Dr. Tom DePaoli, Assistant Professor, Management, at the School of Business and Public Safety, has had another article published at My Purchasing Center; Use the Story Telling Method to Train Supply Chain Professionals , Dr. DePaoli describes an approach below:
“The leader of the
team should lead off and share personal supply chain stories of success and
failures. There should be a general framework for the stories. In our
framework, we structure the stories to first give a background of the situation
or issue, and then tell how resources are gathered to address the issue
(approach), and finally reveal the results. Often the approach to solving the
problem is more important than the actual results.”
Dr. DePaoli has
published numerous books listed on his Amazon author’s page https://www.amazon.com/author/tomdepaoli
He is a regular contributor to mypurchasingcenter.com.
One of the oldest methods of passing
down knowledge is oral storytelling. Usually an ancient sage would be the
keeper of the stories and pass them down to other tribe members. I highly
recommend this method for supply chain professionals.
Here are some advantages of
storytelling:
- The brain stores information by stories.
- Stories are humanizing and stimulate creativity.
- Storytelling improves listening skills.
- Storytelling builds a team culture.
- It encourages collaboration.
First, creating the right atmosphere
and teamwork is essential in order to establish the validity of this method.
The trust of all members of the team and non-attribution is essential. The
leader of the team should lead off and share personal supply chain stories of
success and failures. There should be a general framework for the stories. In our
framework, we structure the stories to first give a background of the
situation or issue, then tell how resources are gathered to address the issue (approach),
and finally reveal the results. Often the approach to solving the
problem is more important than the actual results. Colleagues are encouraged to
ask questions and to suggest more appropriate approaches. Supply chain
professionals have many touch points or people involved throughout the supply
chain. Stories should not be limited to paying customers but include suppliers,
colleagues, competition, other departments etc.
Here is an example:
Background: We went through comprehensive sourcing selection process
with a cross-functional team. We involved all the key stakeholders and were
very meticulous in our research and selection. We were highly confident that we
had selected the right water pump supplier and were expecting significant hard
and soft savings. The supplier had prior experience with partnerships and
alliances.
Approach: Much to my surprise after two weeks I discovered that the
process was not going well. Maintenance personnel were complaining about the
new supplier so I decided to investigate. I walked around the plant and talked
to maintenance personnel and their department heads. I soon discovered that the
issue was not the quality of the pumps. The issue was the representative that
the supplier had assigned to our account. The rep just could not adjust to our
people or culture. The personality was not a fit.
Results: I approached the supplier and requested that a new
representative be assigned to our plant. The new representative got along well
with everyone and we made great progress in savings and innovation. The lesson
that I learned is that the selection team should interview the potential
supplier’s representative during the selection process and ensure that they are
a fit. We thus added “chemistry” to our selection process.
We used this same storytelling
method after every sourcing event and continued to discover issues that we had
missed. We then added them to our overall sourcing methodology or checklist.
Storytelling is a powerful collaborative learning tool. I recommend taking full
advantage of it.
- See more at:
http://www.mypurchasingcenter.com/office-products/blogs/use-storytelling-method-train-supply-chain-professionals/#sthash.xfO90rxV.dpuf
