Don't Assume Intelligence is Related to the Job

Early in my career, I worked exclusively in a staff function. But I worked for a manufacturing firm. Like most people in a staff function, I never actually went out into the factory to see what we built and how we built it.

Oh sure, I would see those factory folks in the company cafeteria. And when I thought of them at all, it was to think something along the lines of “those poor saps, stuck in the factory, doing the same thing over and over, not having/using any skills or imagination”. Man was I wrong!!

Like many, I made the assumption that their manual labor jobs were a reflection of their intelligence and capabilities. Once I had the opportunity to move to manufacturing, I realized my error.

I grew to admire the mechanics around me. They had knowledge and expertise that I will never measure up to. Let’s put this in perspective. Imagine building a 737 every 6 hours or so. Now imagine what it takes to build that airplane. Mind boggling, eh?

These mechanics are able to take a drawing, a flat piece of paper with a one-dimensional drawing on it, in one hand…… and a flat piece of metal in the other hand….. And somehow create an airplane part out of all it. They run complex machines that are the size of an apartment building. They operate overhead cranes, moving airplane pieces and chunks such that it looks like a ballet in the air. They can take all the thousands of pieces and parts, put them together, and create a half-barrel chunk of an airplane. They can take those chunks, assembly them together, and create the body of an airplane. And then do it again, and again, and again. Reliably and exactly. Whew. They can see the spatial relationships that are just so much mumbo-jumbo to me. They can “see” how the parts are to look, how the sections are to go together. Sure, these things are designed by an engineer, but they are built and assembled by a skilled mechanic. They use their hands and their minds to do some pretty cool work.

I am certain, that even with all my education, I would never be able to accomplish what they do.

Yea, their work isn’t glamorous and it certainly isn’t for everyone (including me). And yes, there is a certain amount of repetition, that would quite honestly drive me nuts. It is often dirty and back-breaking work. Imagine you are a machine operator and metal chips are flying all around you, machine coolant on the slick floor. Yes, the machine is programmed by some NC programmers, and the part is engineered by someone else. But….. The mechanic is the one that is responsible for creating the magic. These guys are smart and intelligent!

So, as an executive (or potential executive), don’t underestimate the people out on the shop floor. After all, they are the ones that make you successful, right?