Alistair ConnSite Manager

Syngenta, Huddersfield

A Decade of Improvement at Syngenta:

From Tools to Principles, and Beyond

No Shingo Award

• We have no Shingo Award – we’ll probably try for one in the near future.

• We’re on a journey.

• We’ve seen up to 50% increases in output due to Operational Excellence.

• I’ll share some thoughts from our journey so far.

• World leading agribusiness.• Helping farmers grow and protect crops.• Seed production and Crop Protection products.• Helping farmers feed the world.

Huddersfield Site

• Top Tier COMAH site.• 100 year history.• Manufacture pesticides, to

help farmers control insects, weeds and diseases.

Huddersfield Site (2)

• High margin products, but …• Competition from Far East led to

site closure fears around 2005.• Opportunity to take charge of our

own destiny.If you drive performance, then cost, quality, capacity, safety and morale all follow.

Nothing Bad About the Past

• Their hard work earned our present.

• VUCA world – Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous.

• What’s good enough today will not be good enough next year.

• Big Margins = Big Target.

Never criticise a predecessor – you don’t walk in their shoes. Donald Rumsfeld

Tools → Systems → Principles

• Our journey has taken a ‘traditional’ route of discovery.

• Started with focus on Tools & Techniques.• Gradually developed to Systems & Processes focus.• Eventually we appreciated the importance of Guiding

Principles.

I can’t understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I’m frightened of the old ones. John Cage

Tools & Techniques

• Started in local areas - easy to train.• Good results – gathered lots of low hanging fruit.• Attractive to senior managers who then want more.• But not sustainable

• Limit to low hanging fruit.• Application tends to be very locally focussed, not systemic.• Becomes harder and harder to get results – not motivating.

Tools are not for improving the process. Tools are for making the problems visible and helping people think how to solve them. John Shook

Systems & Processes

• No overall benefit if one department’s improvements in flexibility and adaptability are simply off-setting another departments unreliability.

It doesn’t really matter how well you play when you’re playing well, what matters is how well you play when you’re playing badly. You’ve got to have a standard you can hit. Martina Navratilova

Systems & Processes (2)

• Needed to think systemically – a holistic view.

• Engagement was key – especially across departments.

• Needed to help departments get to know more about each other and work more closely together.

Engagement Examples

• Task Forces• Tiered Daily Meetings• Work Shadowing• Open Days• Tuesday Discussion Sessions• Annual Strategy Events

I don’t like that man. I must get to know him better. Abraham Lincoln

“Jobs On Our Site in 50 Years Time”

• Success led to recruitment – in particular restart of Apprenticeship Scheme.

• A long term vision.

• Focus on providing full careers for the next generation, as others had done for us.

• Created a strong sense of community.

Principles

• The importance of Guiding Principles in keeping us on track – ‘despite changes in weather’.

• The appreciation of the difference between Leader and Manager.

• The powerful effect of a clear Mission, Vision and Strategy – combined with good Alignment.

People are working so hard to be sure things are done right, that they hardly have time to decide if they are doing the right things. Stephen Covey

Servant Leadership

• We realised that the Leadership Team was now the biggest obstacle to success.

• We can’t make any product, we’re not experts.

• We need to ensure that everyone has the resources and support they need to do their job properly.

• We need to change our behaviour and live the principles and values in everything we do.

God gave us one mouth, two eyes and two ears. We should use them in proportion.

Enterprise Excellence Program

• Completed 5 workshops out of 6.

• Biggest team based Leader Development we’ve done.

• Hugely valuable.

My Role Now …

• Make sure bad things don’t happen.

• Make sure everything we do adds value to achieving our Mission.

• Make it look as though it doesn’t need me for it to happen.

Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re usually right. Henry Ford

Any Questions?

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