Original Date: 08/20/2001
Revision Date: 12/14/2006

The primary goal of Micro Business 21 is to assure a competitive advantage for Lockheed Martin Naval Electronics & Surveillance Systems-Surface Systems and maintain job security for its workers. The reward to the company has been a workforce with higher morale, fewer absences, and lower worker’s compensation claims.

Micro Business 21 is the current phase in a series of initiatives developed by a partnership between Lockheed Martin Naval Electronics & Surveillance Systems-Surface Systems (NE&SS-SS) and one of its unions, IUE-CWA. These initiatives assure a competitive advantage for the company, maintain job security for workers, and provide operators with transferable skills as the culture continues to embrace change. Using process improvement tools, Micro Business 21 addresses key business objectives of customer satisfaction, cost reductions, training, and employee development. It is designed to support the company’s efforts to achieve operating excellence, and to drive this philosophy to the shop floor level by maximizing employee ownership of their product.

Micro Business 21 requires the micro business teams to develop a Business Plan, support the initiatives by sharing ideas and communicating information, and be involved in a Process Improvement Project. The Business Plan discusses and explains each of the seven Malcolm Baldrige criteria: Leadership, Information and Analysis, Process Management, Strategic Planning, Human Resources, Customer Satisfaction, and Business Results. The teams support the initiatives by participating in Key Meetings. Process Improvement Projects are identified and implemented by each team. Micro Business 21 focuses on identifying goals and objectives that provide targets for success.

To date, all of the goals for Micro Business 21 have been met or are on target for year-end completion. The incorporation of flexible job assignments enable employees to obtain experience for future advancement, and allowed Lockheed Martin NE&SS-SS to reduce overall costs and improve product quality. All of these accomplishments were obtained with the objective of maximizing performance; increasing customer satisfaction; and strengthening the company’s efforts in attaining new business.

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