talent, I said I guess I’ll be handing over the reigns shortly. To this, they said “No”, and wanted me to stay for at least 2 more months. They saw the value in setting up a strong foundation and setting the next leader up for success. I’m grateful that they find value in my work and avoid a crisis again.

They could have been short sighted and cut my services and fees right away. However, these leaders knew that in order to avoid another crisis, they needed to assure a smooth transition; giving the new leader all the tools they needed to avoid the avalanche.

Given I’ve seen the pattern over and over and over again that leaders only fix symptoms or wait too long to ask for help, here are my best tips to avoid causing the leadership avalanche:

  • Step back and look at the landscape; if you see the same issues happening over and over again, what are the conditions that exist that enable the same issues to happen? That’s your job to ask those questions and be able to face harsh reality. Sometimes you or your predecessor set up the conditions to exist.
  • Assess if you have the capability or capacity to address the conditions that exist for repeat issues. This takes courage to accept the reality, it might not exist within your environment. Be the leader that asks for help sooner before it’s too late. Be the leader your team needs you to be.
  • If a crisis is looming, the cost of the clean up is far more extensive than the short sighted cost containment of doing nothing. What legacy do you want to leave? If you’re struggling with making the best decision, find someone to talk through the challenge.

For me, I’m excited that recently a few people in and outside my community have found me and reached out to use my services or start with a conversation.

These people see the rough conditions and want to avoid a crisis for which we’ve started to have conversations where I try to impart some immediate value.

If you are seeing the avalanche coming, are you giving your people more shovels or are you going to be the leader who helps them to avoid the avalanche all together? Failure to do anything, you become the Avalanche Leader and leave your legacy that people remember. I don’t want that for you. Let’s talk. If someone you know would benefit from this article, please share it so we can help others.

For more insights, please listen to my podcast airing on 2/23/24 and view the video so you see how I really feel about this topic!.

If you are a CEO who would love a partner to help you with a business challenge, be your #2 or help develop the team of tomorrow, let us partner in 2024.

Be well-Deb

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Leadership Lessons to Prevent a Crisis

Dear Leaders,
 In today’s edition, we’ll be delving into the pressing issue of handling a hiring crisis faced by business leaders. As companies across industries continue to grapple with talent shortages, CEOs and HR professionals are seeking innovative strategies to attract, retain, and develop skilled employees.

Join me as we explore solutions to one of the most pressing concerns facing organizations today.

Be Well,
Deb
The Spark
Ample, a company specializing in EV battery-swapping technology, is facing a crisis of skilled labor shortage at its manufacturing facilities in the Bay Area. As it aims to double its manufacturing workforce, it struggles to find workers trained to handle high-voltage machinery and complex robotics.
The Burn
The skilled labor shortage in manufacturing is a common problem for several reasons. Firstly, advancements in technology have led to an increase in the complexity of machinery and processes, requiring workers with specialized skills and training to operate them effectively. Also, traditional educational pathways may not always align with the specific needs of modern manufacturing, leading to a gap between the skills taught in educational institutions and those demanded by employers.
The Clean Up
To address this issue, Ample is collaborating with local community colleges to establish apprenticeship programs, allowing individuals to gain necessary skills without a traditional college degree. Despite the challenges, the company remains confident that these initiatives will help meet its growth targets and support the expansion of renewable energy goals in the United States.

 CEOs can address the skilled labor shortage in their companies through several strategic approaches:

Investment in Training and Development: Implement comprehensive training programs to upskill existing employees and prepare them for more advanced roles within the company. This can include on-the-job training, workshops, seminars, and tuition reimbursement for further education.

Partnerships with Educational Institutions: Forge partnerships with local community colleges, vocational schools, and technical institutes to develop tailored training programs that align with the specific needs of the company. This can involve sponsoring apprenticeship programs, internships, or co-op opportunities to attract and retain talent.

Promotion of STEM Education: Engage in initiatives to promote science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education at the K-12 level to cultivate interest in manufacturing and technical careers from an early age. This can involve supporting STEM-related extracurricular activities, mentorship programs, and educational outreach efforts.

Flexible Hiring Practices: Consider implementing more flexible hiring practices, such as hiring based on aptitude and potential rather than strict educational requirements. This can open up opportunities for individuals with non-traditional backgrounds or career paths to enter the manufacturing workforce.

Embrace Automation and Technology: Embrace automation and technology to augment the workforce and increase productivity. This can involve investing in robotics, artificial intelligence, and other advanced manufacturing technologies to streamline processes and alleviate the burden on human workers.

By implementing these strategies, CEOs can proactively address the skilled labor shortage in their companies and position themselves for long-term success in the manufacturing industry.
Fire Prevention Tools
Here are a few tools I’ve used when facing hiring issues within manufacturing organizations:

Learn from this Crisis and Repeat: The leadership responded properly realizing they own their destiny and investing in building talent as a long term strategy is the right thing to do. However, have they really learned anything? Where else in their organization might their be risks? Regulatory issues? Supply Chain Issues? Socio-economic changes? Where else could they set up a long term strategy to avoid having to react to a crisis? As a business owner myself, I realize my ability to provide services rests heavily on a robust network that I’ve grown from 800-8000 on Linkedin. As my business grows, I can respond to the changing needs of my clients

Resources should be valued as much as Intellectual Property: When a company creates a patten or a new technology, businesses are quick to protect it for longevity of the company. People are our greatest assets, yet we commoditize most of them and focus on a critical few. Why don’t they consider every resource as a valued asset and seek to protect them and be in service. When we take care of our people and capture their knowledge for future employees, we sustain the ups and downs of any labor shortage.
Change the mindset towards resources and make it a strategic imperative to preserve these assets

Focus on the culture and resources will flock to your company: Even more proactive than the strategy set forth to grow talent and pull them into an organization, what about being the employer of choice for which people are knocking on your door to get in. It’s tough trying to push through a labor desert, but if we could create “pull” like in lean methodology, obtaining and retaining talent would not be an issue. Take a look at smaller businesses; first and second generation owners who may bring in talent at lower price points, but people stay. Why is that? I’ve been in many of these organizations and the culture is nothing like anything I’ve seen in the larger companies. If we can get back to what makes a great culture, labor shortages just don’t exist.

Think about it!If you have thoughts on this, I’d love to hear from you and let’s continue the conversation!

For more insights, I propose to take a moment to get a copy of  The CEO’s Compass, where I very specifically speak to crisis management and how to use the Compass to get back on track. If you’re currently facing a crisis, let’s talk!
Want to be a master at navigating a crisis?
Here are just a few ways we can connect:
Connect on Linkedin
Subscribe to YouTube
Be a Podcast Guest
Ask Deb a Question
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Your Marketing is Killing Your Brand and Trust

PSA: Your Marketing Strategy is Not Working!

I am so tired of the transactional based pitches on Linkedin.

Gone are the days of networking from a place of curiosity and seeking to learn how we can help each other.

How many of you are getting the pitch lately of
a) These are MY services
b) You may need MY services
c) Book a call with MY scheduling link

Ugh!!!! I’m so tired of trying to be nice and say no thank you so I’m just going to put it all out there.

Some of these companies have totally missed an opportunity.

Had they started from a place of truly looking to form meaningful relationships… I might have invited their CEO onto my podcast to reach a broader audience!

Had they started from a place of getting to know me…they might have gotten referrals to people they can serve!

Had they started from a place of just saying “Hello”, I might have said “Hello” back and say how can I help you?

But instead, marketing strategies are to mass market and hope 0.5% might say yes.

I’m just saying… anyone that starts from a place of saying “I just want to learn more about what you do, would you be open to connecting”, will more than likely get a “Yes, let’s connect”.

Anyone else out there mad as heck that humanity has fallen to transactional relationships?

Please leave your comments below.

And to those leaders who are using mass marketing for lead gen… please stop because it’s not leaving a good impression about your brand.

If you are truly interested in reaching the people you can serve, do the hard work and start one by one saying “Hello”.

Be well-Deb

#dropinceo#marketingfailures#relationships

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Bridging Generations: Mentorship for Stronger Teams

This past weekend, I was supposed to lead a team to a bonspiel in Detroit  (Barbara – 60ish, Deb 50ish, Julia 40ish, Krista 20-30ish). I’m sad to say, at the last minute I was very sick and had to find a sub for me as the captain (Skip) of the team. Luckily, they found Bethany (20ish) to be the captain. While they did not come away victorious, the picture of them smiling ear to ear was priceless. And so, the team’s age extended from 20’s to 60ish. Curling is a sport for any age to enjoy sportsmanship, the sport and even victory! I am grateful for the practice we had leading up to the event, leveraging their strengths and giving them the confidence, they can do this!  This is the beauty of mentorship and I so love it!

And in another curling story, friend Lauren who I curl with is about 20 years younger than I, helped me to get over my lack of confidence to make tough shots. After calling a challenging shot that I was very uncomfortable with, she came over to me and said “you got this!”. Needless to say, I made the shot and realized her kind words were all I needed. She’s curled fewer years than I, but her words are wise beyond her years and she helped me to find my confidence. .

And then I wonder, why can’t we have this same relationship in business, success through collaboration whether 20 or 60?

Such a shame that we lose sight of wisdom regardless of its source. Phyllis Weiss Haserot who is an expert in Cross Generational relationships and communications will be back on my show in a few weeks to discuss mentorship across the ages. Phyllis is many years wise in this area and years younger than I comparably with her vivacious energy.

Mentorship is ageless.

Gone are the days of thinking it is someone older and wiser than can cascade advice. The best advice can come from someone younger than us or even a peer. The key is are we open to listen and receive the mentorship?

If we lead with a mindset that mentorship can come from anyone regardless of age, cross generationally we can all reap the benefits of being open to receive from anyone who cares to give us sound advice.

And given that insight, might we set up mentorship based on wisdom and perspective vs. assignment based on age?

Might the organization be richer if we look through a different mentorship lens?

And lastly, if you haven’t cultivated a cross generational mentorship program; could it be the best investment in talent retention, development and most importantly, leaving your legacy?

I may not have been able to curl with my early experienced team this weekend, but I know I helped them to achieve their goals: Be safe, have fun and win a few ends. Additionally, Julia came back to me and said she had a great time and cannot wait to go to another bonspiel. Julia’s about 15 years younger than me, but through her words, she encourages me more to help others to build their confidence and take on the world. For her friendship and also her mentorship, I am forever grateful.

And now I turn to you? What is your legacy? Have you cultivated a nurturing environment through mentorship and might I say through a different lens not based on age, but by wisdom?

Do you or do you know someone who is having this challenge?

Would a guide help to navigate these challenges?

For the unfiltered, off the cuff discussion about this topic, please listen to my podcast airing on 2/9/24 and view the video so you see how I really feel about this topic!.

If you are a CEO who would love a partner to help you with a business challenge, be your #2 or help develop the team of tomorrow, let us partner in 2024.

Be well-Deb

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Agile and Lean: A Powerful Duo for Team Resilience

I could drop into a business blindfolded and identify the three barriers to having an Agile & Lean organization. Call me arrogant, but when I see the pattern repeat itself over and over again, I think CEOs need to take note of these blindspots. Too often their organizations are based on a shaky foundation of poor talent management, unclear authority and ineffective barrier removal to unleash potential. This is the invisible waste under any strategy that detracts from your impact and then you wonder why you can’t sleep at night.

Recently I dropped into a manufacturing company where I provided interim quality leadership in support of operations. It was chaotic and I was curious why I was being consulted on every quality issue; decisions that could have been made by the supervisors. I learned the previous leadership for whatever reason needed to be consulted on all rejections and investigations. In the process, I also learned their leadership was not conducive to building confidence in the front line leaders. It was a sad set of circumstances, but I sought to understand what was missing or broken.

Putting aside the leadership issue of the past, I realized my role was to remove the barriers for their decision making and eliminate waste in the process. Most leaders throw resources at a problem or stretch the existing labor until they call off. What I saw was a much different issue rooted in poor agility and a massive amount of waste. Here is what I learned and will now share with you.

Removing the blindspots in these three areas will enable resilient teams to be Agile and Lean:

  • Assess the talent and really see their value. Elevate them in their current role to give them back confidence. Plan to move those where their talent can be amplified. Your job is not to keep people in their places, but to move them up and out. Short sighted views would see this as a risk. However, long term thinking will recognize that you amplify their impact.
  • Establish levels of authority, capability & capacity – Too often we strip people of their decision making authority and the ability to think in a risk averse environment or a culture of micro management. If there is too much waste in back and forth between your line workers and leadership, take a close look at how the authority is assigned and remove non-value added activities. Give the leaders more strategic work vs. being down in the weeds.
  • Ways of working & barrier removal – give your resources a forum where they can escalate issues and solutions early and often. They become part of the solution based culture vs. one that is guided by rigid goal posts for which they could feel helpless to make a difference. As a leader you need to bubble up their challenges and your role is to be in service to make their jobs easier. Gone are the times of being cooped up in your office for hours on end. Your job is to be where the work is being done and do everything to help them.

Does this sound familiar?

Do you or do you know someone who is having this challenge?

Would a guide help to navigate these challenges?

For the unfiltered, off the cuff discussion about this topic, please listen to my podcast airing on 2/2/24 and view the video so you see how I really feel about this topic!.

If you are a CEO who would love a partner to help you with a business challenge, be your #2 or help develop the team of tomorrow, let us partner in 2024.

Be well-Deb

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Do this to avoid killing trust and diminishing your influence

Nothing is worse than settling into a meeting and watching a 50-page powerpoint that sucks the life out of you. Yet we continue the same behavior day after day until we realize this is absolutely insane. I’m not saying throw the baby out with the bathwater because we need some platform to convey visual information. However, there needs to be a better approach or you will kill your audience with details and fail to get the outcome or influence you seek.

The fact is, this generation and quite frankly mine as well (yes, I’m a Gen X), need information quickly. We need information to pass judgment on whether we’re going to watch more or swipe by within 5 seconds. What is missing from today’s communication in business is short concise messaging with a hook, a problem, a “how to guide” and a call to action to take a decision or engage in conversation. Our business communication style should take lessons from social media to build trust and ultimately influence.

But we’re not here to emulate social media influencers when it comes to business, but might we consider LEAN (waste removal and process efficiency) as a means to have more influence?

I see you nodding your head, so let me show you what I mean:

  • Start with the Challenge or Opportunity and why we are here: Audiences need context to know they’re in the right place. In social media, this is the hook. You need to prepare your audience and build trust that you will take them down a path.
  • Explain the impact or urgency for the topic and that you have the solution: When we express the magnitude of the issue (like marketers do), people will tune in and start to think if this applies to them and cultivate their need to continue to listen.
  • Show them the path forward: Based on your data or visualization of the issue, show them your approach and conclusions to bring people along to agree or engage in conversation to enrich the solution
  • Make it easy to implement: Show them what is needed to implement or the gaps that need to be closed in order to move the conversation forward. This gives people choices to push a button and say “yes” or “approve” or enable them to take the topic forward
  • Call to action: If people haven’t already discussed next steps, then be prescriptive as to the next step or action needed by others so that you leave the presentation with something.

Here’s an example of a project I recently asked to get involved in:

  • There’s a significant need to evolve our platform to be more efficient and competitive with our competition. Currently we have a process that is outdated and needs to evolve to help our teams through the product development process.
  • Currently, the teams are focused on siloed work without understanding the interactions of their work and there are no checks and balances for which at the end of the design cycle, we are late and the quality is below industry standard.
  • We’ve provided a framework to standardize our work and systemize it in such a way that provides full transparency and checks between the functional areas to achieve our desired outcome. By piloting this in our test product line  you can see an improvement in quality and on time performance.
  • If we can close the gap and implement this system that will automate the work within a function and also cross functionally, we believe we will surpass our competitors if we can get your approval by next week.
  • I will convene a follow up meeting with the stakeholders to review the details and guide the approval to realize its value by 3Q24.

I just delivered this message most likely in 3-5 minutes max through a careful selection of words and phrases that connect in a concise way and make it easy for people to engage. The key word is “MESSAGE” vs. sharing information. Lean removes wasteful words and enables efficient delivery of information while we craft words that connect emotionally with people for action.

For me, this is easy and has served me well.

For others, their delivery is painful and a waste of others’ time. In the process, it kils their brand and maybe yours if they work for you.

Can you coach this delivery method?  I do hope the framework can help.

But if you don’t have the capability yourself to do this or coach others, wouldn’t it be a courageous idea to gain back time with this approach?

The decision is yours to ratchet up your influence. What will it be?

Let me partner with you to review your team’s messaging and I’ll give you advice on how to hone messaging for lean and effective communication.

For the unfiltered, off the cuff discussion about this topic, please listen to my podcast airing on 1/25/24 and view the video so you see how I really feel about this topic!.

If you are a CEO who would love a partner to help you with a business challenge, be your #2 or help develop the team of tomorrow, let us partner in 2024.

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LEAN is a Four Letter Word: How to avoid the inherent waste in a Lean Initiative

Let me give it to you straight. No amount of operational efficiency you glean from a Lean Initiative is going to give you sustainable results without three fundamentals:

  • Responsibility & Accountability Institutionalized
  • Prioritization mastery
  • Critical thinking and decision logic maturity

Without these inculcated into your organization with front line leaders and those that drive the ship, you will ultimately lose money and then blame the Lean Leader for their failure.

Let’s look at waste: TIM WOODS stands for Time, Inventory, Motion, Waiting, Overproduction, Overprocessing, Defects and Skills which is the fundamental framework for eliminating waste in a Lean Organization.

However, let’s apply this to the humans vs. processes and see the waste through a different lens.

Example 1: A quality supervisor makes a decision to reject material and hold it until a disposition of scrap or rework can be made. The production manager understands the issue and pressures the supervisor that the specifications are just guidelines and in the end application, there will not be an impact and pressures them to release.

What’s wrong with this picture? While conversation is necessary in such situations, who ultimately is responsible for these key decisions? Refocusing the energy from pressuring the release of a product to identify the root cause why the product is not in specification is a better use of time. However, in this process without clear Responsibility and Accountability defined, there is Waste. I don’t care if you have an efficient production process to create products with defects; under the surface, the organization is generating waste.

Example 2: Production is realizing the benefit of Lean and is producing products with a lower takt time (a measurement in Lean for how fast you need to produce to keep up with customer demand). Management is celebrating a win, but there is a bottleneck in the quality lab. The quality manager has two people out for COVID, another is out for training, they have several research projects to complete for R&D, Customer Complaints to be resolved and they have to work with maintenance who is coming down today to repair a leak. The Manager is stressed and sees the work piling up and is working late hours to try to meet all demands.

What’s wrong with this picture? Clearly in this situation without further context, the Research work and possibly the customer complaints can be paused in favor of the leak and managing resources to get the work done with a reduced staff. However, this manager lacks the prioritization savvy to make those decisions or doesn’t have a support system to help them manage the increase in work and reduced resources. Wouldn’t it be a better use of time in concert with speeding up production to also work with Quality to ensure they are also level loaded to meet the demands of production? Could we also help this leader to have a framework for prioritization and a voice to message when they’re in trouble? Sometimes these situations cause burnout without us realizing it in the spirit of creating a lean production machine.

Example 3: Returning to the Quality Manager who is overloaded with a reduced workforce, they make the following decisions to manage:

  • Authorize overtime
  • Work 12 hour days
  • Delay the repair of the leak in the quality department

Where did they go wrong? Their decision logic based on a position of helplessness made the decisions based on what was in their control. Instead, they could have contacted customer service to see if any orders could be rescheduled. With the increased efficiency in production, there were resources that could be pulled in to do administrative work; moving resources to where the work was needed. And let’s talk about that leak they delayed. Short sightedness may cause a long term expensive issue if that leak introduces safety or health hazards in the lab. They could have reschedule to the weekend when people were not around.

Critical thinking and better decision logic might have had a better outcome for quality keeping up with production. By not preparing them with better skills, they sometimes make wasteful decisions which is what we’re trying to eliminate.

So my advice to you is next time you think of a Lean Initiative, look at yourself and the organization.

Do they have skills to prepare for the improvements you are making or are there skills under the surface you need to Lean out Waste before moving forward?

Think you got this because the Lean Consultant is on a mission to realize cost savings on behalf of your stakeholders? Think again as your Lean Initiative can be that Four Letter Word that leaves an irreparable legacy on your organization.

For the unfiltered, off the cuff discussion about this topic, please listen to my podcast airing on 1/19/24 and view the video so you see how I really feel about this topic!.

If you are a CEO who would love a partner to help you with a business challenge, be your #2 or help develop the team of tomorrow, let us partner in 2024.

To hear more about This topic please tune into my podcast that is releasing this Friday 1/19/24

Be well-Deb

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