We must cultivate our garden
Starting in 1983, Jean-François Zobrist transformed a French copper-alloy foundry, FAVI, into a “why” company. Things jelled one afternoon when, following Voltaire’s advice, he was cultivating his garden and the mower broke down.
A mechanical tinkerer, he took apart the motor, replaced a defective part and reassembled the mower. While finishing the task he mused about what it would have taken at the hierarchically-organized FAVI. There would have been about a half-dozen organization levels to traverse in getting the machine fixed: machine setter, workshop head, department head, mechanic and electrician. One long, drawn-out process – more Kafka than Voltaire.
He then said to himself that what worked in the garden should work in the plant and resolved to move initiatives to the frontline workers. Much of the current production structure was contributing to blocking initiatives. At first, he chose to make just small changes, some of a symbolic nature. For example, he gave the former CEO’s office to the accounting department and took an office next to the men’s toilet, where he could have quick exchanges with workers.
Pondering the organization chart he came to see that it carried a negative message: man is not intelligent, hence all the supervisors; man is irresponsible, hence all the controllers; men are thieves, hence FAVI’s locked supply closets. When Zobrist asked of his managers what might happen if we considered that man was good, a few retorted that a good foundry worker was an idiot with muscles.
At this point, he decided to appeal directly to the frontline people. In a Christmas Eve talk, he announced the move toward initiative-taking as well as greater equality. To the worried middle managers he said he didn’t know exactly what role they would play in the freer organization but he and they would learn by doing.
In a move more reminiscent of Rabelais than Voltaire, he capped his talk by saying they would all be inspired by the world’s oldest profession: prostitution. Like prostitutes (or perhaps gigolos in today’s more gender-conscious world) FAVI would display itself. All workers were now encouraged to be in touch with customers and stakeholders. Secondly, prostitutes use excessive makeup to draw the eye. The equipment, a source of worker pride, would be cleaned and repainted in bright colors. Thirdly, a prostitute specializes. FAVI was only casting brass – it would design and assemble. Finally, the prostitute must not transmit illnesses to clients. For Zobrist this meant a commitment to on-time delivery, friendly pricing and improved product quality. And Zobrist made it clear that it was the frontline people, not him, that had the answers to better quality.
That December 24, 1983 speech set FAVI on its free way. Today, this company dominates the market for gear forks. The company story was told last year in two volumes (
La Belle Histoire de FAVI: nos plus belles histoires and
La Belle Histoire de FAVI: management et outils, Editions Humanisme et Organisation).
