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The big problem with that logic is that it assumes the NCM, which has no official GM affiliation, actually carefully coordinated with the right people at GM. My theory is that they asked someone at BGA who gave them a WAG, and they went with it without official GM confirmation and ended up with egg on face.
I think so, too. No matter how you cut it, the NCM is not an official spokesman for GM. In fact, my impression after taking delivery there was that the NCM factory tours were grudgingly tolerated by GM. NCM tours and personnel were restricted to particular entrances at particular times, told to park in only designated areas, and tours had to stay in designated areas on the factory floor. The engine build area was walled off by newspapers over the windows, an obvious attempt to prevent anyone from seeing inside. They apparently change their list of restrictions without notice. The fellow squiring us around seemed a bit beleaguered at the treatment "afforded" us by GM plant employees. I know the official message is that GM is tight with the NCM. Spande sits on the NCM Board, for example, but GM is very friendly with the UAW as well. Doesn't mean they are on the same page.
Could it be that the C8 is ahead of schedule rather than delayed. Maybe, just maybe, the NCM posted a Jan restart date as the factory enlargement would have been completed and the C7 would be moving on towards its 2020 model year. The C8 may have been projected for a 2021 model, but they were ahead of schedule and the factory tours could not resume as there were too many C8 parts all over the factory. Just saying, maybe.
It's a model year 2020 car. There's enough LinkedIn postings by people working in the project, and certain labels on the cars themselves, that this is a fact not up for debate.
The only way it gets pushed to MY2021 is if it's delayed.
LOL, I don't see anything in those photos indicating a difference in worker pride or satisfaction. Those damned bib-overalls on the human ooompa-loompas look awfully uncomfortable. I suspect those poor Porsche workers complain about that plenty at home.
Easy to see which group takes more pride in their work, and which ones complain the most.
I'm guessing it's the opposite of what you think. They look like gay tomatoes. I'll also bet Porsche pays for the costumes. No self-respecting German would wear **** like that if it weren't required.
LOL, I don't see anything in those photos indicating a difference in worker pride or satisfaction. Those damned bib-overalls on the human ooompa-loompas look awfully uncomfortable. I suspect those poor Porsche workers complain about that plenty at home.
I bet they can't wait to get home and change into their Lederhosen.
No, there's a difference between wearing work clothes and showing up to the factory in the clothes you wore on your weekend hunting and drinking excursions. Those of you who are executives know the difference between wearing work clothes and leisure clothes.
They get to wear cooler uniforms on the 911 line:
Yet another potential source of axillary pubes on the BGA line:
Note how much better the lighting is at the Porsche factories. Porsche went to Toyota for lessons on how to build and run an assembly line and it shows.
Last edited by Zaro Tundov; 03-03-2019 at 12:49 PM.
No, there's a difference between wearing work clothes and showing up to the factory in the clothes you wore on your weekend hunting and drinking excursions. Those of you who are executives know the difference between wearing work clothes and leisure clothes.
You are making sociological conclusions based on pictures without having interviewed the people wearing the clothing. You lack context and are jumping to conclusions. On the one hand you have a Teutonic cuture well known for conformism and discipline and on the other you have multi-cultural Americans who value individuality. You have no information on top down requirement imposed by the company.
Your anthropological fieldwork skills are lacking.
Yeah, gotta agree, and have been a senior exec at 3 large organizations and still am. The uniform thing has been debunked and new school management thinking embraces casual and individuality. All the best private primary and secondary schools have also dumped uniforms for the same reasons.
Pay a visit to Google, Facebook, or Apple some time, and check out the attire. No one can deny the high level of creativity and job satisfaction going on there.
You are making sociological conclusions based on pictures without having interviewed the people wearing the clothing. You lack context and are jumping to conclusions. On the one hand you have a Teutonic cuture well known for conformism and discipline and on the other you have multi-cultural Americans who value individuality. You have no information on top down requirement imposed by the company.
Your anthropological fieldwork skills are lacking.
Actually I do have much of the info you lack. I know that Porsche requires manufacturing employees to wear uniforms at their factories, and I know that Porche's quality and reliability is significantly higher than that of the Corvette. I also know that much of Porsche's assembly processes were designed by Toyota, the very best in the world when it comes to manufacturing quality.
However you're right about one thing: I haven't interviewed the employees. It's possible the BGA workers who shown up in wife beaters are careful to shave their armpits every morning so as not to risk axillary hair contamination of the Corvettes they build.
Last edited by Zaro Tundov; 03-03-2019 at 04:47 PM.
It's not the uniforms producing the higher levels of quality. Perhaps quality, productivity, and employee satisfaction would actually improve at Porsche if they stopped having to play dress up every day and were allowed to wear what they feel most comfortable in.
No, at most uniforms cause a subtle shift in worker attitude. Probably the same effect can be achieved via dress code.
You probably wore a uniform of sorts as an executive (shirt and tie). Do you think your behavior would have changed at all if you could have just shown up in shorts, sandals, and a wife beater?
We've gone business casual, and worker productivity is much better than the days of business suits 5 days a week. The culture is far more relaxed, friendly, with higher morale and teamwork. I'm at the top of the food chain and rarely wear a tie any more.
Uniforms don't do anything except make prettier marketing photos of the assembly line.
Certainly not the primary cause, but it is a reflection of respecting, valuing our employees more, and becoming better listeners to their ideas in our roles as senior execs. Gone is the strict military chain-of-command culture, where they're treated like serfs, while we prance around as if we were some sort of royalty. The psychological distance between the top and bottom of the organizational structure has been greatly reduced.
That's actually pretty interesting how the psychological distance between top and bottom of the organization has grown smaller as the discrepancy in salaries has grown greater. Getting comfy in my armchair, I'd guess that when salaries at the top were more modest, they felt a stronger need to differentiate themselves based on dress and social standing in the company.
We're talking about plant tours given to the public. People touring the plant will form an opinion based on what they see. So what looks better, the Porsche line worker in the uniform or the BG line worker in the wife beater? Who would you rather have assembling your car? The cost to GM to have everyone in a Corvette polo at BG would be minimal. It's all about optics.
03-02-2019, 06:23 PM
