Gm Nummi

(1) GM’s manufacturing process focused on a “quality through testing”

approach, where quality assurance measures were performed during postmanufacturing

testing and validation phases. The “quality through testing”

approach negatively impacted productivity and efficiency, since the cost to

discover and repair defects are at their highest after the manufacturing process is

already completed. A vicious cycle was created, since the entire “quality through

testing” manufacturing process was inherently low in productivity and efficiency,

but the leaders of General Motors pointed to poor employee performance as the

impacts to productivity and efficiency—the employees couldn’t be successful with

the process created by the leaders, and senior leaders blamed the employees for

poor productivity.

NUMMI helped break the vicious cycle as both sides of the issue were

addressed. The “quality through testing” approach was changed to include

quality assurance as part of each step within the process—the process now

positioned the employees to be successful. On the structure and labor practices

side, the NUMMI structure gave the employees a sense of empowerment and

made them feel like they ran the place. The team leader was no longer the boss,

but rather a respected fellow employee working towards the same goals.

Now instead of the vicious cycle of the old GM system, the NUMMI system

was the exact opposite where the different parts both supported each other.

(2) NUMMI meets Senge’s leadership challenges by first removing the vicious cycle of

finding someone else to blame. No more was the sense of doing what’s right for

the individual or boss. Also, with the senior leaders trusting and respecting the

employees, and vice versa, and NUMMI giving the employees the sense of all

being part of the same team and vision, there was no need to blame. The

employees understood how they impacted other employees (on the factory line)

and ultimately the end customers....