Close To The Edge

It's not every day that I get an opportunity to use a St Elmo's Fire reference, so I'll make the most of it. Though I can't exactly remember how the song goes in the movie, I do recall the title: stressed out (close to the edge), which seems fitting at the present moment based on the fact that I'm about two clicks away from absolute insanity.

I believe the song was played during the latter portion of the film when all of the conflicts were coming to a head; again, perfectly fitting for my current situation.

Monday night was the last time I had some peaceful sleep, and I'm attributing that to a nice few hours I spent chatting to a friend of mine who I've been trying to get to know better. The smile on my face Tuesday morning ended quickly, and it's been an absolute bugger of a week ever since.

Everything that could possibly be going wrong for the start of this project has managed to go wrong...to the maximum level. True, I recognize the language and culture barrier, but basic business logic is still, er, basic business logic. What I've discovered this week is that the team I've put together to do this job doesn't have all the right skill set.

Now, I'll be the first to admit that I'm not an expert in all areas of my job, but I'm certainly no slouch. Furthermore, I've got the good sense to stand up and raise my hand and say, "um, I don't think I understand what it is we're trying to do here," in the event I find myself in that situation.

My team supposedly consists of tenured employees that have some experience in their position. For example, the stock room team understands parts management and all the various processes involved with good and defective materials. How these people managed to do it without ANY idea at all about XCEL and other applications is beyond me. I'm not talking about the clerk; I'm talking about the warehouse manager. And should they really need to ask me how to create new bar code labels for their shelves?

Repair logistics becomes only as complicated as you want to make it, and as a rule, my company has tended to make it as complicated as they can. Fortunately, I've been around long enough to know that, so I've always found ways to simplify the processes for the team so that they really only have to do the job that they supposedly know how to do in the first place. Thus, I can get the results I'm looking for.

That's why I'm so out of sorts. I've got people asking me basic questions about their jobs that lead me to believe that perhaps they shouldn't be in their roles. Not good, Bob. Not good.

I always look for potential in situations and people. In fact, my pleasant Monday evening was spent with someone who really has potential to make a difference in this world. That's special to me, and I'm attracted to people like that. I like to spend time with them and have the opportunity to not only learn a thing or two, but also share a bit, too.

In repair operations, I've had relatively good success judging people that were new to the industry, but demonstrated all the right soft skills that would lead to their success. Decision making ability, logic, and confidence are three things that you can easily identify in somebody if you ask the right questions.

I've been asking the right questions, but am getting too many blank stares, confusing answers, and lack of common sense responses. For example, if I were to tell you that you would receive a cash bonus in the event the project was profitable by the end of the month, and for whatever reason, the project was NOT profitable by the end of the month, should you expect a bonus?

That's not a trick question.

I'll jump off the ranting, because I really just needed to give myself a reality check and get this off my chest. My colleague in the UK and I have been joking about our frustrations (if we weren't joking, we'd be crying); if between the two of us we can make this a successful program across two sites, we've done great things. It's not about the personal fame and recognition; I'm talking about keeping 300 some odd employees employed. I'm talking about returning a company to profitability. I'm talking about providing a good service to a really demanding customer.

Easy? Nope. That's why I'm doing it.

But it would be a lot more fun if my team here were running their butts off in effort to make this success, too.

We go live on Monday, March 26th. The electric screwdrivers haven't arrived yet, the freight carrier just now confirmed that they're sort of ready, the first few technicians don't have much experience with the shop floor control system, I have NO materials planner, we've got almost 700 different types of restoration CDs to manage, and to top it all off, I think the milk I put in my coffee earlier this morning was a bit off.

wish me luck, and keep the faith.

cheers
bryan

Soundtrack:
Stressed Out (Close to the Edge) - Airplay (ie..David Foster)
The Clash - Death or Glory
Bruce Springsteen -Born to Run
Front 242 - Never Stop!