Wednesday, June 15, 2011

A Generation of Lost Businesses

Recession and Recovery: Reference:

FYI ONLY

http://smallbiztrends.com/2011/04/lost-generation-small-business-owners.html


April 4, 2011

Excerpt from the above 'link'

"We’re down more than 1.1 million. That’s how many fewer self-employed Americans there are today than when the Great Recession began."

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Ref/BACKGROUND: OPEN GOVERNMENT DIALOGUE (About 2 Years Ago}

https://opengov.ideascale.com/

[lede] Quote:
June 26, 2009
The Open Government Dialogue is now closed. Because of your participation, this dialogue has generated a rich collection of ideas that will shape the President’s commitment to making our government more transparent, participatory, and collaborative.

How can we strengthen our democracy and promote efficiency and effectiveness by making government more transparent, participatory, and collaborative? Unquote

NEW TOOLS AND TECHNOLOGIES »

Back to Work

I was among the participants in the OPEN GOVT 'dialogue' 'brainstorm'. The (first sentence: (why is the 'idea' important?) is the 'dialogue' author's request for documented justification of the input 'idea'. The above Reference and the CONTEXT (attachments) are FYI. Comments welcome and appreciated MM

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Why Is This Idea Important?
Participant's Response: (minor editing since original input)
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Fixing and preventing mistakes and deficiencies in the workplace is everybody's business. At this time (6.15.2011) in our economic road back, it is vital that workers, especially supervisors and instructors returning to 'job' and those who are new to a 'workplace' (changes in product design and production/support technology understand the nature of 'mistakes and deficiencies' phenomena and why they happen. Also, that first and second level supervisors be required to attend/participate in a training course that includes a 'how to…' discussions on adapting 'options' cited in a general 'corrective actions checklist' to help them get at a problem's evolution-altered 'root causes.'

I expect that the government's economic 'Recovery' programs will return employer-dominated industries to the levels that prevailed before the nation was gripped by massive unemployment. I also expect that hiring trends will be gradual and extend across time.

Granted that the unemployed will be offered jobs. Former hi-tech qualified employees will likely be recalled first or early. Subsequently, new hires will come from the experienced, the sufficiently skilled, and otherwise confirmed as qualified workers.

Meanwhile, throughout our country hundreds of thousands of adolescents to young adults are passing through 9th to 12th grades, and many 12th graders or dropouts have matured into men and women who are either heading for college or looking for a paying job in order to marry and 'make a living' for a planned family.

What are 'government, NGOs, and the private sector -- national to local -- in the context of the federal 'Recovery' initiative doing NOW (6-15-2011) to prepare and QUALIFY this long march of young CITIZENS IN GOOD STANDING for what it'll take for them to get and hold a job that'll TRAIN AND pay enough to provide for youth/young adult participation in the nation's next adult generation? In effect, what programs exist now (at each level of government (or in other authorities/industries/social resources) that a youth/young adult seeking a paying job can contact, learn from, and continue on into 'job maturity'? If such contacts, resources and guidance exist, have they been sufficiently publicized to the youth/young adults population? Does a follow up oversight system and staff for appropriate neighborhoods exist and function?

For instance: an untrained young adult is hired as an apprentice by a 'small business' manufacturer. Following the paper work, indoctrination, technical training and a tour of the work unit where the new hire is to be be assigned he/she is turned over to the 1st line supervisor who instructs and demonstrates his/her duties which include several hands-on technical operations under supervisory/crew chief oversight.

Enormous waste of resources occur and lives are lost because of mistakes and deficiencies in producing things and in industrial services. As a former management analyst in a government Inspector General office and in other assignments, the scope of my responsibilities included manufacture, maintenance, and later on, research and analysis of 'production' defects and abuse of materiel in both government and the private sectors. Often, the causes included poor procedures and training in getting at the 'root cause' of a problem. My experience is that normally, workers do not hide mistakes or minimize deficiencies. Further, on-the-job the worker is the 1st line supervisor's friend.
Post-retirement, in 1979, I prepared the original Management Aid for Small Manufacturers (checklist) on fixing and preventing mistakes and deficiencies in the workplace. The Aid was published with the help of the SCORE program and the Small Business Administration. Updating guidelines is ongoing and essential. I have tried to meet that requirement consistently and the current edition is online for free downloading at:
http://mistakesdeficienciesworkplace.blogspot.com/

Added subsequently: Sources to consider for new inputs, and coordination with experts on the 'checklists' technical content prior to general release, should include the SBA and such government NGO, and private sector entities such as the GAO, Inspectors General, Quality Assurance, air/ground/sea and space support systems and components, acquisition specs, logistics and others that have significant responsibilities for public safety.


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Comment by an unknown participant:
jonhenry78 said: 
I salute your endeavors so far. I have been involved with many hazard type jobs over my 35 years of working. One concept that needs to be emphasised is "every person involved in process must take responibility for eventual outcome", If you see something wrong, Speak up and get it fixed! If immediate superior will not fix it, go over to higher up, if needed "blow the whistle". But that is anouther post isn't it.

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