Few days back, i was invited to judge a Quality Circle Competition by CII Confederation of Indian Industry at Holy city Amritsar Hotel Radisson BLU.

Eleven teams with 5 members in each team were ready to deliver their presentation. The hall was jam-packed with businessmen and industrialists from various industries.

Some of the best presentations were from teams from the companies like Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, Vardhman Industries, Rockman Industries Ltd, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd and Claas India Ltd.

Quality Circle is a management concept under which few selected workers form a group to analyse the problems faced by the organisation, taken, one at a time and their respective solutions with time bound action plan.

It results into extraordinary financial and performance results which differentiates it from Kaizen, as shared in the Book “The Toyota Way” by Jeffery K. Liker.

When I reached the venue, everything seemed normal. Starting from Weather to Valet Parking or warm welcome followed by a welcome drink or a big Projector projection along with sound system.

But as soon as the presentations started, i was freezed. The enthusiasm level of the teams was touching skies. It was a tough competition. Level of competition, energy and enthusiasm was increasing moment by moment and presentation by presentation.

With each presentation starting, expectations of everyone present were rising. Out of my curiosity, during the break, i asked them, “How did you manage to keep yourself Energised all the time!”. Most of them replied like,

• Really!!!
• Do we really look motivated or energised ????
• Are we looking feeling high!!!
• Are we full of Motivation?? And i was taken aback at the response.

Something which was apparent to everyone in the hall, persons depicting the same were unaware of the same. Perceptions were different from the reality.

They never felt that they were enthusiastic, energetic or motivated. None had consumed any energy capsule or was thinking either positive or negative consciously. How come it was possible! When i observed minutely, i started feeling how it could have been for them.

 

1. Creating The Challenge : Every participant of every team had a pressure to performing a challenge which they had already accepted. Everyone wanted to deliver one’s best. In the pressure of performance, they practiced and rehearsed again and again.

They did it breaking daily monotonous routine life of going to office at 9am and returning at 7pm, tired, consumed and exhausted. Now they had just one chance, PERFORM OR PERISH. They had accepted a challenge which demanded few actions, not generally performed in day to day life.

The challenge inspired them to move ahead. It kept them on their toes. Once agreed by wish or pressure, they had to take a stand to deliver. They couldn’t back out. No choice of going back. To participate in the challenge accepted, they groomed themselves and :

• The team took part in Training & Development activities
• Learnt Communication Skills
• Learnt PowerPoint Presentation skills
• Learnt Soft skills
• Learnt & Practised Public Speaking
• Learnt Stage handling skills
• Took Personality development Classes
• Took Leadership Training
• Did whatever and everything which was required.

All this reminds of a MDP- Management Development Program cum Performance Enhancement Project delivered through Supervisors’ & Hall Incharges’ training undertaken at one of the venders of Hero Cycles Group, where we had received extraordinary unparalleled results within 6 months with the similar technique of throwing a challenge of double digit growth in the production without any increase in rejection.

So one thing is quite clear that to inspire the team, creating or throwing a challenge, is one of the best tools. This is the real fact of life. Challenges once accepted, keep us moving and motivated, irrespective of the fact that it was our own choice or it was forced.

And, by the way, it’s equally applicable on us also, in a way that if we want to grow in our lives, we should also accept challenges which we are doubtful to deliver or scared of accepting. Sure-shot way to growth and success in life.

Coach Sushil Arora
Management Consultant