When I got into the work force back in the mid-1970's it seemed everyone dressed in a suit and tie, drank black coffee, smoked their brains out, and worked their butts off. Today, golf shirts have replaced suits, herbal tea and bottled water have replaced coffee, nobody is allowed to smoke, and rarely does anyone work beyond 5:00 pm. And when did the tide turn when I now need Rosetta Stone to order something to eat or get a software technician's help on the phone?
More importantly, we used to care about the work we produced; there was a sense of craftsmanship, regardless of the job.
When I was much younger I went on a tour of a Cincinnati company's machine-tool shop and watched how they could take a block of aluminum and convert it into a high-precision machine tool. It was a pleasure to watch them work, as it is to watch anyone who knows what they are doing, be it a waitress.....a programmer.....a laborer or a clerk.
Quality and service used to be considered paramount in this country. If it wasn't just right, you were expected to do it over again until you got it right. We cared about what we produced because it was a reflection of our personal character and integrity. But somewhere along the line we lost our way and craftsmanship has fallen by the wayside. Why? Probably because most employees no longer care.
In today's society, employees are acutely aware that it is difficult to be fired due to poor performance. They know they will still get paid and receive benefits, regardless of the amount of effort they put forth. Consequently, there is little to encourage people to perform better. Money isn't a motivating factor anymore. People now expect bonuses, raises and other perks to be paid out regardless of how well they perform during the year.
We've also become a nation content with doing small things. America used to be known as a powerhouse that could tackle large projects, such as building skyscrapers, designing innovative bridges and tunnels spanning substantial bodies of water, engineering transcontinental railroads and highway systems, conquering air and space travel, and defending freedom not just once but in two world wars. If you really wanted something done, you talked to the Americans and no one else. Now we get excited over iPods, cell phones, and other electronic trinkets.
Many believe Craftsmanship is in decline due to the general apathy found in today's society. Maybe.... I tend to believe it is due to an erosion of our moral values. Let me give you an example. My interest was piqued recently by an article describing the pervasiveness of cheating and plagiarism in our schools. It is not my intent to make a political statement here but many of the students mentioned in the article rationalized their cheating on the fact that one of our past Presidents cheated and lied under oath, and got away with it. They figured if it is okay for the Commander-in-Chief to act this way, it was an acceptable form of behavior.
Arnold Toynbee, the famed English historian, observed, "Civilizations die from suicide, not by murder." If the moral fabric of our society dies, our story is told as evidenced by other great civilizations that long preceded us. Our perspective needs to be realigned: Our personal and professional lives must be viewed as one. As Toynbee remarked, "The supreme accomplishment is to blur the line between work and play." By doing so, we identify more closely with our work and assume a greater pride in workmanship. We do not need to hear this from our boss, but rather from within. As strange as it may sound, I see Craftsmanship as being patriotic in nature; doing a good quality job is part of leading a good and honorable life and builds on the individual's esteem, the company he works for, and the country he lives in.
The biggest problem though is that we have forgotten how to manage people. The manager's primary goal is to create the proper work environment for employees to produce the desired work products. Simple right? This is different than a supervisory capacity that directs how each person performs the various tasks of a job. In fact, I encourage managers to manage more and supervise less. I cringe when I see a manager try to "micromanage" an organization.
Yes, people need to be trained in order to properly perform their work but following this; employees should be mature enough to supervise themselves. In the old days, management stressed discipline, accountability, and structure; three ugly words in today's workplace.
....end part 1....
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