Change

The change management methodology has been a key success factor in all of these projects. Communication, training, internal and external stakeholdes’ engagement together with the fully visible sponsorship by the leaders have been crucial to face common and specific challenges. Blue collars, white collars as well as managers have been both audiences and leaders of these changes. In 2009 Settimo Torinese started a multiyear (2009 – 2015) project aimed to shift the entire production from the mass-market tire to the premium and prestige product in a brand-new building. In 2016, Bollate begun a similar project on a smaller scale, that helped the plant to create the best products for the best clients. In 2017 Bahia re-shaped its plant toward Bahia 4.0 in order to guarantee a Premium standard in process and ways of working. In 2019, Silao plant has been starting its journey to reach a higher degree in terms of quality of the product and of the process. Methodos had the chance to work closely with the plants and HQ as well and to work sometimes with other consultancies through joint projects in order to ensure the best results. In every project, we have set plenty of activities: sometimes traditional, such as in-house training; sometimes very innovative such as the museum of tire that presented the entire tire production process or… a music performance with blue collars. All of these acitvities, help people to understand the need of change, to develop the right capabilities and to create the willingness to do it. In every case, the plan needed to adapt itself to the emerging needs and opportunities.Each plant has a different story within a common framework made by people as key enabler of the transformation. Everyone has been able to meet stakeholders’ expectations as well as people’s wishes. Cost-reductions, quality of the products and processes and new people mindsets and behaviors have been the main achieved results: this helped the plants to maintain the new competitive level they have been able to create.

To achieve such a change, it was necessary to engage the “global sponsors” (the leaders of the 7 business lines), the local sponsors (Plant Managers and HR Managers of all the 65 plants involved), and the “change agents” (all the first line managers of all the 65 plants involved) – nearly 1500 people – following a “bottom-up” approach. Firstly, Methodos organized 3 Activation Workshops, global events to involve the global and local sponsors in the definition of the challenge and set the right mindset necessary to deploy the organizational model. Secondly, together with the MM HR Central Team, Methodos held local experiential workshops in each plant, aimed at adapting the change management program (as well as the organizational model) to local needs and to strengthen the leadership skills necessary to lead the change. Thirdly, Methodos trained the white collars on the shop floor, in order to empower them and to enhance their capabilities to communicate the change. In addition, other activities have been developed, such as: the “M3 Development Community”, an online platform for the change agents, a specific communication plan and other involving activities. Finally, after more than a year since its beginning, the M3 project entered a new phase: the “M3 Review”. This phase, which is still ongoing, was conceived to appraise the implementation of the M3 model at the plant level. In particular, the MM HR Central Team evaluates the hard part of such a change, while Methodos deals with the soft one, supporting each plant to quickly adapt the change program when necessary.

The Golden League is a useful activity that we designed and delivered for many years in different companies (FCA, Whirlpool, Magneti Marelli) that adopt the WCM lean manufacturing methodology. Its goal is to create and nurture a new sensitivity and a new way of working throughout the plant and speed-up the WCM certification process. In order to reach such an ambitious objective, we designed and delivered a six-month project in each Plant, during which first line managers set their own teams and deployed an innovative project focused on Industry 4.0, robotics etc. All the projects have been identified starting from each plant’s specific needs emerging from the latest WCM audit. The final goal of each project was to facilitate the spread of a new way of working through “on the job” training (with a pinch of gamification) promoting a new idea of factory plant. Projects have been presented on a regular basis in front of a jury composed of Company/Plant Top Management which is in charge to evaluate strengths and areas of improvement. Aside from just technical skills, the jury evaluated the ability of every team to involve people, being proactive and able to effectively communicate. During the whole League, project leaders have been supported by Methodos coaches in a repeated and dedicated session, in order to set-up all the upcoming activities the best way. At the end of the League, the team that demonstrated to be the most effective in developing its project involving people, making sense of the activities keeping a strong focus on what we call “the soft side of change” was awarded with a cup in a special final ceremony.