Planning & Implementing an Effective Staff Suggestion System

© Operational Excellence Consulting. All rights reserved. 1
Planning & Implementing
an Effective
Staff Suggestion System
© Operational Excellence Consulting. All rights reserved.

Contents
1 Introduction & Basic Concepts
2 Scope of Suggestions
3 Goals of a Suggestion System
4 Planning & Launching a Suggestion System
5 Roles & Responsibilities
6 The Suggestions Process
7 Evaluation & Award Systems
8 How to Develop Good Quality Suggestions
9 How to Sustain a Suggestion System
Outline
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Benefits of a Suggestion System
• Improves one’s own work and the working
environment
• Engages and empowers employees
• Creates ownership and trust
• Builds teamwork
• Enhances communication between
employees and management
• Improves motivation and morale
• Promotes self-development
• Discovers hidden talents
• Improves customer satisfaction
• Improves profitability

Integration with Corporate Initiatives
Business Excellence
Initiatives
Safety
Lean5S
SSSTQM
others
Six Sigma

Two Approaches to Suggestion Systems
• Traditional approach
Cash for your ideas
Innovative, big ideas
Low participation
• Participative approach
Let us improve the way we work
Continuous improvement through
implemented proposals
High participation

The Suggestions Cycle
Encouraging
People to
Participate
Improvement
Proposals
Review,
Evaluation &
Guidance
Awards &
Recognition
Source: Kaizen Teian 1 - Developing
Systems for Continuous
Improvement Through Employee
Suggestions

Scope of Suggestions
• Acceptable suggestions
Prevention of waste
Elimination or simplification of
records, data, materials or
documents
Improvement in quality of
products/services
Ideas for new products/services
Customer retention and
satisfaction

Who Can Submit Suggestions?
• Individual
Staff
Manager
• Group

Goals of a Suggestion System
Tangible & Intangible Results
Development & Activation of the
Organizational Structure
Improvement of Performance
on the Job
Effects
Participation
Development
of Skills
1
3
2
Source: Kaizen Teian 1 - Developing Systems for Continuous Improvement Through Employee Suggestions

Planning a Suggestion System
• Form a Suggestion
Committee
Get together a small group of
people from different functions
Integrate your suggestion
system into existing in-company
productivity initiatives, e.g.
Quality CirclesThis document is a partial preview. Full document download can be found on Flevy:

Launching the Suggestion System
• Most effective communication is
face-to-face
• Newsletters and posters
• Convention / Conference
Opening address by CEO
Distribute suggestion form and invite
employees to submit at least one
suggestion per month
• Quick report

Promoting the Suggestion System
• Launch an Ideas Day
Speech by CEO or senior executive
Announce tangible/intangible
results achieved
Present awards to individuals,
groups and departments
Share success stories
Talks by external speakers on
topics related to suggestions
Provide refreshments to staff and
guests

Role of Suggestion System
Committee
• Report and brief management on progress of
Suggestion System
• Obtain funds from management
• Hold periodic meetings to discuss and review
progress of Suggestion System and solve
problems brought up by department
representatives

Role of Suggestions Office/
Secretariat
• Sets concrete targets, and ensure that the
targets are well deployed in each
department/function
e.g. One suggestion per employee per month
• Make monthly and annual plans to attain the
targets

Role of Suggestions Office/
Secretariat
• Keep a monthly record of the estimated amount
of savings made from suggestions
• Ensure that the evaluation criteria are clear and
well understood by all members of the
evaluation committee
• Adjust possible discrepancies between
departments/ functions to ensure objectivity and
fairness

Key Elements of a Suggestion
System
• A system (or box/boxes/ email/online) to receive
suggestions
• A format to fill suggestions
• A system for registration, response, evaluation,
reward, commendation and publicity

Typical Suggestion Flow
• Submit to Suggestion Committee
Register the suggestion forms and returns
acknowledgement slip
Sort out those suggestions that are acceptable and
recommended for further action
Refer unrelated suggestions to relevant department
Evaluate suggestions
Submit to management for approval of implementation
and award
Notify staff of suggestion result

Evaluation System
• Upon receiving a suggestion form, it will be
registered with a serial/reference number and
date received
• Acknowledgement slips/emails will be sent to
the individual or group participants
• Evaluation will be carried out by the Suggestion
Committee based on defined Evaluation Criteria
(see example on next slide)

Guidelines for Evaluating Suggestions
General Suggestions
• If the suggestion is related to matters concerning:
Lines of Business - it should be evaluated by the LOB
Departments/Sections - it should be evaluated by the person in
charge of the department/section
Corporate organization - it should be submitted to the
Suggestions Office in the Head Office for evaluation
• Need to be objective and fair in evaluations when a
suggestion is made verbally

Guidelines for Evaluating Suggestions
• If there are delays in
evaluation, interim
updates should be sent to
the submitter of the
suggestion
• If a suggestion is lost for
any reason, appropriate
actions should be taken to
compensate for the loss

Special Awards
• President Award
• Committee Chairman Award
• Best suggestion of the year
award
• Accumulated suggestions
point award
• Best department award
• Individual award
• Most outstanding/unique
suggestion award

Characteristics of a Good Quality
Suggestion
What Constitute A
Good Suggestion?
Description
Logical The idea makes logical sense
Radical
The idea is original and surpasses
ordinary ways of thinking
Practical
The suggestion is applicable and effective
in producing beneficial results

Techniques for Developing Creativity:
2. Listing Wishes
• Not the opposite of listing
faults
• Create an ideal
development in your mind
Step 1 – Decide on a subject
and describe in words how you
wish it to be
Step 2 – Consider how these
wishes can be realized, listing
concrete measures that will
enable it to transpire

4. The Gordon Method
• However, when we concentrate solely on the
function of the toaster, namely, “to toast”, our
mental image is no longer restricted by the
notion of a conventional “toaster” or by the usual
property of being “electric”.
What other ways are there for toasting bread?

Assessment of Ideas
• Categorize the various ideas
derived from brainstorming
into one of the 4 boxes
• A - Put into practice immediately
• B - Make maximum efforts to put
the idea into practice
• C - Reconsider applicability (idea
may be abandoned)
• D - Abandon the idea (idea is
worthless)
C
A
D
B
High Low
APPLICABILITY
High
Low
EFFICIENCY

Examples of Ideas for Improvement
• Upgrade and stabilize product
quality
• Raise yield rate (prevent defects)
• Improve transport, storage and
packaging
• Economize by substituting
materials
• Improve handling of materials
• Utilize reject products and scrap
Products &
Materials

• Standardize and improve quality of
design
• Reduce designing costs and time
expended
• Create ideas for new technology
• Improve and develop new processing
methods
• Improve and automate inspection
procedures
• Prevent problems against warranty
claims. Determine better means of
handling complaints.
Technology

• Improve product planning – new
products and product improvement
• Improve sales promotion – sales
routes, time of promotion and product
demonstration
• Improve advertising and publicity –
improve company image, sales
promotion materials and cost efficiency
• Improve service of sales organizations,
shops and consumers
Sales &
Planning

Sustaining the Suggestion System
• Periodic company-wide
campaign
Fix a specific month each half-year/
one year to organize a company-wide
campaign to promote suggestions
Competition for Department/Team/
Employee which has the most
number of suggestions
• Special campaign on specific
theme
Have a period for specific themes
such as Quality, Safety, Cost Savings,
Sales Promotion, etc.

Critical Success Factors
• Top management commitment
• Involvement of middle
management
• Promoter or Facilitator
• Special gimmicks
• Credibility to the workforce – good
suggestions are acted upon
• Evaluate suggestions fairly

Copyrights of all the pictures used in this presentation are held by their respective owners.

Topics for Group Discussions
1. Employees are not interested in
submitting suggestions
2. Employee finds it too much trouble
filling out the form
3. How to motivate employees to submit
suggestions?
4. How to motivate part-time and
temporary employees to submit
suggestions?
5. How to formulate suggestions to
improve quality?
6. How to promote suggestion activities in
functions who are indirectly involved in
production?

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