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What shapes the atmosphere at work?

What shapes the atmosphere at work is the fact that discussions concerning the problems encountered can be based on pragmatic consideration of facts and collaboration with a view to finding practical solutions, or else be dominated by considerations of ambition. personal, resentment, and primacy of 'good practices' over the facts themselves.

Typology of working group operation

The ideal group

All individuals have a positive attitude, respectful of others and of facts. Individuals coordinate in a flexible and informal manner.

The usual group

As soon as the ideal group includes individuals whose social ambition exceeds technical skills, or who present a problematic personality, the functioning of the group tends to deteriorate. Constructive exchanges aimed at effectively addressing problems on the ground become prevented, and individuals who could have functioned harmoniously in an ideal group feel oppressed.
All or some of the following symptoms appear:

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People invest their time in the game of alliancess, with a view to conquering positions of power, or simply to denigrate.

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Ideology (respect for good practices, not demonstrated) takes precedence over realities on the ground.
Individuals protect themselves, cover themselves behind the application of these rules without taking into account the reality on the ground.

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THE hierarchical functioning passes from the authority of competence (we listen to the one who has the most experience or competence concerning the present subject) to the double hierarchical constraint: we expect from our subordinates blind obedience... and results, all while avoiding report problems.

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Operational performance declines. Operation becomes bureaucratic. Unease at work increases. Indeed, operational efficiency becomes more and more linked solely to the pressure exerted by the hierarchy.

The managed group

The voluntary implementation of a system, which can be called Gemba, Talk, or more simply problem log, makes it possible to channel exchanges towards the resolution of field problems, and therefore to restore the harmonious functioning of the group, as well as operational efficiency.

This system aims to:

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Make field problems visible, and encourage cross-functional exchanges (being concerned by the problems of others).

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Educate individuals in the technique of methodical problem solving (observing, analyzing, finding solutions for improvement, implementing).

Opposed to the establishment of such a system are individuals whose social ambition is too high in relation to their real skills, and individuals with certain problematic personalities. The proactive problem journal system makes it possible to prevent some of these individuals from disrupting the harmonious functioning of the entire group, provided that they remain in the minority... and that the great leader supports the approach.

Evaluation of organizational performance

Good work organization simply assumes that everyone can easily find the information they need, when they need it. Easy to say, less easy to do.

Being poorly organized always results in a decline in work quality and productivity, as well as an increase in stress. Let's list the different archetypes of poor work organization.

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In a work group that is not organized at all, we talk to each other to transmit instructions, that is to say the information necessary for the proper execution of the work, as well as the coordination of its progress.
This requires everyone to move quickly and regularly from one mental context to another, to answer impromptu questions from colleagues, receive information at any time, as well as make a significant memorization effort. so that you can use it when the time comes.

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With the generalization of email, the poorly organized group around the mailbox appeared.
Dealing with a large number of emails results in an overload of work without added value which hampers productivity. On the one hand, the useful information in each email tends to be diluted and non-standardized, and on the other hand, this forces everyone to invent a personal organization, often mediocre because it is too local, to organize their emails and eventually find them. when the time comes.
Finally, this leads in practice to an unnecessarily high number of back and forths between the different stakeholders in a file, ultimately producing the same symptoms as in the absence of organization, namely the obligation for individuals to move quickly and steadily from one mental context to another as they move from one email to another.

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Finally, the group that has not seriously studied its production process uses sheets that are too approximate. This results in a waste of time collecting missing information, possibly requiring interruption of colleagues and thus producing the same symptoms as in the absence of organization. This also results in lower production quality linked to a more disparate interpretation of instructions.

In a well-organized group, all the information necessary for the proper execution of the work, and to coordinate its progress, is transmitted by forms and reports specific to each activity, in paper or digital form. We still talk to each other, but to carry out problem solving, which supposes having the hierarchical and technical freedom to modify the organization.

Go deeper

Refer to chapter 9'The problem log' from the book From capital to reason.
See also questions 'What do good practices represent in the world of work?' And 'What conditions must be met to produce serious reasoning? Problem solving.'