GPI 221 – Ask employees for profit-improving ideas and reward them.

Suggestion boxes do not always work because they are open-ended.  Most employees do not have an opinion until asked a question and provoked.  Suggestion boxes serve a purpose but a different approach is more effective when a question is given to get feedback.

Try asking one specific question. Try asking employees different questions every week or two and wait for responses, especially if those employees know there are potential rewards involved.  Ask employees a different question every week or month.  Stick the questions in their paychecks and give them space to write their answers.

Use a group to evaluate the answers, not one.  Encourage participants to turn in their responses to an assigned committee or group which will select the best idea or maybe the top three ideas or a combination of best, most original, reserved for analysis, etc.  If everyone knows it is being evaluated by someone they know, they will opt out.  They want their idea to be taken seriously and perceive several reviewers to give them a better shot.

Suggestions are important.  Make suggesting improvements an important function of all employees in your organization.  Do not ask a question and then let it drop off.  Pay attention to the answers.  Ask employees if they are interested or perplexed by the question?

Give examples to help provoke more ideas.   Give them examples of simple ideas or previous suggestions to contemplate.  When they see others’ ideas, they will immediately think they are deficient and add more to the thought.  Provoked by a concept, your employees are more likely to respond to something they do not like or which they think is inadequate.

Show the ones that ‘paid off’.  List on the wall for all to see other successful ideas that won money and awards that will get them thinking.  Explain to your employees the winning suggestions every week so they begin to think all the time of their own.  They need to see themselves offering good advice.

Use one or two guided questions.  Many times it is better to ask a guided question rather than offer a blank suggestion box.  Many people are not creative, but do have very good answers if asked in a direct manner.  You can offer both if you wish, but no matter what, get them involved.

Possible questions to ask for suggestions or ideas:

1. Which machine or machines in the plant are the most difficult to use?  Which create the most rejects or bad parts?  Which of these problem machines, because of their difficulty, need the company to hold formalized training?
2. What department creates the most problems or holds you up from doing your job?
3. What is the biggest waste of money in the company that you can see from your perspective?
4. If you could change a product that the company makes, which would you change and how would that change make the product better?
5. Which products sold by our company do you like the least?  This is important to ask if your company makes consumer products because your employee is a potential buyer of those products.  Why does he or she not like them?
6. Of the payroll benefits you receive, which do you like the least?  If you do not like the insurance coverage, are you willing to pay more?  Are you willing to pay a higher deductible to get better coverage?  Which of all the benefits do you like the best?  What would you change about the benefit program if you could?
7. What is the one thing you dislike the most about working for the company?  How would you change it?