Fire-fighting percolating to enhanced learning...

This is a description of a week at my workplace, just a fortnight ago (third week of September).

After a takeover, what follows is a plethora of unforeseen problems. This came true with Mahindra & Mahindra after they took over Kinetic Motor Company Limited in November 2008. Mahindra took on-board all the employees of erstwhile Kinetic, but the problems had just began.

Since the beginning, there had been issues over wage agreement with the workers, which went on for months, until this week which I am talking about. Amidst all the negotiations happening, one day, the assembly line came to a standstill. And what followed, was a strike from the workers. The situation was much serious than what it would have been in normal circumstances, because for an automotive company already under financial distress, halting of production at a time when it has just launched two new models in the market could be a big jolt, that too when the main selling festive period of Navratri and Dussehra had come.

So in this situation of crisis, the onus was on the staff and managers to somehow manage to take the ship across without getting severely daunted by the storm. And they successfully rose up to the occasion. For the entire week, the staff and managers took the responsibility of running the entire plant to the best of their capacity. Every individual took up the task according to his skills, and slogged over time to maintain considerable production. It obviously took time to get used to the work which we all usually oversee and not perform, but we managed to produce 100 scooters a day easily, even with all sorts of line stoppages occurring.

My primary reason for mentioning this incident is that the amount of learning that percolated through each and every individual during this week has been far greater than what one can think of. And for me, it had been one of the best experiences over the few months of my professional career.

The persistence of the management, continuous communication and motivation broke the barriers which prevented the staff and managers to dirty their hands on the shop-floor. Everyone learnt the minute details of making a scooter. The learning was immense. Even I now know how to assemble and dismantle a scooter, how the wiring harness is laid, the connections done, etc. Though I had been spending ample time on the assembly before this incident, I lacked so much clarity. Touching and feeling the product at every stage of its development gives a totally different feel. Now I can proudly say that I work in a manufacturing company, and I know in detail what my company makes. This probably is something which many people would otherwise lack, and they would just know the superficial aspects.

Apart from the technical knowhow, I personally gained a lot of advantage in terms of the networking I could do in a week. I got a chance to intermingle with personnel from every department, and seeing me work at par with them, made them also open up with me more, which wasn’t possible in the usual circumstances. Sharing ideas, discussing views, telling stories – this informal interaction did wonders in enhancing my knowledge and knowing more about my workplace. Following a routine, punctuality and timeliness are the qualities that I got to develop even further in this one week.

To add to all the positives, even the workers on seeing us work started getting restless, and realised their duties. It was palpable that they all want to get back to work. So finally, the management and the union came to a consensus, and the strike was called off, restoring the activities in the plant back to normal. The way workers happily talked to all the managers and staff after that, shaking hands and congratulating, truly showed the emotions that go while one works at the workplace. It is not only a means of earning livelihood, but also a place of worship.

All these experiences of mine would be a part of my memories as one of the best experiences of my career, which people cannot usually under go.