Leading with Purpose – Lessons in Operational Excellence

About this Podcast Episode: Leading with Purpose – Lessons in Operational Excellence with Ron Darnell at Siemens Energy Wind Power

Are you truly leading your teams or just keeping things moving? Rethink how you lead, improve, and align your teams for success with our latest episode of Leading for Business Excellence.

Ron Darnell, Senior Quality Manager at Siemens Energy Wind Power, invites us into his leadership journey, sharing the highs and the missteps that have shaped his approach to Operational Excellence. With a wealth of stories from his military background and years in the wind energy sector, Ron reveals the lessons learned from building a culture of improvement, tackling hidden factories, and leading change.

As he reflects on the challenges of motivating teams and sustaining momentum, Ron shares how habits like daily huddles have transformed communication and aligned efforts with strategic goals. He candidly explores what it’s taken to manage growth, embrace behavioural change, and navigate a fast-evolving industry while staying true to his leadership values.

These are insightful lessons from a seasoned leader, so listen now and start transforming your leadership impact today.

 

Lead with purpose, drive Continuous Improvement, and make a lasting impact.

"Not only would we do kaizen events with our suppliers, we would also bring them together in supplier conferences and let them talk about their Continuous Improvement activities because they would help each other out."

From Training to Transformation

Bridging the gap between training and implementation is key to Ron’s approach in building a strong foundation for a sustainable improvement culture.

Breaking Down Silos to Build an Improvement Culture

By expanding networks and sharing successes, teams can drive connection and collaboration.

Master Improvement Tools by Living Them

A compelling example from Ron on how he used the Ishikawa diagram, a problem solving tool initially unfamiliar to him, to achieve success.

Aligning Improvement Activities with Strategic Goals

By aligning activities with key financial and operational goals, organisations can drive productivity and ensure meaningful impact.

Watch the Vodcast

Join PMI’s Susannah Clarke in the studio with Ron Darnell as they talk about Leading with Purpose.  You’ll hear them discuss:

  • Defining Operational Excellence (03:06)

A view of Operational Excellence in the wind industry, setting the foundation for the discussion.

  • Building a Culture of Improvement (05:14)

How strategies like training, coaching, and fostering a sense of community contribute to a sustainable culture of continuous improvement.

  • Daily Huddles Implementation (09:14)

The transformation of team communication, alignment, and overall productivity through the implementation of daily huddles.

  • Linking Activities to Strategic Goals (15:46)

Connecting daily improvement activities with the organisation’s strategic objectives to drive meaningful outcomes.

  • Knowledge Management in Wind Power (23:50)

The need for robust systems to manage and share knowledge effectively, ensuring operational excellence across teams.

  • AI in Knowledge Management (28:42)

A forward-looking discussion on using AI tools like ChatGPT to enhance knowledge sharing and decision-making.

Explore More Leading for Business Excellence Podcast Episodes

Leading With Purpose: Developing an Improvement Culture

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