Housekeeping CEO Archives - Page 2 of 2

Recent Articles

Ignoring what’s wrong will comes back to bite us

Dr. Henry Cloud is one of my frequent inspirations. He tweeted yesterday: “Two things can really drive a vision: something awful that you want to rectify…. or something awesome that you want to realize.” Last night I was speaking to a group about strategic planning. We talked about people who take the energy out of an organization. The comment came quickly: “Everybody in any organization can tell you what’s wrong with it.” We often live

Howe Q. Wallace August 24, 2016

Good Housekeeping Key To Success

I roamed through three plants in North Carolina yesterday with guests. One of them commented: “We’re in plants all the time. Most are messy. These were not. You can tell these guys pay attention. Impressed with clean floors and the level of action.” I thanked him on your behalf. I mean all of you. While the North Carolina teams in Siler City, Butner and Mocksville represented you well, I let them know that I had

Howe Q. Wallace October 22, 2015

Time To Clean

What’s in your work space that needs to go? Things have a way of collecting. It doesn’t matter how they got there really. Fact is, that they are in your space. You have to touch them. You have to work around them. They are eating away at your effectiveness. Maybe those things could be used by somebody else? Maybe they could be trashed? Maybe they could be sold? Maybe they could be stored? In any

Howe Q. Wallace September 3, 2015

Are you better today than the beginning of the year?

How are you better today on July 31st than you were at the beginning of the year? Did you create any new habits? Did you ditch any bad ones? Read any books? Learn anything new? Conceive and start a project? Help the team in new ways? Work hard to maintain you skills and endurance so that you could continue elite performance rather than slip back? Make a difference in someone else’s life? Do something to

Howe Q. Wallace July 31, 2015

Thanks For Good Housekeeping

I visited four different PalletOne plants this week. One with guests. One of the guests asked: “How did you get your people to develop such good housekeeping habits? It’s really impressive.” I know it’s impressive. But, I take it for granted. I want to thank all of you for the efforts you make daily to make a plant visit impressive. Good housekeeping makes sense. It’s safer. It’s more efficient. It lifts the pride of all

Howe Q. Wallace April 20, 2015

Spring is ‘Lean and Clean’-up Time

Yesterday, I suggested we consider cleaning up your work space. Today, I want look at the benefits of running an operation that’s ‘Lean and Clean’. To run lean, we must have good housekeeping. Keep your area clean. This is a simple truth. The best plants have good housekeeping. It takes an “every person effort” to keep a plant orderly and clean. Here are some of the things that I see that happen in clean plants: Management has a

Howe Q. Wallace April 10, 2015

Lessons From The Fire Line

Perhaps you heard about the fire at a neighboring sawmill in Hazlehurst, GA. Some historical background: our plant in Hazlehurst was built there in the early 70’s because of Thompson Hardwoods, the plant burned. Originally, they were our sole source of lumber. We’ve been neighbors almost 40 years. Both businesses have evolved through the years. We no longer use hardwood. They have become a leading grade hardwood and cross tie producer. Thus, our strategic partnership

Howe Q. Wallace June 12, 2014

10 Commitments: #9 – Lean and Clean

Commitment #9, a focus on keeping things straight… 10 COMMITMENTS No Shortcuts We will teach you the safe way, provide you safe equipment, fix it when it breaks. Do it right and safe. Safety Freeze Watch out for others, guide and teach “rookies,” hold others accountable for safe practices. On Time and Quick Start Be there, start timely. Work Smart – Technique and Consistency Learn the right techniques and work at a consistent pace. Work

Howe Q. Wallace December 28, 2012

Lean Efforts in Siler City Improve Appearance, Efficiency

Some of the best “lean” efforts I have seen involve straightening and reorganizing our outside spaces. I was in Siler City on Monday. It is one of our largest facilities housing a sawmill, a pallet plant and a recycling operation. It sprawls over 50 acres. I’ve been to the plant on a regular basis for over 16 years. Having ample space, it appears that bad habits took over and due care for storage and organization

Howe Q. Wallace November 7, 2012

6S a Good Tool for Improving Our Facilities

I have seen tremendous efforts on 6S in our operations since we began to implement “lean” techniques. The 6S’s are: Sort Straighten Shine Standardize Sustain Safety Initially, it takes an effort to get it right. It takes awhile to get the methods documented and the habits formed to maintain it. There are several benefits. The first is the satisfaction the team gets from getting it done. Another is that it builds confidence and increases the

Howe Q. Wallace April 27, 2012

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Articles About Leadership

THE JUICE IS WORTH THE SQUEEZE

“Everything you want is on the other side of ‘hard’.” – CJ McCollum, NBA player McCollum is a story of overachievement. He was undersized. Played college basketball at a non-descript school. Was a long shot to be an NBA player but worked his way to being a first-round draft pick and was a solid star in his 10th year in the league. I heard him describe his approach to the game and his development on a podcast called

Howe Q. Wallace March 25, 2024

HAPPENING TO THE WORLD – A SATISFYING WAY TO LIVE

PalletOne leaders “happen to the world.” What does that mean? A PalletOne leader is confident. Each situation creates an opportunity for service and contribution. We are talented and put those talents to work. We see those around us as having talent. We seek to unlock it. We realize that we can be called upon to take the initiative to improve things at any moment. We act when the situation calls for it. We inspire through

Howe Q. Wallace March 25, 2024

SUFFERING AND CHALLENGES

“Weep, trust, pray, think, shift, hope, grow. Ways to handle suffering.” – Tim Keller Tim Keller was a preacher from New York City. He passed away in 2023. I followed him on Twitter because he tweeted profound thoughts like the one above. You don’t exit life without tough things happening to you. It’s a fact. None of us are exempt. In specific order, Keller gave us seven verbs to consider when challenged: Weep – It’s

Howe Q. Wallace March 22, 2024