Competence management in industrial engineering departments in the Czech Republic

Abstract

This article deals with Industrial Engineering from the perspective of its appropriate incorporation into the organizational structure of a company. It is certain that it is not possible to design a universal method that will be valid for all businesses. When one creates one's own system, it is always necessary to consider the specific and unique conditions which are, undoubtedly, the size of the company, the production program, the company culture or ways of procedures. However, we can define a number of principles and recommendations that we can use on the right path to a well-functioning production system. The aim of this paper was to reflect on the position of Industrial Engineering in the organizational structure of a company, on the job content of this department, as well as on the assessment and motivation of individual industrial engineers. At the end of the paper, the actual situation in Czech companies is outlined as is the role of Competence Management, which is based upon three determining elements: Continuous: i.e. an on-going effort. Integrated: i.e. a systematic whole of personal systems and instruments. Tuning: i.e. concerns the dynamic linking of what the company requires and what the individuals can - and are prepared, to do. In our article we would like to describe the Competence Management context in organizations that are building their own production system. It is not a matter of days, weeks or months. It's a long-running process that lasts for several years. But we are now talking about the production system in its true meaning; which means a functioning production system. We have come across many companies that "built" their production systems in a few days. Actually, for them this expression meant only a set of methods like 5S, SMED, VSM, TPM, etc., that were visualized and described in the booklet entitled "The Production System of XY Company". From our point-of-view, this is definitely not what a production system should be. A system can be interpreted in many ways and thus, the understanding of the production system can be completely different.