The Effects of the GM/UAW Saturn Partnership on Quality Performance: A Brief Overview of Preliminary Findings
This project analyzes the effects of the co-management arrangements built into the first lineof supervision (module advisors) at the Saturn Corporation on first time quality (FTQ)performance and improvements in first time quality. This is a very unique organizationalarrangement wherein represented (i.e., unionized) and non-represented (i.e., managers) partnersshare responsibilities for co-managing production work teams. The purpose of this portion of ourwork is to test whether this co-management arrangement contributes to the performance of thesework units and thereby adds value to Saturn as a whole. We focus on first time quality as theperformance measure.In order to analyze the value-added to quality performance by Saturn's system of comanagement,represented and non-represented operations department-level middle managers werestudied. A detailed analysis of the supervisory system at the department or module level acrossSaturn's three plants (called business units) allowed us to test whether the variations in the comanagementsystem and quality performance are systematically related. We analyzed therelationship between the behavior patterns and supervisory methods of both union and non-unionmiddle managers, attributes of their individual union-management partnerships, differences in thepatterns of communication and coordination of each group, and performance outcomes, inparticular first-time-quality improvement. We also studied time use and the dynamics ofpartnerships, including the balancing of social and economic tasks, as well as the division of laborbetween represented and non-represented management.Specifically, we examined:1) Whether represented managers were indeed managing people and technical aspects ofthe production process (called resources);2) If represented managers were managing, did they manage their time, priorities, andcommunications differently than did their non-represented partners.3) Whether the behaviors of represented managers added value to quality performance.4) Whether the nature of the individual represented and non-represented managerpartnerships at the department level had an impact on quality performance.These questions are important because some industry observers believe that while over halfof the middle management positions at Saturn were indeed being filled by union members, Saturnhad simply bought labor peace at a high price. They contended that only the non-representedmanagers were truly functioning in that role while the union members were either free riders oracting as grievance committeemen focusing exclusively on people issues.Another explanation for Saturn's remarkable quality performance is that a new 'effortbargain' was struck between GM and the UAW (i.e. workers simply work harder). We test ouralternative hypothesis that this system of partnership and co-management systematically adds valueby increasing the rate of first-time-quality improvement. These data allow us to test which, if any,of the specific attributes of the partnership (i.e. task balancing, represented and non-representedrelationships, communication density, problem solving, etc.) predict quality performance.Data were collected via surveys from 150 managers across the three business units.Multiple regression techniques were used to analyze these data, and to test for the relationship ofthese specific aspects of the co-management system to first-time-quality improvement. Managersprovided data on how they used their time during the day, how they thought they should allocatetheir time, and on their communications with others in the Saturn operations. The communicationsdata were collected over a two week time period. The differences in the level and nature ofcommunications were then analyzed to see if they affected quality performance outcomes.Two measures of quality serve as the performance outcomes to assess the impact of theSaturn partnership arrangements: 1) first time quality; and 2) quality improvement.
Year of publication: |
2002-09-04
|
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Authors: | Kochan, Thomas ; Rubinstein, Saul |
Subject: | first time quality | Saturn Corporation | co-management arrangements |
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