Shop-floor activities are crucial to the organization's success.

People engaged in shop-floor activities represent a majority of working people in our society.

People on the shop floor are not only producers of value to society but also customers.

The shop floor provides a critical environment for people's career development.

Many people spend the majority of their working careers on the shop floor.

Developing self-managing capability on the shop floor will help people to chart a course in the current turbulent business environment.

Awards: these represent the memory of hard work, or milestones of progress.

Banners with important messages or slogans remind people of shared beliefs.

Improvement boards describe through pictures and comments changes made.

Cross-training charts, skills matrixes, show the skill base of each team member.

Charts on attendance and number of suggestions help indicate the health of the organization.

Newsletters recognize improvements and ideas and share company objectives.

The team is composed mainly of people from the same work area.

The focus is on improving problems on the shop floor.

The emphasis is on self-management and the use of the team's collective wisdom.

Support and guidance may be given by management.

The team contributes to the company's mission as well as their own.

The team explores everyone's creativity and self-esteem.

The team makes use of problem-solving...