I've been on dayshift for the last three weeks. This is because I was nominated to go on a Lean Sigma Yellow Belt training course. Lean Sigma is looking at the maufacturing process and running of things and trying to get the maximum return from any investment of time amd resources. Which is a roundabout way of saying making as much cash as possible with available resources. It's all about the money...
Apparently those of us who were nominated are considered to be people who will make use of the skills and tools the course provides. We are people who are expected to either run or facilitate kaizen events. This is fine, and I have found the theory of statistical analysis and things like value mapping quite interesting. The only problem I may have is coming up with ideas for improvement. But I figure that even if I don't come up with much stuff, I can at least help other people with good ideas follow the right process to realise their goals. Urgh, that sounds a bit too much like Tony Robins life-coach stuff...
I was supposed to be going back to nightshift next week, which I was kinda looking forward to. Dayshift is okay, but even after three weeks I still think it's easier to stay up all night and sleep during the day than get up at half past five in the morning. Also all the boss type guys are wandering around during the day, so it's very hard to relax. But now I'm spending one more week on days, so I can attend the Union delegates meeting on Thursday. Yesterday someone at work asked me if I was permanently on days now, and when I told them I was going back to nights next week they asked me if I would like to be the union delegate for nightshift. Apparently they have been looking for someone to take on the role for quite a while, but hadn't found anyone they thought would be able to do the job without pushing their personal agenda too much. I'm not quite sure what to make of that. I guess that I seem like a guy without an axe to grind, and genuinely interested in the running of things. Strangely, I'm quite looking forward to it. Most of what the union delegates do at GC is mediate between management and staff, and I like doing that. I like to work through things. The only thing that worries me is that apparently when the person who approached me checked with nightshift people to see if someone would nominate me and if I was generally acceptable, they were all really keen on the idea. This is kinda cool - that people see me as capable of representing them - but also quite worrying as I suspect it means that there may be some issues people want adressed right away. Of course, the other side of it is that not many people would be daft enough to vounteer for the role, but what the hell - the worst that can come of it is I suck and I stop doing it. But it's another opportunity to do something new, so I'll give it a go. And apparently I get to go to courses on dispute resolution, and mediation and things at the EPMU office in town. That should be cool...
Well, that's enough for now. I'm going to go and do... something.
