Out with the Bad, In with the Good

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Air filtration eCommerce specialists Con-Air breathe innovation into complex change management

“Complex change management is all about the people.” Take it from transformation specialist Brandon Moore, Director of Operations for the Con-Air subsidiary of Filtration Group. “FG is a global market leading provider of filtration consumables designed to drive innovation and deliver solutions across a broad spectrum of applications and markets. We focus on life sciences, indoor air quality, and industrial technologies.”

FG operates 30 companies in 27 countries with a global workforce of more than 9,000 dedicated team members. Based in Orlando, Con-Air manufactures and distributes high quality air filters that are critical to protecting homes and community spaces. “As a premier ecommerce supplier, Con-Air provides millions of families with the gift of clean air, united with the FG core mission of helping families be safer, healthier, and more productive,” he added.

Brandon Moore

Moore’s specific expertise within ops management is complex change management, a systematic approach to managing the difficulties associated with change. “Being a transformation expert brings high reward,” he said. “It allows me to work closely with invested leadership teams to challenge our assumptions, deliver on any unmet needs, and to gain perspective across cross functional teams.”

When Moore joined the company in April 2022 his scope of operations management encompassed engineering, facilities, and maintenance. Four months later he added overseeing operations and supply chain to his role. “We made substantial improvements in Q3-Q4 last year, and our 2023 has been exceptional,” he reported.

The Lippitt-Knoster change management model is Moore’s north star. Knoster focuses on five fundamentals that can make or break complex change initiatives: vision, skills, incentives, resources, and an action plan. “If you're missing any one of those five, there is an associated  emotion or effect,” he explained. “A lack of vision leads to confusion. A lack of skills or training leads to anxiety. Incentives can either build consensus among the team, or build resistance. A lack of resources leads to frustration. Without a solid action plan, gaining traction is impossible and creates a treadmill effect known as a false start.”

The approach has been a phenomenal success, demonstrated by some eye-popping improvement rates. Automation scrap rates improved by 60.5%, their tunnel assembled finished goods scrap improved by 84%, and from Q3 to Q4 2022 customer chargebacks dropped 95% while at the same time increasing on-time shipping rates from 77 to 96%. Not only did equipment downtime plummet by 55%, productivity shot up by 96%, which resulted in reducing labor costs by over 20%.

“We do a lot of things to drive value for our customer, but we also focus a lot on how we take care of our people.” An important part of that care is employee engagement. One of Moore’s first steps in a transformation is to implement communication mechanisms between leadership and the workforce. Daily GEMBA meetings, associate roundtables, and a Voice of the Associate whiteboard are just a few of the tools that Con-Air uses to earn trust. “These tools are only as good as you use them,” Moore explained. “You must be committed to listening to your front line. Unless a leader is able to connect with the people of the organization through empathic listening, they will never understand the emotion behind the concerns. More importantly, they must be committed to taking action and following through.”

Over the last year, Con-Air has remodeled their bathrooms and breakrooms, installed Big Ass Fans in both buildings, implemented associate recognition initiatives, provided an optional uniform program, rolled out Career Ladders for talent development, supplied the necessary tools for associates to safely do their jobs, and upgraded faulty equipment, just to name a few.

“Nothing is too small,” Moore stressed. “Associates should come to work knowing they are going to have everything they need to safely perform their jobs at their highest potential. You can’t get so focused on the numbers that you leave the people behind. Investing in your front line will yield safety, quality, delivery, and productivity gains.”

Moore’s philosophy is to Attack Process Engage People (APEP), and that removing barriers for internal customers will lead to a better experience for external customers.

FG conducts an annual global employee engagement survey. In 2023, Con-Air doubled their score from 2022, taking the top spot with the highest employee net promoter score for the entire FG enterprise and recognized as the most improved company. Con-Air placed fourth out of 71 total companies comprising Madison Industries, of which FG is a subsidiary.

“Change is complex, both large and small scale. Managing and leading change is not always straightforward or simple. Seventy percent of what requires change to be successful is the people. For the most part, people do not like to change,” Moore emphasized, noting that many companies fail to engage and explain why change is needed. “If you’re not creating a shared experience throughout the whole process, you are going to have those headwinds that allow you to continuously run into roadblocks and breakdowns for achieving successful change.”

At Con-Air, change management isn’t a one-and-done proposition. Leadership keeps a very firm focus on continuing to find ways to provide a better work environment, better working conditions, and better employee recognition. “Our culture is great, but we still want more. The step that a lot of other transformational experts sometimes tend to forget is that last step: You’ve got to scale and continue to transform, leverage the success to gain momentum and generate collaboration around continued evolution.”