Malicious Intent/Sabotage 11

[controlnovice]

I'm trying to make a 'sale' of a new philosophy in operations. I have 'buy-in' by management, but I haven't made the sale yet to operations, but have passed it by several other engineers. One in particular, disagrees strongly and has already talked with the operators about how bad of an idea he thinks it is. Not just one shift in passing, but all shifts, all units. I know because operators are already complaining about it, without knowing the reason behind the recommendation.

Would this be considered malicious intent or sabotage by the other engineer and is this anything to go to HR about?

Or do I just need to make the sale/grow thicker skin?

_________________________________________________________________________
This is normally the space where people post something insightful.

 

[SiliconeAurora]

Gotta give props to casseopeia - anyone quoting Sun-Tsu has some class.

I agree with a lot of the people before me. Absolutely don't involve HR, period. The man has the right to consider something a bad idea, and if he's convincing other people of it being a bad idea, then they have the right to feel like that too. This is a war you can't win through force.

Your best bet is to try to get approval to try your idea under small-scale conditions, possibly in R&D somehow or else on a lesser important product line. If you can prove it works on the small scale AND if you can convince some people that it's worth persuing further (you do need both) then and only then should you take it further. Otherwise, add it to the back burner of things to bring up if clearer problems arise with the status quo.

 

[csd72]

as a few people have toched on, the idea needs to be sold to everyone and not just the management. Otherwise the operational people will just play it lip service.

Have you thought about a formal ,challenge and review' of the proposed scheme?

 

[kontiki99]

We have someone here promoting old obvious ideas as if they were some kind of inovation. The latest person grandstanding these ideas never seems to get it.

They are good ideas, but simply never going to be part of this companies economic model for doing business.

Without any objective way to determine the relative merits of the original posters ideas it's not possible to have an opinion.

I watch people crank up the PR band for new inovative methods I saw used years ago at some other company with alarming frequency.

There is a lot of reinvention going on all the time. The scary part is that these good common sense ideas seem to get lost for so long.

 

[guizmy]

Hi ControlNovice,

I think we miss some informations that can help us to better advise you.
We dont know the details of your activities and the philosophy in itself (at least a very general description).

We dont know for example, if you work in a conservative business where loss of profit in case of failure may have dramatic impact.

I know a story from my previous company's boss, that in an offshore platform some pumps were failling regularly and required each time a replacement but without interrupting the service. The responsible guys in the platform were aware that it was due to a design problem. However they prefered to continue with this solution than to experience a new design. That was because on one side the cost of stoppping the platform for implementing the new solution will cover several years of replacement costs of the bad design solution. On the other side new design is jumping into an unknown zone in the sense that it is not conforted by field experience. So in a conservative business this risk, even small, even mitigated has big impact.

Another aspect is that it seems you have convinced lot of people of your concept. However the guy that disagree with your approach seems to be the most acknowedgeable of the risks involved as indeed he was working at your position previously ! In other words, he should be the most qualified and entitled guy to evaluate your concept.

So you have the quantitative advantadge of having convinced several guys but it is counter balanced by a qualitative disadvantage that is a disagreement of an experienced guy in the field of concern.

So I think you have to think cold, of course there is a risk that the guy that occupied your position is frustrated or too subjective, but you have to be careful in my opinion.

The best way would be to ask and listen to the advise of other colleagues and expert then propose something without too much passion (at least for the considerations above as passion for innovation is very defendable).
If it is accepted, that is fine, if not - no regret - you did what for you was deemed good and right.

Regards