The Smart Workplace is a 2-part program developed by the National Association of Manufacturers that shows how to design, create, and manage the workplace of the future. Using information gathered by the NAM in an intensive two-year study of high-performing companies, the series shares the proven team- and performance-building techniques of America’s best-run manufacturing firms. Two videotapes and a detailed workbook provide a comprehensive introduction to high-performance manufacturing and management techniques.

Why do some companies outperform their competitors in manufacturing quality, financial performance, and workplace productivity? This program details the characteristics that distinguish the high-performance workplace and explains how to introduce them. It introduces the ingredients that go into a productive, efficient, motivated workplace, from self-directed work teams to decentralized management systems. Through executive and shop floor testimonials and visits to America’s most successful manufacturing plants, the program provides strategies for redefining the corporate culture, empowering associates through trust, education and training, breaking down stereotypical carriers between labor and management, and creating an environment of open communication. (24 minutes)

This program provides a hands-on exercise for starting the process of change. It shows how to perform a needs assessment and answers such questions as how the training and work reorganization fit into the company’s long-term goals, where resources are most effectively used, and how return-on-investment is measured. The program supplies guidelines for incremental implementations, such as pilot programs that keep risks low while enabling you to evaluate progress. Finally, Creating a Smart Workplace shows how to transform antiquated management systems to facilitate a new workforce model in critical areas ranging from information sharing to compensation systems. (27 minutes, color)

(2 videocassettes, workbook included)