I interviewed for a Production Supervisor:
A little background on my career.
25 years coating application exp.
17 years composite exp.
14 years Mfg / Production Supervisor exp.
6 months Scheduler
15 yrs Lean Mfg exp.
15 yrs EHS ( Environmental Health and Safety)
GDT certified (Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerances)
DOT certified (Haz Mat waste handling and shipping)
Certainly, I would be a top candidate.
RED FLAG: At the 2nd interview, it was mentioned that they wanted to change my job description to a newly created position of Warehouse Supv. I stated I do not have that experience, but because I am looking for employment, sure. I questioned that it seemed odd to take my experience and not use it.
They stated there was another strong candidate.
That would prove to be false based on the background of that candidate.
Being bi-lingual seems to be the requirement that was needed.
RED FLAG: Immediately the salary range dropped.
RED FLAG: Day one, while signing all the entry paperwork, HR states "your job description has changed" to essentially an on manual labor hands on lead person role. That sums it up. They want a working lead person as opposed to an extremely knowledgeable and experienced Sup'v.
The new Production Sup'v was Hispanic, horrifically inexperienced in all facets of the companies production line, but he was bi-lingual, as the majority of all communications on the work floor was Spanish. The newly promoted Mgr is Hispanic.
RED FLAG: Management openly brags that they hire 10 people, fire 5.
RED FLAG: In 3 days I witnessed management chiding an employee for deviating from the processes in front of her peers as opposed to being discrete. The lack of tact and diplomacy and lack of respect for the dignity of that employee was disappointing.
RED FLAG: I asked about processes, and stated, make me aware of where the processes (SOP, Build sequences, Eng drawings, BOM etc are located) and I will review the instructions with the employee, and was told the employees do not need procedures. After talking to other production lines, it is apparent that all training is "tribal." My professional experience tells me that the company is not subject to full ISO type audits on the production floor..
It is also clear that the company has a high turnover rate on the production floor, based on the relatively low tenure of most of the people I spoke with.
RED FLAG: I witnessed that all facets of the production floor are under constant surveillance, based on the multi panel camera view visible on the mgr's pc all day.
There is something creepy about that a mgr. feels compelled to monitor.
RED FLAG: Having seen the companies backlog report, it appears they are a year behind in many cases on deliveries to customers, and they have very high profile customers. (SpaceX, GA etc..)
RED FLAG: The overall perception is CBD operates like a sweatshop with a "Jefe" in charge of production, with a workforce that are intentionally kept ignorant and placated by an hourly paycheck.
RED FLAG: The daily Gemba walks were wasted opportunities. The bldg. has whiteboards everywhere but NONE had relevant data. WB should be used for Visual mgmt. purposes and should provide real time data for that Gemba walk I truly believe that there is minimal awareness of lean mfg.
Advice to Management
Step away from the sweat shop mentality of "tribal knowledge",
Your work culture is outdated. It is not "world class" though your customers are.
Higher and support higher bandwidth salary and hourly employees that have the capability to raise and elevate employees by providing awareness to SOP, Product data, Lean MFG and not just tell them an employee to "do something" with verbal instructions. I would not recommend a CBD to any professional job seeker. I should have not accepted the position during the interview process but I was grateful for the opportunity to get back to work during this slow job market. I have been off work for 3 months. My professional career started in the early 90's with McDonnel Douglas. I have been blessed to have worked for many globally recognized companies in the Aircraft ,Defense, OEM for the Oil and Gas Industry, Electronic Communication Devices and Air Quality management industry. CBD is not a "world class" company on par with any of them.
