Give employees the ‘Mr. Potato Head test’?
August 21, 2009 by Sam NarisiPosted in: In This Week's E-Newsletter, Job screening tests, Latest News & Views
Does Mr. Potato Head have a place in employee training or new hire orientation? This employer thinks so.
Starbucks is rolling out a company-wide efficiency initiative, with the goal of getting employees to work faster. Part of the training process: taking apart and reassembling a Mr. Potato Head doll. For two hours straight.
One Starbucks manager told the Wall Street Journal that a member of the “lean team” came to her store, sprinkled parts of the toy across several tables and timed the manager with a stopwatch as she assembled the pieces.
Then she was told to do it again. And again. And again, for nearly two hours.
How’d that make the manager feel? Impressed, actually.
Though the first time trial took more than a minute, by the end, she could complete the task in 16 seconds. “That really opened my eyes,” the manager said.
Tags: Mr. Potato Head, Starbucks, training
August 21st, 2009 at 10:08 am
You got to be kidding? I don’t want my coffee made in 16 seconds. What is Starbucks going to do dip a coffee bag in hot water and serve it. I want to know that the Barista took great pride and care in that Carmel Macchiato dbl express shot that I am paying an arm and leg for. I got a good laugh out of this one, next time I visit Starbucks I’ll be sure asked about Mr. Potato Head.
August 21st, 2009 at 10:41 am
2 hours of putting a Mr. Potato Head doll together. What impressed the manager?
August 21st, 2009 at 11:01 am
If I was asked to do this, I would feel really insulted. I think most employees would think it was crazy and a waste of time. I can’t believe a giant corporation like Starbucks would do something so stupid.
August 21st, 2009 at 12:58 pm
I suppose it illustrates the point that with practice and training, you can enhance your productivity without sacrificing quality (I’m assuming that in the 16 second run she had all of Mr. PH’s parts in the right place). It’s good to remind employees and their managers that performance can be improved upon, if we focus on that goal. I’m not sure it’s necessary to do it for two hours to get that point across. Seems to me that assemby time would improve after 15 minutes.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:04 pm
The manager said “That really opened my eyes” …. Doesn’t everyone know that you can do things faster after practice? I can’t imagine why it should be so amazing to the manager. It shouldn’t take a Potato Head to figure out that. I agree with not wanting a coffee made in 16 seconds – when you paid good money for it. It’s not the quickness I want – I can make a quick pot of coffee on my own at home.
August 21st, 2009 at 2:27 pm
I get the point, but two hours? That seems abusive. And if it took 2 hours for this manager to get the point, perhaps she shouldn’t be a manager?
August 21st, 2009 at 2:52 pm
I think you guys are looking at the wrong side of this – of course your Starbucks double-spiffy coffee will still take just as much time to make… It’s more a matter of, DON’T stand around and watch the coffee brew itself – the machine can brew on its own without your eyeballs on it – DO SOMETHING instead of just standing there! Multi-tasking, clean-as-you-go, always be looking/thinking ahead, “How can I do the next step better? What tools am I going to need?” Don’t make three separate trips to the back cooler/file cabinet – think for an extra 2 seconds about what else you may need from there within the immediate future, and get it all at the same time.
And I’d be proud of myself for shaving a personal record down to 16 seconds, too! When put in a crazy or seemingly ridiculous situation, make the most of it! If you open your mind, it’s likely you’ll learn something!
August 21st, 2009 at 2:52 pm
Hmmm, sounds just like the “learning curve” concept taught in most Operations Management courses. If my math is correct, and, assuming 50 attempts to go from 2 minutes to 16 seconds, this Starbucks manager has a 70% learning curve. This means that the manager improved her time by 30% each time she doubled the number of attempts. A 70% learning curve is pretty good, by the way. Typical industrial measures assume an 80% learning curve, so this Starbucks manager should be building Buicks or Chevys instead of lattes.
August 23rd, 2009 at 9:53 am
I think everyone could understand the concept after a few tries but 2 hours. I would be so insulated and not feel kindly toward the employer.
August 24th, 2009 at 8:23 am
Shauna – I agree that you need to use your time wizely, but a Potato Head doesn’t teach that point at all. It would be more on fucus, I would think. If you’ve ever put together a Potato Head, you’ll know that you focus on one task, not look around for other things to do. If he wanted to demonstrate the benefits of keeping busy, he should have used something else. (Like maybe NOT spending all that time doing a potato head over and over in the first place!!! That would be SUCH a waste of time!!)
August 28th, 2009 at 10:59 am
I don’t know which is worse — the manager for making the applicant perform such a ridiculous stunt for 2 hours, or the applicant who took the abuse for 2 hours and didn’t walk out.
August 28th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
Shauna, your point is well made. I teach nursing and the major part of learning a skill is
“repetition, repetition, repetition”. If Mr. Potato Head gets the attention and promotes the desired outcome, then it works. I believe the attitude of someone participating in this learning activity is
important. If the activity is viewed as “silly” and “insulting”, then probably not much gain for that individual.
August 28th, 2009 at 2:14 pm
It wasn’t a manager doing it to an applicant, it was a corporate trainer doing it to the manager. I imagine the manager needs her job, that’s why she would have put up with it for 2 hours.
September 12th, 2009 at 7:58 pm
I think the manager could have gotten the concept in less than 2 hrs. Yes, it teaches a good point about repetition, but if you are creating a custom product, not everything is repetition. Why not work with the real product for 15 minutes (or cheap imitations) at a time ? That way, you get hands on practice. yeah, not as fun maybe, but teaches the same point.