Elements of Continuous Improvement

Continuous improvement in a management context means a never-ending effort to expose and eliminate root causes of problems. Usually, it involves many incremental or small-step improvements rather than one overwhelming innovation. the context of the discussion presented improvement is outlined by three major elements: Emotions Perceptions Attitude In continuous

It is the management of these three elements with respect to people in organizations, which leads us to nominate theses as the essential drivers of continuous improvement of organizations. Let us begin by looking at an overview of each of the following drivers in perspective.

Perception
Perception their is a process by which what individuals one organize can and be interpret their sensory impressions in order to give meaning to environment. However perceives substantially different form objective reality. There need not be, but there is often, disagreement. It is important simply because peoples behavior is based on their perception of what reality is, not reality itself. Individuals behave in a given manner based not on the way their external environment actually is but, rather, on what they see or believe it to be. Its the employees perception of a situation that becomes the basis for behavior. Whether or not a manger successfully plans and organizes the work of employee and actually helps them to structure their work more efficiently and effectively is far less important than how employees perceive Syndicate 3 Page 1

their

managers

efforts.

Therefore

to

be

able

to

influence

productivity it is necessary to asses how workers perceive their jobs. Failure to deal with differences when individuals perceive their jobs in negative terms will result in increased absenteeism and turnover and lower job satisfaction.

Emotions
Emotions are intense feelings that are directed at someone or something. Emotions are reactions that are caused by specific events that occur in an environment (externally) or as a state of mind (internally). Emotions generally last for a very brief time, as they are an expression of a feeling or an outward depiction of a mood. of They can be of various kinds and may take various forms yet they are specific in nature. Emotions are actions

characterized by distinctive facial expressions. In addition to this the nature of an emotion is action oriented. Emotions as a natural part of an individuals make up, where managers go wrong is when they ignore their co-workers emotions and asses others behavior to as if it and were completely their rational. Managers who understand the role of emotions will significantly improve behavior. their ability explain affect predict co-workers the Emotions can job performance especially

negative ones which hinder performance. This is a primary reason why organizations try to extract emotions out of the work place. Emotions employees ability also to affect work job performance Emotional positively labour by motivating that better. recognizes

certain feelings can be a part of the jobs requirements and the to manage this effectively proves to be critical to the success of the organization.

Attitudes
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Attitudes

represent

an

individuals

covert

feelings

of

favorability

or

unfavourability toward an object, person, issue, or behavior. Formally, an attitude is defined as a learned predisposition to response in a consistently favorable or unfavorable manner with respect to a given object (Fishbein and Ajzen 1975). Employees learn these attitudes over time by being exposed to the job directly (experience) or through receiving information about the job. These learned attitudes serve as general guides to an individuals overt behavior with respect to the job, giving rise to a consistently favorable or unfavorable pattern of response.

Green (1953) states that any attitude is a hypothetical or latent variable rather than an immediately observable variable. It is, in other words, an abstraction. According to Green, the concept of attitude does not refer to any one specific act or response of an individual, but it is an abstraction from a large number of related acts or responses.

Functional Approaches to Attitudes

Katz (1960) used a functional approach to analyze attitudes. Katz cites two streams of thought regarding man's attitudes: one which minimizes man's rational powers and the other which invokes a rational model of man. Katz asserts that at the psychological level the reasons for holding onto or for changing attitudes are found in the functions they perform for the individual. The functions are those of adjustment are as follows:

Adjustive

Ego-defense, Value expression and Knowledge.

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The Adjustive Function This category embraces those attitudes which are utilitarian in origin and intent. Very often the object is some tangible benefit. Often, too, these attitudes are affective associations based upon previous experience. A favorable attitude towards a certain food is based on pleasant memories of the food.

This function of attitudes has relevance in the realm of behavioral theory and social group work. Take, for instance, the matter of 'shaping' behavior. It follows from the nature of the adjustive function of attitudes that the clarity, consistency and nearness of rewards and punishments as they relate to the individual's attitudes and goals are important factors in the acquiring of new utilitarian attitudes. This must be taken into account in shaping new-habits. A further implication for social group work is that if the group worker is in a situation where utilitarian, adjustive attitudes predominate among individuals, the group goals must be such that they will help in the satisfaction of utilitarian needs or in the avoidance of punishments. The Ego-Defensive Function This is where attitudes proceed from within the person, and the objects and situation is to which they are attached an are merely adopted internal convenient outlets for their expression. One common type of egodefensive These function transference attitudes where attitude from towards a person is not based on the reality of the situation. ego-defensive stems basically conflicts. One of the difficulties of ego-defensive attitudes is that the usual procedures for changing attitudes and behavior may not cause the individual to modify but may force him to reinforce his defenses, causing him to cling tenaciously to his emotionally held belief. Among the procedures for attempting to change attitudes, Syndicate 3 Page 4

Katz includes invoking punishments. This has relevance in the application of behavioral theory to social group work. However, it should be noted theory that most those who advocate favor a the application of of behavioral frequently system rewards

rather than punishments.

The Value-Expressive Function These attitudes have the function of giving positive expression to central values and to the type of person an individual conceives himself to be. A man, for instance, may think of himself as an internationalist. attitudes, say, Attitudes towards in keeping with thisfavorable have a valueother countrieswould

expressive function for him. These attitudes may have a double function: they may be a confirmation of self-identity; and they may also help to mold the self-image "closer to the heart's desire. Favorable identity. Katz mentions two conditions which are relevant in changing attitudes towards a group very often have a valueexpressive function. The group gives the individual a sense of

value-expressive attitudes: Some degree of dissatisfaction-with one's self-image or its associated values, which opens the way to fundamental attitude change. This is closely allied to the hypothesis that a person of low self-esteem tends to be more open to change from a person (or group) of high self-esteem. Dissatisfaction with old attitudes as inappropriate to one's values. Clearly, this dissatisfaction can be aroused in a group Syndicate 3 Page 5

where members are shown by the worker and group members that present ways of acting conflict with values held.

The Knowledge Function

The knowledge function of attitudes has already been discussed briefly give when treating to what of functional would and causal be of a analysis chaotic of and attitudes. According to Katz, an individual, seeks knowledge to meaning otherwise patterns unorganized attitude social of group universe. others work Discussing social is of influence,

Cohen (1964) draws attention to the role of "opinion leaders". The towards is "opinion leaders" functionally the group's determined by the need of knowledge. Even more pertinent to Cohen's discussion informational function. Members seek consolidation for their ideas within the group, and they look to the group for knowledge. The group therefore has effectiveness for influencing the attitudes of its members.

Components of Attitudes

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Researchers have assumed that attitudes have three components namely: 1. Cognitive component: - it is the opinion or belief segment of an attitude. 2. Affective component: - it is the emotional or feeling segment of an attitude. 3. Behavioral component: - it is the intention to behave in a certain way towards someone or something. Viewing attitudes as made up of three components cognition,

affect and behavior is helpful in understanding their complexity and potential relationship between attitudes and behavior. These three components are closely related particularly cognitive and affective components. In organizations attitudes are important because of their behavioral component.

Job Attitudes

An individual can have a number of attitudes but in this case we focus only on job related attitudes. These job related attitudes tap positive aspects or of negative the with work evaluations that employees research hold has about been job environment. attitudes; Most job

concerned

three

satisfaction,

involvement and organizational commitment. Recent research has been done on perceived organizational support (POS) and employee engagement.

Job Satisfaction It is defined as positive feeling about an individuals job resulting from an evaluation of its characteristics. An individual with a high level of job satisfaction holds positive feelings about the job,

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while a person who is dissatisfied holds negative feelings about the job.

Job Involvement It measures the with degree their to jobs which and employees their identify perceived psychologically consider

performance level important to self-worth. Employees with a high level of job involvement strongly identify with and really care about the kind of work they do. Psychological empowerment is a related concept, which is employees beliefs in the degree to which they impact their work environment, their competence, the meaningfulness of their job and the perceived autonomy in their work. High levels of job involvement and psychological empowerment are positively related to organizational citizenship and job performance.

Organizational Commitment It is defined as the degree to which an employee identifies with a particular organization in the and its goals and wishes are to maintain separate membership organization. There three

dimensions to organizational commitment: Affective commitmentan emotional attachment to the

organization and a belief in its values.

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Continuance commitment- the perceived economic value of remaining with an organization compared to leaving it.

Normative commitment- an obligation to remain with the organization for moral or ethical reasons.

Perceived Organizational Support (POS) It is defined as the degree their to which employees and cares believes about the their organization values contribution

wellbeing. Research shows that people perceive their organization as supportive when rewards are deemed fair, when employees have a voice in decisions and when their supervisors are seen as supportive. Employee Engagement It is defined as an individuals involvement with, satisfaction with, and enthusiasm for the work period. Studies have been conducted which show employees with high levels of engagement result in increased levels of customer satisfaction, productivity and lowers levels of turnover and accidents.

Models and Theories associated with Attitude and Attitude

Balance Theory 1. This theory was first developed by Fritz Heider. 2. Basically it is an interpersonal theory of consistency.
o o

Change

(take

the

theories

out

and

replace it with workplace attitude doc)

Unit formation and denial of unit formation (+1, -1) Liking and disliking (+1, -1)

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3. Balance exist when you like a person you are associated with (+1 x +1), or dislike a person you are not associated with (-1 x -1). 4. Imbalance exists when you dislike a person you are associated with (+1 x -1) or like a person with whom you are not associated with (-1 x +1) 5. Imbalance is stressful and you will tend to change one of the cognitive components. Congruity Theory 1. This theory was developed by Osgood and Tannenbaum. 2. It deals with attitudes (evaluations) and relationships 3. Attitudes are measured on a 7 point scale from +3 to -3. 4. Attitudes are always toward some object. 5. Objects may become linked in our mind, that is form a bond. There are two types of bonds:
o o o

Associative (positive link between objects) Dissociative (negative link between objects) These links are similar to unit formation in the Balance model of Heider.

6. Congruity exists when our evaluation of (attitude toward) two objects that are associatively bonded are identical in magnitude and direction. We like the Democratic Party (+2), and we like National Health Insurance (+2) and we learn that the Democratic Party endorses National Health Insurance (Associative Bond). 7. Congruity also exists when our evaluation of (attitude toward) two objects that are dissociatively bonded are identical in magnitude and opposite in direction. We like the Democratic Party (+2), and we dislike Multinational Companies (-2) and we learn that the Democratic Party rejects Multinational Companies (Dissociative Bond).

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8. Incongruity exists when our evaluation of (attitude toward) two objects that are associatively bonded are not identical in magnitude. We like the Democratic Party (+2), and we like Election Reform (+1) and we learn that the Democratic Party endorses Election Reform (Associative Bond). 9. Incongruity also exists when our evaluation of (attitude toward) two objects that are dissociatively bonded are not identical in magnitude. We like the Democratic Party (+2), and we dislike Continuation of Tax Advantages (-1) and we learn that the Democratic Party rejects Continuation of Tax Advantages (Dissociative Bond). 10.When there is incongruity people feel the effects and are motivated to change their attitudes to make them congruent. Both attitudes change. The weaker attitude changes more, the stronger attitude changes less. Attitudes do not change direction (sign). 11.Let stronger attitude magnitude = S, weaker attitude magnitude = W (no signs, absolute values). Then S (before change) becomes (after change) S((W/(S+W))*(S-W)), and W (before change) becomes (after change) W+((S/ (S+W))*(S-W)). Signs of the new values are the same as the signs of the old values. 12.When there is a dissociative bond between two attitudes with the same sign, or an associative bond between two attitudes with opposite sign, the theory does not apply. We tend to not belive the bond in this case. 13.Work examples

Dissonance Theory

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1. This theory was proposed by Leon Festinger, and has generated more research and controversy than any other cognitive consistency theory because of its ability to make non-obvious predictions. 2. Two cognitive elements can stand in relationship to each other as consonant (one implies the other), dissonant (one implies the opposite of the other) or irrelevance (one has no implication for the other) 3. Dissonance is distressful and we seek to reduce it. 4. Magnitude of dissonance is a function of 4.1 Importance of the items: 4.2 The number of cognitive elements involved. 5. Dissonance can be reduced by 5.1 changing the behavioral element. 5.2 change the attitudinal element. 5.3 add cognitive elements consonant with the behavioral element. 5.4 change the importance of the cognitive or behavioral elements.

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Beliefs-Attitudes-Values Model Rokeachs Beliefs-Attitudes-Values model explains that the self (or collectively, the world) is arranged according to centrality, also known as ego. Imagine this model as a small circle surrounded by many circles. The circle as a whole has many "layers" and the layers overlap one another. Again, envision balance and complexity. At the core or center of our personality circle is our self-concept. This guides the three instruments of the psyche- beliefs, attitudes, and values (Littlejohn, 90). On the outside are our peripheral, or changeable beliefs, including our values. Values are specific beliefs that act as life guides. There are two types: 1.) instrumental, values based on daily living, such as daily goals for completion of work, and 2.) terminal, ultimate personal goals, such as achieving a sense of inner peace. Finally, surrounding values are attitudes. Attitudes are groups of beliefs focused around a subject and predispose a particular behavior. There are attitudes towards objects, and attitudes towards situations. Attitudes towards either objects or situations involve complex evaluation processes and are subject to many influences. Laddering is the relationship between attitude and values. With laddering, attitudes are formed through a series of processes, mostly through socialization and acculteration (Engel, et.al. 372). Both attitudes and values can be passed on by groups and by society from generation to generation. Some attitudes are formed by core social values, such as those regarding murder or stealing. Attitudes may also be formed by social institutions such as school, government, religion, media, and/or family, and early lifetime experiences (i.e. war, economic situations). Marketers and advertisers are interested primarily in the transitional attitudes, or attitudes that are changeable. They must also remember to identify moderating effects- including individual differences in attitude stability and buying style.

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Self Perception Theory

This theory states that attitudes are used after the fact to make sense out of an action that has already occurred. Contrary to cognitive they dissonance have theory attitudes or are just, casual self verbal statements. When employees are asked about their attitudes and dont says strong tend convictions to create feeling perception Self theory they plausible answers.

perception theory has been well supported. While the traditional attitude behavior relationship is generally positive, the behavior attitude relationship is just as strong. This is particularly true when attitudes are vague and ambiguous.

Continuous Improvement
Continuous improvement in a management context means a neverending effort to expose and eliminate root causes of problems. Usually, it involves many incremental or small-step improvements rather than one overwhelming Continuous innovation. is the is seeks improvement which From a to a Japanese for their all for perspective business permeating into with continuous the Japanese an improvement culture, basis

culture.

philosophy, improve word

factors related to the transformation process (converting inputs outputs) the on ongoing basis. The Japanese From the continuous improvement, kaizen, is often used interchangeably term continuous improvement. Japanese character kai, meaning change, and the character zen, meaning good, taken literally, it means improvement.

Attitudes necessary for implementation

Most Japanese people are, by nature or by training, very attentive to detail and feel obligated to make sure everything runs as smoothly as possible, whether at work or at home. This attitude enhances the functionality of kaizen. However, this is not typically the case in the West. To encourage the kaizen attitude, organizations require a major change in corporate culture; one

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that

admits these

problems, problems, in training

encourages delegates skills and

collaborative

attitude

to The

solving

responsibility development

and

promotes

continuous

attitudes.

driving force behind kaizen is dissatisfaction with the status quo, no matter how good the firm is perceived to be. Standing still will allow the competition to overtake and pass any complacent firm. The founder of Honda has been quoted as saying, "In a race

competing for a split second, one time length on the finish line will decide whether you are a winner or a loser. If you understand that, you cannot disregard even the smallest improvement." incremental Although continuous improvement involves making

changes that may not be highly visible in the short term, they can lead to significant contributions in the long term. Organizational performance can improve from knowledge gained through experience. Lessons learned from mistakes mean those mistakes are less likely to be repeated, while successes encourage workers to try the same thing again or continue to try new things. While this learning process important occurs for to throughout the system the the it is particularly for accomplishing be successful, long-term organization

improvement associated with continuous improvement. In order continuous improvement must learn from past experience and translate this learning into improved performance. Part of the learning process is trying new approaches, exploring new methods and testing new ideas for improving the various processes. So experimentation can be an important part of this organizational learning. Naturally, many of these worker-led that to experiments there allow is any will fail, risk so it is important with to this recognize be some real associated of

experimentation. If management is uncomfortable with risk, it may reluctant degree experimentation. the production Obviously, management cannot risk disabling

process itself or endanger the well-being of the workforce, but the complete absence of risk can reduce the vision of those involved in the continuous come in improvement modest process. of Improvements progress. will generally Syndicate 3 increments Therefore, Page 15

management must recognize that some experiments will fail as part of the learning process, and avoid the temptation to harshly judge the perpetrator as having new but unsuccessful ideas. Some even feel that the in it is critical that to risk establish is good. an environment this of change and that the reinforces consistency notion of Again, involves

management's employees.

attitude The

toward

empowerment management.

achievement

continuous

improvement requires a long-term view and the support of top

But it is also important that all levels of management actively support and become of involved in the process. Proper support structures training, management, resource allocation,

measurement, and reward and incentive systems must be in place for successful adoption. This includes a willingness to provide financial support and to recognize achievements. It is desirable to formulate goals with the workers' help, publicize the goals, and document the accomplishments. These goals give the workers something tangible to strive for, with the recognition helping to maintain worker interest and morale. Kaizen also requires that all employees in the organization be involved in the process. Every employee must be motivated to accept kaizen as a means by which the firm can achieve a competitive advantage in the marketplace. All involved must push continuously at the margins of their expertise, trying to be better than before in every area. Japanese companies have been very successful managers. with These the use of teams composed work of workers on and teams routinely together problem

solving. Moreover, the workers are encouraged to report problems and potential problems to the teams; their input is as important as that of management. workers process In order to establish a problem-solving training and in problem orientation, statistical should receive extensive

control,

quality

improvement,

solving. Problem solving is the driving force behind continuous improvement. Actually, it can be said to become a way of life or a

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culture that must be assimilated into the thinking of management and workers alike. Workers are trained to spot problems that interrupt, or have the potential to interrupt, the smooth flow of work through the system. When such problems do occur, it is important to resolve them quickly. Also, workers are trained to seek improvements in the areas of inventory reduction, set-up time and cost reduction, increasing output rate, and generally decreasing waste and inefficiency.

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