Cathara Consulting INSIGHT February 2014 Issue 4

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+61 8 6316 4416 http://catharaconsulting.com

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Level 29, The Forrest Centre 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000

Welcome to our first edition for 2014, and the start of a new Lunar Year (the Year of the Horse). We hope that you have had a good start to the year.

After attending Vietnamese Lunar New Year celebrations in Perth (the Tet Festival) we are reminded of the diversity of cultures and races within Western Australia, with each individual having something unique to add to our society.

Organisational studies show that a team "monoculture" leads to less successful decisions while diversity provides different ideas to explore, thus improving decision quality. As a company that values diversity, and with strong roots in Asia, the Cathara Consulting team benefits from the different perspectives of a number of cultures and outlooks.

Different companies also offer different qualities. Cathara Consulting teams up with other consulting firms and service providers to help provide a range of skills outside of our core focus on project delivery and organisational effectiveness. This allows us to effectively compete to gain large contracts, such as our recent success with the WA Police Department.

This edition of our newsletter provides actionable information. If there is something that you would like to discuss with us, we're always available to help you turn your ideas into business benefits. We hope you enjoy the articles, and if you would like to learn more about any of the topics, feel free to contact us on 08 6316 4416 for a chat or to arrange a meeting with the writer.

Also, if there is anything you would like to see featured in future issues, or if you would like to contribute or be interviewed for future issues, don’t hesitate to email the Editor at:

[email protected]

Issue 4 February 2014

Inside

Welcome The Cathara Consulting Team

20 Unconventional Work Ideas Are you willing to be revolutionary at work?

“All lasting business is built on friendship.”

- Albert A Montapert

Inspire

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Lexus: The Epitome of Quality and Excellence How do they continue to achieve such a seamless perception of quality from the assembly line right through to the dealership?

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Spotlight on the Economy

Business conditions in Perth remain subdued as the Australian economy transitions to a new operating model.

Transition always requires some pain due to the structural readjustments needed. Recently, three local car manufacturers have announced plans to cease their operations in Australia. This is the end of an era due to uncompetitive local costs. Australian interest rates are steady, with a bias towards a rising in the future as inflation starts to increase. The spot iron ore price has declined which will continue to put pressure on resource companies to control costs. Financial markets have also shown some recent signs of volatility, due to Quantum Easing tailing off, and this may lead to a tougher investment environment.

At the same time, business confidence is at a three year high, and property prices are up. Australian companies are facing the challenges head on, and continuing to succeed by carefully reviewing their operations, focusing on their core businesses, identifying their strengths and playing to these, and improving execution.

Cathara Consulting actively supports clients in these challenging times by providing expert, unbiased consulting advice, helping with project delivery and the establishment of standards, assisting clients to select the best possible new hires, and by being a trusted adviser and confidant.

New Cathara Consulting Initiatives

Cathara Consulting is working with an industrial psychologist to develop our own psychometric test to assist with the identification and selection of new hires.

Our test will cover general intelligence and capability, as well as character, which will be measured in the following dimensions:

• Integrity - Honest and open, acts in accordance with ethical principles, keeps promises and respects company policies and direction;

• Empathy - Understand the perspectives of others and forms bonds with them. Communicates tactfully and appropriately;

• Organisation - Manages one's own work and that of others, manages time and resources, delivers on time;

• Excellence - Sets high standards for oneself, and works towards achieving these. Shows initiative and responsibility. Internal locus of control;

• Perspective - Sees the big picture and long-term consequences of actions. Is not stuck in the short term. Understands cause and effect;

• Team player - Works together with others to achieve joint goals.

Stay tuned for more information and the launch date!

News

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Alliance Partners

Cathara Consulting strongly believes in forming partnerships with well-respected, like-minded local businesses.

We are pleased to announce that Cathara Consulting has entered into alliances with two of Perth’s niche and innovative organisations. These new alliances enable the team to expand on the breadth of services on offer to our Clientele and enhance our delivery capabilities.

SQA Group

SQA Group is a dedicated software-testing organisation specialising in providing expert testing resources and commercial testing tools to the government, resources and private sectors throughout Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

For more information on SQA Group, check out their website:

http://www.sqagroup.com.au

BizVault

BizVault specialises in end-to-end Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Solutions, including everything from risk auditing and Disaster Recovery planning, through to building and testing Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity solution.

For more information on BizVault, check out their website:

http://www.bizvault.com.au

Celebrations

The Cathara Consulting Christmas Family Day was held on 8 December 2013.

It was a great chance to celebrate the good work put in by everyone who is part of the Cathara Consulting team for the year, and for everyone to get together with their families to let their hair down and have some fun.

We started the day early with a game of Supa Golf at Oasis Supa Golf and Adventure Putt Mini Golf in the Swan Valley. Thankfully it wasn’t a really hot day, but we still followed the game up with a well-earned ice cream at Offies Ice-cream Café and Lolly Shop.

After that it was on to wine and chocolate tasting, concluding with a late lunch at Elmar’s in the Valley. Everyone enjoyed the day, despite some wayward golf shots and a bit too much sugar…


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Lexus - the luxury car division of Toyota - has consistently achieved the highest reliability, customer and industry quality ratings of any car brand in the world since the first model was released in 1989. How do they continue to achieve such a seamless perception of quality from the assembly line right through to the dealership?

Lexus Site Visit – Tokyo and Miyata, Japan During that time, Lexus has achieved a higher level of customer loyalty and a lower number of defects than either BMW or Mercedes. The quality of Lexus is a direct result of the Toyota Production System, which is based on Lean thinking, and the Lexus corporate values.

I was recently a guest at one of the Lexus assembly plants in Miyata, Kyushu, Japan, as well as a dealership in Aoyoma, Tokya, where I got to see the Toyota Production System in use. The Miyata plant has 7 assembly lines, producing different models from the Lexus range. Each car includes around 30,000 parts, with rolls of steel and parts from suppliers being delivered and converted into finished cars. I witnessed production of the RX model, an SUV.

The following map shows the layout of the Miyata plant. I spent a majority of the time in the No. 1 Assembly plant, which encompasses the assembly lines for seven different vehicles.

Lexus The Epitome of Quality and Excellence

Graeme Woods

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suggested improvements from the assembly line to improve productivity. The following photo shows how heavy items are supported to reduce worker fatigue. The worker inside the vehicle is seated on a slide-in seat.

It takes about 7 hours to make one car. Testing takes a further 5 hours. This covers 1500 separate checking steps from paintwork, fit and finish, to performance. Each vehicle is then driven on a banked test track at 120 km/h to ensure that there are no issues. After witnessing the process, I can attest that every vehicle that is ready for sale is flawless.

Quality

Quality is driven from Toyota’s Production System, which aims to reduce overburden, inconsistency, and to reduce waste.

Lexus designs the assembly process to deliver the required quality results by removing the possibility of inconsistency or variability in the outcome. The idea is that the right process will produce the right results.

Lexus cars are made to individual order so that they do not encounter problems with unsold stock, unwanted colours, and so forth.

Their assembly line is highly automated, with the assembly of the body, welding and painting performed by robots to ensure precision.

There is some human involvement in the final assembly, especially in regards to the more detailed work in the interior of the care. Robots still perform the heavy work, such as seat installation.

I initially expected a loud, busy, factory environment, but Lexus has excelled in the design of their plant – it is very quiet, extremely clean and well ordered.

Anyone working on the assembly line can stop the line at any time to rectify issues; with electronic noticeboards being updated throughout the plant each time an issue is encountered. This ensures that a vehicle does not progress down the line with correctable faults. If a vehicle has a problem that can’t be fixed, it is removed from the line for special attention - although this is the exception to the rule. As a rule quality is built in, not fixed up later.

Productivity Plant designers have incorporated a number of

“As a rule quality is built in, not fixed up later.”


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Elimination of Waste Lexus uses continual improvement to eliminate issues and waste. There are no hidden problems, and they ensure that there is high visibility of every issue so that the team can correct them immediately and that there are no recurrences.

The elimination of all types of waste is very important. Sources of waste include:

• Overproduction of unwanted goods

• Rehandling and transportation

• Processing

• Excess stock

• Defective products

Wasted motion is never confused with productive work. ‘Just in time production’ is one aspect of this - parts are delivered to the assembly line just before they are needed, and as stock is used, new parts are ordered and supplied only when needed.

Corporate Values The Toyota Production System does not just affect build quality at Lexus. It is also concerned with reliability and durability, as these are their key corporate values.

Lexus is innovative, but does not use unproven technologies in their cars or on the assembly line. Each item must be able to withstand years of use without failing, even in adverse conditions.

Lexus differentiates from Toyota through:

• The level of handcrafting (mainly in trim items)

• Quality checking

• The selection of the very best people

• The customer experience

The ‘Lexus Covenant’ guides dealers to ensure that customer excellence is achieved. They have the principle that each customer is treated as a guest in one’s home. This is based on Omotenashi. Omotenashi conveys Japanese ideals of hospitality, including understanding a customer’s wants and need, and thoughtfully caring about each individual’s well being.

The Dealership Whilst in Japan I also visited a Lexus dealer in Aoyama, an upmarket shopping area in Tokyo.

On arrival at the dealership, the Dealer immediately identified me as an English speaker and proceeded to give me a guided tour around the dealership and willingly answer any questions I had. They went out of their way to provide excellent customer service without the sales pitch.

On asking to see the service area, which was underground, I expected to see the usual disarray of car parts. Instead, I saw this:

“Each customer is treated as a guest in one’s home.”

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A number of vehicles were ready for servicing, with the service area presenting as immaculate - there were no large stockpiles of parts as, similar to the assembly plant, parts are delivered only when needed, and tools are stored in lockers so that the service area is kept tidy. Car detailing is also considered as part of each service.

As a prospective customer, my perception is that Lexus offers a consistent and seamless customer experience from design and manufacturing through to sales and customer service. This is a result of processes that ensure quality outcomes at each point.

The Lexus motto “The Passionate Pursuit of Perfection” is more than just a few words to Lexus - quality is a key requirement for the excellence that Lexus pursues as a key differentiator for their brand. The key elements are ensuring that quality is delivered at each customer touch point. This is by establishing quality and excellence as a corporate value, ensuring that all processes are in alignment with this goal, and that any deviations are corrected immediately.

What are your corporate values?

Do your company’s processes align to your company’s values?

About the writer: Graeme Woods is a Business Analyst and Program / Project Manager with in excess of 20 years’ experience in program management, project delivery and business analysis across a variety of industries. Graeme was a guest of Lexus in Japan.

We love receiving feedback from our clients on how our consultants are performing.

Janine Ripper, Manager and PMO Practice Lead for Cathara Consulting, recently received some very positive feedback from one of our key clients following he successful completion of some critical work in very tight timeframes. The client commented favourably on Janine's efficiency, productivity and work quality.

If you have any feedback on a Cathara Consulting employee, please send it through to the Management team at:

[email protected]

Recognition


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20 Unconventional Work Ideas

Alicia Curtis

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These might not sound unconventional to you, but how much are they actually practiced day to day? Others might sound a bit absurd and much like timewasting, but have you tried it? And some you may reject because everyone will think you’re weird - now we are getting somewhere! Are you willing to be revolutionary at work?

1. Start the day

Start the day without email. Write down one result you would like to achieve for the day. Most people have no clear purpose day-to-day - do you know your overall 3 priorities at work?

2. Take 30 minutes to think

Sometimes we get into do, do, do routines. Take a moment to think broadly and creatively about the issues you are dealing with. Edward De Bono’s ‘6 hats’ process is a great thinking framework.

3. Focus on long-term mastery

How are you building mastery in your strengths? Move towards your goals with patience and persistence. What’s your deliberate practice plan? Stress usually arises when we feel we aren’t getting there quick enough - enjoy the journey.

4. Exercise

Include exercise in your daily routine. It has been proven to improve productivity.

5. Take 30

Take 30 minutes to meditate or nap in the afternoon. Meditation improves health and reduces stress. It also helps you to think clearly.

6. Lunch!

Make sure you take breaks and opt for a healthy snack. Does your workplace stock healthy food in its kitchen?

Purpose and Focus

Productivity

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7. Reign Them In

Reign in distractions and interruptions so you can do your best work. Work in 40 minutes sprints with no distractions or interruptions, and then take a break.

8. When Do You Work Best?

Are you a morning person or a night owl? When is your power hour? Work the hours that suit you the best: 9 - 5, 6 - 2, 12 – 8.

9. Inspiration

Not matter what your title, practice being an inspiring leader at work. If you won’t, who will? YOU influence the tone in your workplace - let it be one that praises curiosity, experience, gratitude and appreciation.

10. Self-awareness

Build self-awareness and help others do the same. How well do you really know your team? Ask your team to share their personal values, strengths and goals. How well do you know yourself? Take time to identify your thoughts and feelings.

11. Strengths

Recognise the unique strengths you possess, and that others around you possess. Focus on harnessing those strengths in the workplace.

12. Listen

Make time to ask those around you how they are, and really listen. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

13. Ego

How often do we take things personally when we shouldn’t? Or say something just to make ourselves feel better, but not actually better the situation? Do you see this happening in your workplace? Step up and lead an ego free workplace.

14. Make a Start

Make decisions and be unafraid of action and movement. You can make adjustments later. Just start the process.

Leadership


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15. Unconscious Routines

What routines have you fallen into that are holding you back? Perhaps it’s as simple as having a coffee in the morning that spikes then lowers your energy levels, or as common as being addicted to your email inbox, or perhaps it’s getting into the ‘too busy’ routine? Instead of following unconscious routines, take up powerful practices that make you into a revolutionary leader - and follow them!

16. Just Do!

Wallace Wattles says the world needs demonstration more than it needs teaching. No more talkers - we want doers, deciders, action heroes and adventurers. Joel Runyon recently said: "Doers attract doers. Talkers attract wishers."

17. Take Time Out

Solitude is food for the soul. Meditate, journal, visualise, think, clarify, bask in silence, and just be.

18. Take Responsibility

Take responsibility for your own work, happiness, learning and revolutionary journey. No more excuses or blaming those around you. It is time for you to take 100% responsibility of yourself.

19. Be Positive

How many people do you know who complain, criticize or gossip? Be a role model at work - don’t complain, criticize or gossip! How long can you last? Instead start practice talking positively behind people’s backs. Radiate joy in the workplace.

20. Inspire Yourself

Take 30 minutes to inspire yourself at work - read a book, watch a video, or talk to your mentor. Be responsible for keeping yourself inspired.

Break Out and Be Excellent

About the writer: Alicia Curtis is one of WA’s most inspiring young social entrepreneurs. Alicia is a leader who walks the talk, having co-founded the youth environment organisation, Millennium Kids at 12 years old, established a collaborative online community for emerging leaders at 25 and recently created the 100 Women project. Her leadership programs act as an inspiring catalyst in people’s lives. She holds a Masters in Business Leadership. For more from Alicia, visit her website: http://revolutionarylives.com.

How are you growing?

What are you going to do to be revolutionary at work?

I N S I G H T

Copyright © 2014 / Cathara Consulting Pty Ltd / All Rights Reserved

About Cathara Consulting

Denis Defontaine is an experienced Senior Business Analyst and Team Leader, with in excess of 22 years of managerial, analytical, consultancy and customer service experience across a variety of industries from IT&T, Food and Fleet Management.

In a career encompassing 17 years in the IT industry, Denis gained diverse and invaluable experience across a range of customers and people in numerous roles including Mobiles Specialist, Team Leader, Lean Analyst and Business Analyst.

Denis is passionate about doing things the right way the first time for the right reasons. He aims to help businesses and customers achieve this by focusing on leadership, customer service and communication. He believes that leading by example, good communication, teamwork, and customer focus is critical to the success of any business or engagement.

Denis is a passionate supporter of the Liverpool Football Club. In his spare time he plays for the Chindits United Football Club, dabbles in art, photography, cooking and website design, and loves to travel.

In Profile: Denis Defontaine


w: http://catharaconsulting.com

Cathara Consulting is a Western Australian based boutique consulting firm.

Since establishment, Cathara Consulting has developed a reputation with its clients through helping them meet their goals, whilst focusing on the delivery of quality and results.

We possess extensive knowledge of best practices across a variety of industries, including government, resources, oil and gas and manufacturing sectors, which, accompanied by our capabilities in the latest IT and management practices, stand behind our reputation for excellence.

Our focus, as a company, is on learning and development – this is one thing that distinguishes us from our competitors. We learn both as individuals and as a consulting firm through formal training, networking and mentoring, and through capturing insights, which we also share with our clients.

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Cathara Consulting INSIGHT February 2014 Issue 4