Lean/TPS in the Public Service – Part 3 – Obstacles & Countermeasures?

By Pascal Dennis (bio)

In my last blog, I noted that morale in the US and Canadian federal governments is at all-time lows, and that the growing gap between performance in the private and public sector fuels a corrosive cynicism and disengagement.

I noted three major obstacles to Lean/TPS in government. What are the possible countermeasures?

Obstacle 1: Government is culturally predisposed to making decisions for political reasons

In Lean/TPS terms, governing parties frequently jump to countermeasures to ill-defined problem, and make a mess.

Possible Countermeasure: I’m stumped. Is this an endemic failure mode in democracy?

The skills required to win an election are very different from those required to govern wisely (see the ending to old Robert Redford movie, The Candidate).

New governments and leaders bring with them an army of new staff who are bright, ambitious, inexperienced and too often, arrogant. Pity the poor government engineer, manager or executive working to develop rationale countermeasures to clearly define problems!

Obstacle 2: Absence of customer or client feedback

Possible Countermeasure: Another tough one. Government agencies are usually monopolies isolated from, and too often, indifferent to the customer. (Where you gonna go?)

How to amplify the voice of the customer? Could independent performance rating organizations, like J.D. Power, provide annual, widely publicized ratings of government agencies based on detailed customer feedback, as they do for other industries?

Obstacle 3: No Continuity of Leadership

Possible Countermeasure: This one would require a wholesale change in government Human Resources practices – not dissimilar to the changes enlightened companies have implemented the past decade.

Senior government leaders and bureaucrats would be rewarded and promoted based on the footprint they left – i.e. the management systems they built, and the capable successors they’ve groomed – rather than on the tired old ‘get your ticket punched’ routine.

(The current practice of shifting senior managers every few years actively discourages the development of the management systems and culture required to sustain Lean/TPS.)

None of these countermeasures are easy, reflecting the scale of the challenge.

Are there others? No doubt – I’d love to hear from senior leaders in the public service. What do you all think?

The stakes are high for public service members, and for the public.

Best regards,

Pascal




In case you missed our last few blogs... please feel free to have another look…

Lean/TPS in the Public Service – Part 2 – What are the Obstacles?
Is Lean/TPS Possible in the Public Service? – Part 1
Henry & Edsel Ford – the Pride & the Sorrow
Ethics Enables Leadership

Lean/TPS in the Public Service – Part 2 – What are the Obstacles?

By Pascal Dennis (bio)

In my last blog, I noted that morale in the US and Canadian federal governments is at all-time lows.

Morale In The Public Sector

Moreover, the growing gap between performance in the private and public sector fuels a corrosive cynicism and disengagement – surely the last thing we need nowadays.

Why shouldn’t civil servants have the opportunity to develop what Deming called ‘pride of workmanship’? Why shouldn’t they be involved in developing and improving their work processes? Why shouldn’t their work be fun and motivating?

What are the obstacles to Lean/TPS in government? Let’s dig in

Obstacle 1: Government is culturally predisposed to making decisions for political reasons

Ontario residents are enduring a crippling example of this one. Although energy prices have never been lower, Ontario energy bills have never been higher. In fact, the past decade, Ontario energy prices have tripled, and are now among the highest in North America.

Ontario electricity has never been cheaper, but bills have never been higher.

Ontario’s Power Trip: Irrational energy planning has tripled power rates under the Liberals’ direction.

Ignoring the advice of industry & government energy professionals, the governing party has repeatedly made ill-considered forays into the notoriously tricky energy market. (Remember Enron?).

Overall cost will exceed $ 30 billion, or $ 30,000 per resident. Needless to say, the Ontario economy is blighted.

In Lean/TPS terms, the governing party has jumped to countermeasures to an ill-defined problem, and made a mess. Pity the poor government engineer, manager or executive working to develop rationale countermeasures to clearly define problems!

Obstacle 2: Absence of customer or client feedback

Rule 2 of Lean/TPS states that ‘customer-supplier connections must be direct, binary and self-diagnostic’. Such connections drive improvement in the private sector and sometimes contribute to it in health care and education.

Our Toyota plant (TMMC) had abundant feedback through multiple sources including organizations like J. D. Power, and our 3/6/9 month in service audits. My dad’s legendary restaurant, The Imperial Grill, also sought and received direct, frequent & binary customer feedback.

The most common checkpoint was the plates coming back. “Hey Martha,” Dad would say, “you didn’t finish your moussaka. Didn’t you like it?”

“Oh yes, Frankie, it was delicious. But it was big for me.”

“But you liked it! Okay, Spiro wrap it for the lady. She can have the rest at home!”

Obstacle 3: No Continuity of Leadership

Building an integrated management system took us five years at TMMC – and we had constancy of purpose and leadership. (Not to mention splendid, tolerant senseis)
Do government organizations have the same?

Are there any countermeasures?

Difficult obstacles, no?

I invite our readers to share their thoughts on countermeasures. I’ll mull it over too.

The stakes are high for public service members, and for the public.

Best regards,

Pascal




In case you missed our last few blogs... please feel free to have another look…

Is Lean/TPS Possible in the Public Service? – Part 1
Henry & Edsel Ford – the Pride & the Sorrow
Ethics Enables Leadership
Leadership in Times of Crisis

Lean/TPS in the Public Service, Part 3 – Obstacles & Countermeasures?

By Pascal Dennis

In my last blog, I noted that morale in the US and Canadian federal governments is at all-time lows, and that the growing gap between performance in the private and public sector fuels a corrosive cynicism and disengagement.

I noted three major obstacles to Lean/TPS in government. What are the possible countermeasures?

Obstacle 1: Government is culturally predisposed to making decisions for political reasons

In Lean/TPS terms, governing parties frequently jump to countermeasures to ill-defined problem, and make a mess.

Possible Countermeasure: I’m stumped. Is this an endemic failure mode in democracy?

The skills required to win an election are very different from those required to govern wisely (see the ending to old Robert Redford movie, The Candidate).

New governments and leaders bring with them an army of new staff who are bright, ambitious, inexperienced and too often, arrogant. Pity the poor government engineer, manager or executive working to develop rationale countermeasures to clearly define problems!

Obstacle 2: Absence of customer or client feedback

Possible Countermeasure: Another tough one. Government agencies are usually monopolies isolated from, and too often, indifferent to the customer. (Where you gonna go?)

How to amplify the voice of the customer? Could independent performance rating organizations, like J.D. Power, provide annual, widely publicized ratings of government agencies based on detailed customer feedback, as they do for other industries?

Obstacle 3: No Continuity of Leadership

Possible Countermeasure: This one would require a wholesale change in government Human Resources practices – not dissimilar to the changes enlightened companies have implemented the past decade.

Senior government leaders and bureaucrats would be rewarded and promoted based on the footprint they left – i.e. the management systems they built, and the capable successors they’ve groomed – rather than on the tired old ‘get your ticket punched’ routine.

(The current practice of shifting senior managers every few years actively discourages the development of the management systems and culture required to sustain Lean/TPS.)

None of these countermeasures are easy, reflecting the scale of the challenge.

Are there others? No doubt – I’d love to hear from senior leaders in the public service. What do you all think?

The stakes are high for public service members, and for the public.

Best regards,

Pascal

Pascal Dennis Bio

Lean/TPS in the Public Service – What are the Obstacles?

By Pascal Dennis

In my last blog, I noted that morale in the US and Canadian federal governments is at all-time lows.

Morale In The Public Sector

Moreover, the growing gap between performance in the private and public sector fuels a corrosive cynicism and disengagement – surely the last thing we need nowadays.

Why shouldn’t civil servants have the opportunity to develop what Deming called ‘pride of workmanship’? Why shouldn’t they be involved in developing and improving their work processes? Why shouldn’t their work be fun and motivating?

What are the obstacles to Lean/TPS in government? Let’s dig in

Obstacle 1: Government is culturally predisposed to making decisions for political reasons

Ontario residents are enduring a crippling example of this one. Although energy prices have never been lower, Ontario energy bills have never been higher. In fact, the past decade, Ontario energy prices have tripled, and are now among the highest in North America.

Ontario electricity has never been cheaper, but bills have never been higher

Ontario’s Power Trip: Irrational energy planning has tripled power rates under the Liberals’ direction

Ignoring the advice of industry & government energy professionals, the governing party has repeatedly made ill-considered forays into the notoriously tricky energy market. (Remember Enron?).

Overall cost will exceed $ 30 billion, or $ 30,000 per resident. Needless to say, the Ontario economy is blighted.

In Lean/TPS terms, the governing party has jumped to countermeasures to an ill-defined problem, and made a mess. Pity the poor government engineer, manager or executive working to develop rationale countermeasures to clearly define problems!

Obstacle 2: Absence of customer or client feedback

Rule 2 of Lean/TPS states that ‘customer-supplier connections must be direct, binary and self-diagnostic’. Such connections drive improvement in the private sector and sometimes contribute to it in health care and education.

Our Toyota plant (TMMC) had abundant feedback through multiple sources including organizations like J. D. Power, and our 3/6/9 month in service audits. My dad’s legendary restaurant, The Imperial Grill, also sought and received direct, frequent & binary customer feedback.

The most common checkpoint was the plates coming back. “Hey Martha,” Dad would say, “you didn’t finish your moussaka. Didn’t you like it?”

“Oh yes, Frankie, it was delicious. But it was big for me.”

“But you liked it! Okay, Spiro wrap it for the lady. She can have the rest at home!”

Obstacle 3: No Continuity of Leadership

Building an integrated management system took us five years at TMMC – and we had constancy of purpose and leadership. (Not to mention splendid, tolerant senseis)
Do government organizations have the same?

Are there any countermeasures?

Difficult obstacles, no?

I invite our readers to share their thoughts on countermeasures. I’ll mull it over too.

The stakes are high for public service members, and for the public.

Best regards,

Pascal

Pascal Dennis Bio