• AddressColumbia, TN
  • AddressColumbia, TN

How to Make a Suggestion at Work

Mark Gedeon

I have often heard employees complain that their supervisor does not listen to them when they have suggestions.  I end up explaining that most Supervisors do not intend to ignore suggestions, but they have a lot on their minds.  And then I let them know that to be more effective (“If you want to manage your boss…”), you will have to write down what you want.  Generally, written suggestions have a far better chance of making their way to a result.  To just say that something is wrong without offering a solution, simply makes you out to be a whiner. 

You will always want to make it easy for your boss to decide on your solution!  Frame the solution in terms of what advantage it would be for your supervisor if they did things this way.  (Your supervisor needs to know what’s in it for them).  Let them be a hero for implementing your great plan.  Think about that and put it up front in the solution.

Divide your suggestion into several sections:

  1. What is the situation now before improvement (background)
  • What is the problem and where is it?
  • Is there a way to quantify (measure) it? (Remember, in business, if you can’t attach a price to it – it doesn’t exist)
  • When does the problem occur?
  • What are the causes or reasons for the situation?
  • Why is it a problem?
    • Inefficient process?
    • High cost – in scrap, labor?
    • Bottleneck – loss of time/labor?
  • Why is improvement necessary?

2. Improvement points (goals)

  • How should things be changed? 
  • Be specific about the solution (zxy cost $x and is available at…)
  • What process will change and who will be affected?

2. Resulting benefit

  • How will the improvement increase efficiency?
  • What costs or cost savings are involved? (It will save $z over the next year)
  • How does it add value for customers?

Writing is hard work but it will help you focus and show that you have thought through the details.

This is a cynical last word and I know it. Often a company is willing to live with your pain as long as it doesn’t bother them. Prove that the change matters to them and is not just something nice for you.