Don't Go Down the Rabbit Hole
Kaizen Snapshot
Setting: Armstrong World Industries – St. Helens, Oregon plant
Challenge: Multiple simultaneous operational issues overwhelming leadership
Stakes: Safety, uptime, morale, and credibility
Approach: Prioritization, delegation, team ownership
Outcome: Clear focus, aligned action, stronger leadership discipline
Key Lesson: You don’t win by fixing everything. You win by fixing the right thing
The Situation
One thing you learn quickly in manufacturing is this:
Even when things are going well, there’s no guarantee they’ll stay that way.
People, processes, equipment, weather, raw materials, any one of them can tip a good day into a bad one.
At the St. Helens ceiling tile plant, we were in the middle of one of those weeks. Equipment downtime was high. Safety concerns were surfacing. People issues were piling up.
As Operations Manager, I felt responsible for all of it.
What Was Getting in the Way
I approached the situation the way many engineers do, by trying to solve every problem at once.
I believed:
Every issue mattered equally
I needed to stay on top of everything
Speed meant touching everything personally
In our morning review meeting, I rattled off dozens of problems.
What I didn’t have was a clear direction.
The Moment That Changed Everything
As I started diving deep into a relatively small issue, one that wasn’t driving major loss, Olivia, our plant manager, stepped in.
“Adam, stop worrying about all the little details.
Let’s focus on the key problem, build the plan, and execute it.
Then we’ll move on to the next.”
It was obvious. And I had completely missed it.
What Changed
Olivia had the team identify the top three problems for the day.
Then she did something even more important. She had them self-assign ownership.
Suddenly:
Focus replaced overwhelm
The team leaned in
Progress accelerated
I took one of the assignments myself and learned more about leadership that day than I had in months.
The Takeaway
Trying to fix everything is a fast way to fix nothing.
Strong leaders create focus, trust their teams, and resist the pull to dive into every detail.
Why This Matters
When leaders chase every problem, teams hesitate.
When leaders create clarity, teams act.
Focus isn’t avoidance, it’s discipline.
Ready to Build Focused Improvement?
If your organization feels overwhelmed by competing priorities, Kaizen may not be the problem, focus might be.