Toyota Manufacturing UK
Section Manager Development Programme
Toyota established Toyota Manufacturing UK (TMUK) in 1989. TMUK has two manufacturing plants in England, employing over 4,000 people.
Objective
The 14 Principles of the Toyota Way is a management philosophy used to drive consistency across the corporation globally. These guiding principles lead open business practice, fairness in corporate activities, innovation in cleaner and safer car making and ultimately to making the world a better place to live.
TMUK wanted an event that would develop the behaviours that support the core competencies of the Toyota Way.
Solution
Impact UK worked in partnership with the TMUK’s Management Development team, to design a programme that would challenge thinking around the competencies and bring the Toyota Way to life.
The programme was aimed at TMUK Section Managers. Typically these are mid-level leaders who have been in the role for up to three years. Some are office based, whilst others have worked their way up from the shop floor and are managing up to 100 people.
By using a mix of experiential projects and facilitated reviews, the programme allows the Section Managers to learn, practice and reflect on the competencies whilst developing the required behaviours in a safe and supportive environment.
To reflect Toyota’s key philosophies each project was designed around a Plan, Do, Check, Action framework. Participants experienced Genchi Genbutsu – go, look, see, find out through first hand direct observation. Kaizen opportunities allowed for continuous improvement and after each project they practiced Hansei – personal reflection on their own behaviour.
Results
Results from the initial Section Managers’ programmes have exceeded expectations and TMUK are seeing real business benefits. This intervention is a key part of a larger 10-month development programme that requires each Section Manager to present and implement a behavioral based project linked to business performance. TMUK have witnessed improved confidence, ownership, commitment and motivation from the Section Managers in alignment with the Toyota Way philosophy. This is reflected in significant improvements in their 360 competency assessment scores and most importantly in how they are performing on the job.
