Hardwood Floors April May 2018

BUSINESS BEST PRACTICES MANAGEMENT

Defying Statistics (Continued)

Investing in performance

passports are transferable; if they do grow beyond us and choose to move on to another company, they don’t have to start over to prove themselves. Fortunately for us, they are happy to be here.” e company has also implemented facets of lean manufacturing. Similar to the communication workshop, the team shut down the entire plant for a full day to allow employees to participate in lean training. Dashboards of goals and key performance indicators were developed by the employees and posted in the plant. In November 2014, Appalachian began receiving formal coaching on lean manufacturing management through tools from the Vermont Manufacturing Extension Center and the Northern Forest Center. As a result of its lean program, the company has been able to focus on reducing those facets of production that do not add value to the customer, such as extra piece movement/waiting, over-processing, over-production, and defects while signi cantly reducing lead time.

“Our consultant, Je Howe, was a major catalyst in moving us forward. He came once a month and worked with us in developing a culture where every decision we make is based on our core values,” said Fraser. Another critical step in the overall transformation involved shu ing down the entire plant for a full day to allow all employees to a end a workshop centered on improving communication in the workplace. During the workshop, employees and managers studied di erent styles of communication and were taught skills in communication, professionalism, active listening, and con ict resolution. While it is a costly exercise to shut down a plant for a whole day, Fraser said the long-term bene ts far outweighed any costs. “ is workshop empowered our workers to become manufacturing professionals with an active, integral role in the success and future of the company,” said Fraser. e company also transformed its hiring practices to include behavioral interviewing. Every candidate is now evaluated to ensure that he or she will t well within the new culture. ese changes resulted in dramatic improvements in employee morale, a endance, and sense of commitment to the team. Employee turnover stabilized within four to six months. “Once the culture and the people started to stabilize, it was really neat. We were keeping our good people, and if people did leave, they were people that didn’t t the culture anyway,” said Fraser. “We are also a racting the full age range of employees.”

Improving productivity and performance came through the implementation of the Wood Career Alliance’s (WCA) Skill Standards. Appalachian Engineered Flooring has a 90-page skills standards book that covers more than 15 skill sets. Each employee has a skills passport that tracks his or her pro ciency advances in each skill. ese standards serve as a structured tool for training and cross- training employees, and also help in se ing employee goals and as a basis for performance reviews. e passport is a portable credential that employees can take with them if they move on to another company, and their skills credentials are also stored in the WCA database. “ e passport program has motivated our people to see woodworking as a career instead of just a job,” Fraser said. “It is exciting to see them want to grow their skills. ey know their

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