Struggles and triumphs of creating a culture of engagement
Open new channels for innovation and improvement by tapping into the ideas and suggestions from experts/your engaged workforce; gain strategies for building a dynamic, effective idea generation program; nurture a CI culture that assists employees in identifying and solving problems; hear about the challenges and rewards of change implementation.
Hear about the vitality and effectiveness of Gemline’s idea generation model. Encounter powerful strategies for capturing innovative ideas and improvement suggestions from experts who are responsible for day-to-day operations. Learn about Gemline’s culture (rooted in employee engagement, learning and creativity) and how its focus on creating a continuous improvement (CI) culture sparked creation of a system to assist everyone in identifying problems/implementing solutions. Share employees’ enthusiasm for answering questions such as, “What is an idea?” and also about what system to use, how to effectively communicate the organization’s system and how to sponsor implementation. Learn how Gemline began creating its highly-interactive idea generation system and providing the experts (employees) with a voice. Hear about the highs and lows of implementation and about building a culture of an engaged workforce through daily CI.
Gemline is a promotional industry supplier of bags, business accessories, gifts and writing instruments. Ranked as the 17th-largest industry supplier by the Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI), it brings cutting-edge, relevant trends to the market. Gemline’s product line includes padfolios, portfolios, gifts, writing instruments, backpacks, sport/travel bags, totes, coolers and high-quality brands featuring bobble, Brookstone, Igloo, Lamy, Moleskine and Zebra. Based in Lawrence, MA, Gemline has an office in southern China. It celebrated 50 years in business in 2008 and has more than 500 employees worldwide. www.gemline.com
Susan Kamacho is the human resources business partner manager at Gemline’s headquarters in Lawrence, MA. She has been engaged in continuous improvement efforts throughout her career, especially in training and development. Kamacho created programs focused on consistent on-the-job learning activities and integrating new skills into the work environment. She has been involved in moving company cultures to strong engagement communities.
Cindi Woodbury is the business systems integration trainer and idea generation facilitator at Gemline. As a facilitator, she reviews the company’s system with new hires and helps to guide department coordinators. She coordinates celebrations and idea generation milestones in addition to serving as a resource on the facility’s idea generation system.
