The case of the unpopular pay plan

Three years after launching the team-based Quality For All program, Top Chemical Company CEO Sam Verde was searching for a team-based compensation system that would reflect his company's new philosophy. With a committee gathered to discuss the issue, Verde confronts the fact that changing pay plans is an issue few people can agree on. "Very simply," explains vice president for compensation Gilbert Porterfield, "the plan is designed to give employees working on teams real incentives for constant improvement and overall excellence. The variable aspect of the system pays employees for the performance of their group." This doesn't sit well with the others. "It's going to punish teams like mine for the failings of others instead of rewarding us for the work we do and have already done," says packaging team representative Ruth Gibson. Another committee member feels that team-based anything is a "motivational happy land that doesn't square with how people really work." While Verde likes the proposed pay plan, he has doubts over whether his employees will accept the risk. Upper management has no problem basing 60% of its pay on TopChem's performance. But getting line employees to risk part of their salaries--even as little as 4%--on the ups and downs of the chemical industry may be more trouble than it's worth. Four experts on compensation reveal where Top Chemical went wrong in its plan and how Sam Verde might bring about change successfully.     

How to handle donor complaints

Responding to donor complaints takes great care. But know who's complaining and keep things in perspective.     

How public opinion really works

The public's thinking on issues progresses through seven predictable stages, the dean of American pollsters finds. Politicians make a big mistake just looking at raw numbers.     

减少汽车业的浪费

汽车制造商和零件供应商可以节省巨大开支，但前提是双方要更为紧密地合作在一起麦肯锡的研究表明，北美汽车业每年在产品开发和组装过程中由于汽车生产商与供应商缺乏良好的计划和协调不当，造成了超过100亿美元的浪费。事实上．这只是较为保守的估算。因为我们的研究仅涵盖了供应商发生的成本，如：附加设计、生产工具最后改型和零件自身的附加成本。这还不包括因设计问题生产商需额外支付的改型费用、生产问题引发的车辆最终成本的增加或质保支出。这几项每年给汽车行业带来的浪费约为120亿美元。     

哈林顿专栏检验、纠正、预防、选择:质量工作者的角色转变

回顾自己40年的质量工作生涯,我认为可以将质量工作大致划分为四个阶段: 检验:20世纪70年代我们关注检验.质量组织致力于防止制造商装运不符合规范的产品.质量工作者是顾客的保护者,几乎会跑去躺在卡车前面,阻止制造商将不合格产品装车后带离码头.质量工作者的基本角色是警察.制造过程中约10%的工作与质量保证性检验相关.这属于质量控制范畴.     

管理者在创新中的角色：“聚会”的组织者——对《创新：缺失的维度》一书的点评

孤独的创造者是浪漫的,但是不切实际。创新是一个社会过程,创新越是成功,这个过程就越具有社会化。然而,在公司内部,创新的社会化、非正规化却经常受到管理者硬性规定的约束。他们强调预算、团队的时间表以及其它的条件来限制乃至取消自由交流思想的各种形式,管理者反对公司未来无法想象的产品拓展。《创新:缺失的维度》一书提出了管理者在创新中的角色:“聚会”的组织者。该书作者是麻省理工学院教授理查德·莱斯特和麦克尔·皮尔瑞。他们把创新的早期阶段描述成一个鸡尾酒会。在这个阶段,不同专业、不同兴趣的人们聚在一起,轻松而又认真地…