Engineering and Mining Journal - Whether the market is copper, gold, nickel, iron ore, lead/zinc, PGM, diamonds or other commodities, E&MJ takes the lead in projecting trends, following development and reporting on the most efficient operating pr
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HUMAN RESOURCES and subsequent interfaces with operational and support services areas. Proudfoot installed an infrastructure and standardized processes for the human resources function and complemented this foundation with an improved recruitment and selection process, an education and training program, and a performance management system, which led to a 52% increase in productivity and a 31% improvement in machine utilization. Similarly, a North American rare earth materials miner was experiencing tremendous revenue and demand growth. To capitalize on these conditions, the company needed to enhance its processing capabilities and production rate. Employees lacked adequate skills and training, which resulted in poor machine utilization and material processing flows. On the management level, supervisors lacked the ability to effectively manage and allocate resources. Proudfoot developed training for all production and maintenance managers, supervisors and senior plant leadership. As a result, accountability increased, employees developed a team mentality and interdepartmental communications and interactions improved. The company saw $84 million in benefits with a 50% increase in throughput and a 3% decrease in overtime. skills programs from the front-line to the executive level. A skills program that brings employees up the learning curve through competency to proficiency will deliver employees who are ready, willing and able to exceed performance expectations. Wylie is a senior vice president for Alexander Proudfoot and COO of the company's Global Mining and Metals Centre of Excellence. His expertise spans multiple functional areas including business performance improvement, organizational cultural alignment, cost reduction, business process engineering and implementation. He has led numerous process transformation engagements focused on improving bottom line results in several industries, with a principal focus in primary resources. www.alexanderproudfoot.com. The Supervisor Imperative Many times employees are promoted to middle management before they are sufficiently prepared. Today's supervisory role has expanded to include more complex and inherently dangerous responsibilities including safety and quality controls. New managers must be prepared for this role evolution. Also adding to this situation is the tradition of promoting the 'best worker' to a management role. Executives must realize that a manager requires an entirely different skill set. Companies are essentially losing the productivity of their best workers and promoting employees who are not able to effectively manage the operation through other people by providing direction, gaining commitment, communicating, following up and giving both positive and negative feedback. Less than 30% of a supervisor's day is spent given direction because he or she does not know how to do it effectively. New supervisors must develop both competency and proficiency in supervisor-specific skills. To take advantage of the continued growth of emerging nations, the mining industry needs to complement its employee acquisition and retention efforts with www.e-mj.com FEBRUARY 2013 • E&MJ; 59