THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF A SITUATION
IN THE GRAVENCHON REFINERY IN
FRANCE, IN WHICH THERE IS A CLEAR
LINE OF SIGHT LINKING INDIVIDUAL
TASKS AND OBJECTIVES TO A TEAM’S
WORK AND TO BROADER BUSINESS
PERSPECTIVES
ExxonMobil refineries and industrial sites goal: To reduce energy consumption (a goal in line
with Exxon’s business principles).
Business-unit goal: A more specific goal for the individual refinery is to reduce energy costs by
50 percent, as measured by the Energy Efficiency Index.
One area to focus on in this goal is the steam leaks that not only waste energy but also give
the impression of a poorly maintained site.
To fix the leaks:
• Technical functions resources were asked to define key energy values
• Operational functions resources were asked to develop a program to track steam leaks
Team goals: In the control room, the line supervisor cascaded the goal down to his team. He
first communicated the relationship of the goal to overall business goals, and then named a
champion whose job was to develop a tracking system that would be easy for operators to use
and that also would be forwarded to the Maintenance department so that it could intervene
quickly and proactively.
Every operator would make a tracking tour, feed the system with the right data, and forward
the data to the champion (who would in turn forward it to Maintenance). This would allow
Maintenance to set priorities and fix any leakages.
Progress would be presented internally to staff and management, to create clarity and
reinforce links to business goals.
This year there was a 4-point reduction in leaks compared to the previous year and a
productivity gain of 25 percent compared to other similar European industrial sites.