Stuarts says:
That is correct when, the numbers get to a reasonable level you can’t see how to drive cost lower. You may be taken to task and asked to take more out, but you can’t accomplish this if you can’t see where the costs can be lowered. Look where you need to look, in the parts room, the bathroom, the scrap pile, the trash cans. Stand in the middle of the shop for a while and just open your eyes. Look for the waste and think about ways to minimize it.
Look around and ask: Is the lighting good, bright? Are the employees hunting for brooms, shovels for the piles of speedy drive from a spill of a sloppy mechanic? Are you managing your labor by the hour, day, week or by the minute, or not at all? (I would suggest by the minute.)
Spend sometime on the road, in the shops, talk and listen to the techs— most of the answers are with them. Check for shop cleanliness, swept floors, organized parts rooms and good lighting. Consider taking a camera around the facility—take 100 pictures and do a slide show for yourself. Then make note of what you see and ask yourself if it is something you would want to show the boss, the owner, a banker or a potential new company wanting to hire you (and increase your salary for performance)? If not, you’ve got work to do.
Cutting costs is not about making people work harder. It’s about helping them work smarter. A good manager removes the internal obstacle that detracts from productivity. Most employees want to be productive, we as management sometimes expect more from them than we expect from ourself.
For more information, visit www.darrystuart.com or email comments, questions or requests to Darry at: [email protected].
