WCOM (World Class Operations Management) : Why You Need More Than Lean

280 Pages·2016·8.14 MB·English

by  Carlo Baroncelli

Carlo Baroncelli · Noela Ballerio E ditors
WCOM
(World Class
Operations
Management)
Why You Need More Than Lean
WCOM (World Class Operations Management)
Carlo Baroncelli Noela Ballerio
(cid:129)
Editors
WCOM (World Class
Operations Management)
Why You Need More Than Lean
123
Editors
CarloBaroncelli Noela Ballerio
EfesoConsulting SA EfesoConsulting SA
Paris Milan
France Italy
ISBN978-3-319-30104-4 ISBN978-3-319-30105-1 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-30105-1
LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2016933466
©SpringerInternationalPublishingSwitzerland2016
Thisworkissubjecttocopyright.AllrightsarereservedbythePublisher,whetherthewholeorpart
of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations,
recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission
orinformationstorageandretrieval,electronicadaptation,computersoftware,orbysimilarordissimilar
methodologynowknownorhereafterdeveloped.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publicationdoesnotimply,evenintheabsenceofaspecificstatement,thatsuchnamesareexemptfrom
therelevantprotectivelawsandregulationsandthereforefreeforgeneraluse.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this
book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the
authorsortheeditorsgiveawarranty,expressorimplied,withrespecttothematerialcontainedhereinor
foranyerrorsoromissionsthatmayhavebeenmade.
Printedonacid-freepaper
ThisSpringerimprintispublishedbySpringerNature
TheregisteredcompanyisSpringerInternationalPublishingAGSwitzerland
Foreword
Why Do You Need More Than “Lean”
The title of the book represents the most frightening and dreadful question all
authorsof“Leanbooks”haveeverfoundthemselvesconfrontedwith.Atthesunset
of a crisp, windy, rainy day you are there, waiting and feeling rather cold in your
best suit, your sweaty palms on your manuscript. As soon as the door opens, you
canfeelyourheartbeatingasifitwereinyourmouth,hopingforapieceofadvice
or getting ready to receive some sort of criticism, but not expecting that question.
You stand up to shake hands and you feel as if you were emptied, dizzy like a
climber,shockedasifyouwerestruckbylightning:youhaveneverthoughtabout
that question before.
Both of us are academicians with twenty-or-so years of experience in teaching
undergraduate, graduate, MBA, and Ph.D. students. At the same time, we like
advising companies, firms, and businesses in the area of Operations and Supply
ChainManagement.Overthelastcoupleofyears,wehavereadandrevisedseveral
books:someofthemjustforthesakeofkeepingupdatedaboutwhat’sgoingonin
our field; some others because they were written by colleagues, or to get some
inspiration for our own textbook.
Neverbeforehavewespottedabookprovidingananglesoremarkablydifferent
fromtheonesweareusedto.Thisisagainstalltheoddsandsomehowevenmore
surprising, as we share with Mr. Baroncelli the legacy of professor F. Turco (who
passedawaytooearly),bothaformercolleagueofoursandoneofthefoundersof
EFESO.
Theremarksabovebringustothemainquestionofwhetherthereisanyneedfor
this book. The answer is yes, definitely. Indeed, this book fills a twofold gap.
On one hand, it states WCOM™ as a phenomenon, whose ingredients are
techniques, tools, practices, etc., including people and their behaviors, skills,
competencies, etc. Actually, WCOM™ is different from these elements and you
havetogothroughthebooktofindoutwhatitis.Indeed,wehavetoconsiderthat
the literature on WCM/WCOM™ is almost sparse and nonexistent. If you google
v
vi Foreword
“Lean books” you will find 59 million results, while by googling “WCM books”
there are much less hits, including the books by R.J. Schonberger. WCOM™
produces almost no result, which is, to some extent, surprising as the
WCM/WCOM™ approach has been adopted—besides the five interviewed com-
panies—also by large multinational corporations like Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
(FCA), Heineken, Procter and Gamble, Milliken, and many others.
On the other hand—and here we come to the reasons why you need more than
“lean”—three major points are to be taken into account.
First, the shift from Breakthrough to Continuous Improvement. The lean
transformation is by itself a breakthrough, rather than some sort of Continuous
Improvement:WCM/WCOM™systemsputtogethertwoinfiniteloops.Theformer
contains Kaizen, while the latter contains the Performance Control System (PCS),
thus creating a never-ending recurrent system where improvement and variance
control waltz together in harmony.
Second, the Human Factor. This book delivers the message that everything in
our business is about people. This seminal concept within Autonomous
Managementisboldedinthethirdpartofthisbook.Peopleplayamajorroleboth
on the shop floor and in the boardrooms, they are the key to unlock the potential
gainofeffectivenesseverywhereand,byflippingthroughthepages,thiselement—
atfirstalmostunnoticedorconsideredjustasonesideofthecoin—emergesasthe
main character of the book. This remark triggers some additional insights into the
real need to go beyond “Lean.” Above all, this book hands over a snap giveaway:
“peoplefirst,thenmodels.”Interestingly,weareusedtoproceedingintheopposite
way,byteachingmodelsfirst—asiftheywerebetterrunwithoutpeople—andthen
we highlight the human side, the behavioral impact, etc.
Third, the long-term sustainability. Besides the infinite loop, the pillar system
allows to orientate the organization to an inter-functional attack to losses. Indeed,
this is based on the inherent inter-functional nature of losses, which makes the
traditional organizational structures unfit for the need to eradicate the losses per-
manently. The pillar-based system leads to a learning organization capable to
capitalizetheknowledgeforContinuousImprovement,whichprovidesalong-term
sustainability to the Continuous Improvement system almost unknown within tra-
ditional lean systems.
This book is arranged into four main sections. In the first section some success
cases are told by the leaders of five large multinational groups, each one
overviewing the reasons, successes, obstacles, hurdles, and recommendations for
those who would be glad to set off for a WCM/WCOM™ transformation. The
second section is devoted to describing the WCOM™ model: you will broaden
yourhorizonfarwiderthantheconcretewallsofplantsandmanufacturingfacilities
to overlook the end-to-end supply chain. The third section focuses on the human
side,dealingwiththemainprinciplesofleadershipandbehavior.Finally,thefourth
section provides an overview of the main contents connected to each pillar of a
value chain.
Foreword vii
Inconclusion,thisbookcouldbeagoodreadforwhoever—managers,directors,
students—is willing to get more insight into the WCM/WCOM™ approach, and
into what you can find beyond Lean.
Milan, Italy Roberto Cigolini
Andrea Sianesi
Preface
Saint-Gobain since several years has launched a program of World Class
Operations Management, which is the application of Continuous Improvement
principles to our industrial organization.
Asalllargecompanies,Saint-Gobainhastoadaptitselftothenewworldcreated
by globalization.
ConsiderthelongheritagethatSaint-Gobainhas:itwasestablishedinFrancein
1665,350yearsago,asManufactureroyaledeglacesdemiroirs,byLouisXIV.In
1684, Saint-Gobain won the order to create the mirrors that still adorn the Hall of
Mirrors in the Royal Palace of Versailles, in the South of Paris. Since then inno-
vationhasbeenthecorebusinessandthegroup,inthedifferenthistoricalphasesof
itslife,hasalwaysbeenleveragingtoreinventandadaptthebusinessmodeltobeat
the cutting edge.
The globalization process we have gone through the last 15 years has meant
mainly three challenges:
(cid:129) a wider strategic field, leading to an increasing size of the Company, offering
more opportunities for development;
(cid:129) consequently more complexity in the Organization;
(cid:129) more competition as well.
To take these three challenges, WCOM™ appeared as the most appropriate
approach, because
(cid:129) it creates results,
(cid:129) it builds a common industrial culture, ensuring a factor of cohesion between
persons working for the same company, but in different businesses, countries,
(cid:129) it develops, through the common culture, the strategic flexibility and reactivity
of the company,
(cid:129) andmostimportant,itempowersthepeopleattheshopfloorlevelanddevelops
their autonomy to adapt and improve permanently the organization.
ix
x Preface
Inthemeantimetheartofmanagement haschanged. It isnotanymorethetime
when the managers tried to instill their thoughts in the operators pretending they
execute.Itismorethemomenttocreate,inalldecentralizedorganizations,thebest
conditions for success. The need for speed and for simple pragmatic solutions to
operational problems makes it mandatory to empower the shop floor and make it
proactive and autonomous (in problem solving).
Inourworld,thelargeCompanycannotbemanagedbyafewpersons:problems
have to be dealt and fixed where they happen, through a large number of
empowered employees.
Of course, strategy imports, investments import, innovation imports, but the
motivation and the knowledge of all the people is key. And what better way to
motivate than to give more responsibilities, more influence on their work and
performance, to all the operators?
We consider that, together with innovation and expansion to new markets,
WCOMrepresentsthethirdpillarofourgrowthjourney.Wearenowextendingthe
approach to the whole value chain, because we consider that, beyond the results
already achieved, more is yet to come.
Jean Pierre Floris
Deputy CEO in charge of the Packaging Sector
and oversight of the Innovative Materials Sector
of Saint-Gobain
Paris, France
Acknowledgments
Besidestheauthorsandcontributorstothisbook,wethankfortheirpreciousadvice
Fjodor Ardizzoia (YellowHub), Giovanni Brembilla (Tenaris), Jasper Boers
(Bel Group), Wiebe de Vries (EFESO), Steve Ellam (Carlsberg), Stefano Erba
(EFESO), Daniela Gementi (EFESO), Bas Koetsier (EFESO), Günter Kröhn
(Lenzing), Giorgio Levati (EFESO), Ross D. Lichtenberg (YellowHub), Filippo
Mantegazza (EFESO), Emanuela Nizzolini (EFESO), Jennifer Proctor (APICS),
Natasha Puim (Kotter International), Kenneth Snyder (SHINGO Institute), Luca
Stoppino (EFESO), Lucas van Engelen (EFESO), Jean Veillon (EFESO), and Jon
Woolven (IGT Institute).
xi