Need Help!- SURROUNDED BY IDIOTS

[OpsMgr]

I NEED ADVICE......WHAT TO DO AND HOW TO HANDLE THE SITUATION AT HAND:


I started working for this company (Husband and Wife owned) last December. They hired me as their Operations Manager, run the daily operations of the entire shop. This is a CNC machining company doing work in the Aerospace field.

Since starting there I have found that this is the biggest cluster *^&% of a mess.

The owners have NO EXPERIENCE in machining, production, manufacturing or anything to do with the business.

So when explaining things that need to happen and how they happen....its like talking to a zombie.

1. President has came to me on the shop floor, arms going crazy, we can ship these parts, and these parts on Friday....get source in here. I look at him and say ummm..this parts can't ship they have 3 more processes to go through. Not to mention Inspection needs to be done.

2. Guys on the shop will not perform any task that they do not feel like doing unless owners pay them extra.....the owner actually does it. (example: they will not clean out chips from their machines, when it overflows they just stop working until owner writes them a check to do extra work) *%&$ Bull #$&%

3. I can't tooling ordered because tooling vendors won't deal with the company because they don't pay their bills. Machines stop again....out of tooling.

4. What I can tell from just seeing copies of checks written that the owners pay their personal bills with company checks.

5. They run around ship this ship that......parts are not even close to being finished. They see contract - make it - ship it......dollar signs....that is all they see. Forget everything in the middle that has to be done.

6. I can't give customers actual dates because I never know when **** is going to stop, because they didn't pay or can't pay.

7. Guys on the shop, all they worry about is pay day....are we getting paid...because yes checks have bounced...mine has not.

8. Their quality system has fallen apart....hasn't been updated since 2005. barely passed their last audit. Quality manager (I hired) myself are working on updating this.

9. Tooling per part that we produce. They have owned business for 4 years and can not tell me how much it cost to make 1 part (tooling, fixtures, man hours, overhead). With the Financial problems I think we are paying to make half the parts we produce.

Of course I can't get anyone in the shop to help with tooling count on hand and what is need per part, per operation, etc. Because they all want more money.

So yeah I am trying to get that myself.


Its like hands are tied behind your back and you are being screamed at to pick up the box!!!!

Since they have owned this, they have not invested one dime…..except for normal tooling inserts, holders, etc.


I know NORMAL STATEMENT: RUN, GET OUT NOW.



But what does that accomplish: your a quiter, run from problems...

How do I tell them that they are the problem and are hindering the goals and success of this business (which has been here since the 70's original owner passed. family sold).

How do I tell them that they need to separate their finances and create an actual budget for the company and each department. They need to invest into new equipment and technology, etc.

How do I tell them to step away from the business and let me run it the way it needs to run?

[Perfect Circle]

I feel your pain~!
I wont say that I was in the same position but pretty damn close as to what you are detailing.
I tried for 5 years to help out a comp that has been around since 1876 but the owners ultimately have the final say...Its their mess and you just have to leave or one day you will show up to work with "Owners" (thats all the are) like that and find out that the doors are chained shut and the place is up for sale..thats what I went through and wish that I would of and should of invested all my time and effort into a company with workers and owners that gave one ounce of care for the place...I'd say hang in there for a bit, but if they dont start to listen to you dont waste your life going through that Hell.
Good Luck in whatever choice you make.

[Mark and Poco]

Your only hope may be to have a sit down discussion with the owners out of the shop, off time. Detail a plan, and make sure you have the authority to implement it. As for the people that need a check to clean a machine, with owners prior approval, when the say its not there job, agree and show them the door. Hire in some people that want to make the place work. Good luck to you. And hopefully the owners will come around with a fully detailed plan on how to turn things around.

[Geof]

I remember seeing one of these 'Inspirational/Motivational' posters that some companies stick around the place to encourgage(?) their employees. I think this one was satirical because it said; "If you let Idiots surround you what does that say for your abilities?" Take this whatever way you like.

[OpsMgr]

Thank you for the comments.

I forgot to mention, most of the guys here have been here for over 15 years and have the owners believing they are the only ones out there that can do this work with the material we work with. (Inconel, Waspalloy, Rene41, Rene95, etc.)

Not to mention we are machining parts with tooling and machines from the 60's and the 70's. Manual Bullards. Some ****ty 90's CNC VTL's and 90's CNC Fadal Milling.

I did bring in a turning machinist, and he lasted about 3 weeks. He came in strong wanting to buy new up to date tooling inserts, holders, etc. I took a day off came back he was gone. Come to find out one the old guys threatened him, so he said **** it. I asked the owners we really need to fire the guy making threats, they just laughed......

i am working on putting the plan together now to discuss with them......which is going to have a salary increase included in it.

[awerby]

these parts are going into, so we can avoid flying in them...

And have the owners sit down and watch Arthur Miller's play "All my Sons" about a manufacturer who is indicted for shipping faulty parts which cause numerous WWII flyers their lives. (There was a film made, it's on video -maybe you could send it to them anonymously.)

Andrew Werby
ComputerSculpture.com — Home Page for Discount Hardware & Software

[Mark and Poco]

Those materials are the mainstay of mfg. You really have to open the owners eyes. Do they really want to keep wasting there money, because they think these materials are exotic and they have the "only" people able to machine them. There are plenty of people out there working with these materials, and on older machines. As soon as a few of the trouble makers are gone, everyone else will fall in line when they realize they might be next.

[lovebugjunkie]

I would set them down and let them know "how it is" if they do not agree, run don't walk out the front door. You stay very long and things don't change their reputation will effect your career when you look for another job.

[wildwestpat]

Thank heaven I have retired as I have had a very similar experience and the scars live on for a long time. There are several issues and they need to be sorted if you are to stay. Can I suggest that if these parts are for the aerospace industry then they are subject to both stringent inspection and that the manufacture stages need to be documented right down to the standards used and their calibration to the source of the material including batch numbers etc. Andrew has offered one way of driving the point home with that film and there are others involving helicopters and the use of duff parts. This means that there is a possibility that the 'firm' will be folded by failure to comply with the inspection and record keeping requirements of those lucrative contracts. This should grab the owners attention but you need to present it as part of the corrective action required or risk getting kicked out or given the rubber cheque treatment. The use of company cheques for personal expenses just makes life difficult for the accountant doing the tax returns but does indicate the lack of order in the owners thinking.

The attitude of the operatives is only to be expected given the conditions you describe. Their next move would be to demand cash in the hand to get them to move as having their pay cheques bounce will make them very difficult to manage. This will require a lot of trust building and firm management of issues as and when they arise but avoid any witch hunts. What happened prior to you joining are history and do not exist!

Being black listed by suppliers is also an issue as to the supply of materials as well as consumables and services. Most if not all aerospace work requires documentation on material source and this adds to the expense of raw materials. The calibration services required to verify that parts are with in tolerance require a stable relationship with the calibration service provider as well as documentation of the tracing of the measurement to the national standards. Documentation of heat treatment and surface treatment processes would also be an issue.

What I am suggesting is that you brain storm the total picture of what is lacking from a correctly run facility with the situation that exists. Sort out an action plan to lift the outfit into a better organised and hence more profitable venture. The profit and organisation should go hand in hand but your comments about cash flow show that there is a lot to be done. Try to offer a plan that shows that no great outlay is required - old machines are often capable of good quality work if nursed by good operators. This leads to devising an accounting structure that pin points costs and profit to individual machines / operators. Also include stock in hand both materials and tools and divide these out so that you can show what each item costs to make and can identify any slack capability. The knee jerk management of the past will make this difficult but there may be some room for improvement in productivity. This solves the problems with 'private cheques' but with out making it an issue or splitting the accounting into sections which in my experience will always be being revised as the work load alters.

In my experience the bolshie work force are a difficult problem and one on which you will quickly lose any advantage you may have for being the new boss. I tried quality circles as a way of involving the operators in sorting out the lack of productivity and improving the way the outfit is run. There are a number of good books on quality circles but you will have your own and in my opinion they are all very similar! Just make sure all are actively involved and can see improvements leading to happier times and pay.

Good luck with building the plan and breaking it up into steps to be achieved. If the plan falls on deaf ears then jump ship as you then have the excuse that you were taken on as a trouble shooter produced a viable plan after a close look at the business but the owners were not prepared to try and rescue the situation. If it is as bad as you indicate they will go bust which will vindicate your resignation further.

Good luck and I hope you can keep your sanity and health in the process as in my experience the ride can be rough.

Regards

Pat

[michaelthomas]

As strange as it may seem to us normal people......many people own businesses so that they can do what they want. Everyone's first impression is that if you just talk some sense to the owners and show them how things can be better and more profitable, they will be sure to listen.

Where I work, that is the furthest thing from reality. My boss barely maintains his business so he can come in at 11:00 and hire all his "friends". The "friends" all take advantage of him and pretty much just sap all of the potential profits. It has become very clear to me over the years that this is what he wants to do.....and it will not change. I have stopped trying.

That said......I actually like my job. I am the cnc programmer for a wookworking company. I get to do a large variety of complex and interesting projects. The company will never be very successful, but it's exactly what the owner wants it to be.

Being the only responsible person has its advantages for me. I get to work at about 6:00, and am rarely disturbed by anyone til 11:00 or 12:00. I get my stuff done and go home. The owner and his buddies stay late into the night and usually finish a few cases of beer, and do a little work. My machine is covered with pizza and beer cans when I arrive, and I spend about an hour each morning cleaning up after the evenings revelry. Usually the wasteboard is soaked and swollen from beer, so I replace it and resurface a new one. I make at least twice what anyone else in the shop makes, but I am the only one who will ever take out the trash or empty the dust collectors. I suggested that the laborers do the laborers work before, and was told that I should stop complaining and just do it myself. OK

It has been absolutely pointless, and has only garnered me misery to try to change things. Rather than swim upstream......I have learned to go with the flow. I do what needs to be done to the best of MY ability. The owner can screw his part up if he wants......it's his decision.

My advice.....if you are miserable, its best to find someplace else. It would bet that things won't change. To be happy......you may have to change.

[zool]

FIRST PIECE OF ADVICE: Keep a hardbound notebook wherein you keep contemporaneous notes of EVERYTHING that happens, all conversations, all observations, and all your thoughts and concerns. Technically these are known as memorandums for the record [MFR's]. DO NOT LET THIS OUT OF YOUR SIGHT!!!! Also, get as many copies of documents as you can that bolster your positions. As you will read below, you ARE going to need these notes IF you stay at this place. [Its is all known as CYA!]


FIRST: If it is aircraft parts you are making, and they are being done wrong, both manufacturing and record keeping, then this is not a case of bad reputation, this is a case of going to prison. The Fed's do not screw around with people that introduce dangerous or substandard parts into the aviation supply chain.

SECOND: You cannot succeed, so leave. The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. The owners have neither the intellectual capacity, the experiential knowledge, nor the moral and ethical compass to even listen to your good advice, much less implement it. Your advice is literally over their heads.

THIRD: Bounced pay checks will get your State's Labor Department involved very quickly. All it will take is one complaint. First time a letter, second time a fine, then it is criminal.

FOURTH: If the owners cannot make payroll I bet they are not depositing the withheld Federal and State taxes and Social Security contributions. The IRS is going to be there REAL FAST. First time its fines and penalties, second time a tax lien, and if it continues, the establishment will be shut down and and auctioned. [Maybe you can buy it for dimes on a dollar!]
Then there is the criminal aspect of not complying with Federal law!

FIFTH: By staying and trying to fix the place you are being exploited. Plus this is having an adverse effect on your health, and personal and family life. Leave and go some place where your skills and ethics are appreciated. As the saying goes: Life is too short.

I have now closed my practice, but for 25-years I valued businesses and provided consulting services, plus developed probabilistic mathematical models of economic and financial phenomenon. The former I did to support the latter; one for money one for fun!

I have a LONG list of clients who hired me, paid me well, and then ignored most everything, as it upset their personal ecology. Invariably, this class of owners eventually went out of business and then I got hired by their lenders to help clean up the mess. Often the matter went to Court [Federal for Bankruptcy or States Courts for foreclosures or deficiency judgments]. Fighting over the bones is what I called this, and it was not pretty, but I got paid very very well to be in the process. If you stick around, you are going to be sucked into this ugly and drawn out process and it is time consuming, disruptive, nauseating, AND you will not be paid a cent for all your time. The discovery process [look it up] of one of these types of actions is so frustrating, as it is tedious details and so so time consuming.

My opinion: You can't fix them or the place, this will suck the life out of you, so leave. NOW!!

PS. And yes, this is all downside oriented, but there certainly does not appear to be any upside.

[stevegyro]

Originally Posted by michaelthomas As strange as it may seem to us normal people......many people own businesses so that they can do what they want. Everyone's first impression is that if you just talk some sense to the owners and show them how things can be better and more profitable, they will be sure to listen. Where I work, that is the furthest thing from reality. My boss barely maintains his business so he can come in at 11:00 and hire all his "friends". The "friends" all take advantage of him and pretty much just sap all of the potential profits. It has become very clear to me over the years that this is what he wants to do.....and it will not change. I have stopped trying. That said......I actually like my job. I am the cnc programmer for a wookworking company. I get to do a large variety of complex and interesting projects. The company will never be very successful, but it's exactly what the owner wants it to be. Being the only responsible person has its advantages for me. I get to work at about 6:00, and am rarely disturbed by anyone til 11:00 or 12:00. I get my stuff done and go home. The owner and his buddies stay late into the night and usually finish a few cases of beer, and do a little work. My machine is covered with pizza and beer cans when I arrive, and I spend about an hour each morning cleaning up after the evenings revelry. Usually the wasteboard is soaked and swollen from beer, so I replace it and resurface a new one. I make at least twice what anyone else in the shop makes, but I am the only one who will ever take out the trash or empty the dust collectors. I suggested that the laborers do the laborers work before, and was told that I should stop complaining and just do it myself. OK It has been absolutely pointless, and has only garnered me misery to try to change things. Rather than swim upstream......I have learned to go with the flow. I do what needs to be done to the best of MY ability. The owner can screw his part up if he wants......it's his decision. My advice.....if you are miserable, its best to find someplace else. It would bet that things won't change. To be happy......you may have to change.

Excellent points Michael. Thanks for insite.