Reliability professionals today face a challenge. Engineering and operations staff members are taught to think for themselves, to make decisions, to get things done. The entire staff is highly educated, motivated, and willing to lead a team or organization to results.

To be effective as a reliability professional requires engaging those independent, fast-moving individuals. We have to compel others to listen to and understand reliability predictions, risk assessments, and models. If they listen and act on the information we provide, they then may fully consider the impact of decisions on reliability performance.

Do reliability professionals have authority or influence? Highly sought after experts in reliability engineering collaborate on major projects and work with groups across the company but likely have no real authority. It is their advice and coaching that forms the basis of their role, and that means influence. So, if products and systems become more reliable with their input, does it really matter whether they are operating with influence or authority?

Consider how change happens. Take, for example, the task of simply turning on a light switch. Changing the position of a light switch from off to on involves the physical force to flip the switch to the on position. Prior to that action, you thought about turning on the lights. There was an intention, followed by an action. Prior to the intention, there is often a moment of need or desire. It was getting dark (a problem) and, wanting to read (objective), you decided to turn on the nearby light (solution). Or, maybe someone just told you to turn on the light, interrupting your nap.

This simple light example initially involved only you. You determined the problem inhibiting a goal, devised a solution, and then took action to achieve your goal. The nap interruption involved someone with the authority to compel you to take action. Turning the light on may have actually created a problem for the goal of a 20-minute nap.

Let’s say two people walk into a dark room. You would like to show the other a passage from a book. You could turn on the light and proceed, or, if the other person is closer to the switch, you could exert some influence through a comment such as “I would like to show you something; please turn on the light.” In this simple example, the problem of not enough light may be obvious and the lights would come on. You know the goal, have realized the problem, have the intention leading to a solution, and have used influence to create action by another toward a solution.

Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, the simple thought that ‘we need more light’ doesn’t automatically create the change in state of the power to lighting near us. Given our current system of power distribution and controls for lighting, someone would have to flip the switch. Change often requires other people to take action toward a goal that they may neither understand nor desire at the moment.

Influence and authority have the ability to cause solutions to occur. Authority does not require the need to transfer a goal and the proposed solution. Influence works well when we share and transfer the desire toward achieving a goal to another person.

In reliability engineering we often do not have authority. We cannot simply command the use of more reliable components. However, via influence, we can achieve the goal of a reliable system by creating a common goal (reliable system) by clearly stating what the objectives of the goal are and why they are important. The influence continues with the use of reliability tools and engineering practices to propose solutions (e.g., a more expensive part withstands the expected stresses better than the current part). If we want this goal, consider this solution.

Of course, sometimes we rely on other engineers to find the possible solutions. By showing them the barriers to achieving the common goal, we also exert influence. The caveat here is that, when possible paths to solutions are seen as only highlighting problems, this may lead to a loss of influence.

In essence, reliability engineering involves determining what will fail and when it will fail. Inherent in that line of thinking is only the identification of problems. Reliability engineers can identify problems using the range of tools available, but, when there are barriers to achieving the reliability goals, then it is time to propose solutions or at least paths toward solutions. It is the ability to influence the entire team to take action that makes the difference in achieving the reliability objectives.

Reliability engineering is a world of influence. Some say the best leaders do so through influence, not authority. I fully agree that reliability engineers can be leaders who use influence on a regular basis. At the end of the day, influence can be more meaningful than authority.

Bio:

Fred Schenkelberg is an experienced reliability engineering and management consultant with his firm FMS Reliability. His passion is working with teams to create cost-effective reliability programs that solve problems, create durable and reliable products, increase customer satisfaction, and reduce warranty costs. If you enjoyed this articles consider subscribing to the ongoing series Musings on Reliability and Maintenance Topics.