CLAREMORE, Okla. — We know in our industry the importance of having a finely tuned system for our gas-burning equipment, and particularly for our boilers.
When that flame is dialed in, tuned up, and burning as it should be, it will produce a nice, beautiful, steady blue flame.
As the blue flame is an indicator of how well your equipment is dialed in, you can also relate that same effort to the ongoing training and development of yourself and your team.
I was recently invited to speak at a TRSA Maintenance Management Institute training session (and I highly recommend you utilize this training for your reliability team leaders and others). I relayed lessons learned from the life of Jose Hernandez, one of our space shuttle astronauts. He came from a migrant farmer lifestyle as a child and was destined to continue that as he grew.
But he had other desires and chose to develop himself into astronaut material.
The lessons learned from the life of Hernandez can be applied to each of us as well as our team members to develop a team that is dialed in, tuned up, and operating at top efficiency and effectiveness. This is the search for the “blue flame” of operational excellence.
Each employee, whether a leader, manager, or line worker, has unique needs for training and development, but the same process for assessment and development of a training plan can be followed, no matter the position.
The process involves the following steps:
- Verbalize the goals that each employee has—what do they want to do with their career, what do they want with their life, etc. Only by knowing the goals can you help them (or for yourself) develop a plan to achieve them.
- Assist each employee in identifying where they are presently in relation to the goals they have established. Only then will you know how to help create a path to achievement.
- Develop the plan. Reach outside the box here. Check into appropriate vendor training, industry training, local community college resources, seminars, conferences—whatever it takes. Professional certification programs for certain employees will also provide an educational plan to achieve the appropriate certification letters.
- Help each employee decipher and identify what it is they do not know so they will know where to concentrate their efforts in learning.
- Then, when they, or you, think the goal has been achieved, understand that harder work will need to continue. The job is just beginning.
By following these five steps in his life, Hernandez was able to raise himself from the migrant farmer lifestyle to that of a highly skilled and well-trained space shuttle mission specialist.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Only when your team is utilizing a plan to achieve, whether it is personal goals or business goals, and they are operating to that plan, will you be able to claim that your team is running with a “blue flame.”
The focus on training and development must be a part of your daily activities to stay on task and achieve the goals you want for your teams and for your business.
Oh, and I’d encourage you to look up the 2023 movie A Million Miles Away, starring Michael Peña as Hernandez.
It’s a true story, and truly inspiring, proving that anyone from any walk of life can move up in the world with the right planning, work ethic and guidance.
Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Matt Poe at [email protected].
