A Real World Awakening
Out of college, I began my career as a production supervisor at an OEM Automotive Company – and, I jammed half of my team’s inbox every weekend with two days of Work-in-Process (WIP) inventory and I used my negotiation skills to fix it.
After a few months of seven-day operations, my team expressed their frustration with the historical weekend (OT) staffing plan – full staffing of the department front-end and zero staffing at the back-end.
Due to job classification requirements, jobs were not interchangeable and the back-end employees started each week with two days of WIP waiting for them – they resented running more parts than front-end employees during the five-day workweek (because of a perceived bottleneck) and not receiving an equal opportunity for OT pay. In addition, front-end employees were getting burned out without any time off.
This was a big relationship problem to address. So, my team and I agreed to try a new approach. Without increasing weekend headcount, we developed a plan to staff both the front and back-ends and to produce two days of finished goods instead of two days of WIP.
The plan resulted in OT and time off for all, better throughput and quality, and no jammed inboxes – a win-win agreement that required everyone’s flexibility and best effort.
Negotiator by Default
If you have a job, have a roommate, have family or friends, or interact with anyone you meet on the street, you manage relationships and you are a negotiator by default – yet some surveys suggest that nearly half of us are uncomfortable negotiating.
Why does your team need to become more comfortable and proficient in negotiating…
Conclusions
In my micro negotiation as a production supervisor, I learned (1) business is about relationships; (2) disrupting historical practices is beneficial; and (3) finding agreements that satisfy mutual interest improves results and relationships.
It’s never too late to start getting comfortable with your Four Ps of Successful Negotiation (Preparation, Practice, Persuasion, and Perseverance).
#CreateValueThatMatters
