Field superintendents are home building's first and
last defenders of quality homes. They build quality homes despite a home
building production system that does not always work right. Most of the time
they can make up for shortcomings of the production system, but not always. When
problems occur, fix the production system, not the field superintendent. After
all, they did not create the system.
Someone else designs the homes, selects materials,
sets quality standards, contracts with the trades, schedules production, hires
co-workers, provides training, and determines superintendent workloads. These
decisions are made long before any problems appear on the jobsite. When problems
do occur, field superintendents are left with the task of solving the
problem.
Field superintendents routinely insulate
decision-makers from the realities of production system shortcomings by quietly
solving problems. Usually, management learns about situations only when several
problems converge at one time. When this happens, superintendents do not need to
be told how to do their job or be motivated. They need an improved home building
production system that has fewer problems in the first place.
Improving the production system is management's job,
and they should lead the effort. Management should act on behalf of
superintendents to facilitate change. Get started by following four simple
steps:
- Engage superintendents to set improvement
priorities. What is good for the superintendent is good for the company. They
are motivated to solve the biggest problems that cost the company the most
money.
- Involve superintendents in analyzing root causes
of problems. Superintendents understand what is really happening. Their
insight is invaluable for finding solutions that can work. They can also
temper priorities knowing how difficult it may be to implement solutions.
- Facilitate changes outside the superintendent's
sphere of influence. Superintendents may not be able to do it alone when
solutions involve changes in others parts of the organization or with trade
contractors. Get the right people involved in the problem solving process. Be
the management sponsor of any improvement projects that may be needed.
- Get opinions from superintendents on how well the
improvements are working. Many times improvement changes need refinement to
get the results you need.
When managers are part of the solution instead of
part of the problem, they are champions for field superintendents. When managers
are champions, everyone is a winner.