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Covery story |
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| Title |
What only a corn cob can do? |
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| Abstract |
No matter how vulnerable one is, one often searches for a more vulnerable person to blame for one's own inadequacies. Given the economic stress, many small entrepreneurs face enormous challenges in the market place. It is not easy to get payment on time for supplies made. In the light of ever-rising expectations of the clients, the quality control also requires considerable attention. Some of the problems are inherent in the processes and materials used for manufacturing different devices or components. In various meetings, it was common to hear small entrepreneurs blaming workers for leaving for better pastures after they were trained. It was alleged that they did not work hard, they were unwilling to learn and so on. It seemed that a large number of problems of small enterprises owed their origin to the rising aspirations of the workers and inability or the unwillingness of the entrepreneurs to meet those.
I had gone for a visit to an industrial cluster along with a scholar who believed that lot of innovations can come from the users of the products and services. We reached a factory which manufactured high precision components of certain machines. When one of these components was cut in a particular machine in oil medium, it was thrown out in another bowl which had some sand and other absorbant to soak the oil. The entrepreneur of this unit was talking to his friend about a serious problem which was affecting his business because of the quality issues. Even this entrepreneur would often blame the workers for various problems. One day, one of the workers hailing from a tribal region overheard the conversation between the entrepreneur and his friend. The entrepreneur was explaining that because of the material that he used in the bowl, the component coming out of the machine could be clean as far as oil was concerned but somehow, the surface of this component got abrased by the sandy material. This affected the quality and led to the loss of business. The worker who had overheard the conversation went to the owner and offered to try a solution. The owner was not impressed. He had tried many solutions and none had worked. With his specialised knowledge and so much of experience, if he could not solve the problem, how would a worker without much experience and qualification be able to solve it. However, he had no choice but to listen to the worker, when the latter requested to be given a chance.
The worker knew that when they work with an oil engine or any other stuff involving oil in their village, they often used the empty cobs of the corn to clean their hands. He suggested that instead of using sand and other materials in the bowl, why shouldn't they use the fibre of the corn cob after removing the grains. He put this material in the bowl and the problem was solved. The oil got soaked properly and there was no damage to the surface quality. The worker was very happy that his idea could solve the problem. He went to the owner entrepreneur and explained him the situation. The owner was delighted. But when the worker asked, could he share one more idea. The owner said, No, enough! Not now....
Why did the owner not encourage the worker to share more ideas? What was the mistake of the worker who having solved one problem offered to try another? How do we appreciate the unique knowledge of rural workers in urban enterprises.
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| Volume No. |
Honey Bee 25(1) 2, 2014 |
