The Ownership Thinking Steering Committee

I am often asked about the role a steering committee should play in the organization. A steering committee is a cross-functional group of employees who act as a “corporate conscience” for Ownership Thinking in the company. By this I mean that their role is to ensure full engagement of employees through effective communication and the use of Ownership Thinking tools such as rapid improvement plans (RIPs), scoreboards, huddles, forecasting and incentive plans. Their role is not to solve every problem but rather to serve as a catalyst of communication, enabling an easy flow of issues, solutions and celebration throughout the company. Different companies define this role in different ways.

Within each company, the steering committee is responsible for defining their role and boundaries in the company. For example, the role of the steering committee at a benefits consulting firm is to establish a list of potential rapid improvement plans that could be developed from key performance indicators that the company tracks. Once a RIP is identified, the steering committee pulls together the people in the company who know the most about that key issue or are most directly affected by it, and they form a temporary committee to outline the details of the rapid improvement plan, including the specific measurable objective, the duration, the actions and people involved, the celebration and so forth. In this way, their steering committee is essentially a RIP catalyst committee.

At a geo-thermal pool heating company, the steering committee has a much broader role. In addition to serving as a catalyst for rapid improvement plans, the committee also organizes regular company-wide WGO (What’s Going On) meetings, ensures that scoreboards are updated, that huddles are happening and has even developed a company library to encourage employee personal development.

Steering Committees often have a chair who calls the meetings, sets the agenda and encourages participation. Employees rotate in and out of steering committees on some frequency, sometimes annually, sometimes more frequently, and they meet often enough to achieve the role they set for themselves in the company. Overall it is important that they establish a mission and vision for themselves. Establishing this level of discipline and organization enhances their credibility and their ability to get things done, as well as helps them address any nay-sayers.

Please let me know your steering committee experiences or questions.