Implications for the role of Ubuntu/Botho Culture - A Case Study
5.2. Cranco Metals' Organisational Culture: The Performance Enhancement Culture (PEC)
Cranco Metals' management has set as its main goal to ensure that the company becomes a leading global producer of affordable cost base metal and a dominant player in the base metals' markets. This goal it aims to achieve through its sustainable high performance culture which rests on the following key principles and values:
Care; Mutual Respect; Fair Workplace Practices; Accountable Working Behaviour;
and Integrity as well as Team Work Spirit, Belief in People, and Excellence. This Performance Enhancement Culture, the Cranco Metals General Manager stated, was developed to promote the living of these values, to achieve operational excellence and improve systems, as well as to ensure safety and empower workers partly through regular recognition and rewards (interview, 05-12-2003: 15h00). To promote this Performance Enhancement Culture and to get workers and line management to buy into it and identify with it as well as to live it, Cranco Metals' management has embarked on a number of strategies. Amongst such strategies, is the use of the services of outside experts and consultants whose primary role is to assist in getting employees to internalise and live the guiding PEC values and principles as well as with diversity and equity management.
At the time of my study, the consultant at work was a white motivational-type speaker and life strategist, Dr London who in facilitating sessions aimed to sensitise workers and line management about Cranco Metals' PEC. He adopts what constitutes a multi- pronged-type approach with three main components. During my interview with Dr London, he outlined his approach which starts with an assessment of the situation prevailing at the time of his intervention. Particular attention is drawn to relationships and communication between workers and their managers, the financial state of the company, and factors impacting on financial performance such as the currency exchange rates and prices of raw materials. Based on this assessment, he then presents the current prevailing scenario to both workers and managers, highlighting to them
This is not the real name of the consultant. Once again due ethical consideration of anonymity and confidentiality were observed and the real name was thus omitted for a fictitious one. The contracting of Dr London followed the termination of the contract with one of the acclaimed black African consultants on organisational culture and change, whom I call Dr Afrika for similar ethical considerations of anonymity.
the urgency of the need to actively adopt and practice the Cranco Metals' new PEC in order to alleviate the current situation. For the line managers, his main aim is to make them aware of the vital position which they occupy within the company's leadership and advise them on how to optimally utilize this rare opportunity for the benefit of the company and their subordinates. This intervention, which he terms leadership alignment, aims to advise line managers to conduct themselves in ways that would inspire and motivate workers as well as forge the team spirit necessary to enhance the organisational identity, performance culture and workers' self-esteem to become creative and innovative.
The leadership alignment session is then followed by what he terms a cross sectional alignment session which focuses on improvement of communication between workers and line managers. His main role here is to guide both parties to communicate in new ways that strikes a balance between the negative and positive energies, with energies being channelled mostly in the right directions consistent with the company's cultural values and the creation of a common corporate identity or corporate citizenship. This is all done in team alignment workshop sessions held away from the factory with separate groups of workers, senior managers and middle and line managers.
Also adopted as a strategy by Cranco Metals to promote its PEC amongst its staff is the use of industrial theatres which are seen by senior management as an appropriate measure to consolidate and reinforce what has been learned in off-factory team building workshop sessions. The industrial theatres are seen as vital and essential for sensitising workers and line management to live the company's PEC values and move away from the old mindset. As the Human Resources Manager states, the use of industrial theatres is an old tradition within the parent company and has recently been adopted by Cranco Metals in line with the parent company. In an endeavour to be on a par with the parent company, Cranco Metals has created the Wall of Fame with pictures of workers on the wall in the Main Hall, a factory-based venue in which all industrial theatrical performance are held (established during an interview with the Human Resources Manager, 21/11/2003).
During my observations, I noticed that Cranco Metals uses every possible medium within its reach to popularise and promote its guiding PEC culture and value system.
This includes the Main Hall where industrial theatrical performances and other meetings such as health and safety meetings are usually held. In this Main Hall, the parent company's corporate group values are written in bold letters on the high wall in an effort to get everyone to buy into and live the PEC value system. Other forms of media used by Cranco Metals include notice boards, outside walls of building used as venues for meetings on which regular updates on productivity and performance levels are highlighted, weekly and bi-monthly internal newsletters and/or publications, and computer screen savers. At the main gate entrance of the plant, one is greeted by a huge board mounted on steel pillars on which the above-mentioned Cranco Metals' values are outlined. Cranco Metals has created computer screen savers as another means through which its core values are communicated and promoted.
The internal weekly and bi-monthly newsletters and publications developed and used by Cranco Metals to promote its PEC are the Weekly UpDate and Cranco News. The latter is a quarterly publication, and both are used to inform and update the Cranco Metals community about the latest developments and issues affecting them. The regular features in the Weekly UpDate are the following:
• On the first page of each and every edition is a highlight, in bold, of the main value or principle of the (this could be any of the values or principles that constitute the Cranco Metals' PEC);
• Reports on safety issues i.e. the number of injuries or accidents that occurred, progress made towards reduction of injuries and accidents at work, and measurers needed to avert work-related accidents and injuries i.e. reiteration of what precautionary measures need to be observed and future targets set to reduce and avert accidents and injuries;
• Report on performance and productivity levels, future targets, and new issues pertaining to production;
• Motivational Phrases derived or quoted from various texts;
• A recognition list whereby all employees, but more often line and senior managers, submit names of individuals and teams of workers who are deemed
to have done something remarkable towards realising the Cranco Metals' values and objectives.
The Cranco News is used as complementary to the Weekly UpDate with its main focus being on broader issues and developments of relevance to Cranco Metals. These include reports on community development projects in which Cranco Metals is involved and achievements thereof; regular reports by the General Manager on the state of Cranco Metals in terms of performance levels (e.g. achievements and recognition awards given to Cranco Metals for its good performance, current and future challenges facing Cranco Metals and what could be done to overcome those challenges and make Cranco Metals a profitable and viable operation); a feature related to this is Cranco Metals' Vision Statement, clearly meant to regularly remind all Cranco Metals' employees of the significance of upholding the PEC and living its values; events such as social outings meant to reinforce team alignment; and messages of encouragement for the workers and the entire Cranco Metals community.
Beyond the promotion and publicising of the Cranco Metals' corporate cultural values, the top management developed practical and complementary measures to ensure that the goals associated with the PEC are actually realised. One such measure, developed in line with the parent company's broader business strategy, is the Occupational Health and Safety Programme. This Programme at Cranco Metals is comprised of safety trainings for all staff members; the factory-wide Safety Committee which meets regularly to discuss and address safety questions and has representation from all the production plants; the Occupational Health and Safety Department with staff that specialises in safety questions and ensures, through monitoring and evaluation, that safety is observed at all times; and short daily morning meetings held in each plant to discuss work-related issues arising from the previous day, work allocations, discuss safety issues and remind all to observe safety measures. All the workers and line managers interviewed mentioned that they have all undergone safety training and have attended these short meetings. Safety training provided to Cranco Metals staff, which I too underwent prior to entering the plants, is meant to alert and inform the workers about top hazards in their working environment or respective plants and what measures need to be taken to avert injuries and accidents. Morning meetings are meant to remind workers of the significance of
applying what was learned from the training and of always taking precautionary measures to avert injuries at work as well as to get to workers to focus on work.
To assess the effectiveness of safety training and morning meetings in terms of actually reducing or eliminating work related injuries and accidents, regular meetings of the safety committee are held and reports are submitted on safety questions in the Weekly UpDate. During the time of my research at Cranco Metals, I had a chance to attend one of safety committee meetings as an observer and which was attended by the Production Manager, the Communication Manager, the Safety Co-ordinator from Cranco Metals' Occupational Health and Safety Department, and all the safety representatives from the various plants. The meeting was held on 12l November 2003 at 1 lhOO in the Main Hall. During the meeting, two crucial Occupational Health and Safety-related items were discussed i.e. report by Communication Manager on the HIV/AIDS Prevalence Test to be conducted the following week and the safety progress reports from various plants or departments as well as plans to avert injuries at work and ensure high quality levels of health and environmental safety achieved.
On the HIV/AIDS prevalence test, the Communication Manager mentioned that the prevalence tests will be conducted in the following week. He explained to safety representatives that the decision to conduct the test was taken at the parent company level whereby both Cranco Metals and another subsidiary were selected as pilot sites to evaluate the prevalence levels and work out a treatment programme that would include provision of anti-retroviral drugs and other medication for sexually transmitted illnesses. To conduct this, a private professional health service company was hired to work together with all stakeholders and the company medical team to provide peer education and then conduct the tests by collecting saliva samples from amongst the Cranco Metals staff. He explained that this is done with the best interest of all the Cranco Metals and the parent company's community members and that workers should not feel compelled to participate in the saliva exercise as it is voluntary and the results will not point to any individuals but would remain anonymous (i.e. names are not needed and samples will only be categorised in terms of age groups and groups letters A-D). Although voluntary, he however urged everyone to participate. The idea behind this is to prevent the spread of HIV infections and treat those who are infected.
On the second item, the Production Manager, addressing the attendees as colleagues, made comments on the minutes of the last meeting. He raised concerns about the low attendance levels of the safety committee meetings by safety representatives and urged everyone to make sure that they attend future meetings, and if not that they should submit an apology. He also expressed dissatisfaction with the failure by safety representatives to regularly keep records on safety and work-related injury incidents, as evidence pointed to high level of similar incidents, and reminded them of the importance and value to both workers and the company management. He urged them to fulfil their responsibilities with diligence by leading workers by example. In urging them to strive to live the corporate values, he said:
"Make sure that when coming to meetings that you bring reports and suggestions and plans on how to prevent such incidents in future, and not come empty-handed. I give responsibility to the chairperson to ensure that SHEQ meetings are well attended and that progress is achieved and I pledge my support to him. I am not going to fight you, I am going to ask you what the problems are and if you need any help from my office, let me know so that I can help.
Remember we can all learn from each other if we work together as a team and ensure the same problems do not continue to recur." (Production Manager, 12/11/2003).
The Production Manager's words were reiterated by the Occupational Health and Safety co-coordinator when she emphasised the importance of keeping records on what is being done and how that could best be improved to achieve high quality performance. She mentioned that the auditors from her department need the information not to penalise workers but to work out ways of improving the situation, and that this is done in the spirit of seeking to achieve continuous improvement and living the Cranco Metals' values of excellence. Interestingly however, and as the discussion continued, safety representatives responded to the Production Manager's concern about low attendances at Safety Committee meetings by stating that the main reason for the low turnout at meetings lies with lack of co-operation from the foremen. They reported that more often than not, some foremen do not inform them in time about the planned meetings and in some cases do not inform them at all. The Production Manager's response was that the best solution to low attendance would be to draw up a list of meetings scheduled for the entire year and ensure that all the safety representatives have copies.
They also raised concern about lack of responsiveness from amongst the foremen to their requests and needs. For instance, one safety representative reported that they have since requested a fridge for their tea room but nothing has been done to address that. Another one raised concerns about the clocking card system used to clock in and out of the plants, and that they feared that it might be used to punish them by docking and deducting their wages for being away from work without permission. Another safety representative reported that workers in his section raised concerns about experiencing high levels of fatigue due to instructions from foreman to work hard and that the foreman would not allow them time to rest and regain strength.
Another strategy recently developed to go beyond just promotion of Cranco Metals PEC values and to enhance the living of these values and achievement of business objectives, is the Business Enhancement Programme known as the Sebenza Project (a Zulu name for Work). According to the Weekly UpDate reports, the BEP or Sebenza Project was first proposed at the company board meeting in 2003 and was developed as a response to the extremely competitive base metal industry environment and market conditions, which are said to have been exacerbated by both the strengthening of the South African rand against the US dollar and the high prices of base metal raw materials, resulting in Cranco Metals' profit margins being heavily squeezed. The Sebenza Project has two phases through which it is being implemented: first, through the evaluation of the business to identify aspects that lead to high costs and work out ideas and ways of reducing costs; and second, to implement those ideas with the objective of not only reducing costs but also enhancing revenues. According, to the General Manager, in some of his letters in the Weekly UpDate, although the project was planned to be implemented in full scale from January 2004, initial moves towards its implementation had already begun. This is so with the posting of suggestion boxes throughout the factory to solicit ideas on how to improve business through which more than 200 ideas had already been gathered. The General Manager was thus highly impressed that the staff was already beginning to buy into the BEP or Sebenza Project and was optimistic that, although the project implementation in January may be a painful and challenging process, through everyone's co-operation, it would become a success i.e. achieve financial successes.
Although the PEC initiative was welcomed by everyone at Cranco Metals, management's enthusiasm about it and the BEP is however not fully shared by the majority union, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) which represents mainly black production workers. This lack of enthusiasm stems from dissatisfaction with the approach that the management had adopted to promote the PEC and the nature of the BEP or Sebenza Project as a business enhancement strategy. When asked about the PEC, the NUM's representative and full-time shop-steward at Cranco Metals, stated that, although as NUM they were not opposed to the PEC in principle, they were however unhappy with the approach used by the management to promote it amongst workers. This seemed to stem from miscommunication between management and NUM over the issue of the hiring of consultants. According to the General Manager, both Dr Afrika and Dr London, were hired in different capacities to assist Cranco Metals with diversity/equity management and PEC-related performance management respectively. For NUM, however, the appointment of Dr London shortly after Dr Afrika was seen as a racially unfair substitution of the latter by the former. NUM also expressed concern about lack of transparency. This dissatisfaction on the part of NUM led to a dispute that manifested itself in the form of an after working hours protest against non-compliance with the Employment Equity Act, working hours and racism. NUM's views on PEC are represented in the response below:
"Our participation, as NUM, in the PEC is problematic. We need to be consulted before any consultants can be hired to deal directly with our members. We need to first investigate his/her credentials before we can approve his/her appointment. I am not trying to be racial here but the issue of lack of resources raised by management is not really an issue to us. When the Dr Afrika was first invited, we were not happy but after scrutinising his credentials, we felt comfortable and approved his appointment. All of a sudden, management has changed and they introduced Dr London. It seems to us that they feel that they can't give money to a black person. To this day, we are not convinced why that black consultant had to be replaced. There is an element of racism here because the opportunity is now given to a white person. The current team building exercises programme by the white consultant is similar to that of the black one, but we are told he is too expensive. We told them we would not encourage our members to participate in the programme; it is up to them to get workers to do so.
Management has a right to speak to workers but we also have a right to speak to them about our position. They (i.e. management) has chosen to proceed to implement the PEC without our support. So far the team building sessions are voluntary as there is no agreement. I can tell you now that these sessions are not working. The PEC is not reaching the workers. We see that