Thinking Outside of the Box

As with every day, I talk with many professionals across multiple functions within manufacturing, and earlier this week, it was no different. I happened to be talking with a Quality Leader, and we had a good laugh about team meetings when there is a problem to be solved, and someone always suggests, "we need to be thinking outside of the box."

A visceral "Danger Will Robinson, Danger!" rings loudly in their conscience. To a person in quality alarms sound. To a Quality professional, there is a "Box"—regulations like AS9100 and ISO9001. But in building your team, there are ways to think outside of the box.

Let's think outside the box.

Today staffing your business is nuts, bananas. It is competitive out there. You also have a solid foundation of people on your team, there are a few gaps, but the foundation is there. What happens if a key leader leaves before their successor is ready?

What do you do?

Do you have anyone on your team that can fill that role while training up the chosen one?

Will you be robbing Peter to pay Paul??

Hopefully, you have someone that can step up into that gap in your leadership team, but chances are the exit unless planned, is premature. You can go to market, and I am here to help if that is what needs to happen. More than happy, but there are other options. One is to bring in a ringer, aka a contractor.?

Let's dig in.

How many times have you had a clear career trajectory only to have the person ahead of you, in your next position, be filled by someone externally? They left before leadership thought you were ready. What did this do to your morale? How did this make you feel? Was it motivating, or did you see this as a roadblock to your progression?

Now think about this.

In this challenging market, with top talent coming at a premium, maybe you need to think outside the box, and here is an idea. What about bringing in a ringer.

Many previous leaders are keen to impart their wisdom, to pass it onto the next generation but don't want to be a fixed asset in an organization anymore. They can add tremendous value to leadership as a sounding board, manage a function, and train the person in line but who is not quite ready. They can take on your vision, carry the torch and pass it onto the next in line while adding years of experience and knowledge to your business. At a set time, or when the time is right, they ride off into the sunset, leaving you with an empowered, fired-up and more effective team.

Who knows? Maybe you have other projects for them while they are there, and they can add value to other parts of your business or to others on your team.

And of course, once again, I am here to help. Send me a message, and we can discuss options.