Performance Management and Improvement Programs
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Maximizing Employee Performance
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Achieving a high performance organization can be a challenging process. At PDII, we have examined many of the characteristics of high performing organizations and discovered that they commonly exhibit the following:
- Performance and productivity measures provide accurate and reliable assessment of individuals, work units, operations, and profit centers
- Employees, at all levels of the organization have an understanding of company vision, long-term strategy, and business fundamentals.
- Customer understanding is paramount and employees from front line to senior management have an appreciation for customer needs and expected delivery of product / service.
- Employees frequently contribute meaningful ideas for improving productivity which are quickly acted upon.
- Company rewards are tied to company or work unit performance. Employees understand the connection between their performance and rewards, i.e., “line-of-sight”
- Continued employee development is expected and supported.
- Employees at all levels find the organization an exciting and satisfying place to work.
Few can claim to possess most or all qualities of a of high performance organizations.
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Moving Toward High Performance
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At PDII we work with companies to develop strategies, processes, and initiatives to move toward achieving high performance standards.
Trained by Carl Frost, an originator of the Scanlon Principles and Process, PDII President, Dow Scott, Ph.D. has been highly involved in the development of high performance work teams and organizations. An expert in his field, Dr. Scott has worked with Scanlon organizations for more than 25 years working with companies including:
- Xaloy
- Grand Rapids Transit Authority
- Scanlon Leadership Network
- Hollingsworth & Vose
Dr. Scott has received numerous grants, including from the National Science Foundation and Sara Lee to study the determinants of team and company performance.
Client Case Study: Developing Leadership Teams at Sara Lee Knit Products
PDII worked with key management leaders to develop effective leadership methods. Sara Lee suffered from culture conflict between highly participative work teams and traditionally organized management structure. PDII developed and lead a client-specific, four-day leadership program for all individuals in leadership positions. Designed to address the cultural challenges and issues specific to Sara Lee’s situation, the program impacted 500 key management leaders. The program resulted in substantial savings and innovation for Sara Lee.
PDII has been involved in developing:
- Self-managed work teams
- High performance organizations
- Effective leadership teams
- Scanlon organizations
We can help you find answers to these types of questions:
- What are the characteristics of a highly effective organization in your industry?
- What is required for our organization to transform itself into a highly effective organization?
- How can the Scanlon Principles and Process help us achieve our goals?
- How do we create a shared vision of a highly effective organization?
- Where do we begin?
We first discuss your specific needs to better understand your organization, environment, and situation. Contact PDII to discuss your situation.
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Customized Performance Development Seminars and Workshops
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Creating High Performance Organizations with Scanlon Principles & Processes
Client Participation
- Management Association of Illinois
- Marsh, Inc.
- Sara Lee Coffee and Tea
- Groendyke Transpor
- U.S. Information Agency and Polish Government (Warsaw, Poland)
- Kollmorgen-Industrial Drives
- Hollingsworth & Vose
- Transforming Organizations (Loyola University Chicago and Scanlon Plan Associates)
- A Scanlon Exploring Conference (Scanlon Plan Associates and Virginia Tech)
Incentive Systems for Effective Organizations
Client Participation
- Loyola University
- Scanlon Leadership Network
Creating All-Star Teams Using the Scanlon Principles
Client Participation
- Scanlon Leadership Network
- Marsh, Inc.
- Sara Lee Knit Products
- Sara Lee Coffee and Tea
- Illinois Manufacturing Association
Leadership in Changing Times - Effective Team Leadership
Client Participation
- U.S. Forest Service
- APCO
- Courtalds
Team Management and Development
Client Participation
- Virginia Transformer
- Construction Management Institute
- Montgomery Regional Hospital & Poly-Scientific
The Scanlon Plans are a sophisticated form of gainsharing. Shared reward programs formulated under the basic assumption that performance or productivity can increase if employees work together effectively and are encouraged to share their ideas for improving productivity. Scanlon programs typically have several common elements that include:
Compelling Vision Shared by all Employees
Scanlon programs are typically applied to a business unit (e.g., team, department, facility, or organization) that can clearly identify customers and can demonstrate measures of the unit’s overall success. Employees understand how they can contribute to the success or performance of the unit.
Participation
Scanlon Plan is based on the premise that most productivity improvements or gains come from “working smarter, not harder.” Consequently, to increase productivity, employees must have the opportunity to provide input and influence decisions. In most plans, a formalized suggestion process is used to give employees a voice. Suggestions are quickly and formally evaluated, and their implementation monitored, and results shared with employees.
Other methods for involving employees include project task forces, team structures, and standing committees. Because all employees share in the gains that result from suggested improvements, everyone has an interest in making sure good ideas are clearly articulated and quickly implemented. Unlike traditional suggestion programs, there is no individual financial incentive for just making a suggestion, only for reducing costs or increasing profits depending on how the shared gain formula is defined.
Performance Measures and Rewards
Timely, reliable, and valid measures of performance or productivity must be developed if rewards are to be fairly shared with employees and to focus performance improvement efforts. Traditionally, these measures include labor cost saving, waste reduction, and equipment repair. However, companies today use a variety of other measures including profits, quality improvement, and most recently Economic Value Added (EVA).
Creating High Performance Work Systems with the Scanlon Process
Establishing and maintaining high performance work systems is an illusive goal for many organizations. However, Scanlon Principles and Processes have provided a framework for creating highly productive organizations. These programs have lasted for decades within some companies.
PDII has developed a unique employee survey instrument (Scanlon Diagnostic) for evaluating the degree to which an organization practices the principles and process that are necessary to function as a high performance organization. We can further define the characteristics of a highly effective organization in your industry context and develop a realistic strategy for achieving this result.
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Articles highlighting PDII’s Approach to Performance Management & Improvement Programs
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Performance Differences Among Self-Directed Work Teams
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Article in Process, Publication Date - TBA
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If one accepts that organizations design self-directed work teams (SDWTs) for maximum efficiency and provide each of team with the same tools, machines, and processes to do their jobs, the performance across these teams would show little variance. However, in reality, performance across such teams varies substantially. Results indicate that goal commitment and team performance strategies are directly related to team level performance and mediate significant relationships between team commitment and participation in goals setting with performance.
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Building a Company Culture that Drives Performance: A Case Study
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Published in the WorldatWork Journal
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Based on extensive quality and productivity problems, Atlantic Automotive management team realized it needed to create a new organizational structure, reward system, and culture to survive. After an intensive search, the Scanlon Principles and Processes were identified as the means for building a highly competitive company. Management attributes increased company performance, employee involvement, and employee competence to this plan. On average, each employee has received $1,000 as their share of the performance improvement and company owners have received a better return of investment.
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In the Hands of Employees
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Published in the Workspan
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With the recent controversy surrounding employee ownership, one company has held fast to same rule for nearly 50 years: Keep it simple, and keep it in the employee’s hands. This employee ownership program has resulted in big payoffs for company owners and employees.
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Teams: Why Some Succeed and Others Fail
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Published in the HR Magazine
(Yoder Heneman Research Award for Research Excellence)
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The introduction of teams at 20 manufacturing facilities substantially increased productivity for a Fortune 100 company. However, management noted that some teams were far more productive than others. This study examined why some teams out performed others based on data from 122 teams. The findings indicated that team performance is related to attractiveness of performance, agreement with team goals, team goal level, willingness to use cross-training, participation in team decisions, team efficiency and team commitment.
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Gainsharing and EVA: The United States Postal Service Experience
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Published in WorldatWork Journal
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Although the Economic Value Added (EVA) has become relatively popular performance measure, few studies have examined it within the context of gainsharing programs either in the public or private sectors. The United States Postal Service’s (USPS) six-year experience with an EVA based gainsharing plan is presented and examined as a case study. The USPS case study shows the interplay of these concepts and their strengths and weakness in this public sector program. Considerations for plan designers in both the public and private sector are detailed.
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The Impact of the Scanlon Plan on Retail Store Performance
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Published in WorldatWork Journal
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Most prominently used in manufacturing companies, the Scanlon Plan was implemented in six retail stores, each matched with a control store. The Scanlon Plan proved beneficial as stores with plans received more favorable response on all customer satisfaction measures; realized higher sales performance and lower employee turnover; and employees were more willing to offer productivity improvement suggestions.
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