Catching the Team Spirit

Suzuki employees relish
Quick Start training in
Japanese style of teamwork

On a sunny May morning in Rome, Ga., sounds of laughter drift outside the Quick Start mobile classroom, parked on the grounds of Suzuki's assembly plant for the Eiger all-terrain vehicle. Inside, an instructor is leading Suzuki associates in the class "Working Together," teaching them how to achieve synergy and demonstrating that the sum of our efforts is greater than its individual parts. Divided into three groups, the trainees engage in animated interaction as they are quizzed about survival skills in the wilderness. The exercise is designed to instill the team principle from the start, before they set foot on the plant floor.

The training pays off, especially for a Japanese company that brings with it a work culture unfamiliar to Americans. Ask any employee at the Suzuki plant, and they will smile and talk at length about why they love the Japanese way of working. Ironically, instead of feeling that their individuality has been compromised, they say they are empowered by the team philosophy.

"We come together in a team as one, and our voices stand out," says Joy Smith, an assembly technician who has completed the Quick Start training. She was part of the first group, hired in January, that came on board to weld, paint, assemble and ship the Eiger ATVs. The plant, Suzuki's first in the United States, officially started production May 20.

Brad Clay, one of Smith's classmates, notes, "Where I worked before, it was every man for himself. Here, you've got people you depend on to work with."

The Suzuki team members express gratitude for the Quick Start training, coordinated through Coosa Valley Technical College. "The last job I had, when I started working they just put me out there on the floor, so I was nervous," Smith recalls. "But going through Quick Start, I was prepared."

Another classmate agrees, pointing to the quality of Quick Start instructors. "The teachers were knowledgeable and made you feel at ease," says LeRoy Dunaway. "By the time we got on the floor, we knew what to expect from the other person. It was easier to work with each other because you understood each other better."

Trusting one's co-workers is vital in an assembly line plant, where safety issues can arise. Jeff Ford, safety and training coordinator, has years of safety experience in traditional work environments. He says he has never before witnessed such intensity of participation and willingness to lead in safety team meetings.

"The biggest challenge for me has been believing that a company could be run where the team members have so much freedom to make decisions," he says. "It's sometimes amazing to think employees have that much say in a business."

The notion of Kaizen, or continuous improvement, is central to the Japanese workplace philosophy. "They look for ways to improve on safety, quality and productivity," Ford explains. "Team members are encouraged to look for anything we can improve — every facet, program and procedure we have."

"I like Kaizen," says Clay, "because if we've got an idea that will help the team, they will listen to us. It makes the plant better."

The concept of the five S's, or 5S, also figures prominently. "Smaller, neater, fewer, shorter, lighter," Clay reels off the list using English words.

"You make everything as simplified as you can, but you get the job done."

About 20 Quick Start classes are taught in a range of topics, such as operation of powered industrial trucks, industrial safety, Japanese culture and Lean Manufacturing. Dunaway had worked with a Japanese company before, so he was already familiar with Kanban, a Lean Manufacturing technique (see box). "But we never had Quick Start to really show us," he says. "They showed us here."

Masaru Asahina, company president, says Suzuki might have faced a challenge in developing new employees' skills and teaching the teamwork concept. "When we came here, we thought it would be quite difficult for us to train American team members," he says.

Quick Start offered an ideal solution. "Already Quick Start had established many experiences with Japanese companies," he says. "They had all the materials in English and developed exciting customized programs specifically for Suzuki."

Not surprisingly, Asahina attaches great importance to employee training. "To have a successful company," he says, "team members are key."