The New Self-Directed Work Teams: Mastering the Challenge [Hardcover]

Jack D. Orsburn (Author), John H. Zenger (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 3, 1999

Forward-thinking corporations around the globe--from long-established leaders to fast-growing newcomers--have made it clear: Committed, self-directed work teams are today's new paradigm for success. And as customers demand ever-shorter cycle times and ever-higher satisfaction levels, the positive effects numbers such as these have become increasingly difficult to ignore. THE NEW SELF-DIRECTED WORK TEAMS, SECOND EDITION, outlines a step-by-step process for implementing self-directed work teams, transforming your workplace into one that naturally breeds worker responsibility as it increases productivity and quality. Productivity experts Jack Orsburn and Linda Moran--whose methods have helped companies including TRW, General Electric, and Cummins Engine to implement self-directed work teams--have updated their classic work team bible to include: Fully updated case histories and examples of self-directed work team success outlined in several new chapters; 19 critical tools and techniques for seamlessly integrating work teams into your office or factory environment; Guidelines for integrating new information technologies into a coordinated team effort; Programs to combine flexible compensation systems with greater stakeholder empowerment; Checklists to help you gauge current levels of employee involvement, and the potential benefits of work teams; A framework for working with teams to select team leaders--and ensuring those leaders can fulfill their roles. THE NEW SELF-DIRECTED WORK TEAMS updates the authors' original benchmark reference work to explore latest work team implementation guidelines, update case studies of the dramatic impact of self-directed work teams, and discuss the surprising trends and market realities that will redefine the employer/employee relationship in the 21st century. Let this remarkable guidebook lead you and your organization into a new era of improved customer satisfaction, management effectiveness, and--most important--employee performance.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Profitable Work Team Strategies of GE, Caterpillar, and Others - Proven to Light the Competitive Fire in Each employee! Today's quick-change global economy requires higher levels of productivity, fewer layers of bureaucracy, and a newly heightened feeling of involvement and knowledge within each emplyee - from the boiler room to the boardroom! The New Self-Directed Work Teams, Second Edition, explores the latest work team implementation guidelines, provides dramatic case stuides of the positive impact of self-directed work teams, and discusses the surprising trends and market realities that are redefining the employer/employee relationship as we enter the 21st century. "Self-directed teams become essential building blocks in-andexpand the potantial of-the learning organization." Updated and revised from the authors' seminal 1990 bestseller, this practical, step-by-step plan for moving work teams from the planning table to the workplace is filled with: Sotires of actual self-directed work team success - straight from team members and implementers; Insights into the challenges and rewarding new roles self-directed work teams can provide. 19 critical tools and techniques for seamlessly integrating work teams into your office or factory environment. Beyond all the talk about self-directed work teams lies one simple truth: They consistently, dramatically improve business results wherever they are conscientiously applied. Let The New Self-Directed Work Teams leads you and your organization into a new era of improved customer satisfaction, management effectiveness, and-most important-employee performance.

About the Author

Linda Moran (Hartford, CT) is currently a vice president with Zenger-Miller. Ed Musselwhite (Santa Cruz, CA) is the former executive president of Zenger-Miller. Jack D. Orsburn (Peoria, AZ) is a seasoned consultant, with over 30 years in the design and implementation of self-directed work teams. John H. Zenger (Salt Lake City, UT) is the former president of Zenger-Miller with numerous published books to his credit.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 2 edition (September 3, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 007043414X
• ISBN-13: 978-0070434141
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #830,994 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sound, practical, insightful, and productive reading., February 3, 2000

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Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The New Self-Directed Work Teams: Mastering the Challenge (Hardcover)

Managers and owners alike will appreciate this second edition of a classic treatise on revolutionizing the workforce and forming self-directed work teams in a business. This covers trends which have changed in the last decade, refining past methods for creating such teams. Excellent for advanced managers and those involved in medium to large-sized companies.