7 Must Have Tools for Lean Factory

There are lots of tools in the tool box of continuous improvement for sure. Out problem solving can be improved by basic application of simple tools. Perhaps there are several simple tools that everyone should have at their disposal. In my experience these tools can help with many Lean efforts including visual management or 5S, value stream and process mapping, daily management and standardization:

Camera. A camera is a great tool document the process. You can use it to share best practices like in single point lessons, create visual standards, or even communicate defects and discrepancy. A picture is worth a 1000 words. Pictures are very effective at visually highlighting the improved appearance and order in the workplace.

Laminator. Customize your own visuals with a laminating machine. The use of visuals helps to ensure that the new standards remain clearly visible, readily understood, and consistently adhered to by all employees long after the Lean or rapid improvement event is over.

Label Maker. The right printing system can be an essential tool for creating an orderly and visually instructive workplace, allowing you to make signs, labels, tags, and more on demand.

Vinyl Chart Tape. Chart tape can be used in charting, plotting, and sectioning off various cells and diagrams. Using magnets as cell markers or placeholders along with a vinyl tape-created chart can turn any magnetic surface, whiteboard or not, into a sleek, low-maintenance chart.

Magnetic Adhesive Tape. Magnetic self adhesive tape is a perfect solution for a variety of signage projects. It is extremely easy to use, just cut, peel and stick. This is perfect for adhering labels, signs, and other visuals to boards and equipment, allowing you to move & reuse them.

Double Sided Tape. Double-sided tape is a versatile tool that comes in handy for many uses including mounting, sealing, and installing. Peel-and-stick adhesive tape can secure materials to a wide range of surfaces, including paper, cardboard, wood, plastic, and metal.

Post-it-notes. Post-it-notes have become a symbol of process mapping especially value stream mapping. Where ever there is a vertical surface you can create a map. They can also be used to identify waste in a cell like a red tag card for a 5S activity. I have even used post-it-notes to do a work balance table by cutting slips to represent the process times of various steps. They are great for daily action item tracking, too.  Post-it-notes are a versatile tool with lots of potential for the creative.

There is no one right tool for every job, but these can be used together to come with many effective improvement solutions. There are low cost, simple to use, and easy to store.  I believe everyone should have these tools in their toolbox.

What items do you find indispensable to your continuous improvement efforts? 

Lean Quote: Olympic Lessons for Success

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on this journey because without learning we can not improve.

"The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning but taking part; the essential thing in life is not conquering but fighting well." — Pierre de Coubertin, father of the modern Olympic Games

Like millions of others from around the globe I have been glued to the TV watching the winter Olympics from Sochi. Once again the eyes of the world are on its best and brightest athletes as they attempt to push the human body to new limits, and remind us that our best human qualities — determination, perseverance, innovation, sacrifice, and camaraderie – know no bounds.

As much as the Olympics represent the pinnacle of the sporting world, they are also the source of a number of inspiring stories that showcase both the human spirit and what we can accomplish when we strive to be our best.

To that end, I’d like to share some important lessons for leaders on how to guide their organization to succeed and thrive, regardless of the challenges that stand before them.

Lesson 1: Olympians know no goal is impossible with the right mindset. If you want to succeed, don’t lose sight of your goals. Stay unwaveringly motivated. Your focus determines your results. Focus on the right things.

Lesson 2: When Olympians suffer an inevitable setback, they don’t let themselves succumb to doubts. You can’t compete at the highest levels without inner-confidence. And when you do get a taste of success, don’t rest on your laurels. You have to pivot, hone in on the strengths that have carried you so far, and overcome adversity with perseverance.

Lesson 3: There’s no substitute for surrounding yourself with the best possible team. With the right players, there’s no limit to what you can accomplish. Don’t compromise on talent, and hold yourself to the lofty expectations people will place on you.

Lesson 4: Olympians break through excuses. Many businesses will face immense challenges on the road to success. They will also be presented with opportunities to overcome these challenges. Don’t squander your potential with self-imposed limitations. Don’t make excuses for why you cannot engage more fully. Capitalizing on your chances is a matter of being dedicated and sacrificing for the greater good of the business.

Lesson 5: Olympians never stop learning from mistakes. In business you need to measure everything so you can analyze how to be more effective, more productive, and more profitable in the future. What gets measured gets improved. You never settle for good. You always strive to be great. It’s an attitude of constant improvement.

Lesson 6: Olympians give 100% commitment to their goals. You have to give 100% commitment to what it is you want to achieve. Without a doubt those that are competing have committed themselves 100%. They don’t expect it to be easy and are ready and willing to do what it takes.


To achieve success businesses and leaders within them need to take a long term view. The reality is there is no shortcut to success. These lessons above show how we should approach our leadership and guiding the people we lead towards achieving our shared goals.

What is Watched Gets Done, Importance of Effective Measures

There is quite a bit of debate about the origin of this little statement. The Renaissance astronomer Rhaticus suggested that if you can measure something, then you have some control over it, and the Hawthorne Effect is a great example of this principle in action.

There are many ways for ensuring that effective measures and supervision is in place in my experience.

First, you must have a business plan and budget. Without the simple and clear statement of goals and objectives you’ll have no idea of why you are observing and where you would like to be.
You must also have good information systems. Your practice software will tell you everything you need to know, but only if you put the right information in to it. Garbage in, garbage out – or ‘GIGO’ definitely applies here. Empty data fields and inaccurate entry are going to sink the ship quickly. 

Know the difference between a measure and a metric. A measure is one quantitative number that counts something, for example; “We made $100,000 sales last quarter”. A metric gives you more information because it compares the measure to some other baseline, for example; “We made $100,000 sales last quarter, $50,000 more than the same quarter last year”. It is also important to look at trends over time. Benchmarks can also be helpful, particularly when discussing differences. A ‘busy’ practice with $500k of sales and four staff, might want to think about the $1.5 million sales practice with five staff.

Understand the difference between an outcome metric and a performance metric. An outcome metric tells you the result of something compared to the past. A performance metric tells you how well the activities are performing that have been determined as future targets.

Know what you want to know before you start measuring things. Sometimes reports are a dumping ground for all the data that’s available, whether it’s useful or not. The information must mean something and lead to a change in actions, tactics or behaviors.

Nobody will achieve their objectives if they have no idea what they are. Staff need to know what their daily, weekly and overall targets are for sales, break-even and the reportable KPIs. They also need feedback. We also need to give them knowledge, resources and support to get there. This is really important.

Measures need to be simple to understand and transparent. People in the business need to understand the measures and how they personally influence these measures. They also need to understand the impact these have on overall business success.

What gets measured gets done and drives business success.

Hawthorne Effect and Productivity

The Hawthorne effect is named after a series of experiments that changed the way we think about work and productivity. While previous studies had already focused on individuals and how their performance could be improved, the Hawthorne experiments placed the individual in a social context for the first time.

The experiments, which took place at Western Electric’s Hawthorne factory (a suburb of Chicago) between mid 1920s and early 1930s, showed that workers are influenced by their surroundings more than they are by their individual abilities.

Because the experiments originally sought out to study the effects of physical conditions on productivity, the researchers began the experiments by increasing the lighting in the work area of a group of workers. Another group of workers, whose lighting was not changed, served as a control group. 

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the productivity of the workers who got more light increased much more than that of the control group. After all, you can assume that a better lit work area is more conducive to productivity. 

But the twist came when the researchers noticed that no matter what changes they’re implementing, the workers’ productivity continued to go up.

Not only did the researchers change other working conditions, like working hours, rest breaks, and so on. They even dimmed the lights back down to the initial level. Productivity improved in each and every situation – even when the lights were dimmed!

By the time all the changes were reverted to their initial state, productivity was at its highest level, and absenteeism had plummeted.

So the researchers concluded that it wasn’t the actual changes in the working conditions that increased productivity. The workers increased output simply because they were aware that they were under observation from researchers and supervisors.

The Hawthorne Effect is largely about managing employees so they feel more like an integral part of your business. Encouraging employee input into workplace decisions and operational decisions tends to make employees feel more like part of a cohesive team striving to achieve the common goal of making the business more profitable.

The most effective changes are likely to be those that result from employee input. Boosting productivity from your employees is as simple as paying more attention to them and their needs and concerns. Making employees feel more appreciated encourages them to improve their performance.

If companies make an effort to invest in their workers' happiness and well being, they will improve productivity. Investing in better benefits, increased employee support, and improved workplace conditions rather than simply handing out raises yields a bigger return on investment, because time and time again, studies prove that happy employees are more productive employees.

Lean Quote: Lead With Humility

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on this journey because without learning we can not improve.

"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power." — President Abraham Lincoln

Monday, is President’s Day, a federal holiday to honor past Presidents of the United States. President "Honest Abe" Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, is one of America's best known presidents, remembered, not just for the key events of his political life but for the arc of his remarkable life story that saw him rise from very humble origins to become President, only to have his life cut short by assassin John Wilkes Booth.

Lincoln's statement is simply profound. Are you a humble leader? Do you try to impress others by letting them know how smart you are? Many of us may do this without even realizing it.

Humility may not be a trait that immediately comes to mind when thinking about leadership strengths. Humility is even considered by some to be more of a weakness than a strength—“Leaders must have backbone! They have to be strong and confident, not meek and subservient!” I don’t think humility is a weakness, I think it is an essential quality of a strong leader. In fact, I think it takes strength to be humble!

It’s OK to share mistakes in order to let others know that we do not have all the answers, to be transparent in the corporate setting and to engage workgroups for the professional and personal growth of everyone involved. Humility nudges us to be inclusive—to be open to varied perspectives which leads to the empowerment of others and ultimately demonstrates courage, ability and confidence.

Humility also enriches our lives and the lives of those around us, making us mindful of our own limitations. It’s an indispensable ingredient to living an abundant life and an essential virtue that forces one to live counter to acceptable norms, requiring a daily decision to let go of one’s ego.

 

Leaders who embrace humility are able to welcome the input of others and understand that decisions should be made in the best interest of the team or organization. People want their work to be valued, and they also value those who are not dismissive and embrace their positive contributions. The leader who is able to leave their ego at the door, accepts the individual strengths of their team members to work for the overall good or is able to exhibit trust that benefits the entire team, ensuring they’ll be well respected. Any team member will be excitedly loyal and productive when they recognize and know that their leaders are not afraid to work arm in arm with them.

Be a change agent. Lead by example. No matter how much we try to distance ourselves, we are still in need of each other. Our true measure is based on the number of lives we touch and not by the number of things we collect.

Lean Tips Edition #120 (1801-1815)

For my Facebook fans you already know about this great feature. But for those of you that are not connected to A Lean Journey on Facebook or Twitter I post daily a feature I call Lean Tips.  It is meant to be advice, things I learned from experience, and some knowledge tidbits about Lean to help you along your journey.  Another great reason to like A Lean Journey on Facebook.

Click this link for A Lean Journey's Facebook Page Notes Feed.

Here is the next addition of tips from the Facebook page:

Lean Tip #1801 - Let Employees Learn Through Failure

You need to realize that an employee who is afraid to make mistakes will never take risks. You know what this means to your business: It won’t grow! When things go wrong, avoid coming down so hard on your employees that they get scared of thinking on their own. When you let employees learn to solve problems on their own, you’ll provide them with more knowledge and power for future tasks and also strengthen your own confidence in them.

Lean Tip #1802 - Show Employees You Trust Them

If you want to help employees develop, trust them to do their jobs by getting out of the way. Let them know what your expectations are by modeling the behavior you expect—show them you trust them. This not only lets employees know what they need to succeed and gives them greater ownership, but it also shows them that credibility and trust are important in your organization.

Lean Tip #1803 - Develop An Environment of Constant Learning

Encourage your employees to explore new techniques for achieving their individual objectives as well as those set by the company. As you allow them to make mistakes and learn from them, ensure that you also reward fresh and innovative ideas. Of course, it’s important to manage the amount of mistakes that are made so that the job is still getting done satisfactorily. The goal is to strike a balance that allows your employees to effectively get their job done while giving them the freedom to discover new methods that could lead to improvements. When you establish this type of atmosphere, you’ll find that your workplace will improve more rapidly because individuals are discovering their best systems and everyone is constantly contributing to the improvement of the company’s system.

Lean Tip #1804 - Challenge Your Employees to Move Out of Their Comfort Zone.

You can’t move forward if you don’t grow and you can’t grow if you never leave your comfort zone. When possible, give your employees challenging assignments. Help them prepare by providing them a safe environment to learn from the mistakes that they are bound to make.

Lean Tip #1805 - Set the Example for Employee Development

An employee will see the value of the development process when they see their current leadership continue to develop personally and professionally. By modeling this behavior, leaders build credibility and the trust necessary to encourage employees to participate in development-building activities. It shows employees that development is part of the organization’s culture. It sends the message that it’s important for, and expected from, everyone in the organization to be part of a continual improvement process that nurtures from within.

Lean Tip #1806 – Challenge Your Staff.

Employees may become bored and dissatisfied if they are performing the same tasks and projects each day. Give your staff new challenges that are within their abilities. Provide constructive feedback as they work on new projects. Learning and mastering new challenges will give your staff a sense of accomplishment. It shows that you have confidence in their skills and value them as part of the organization. There are many skill learning opportunities on line that can be worked on during working hours.

Lean Tip #1807 – Be Passionate About Your Work.

Leaders must demonstrate a commitment to the goals of the company. Show your staff how strongly you believe in the organizational goals and how much you value their contribution to this endeavor. If you want dedicated employees, be dedicated yourself. Don't hesitate to speak passionately about what you believe in.

Lean Tip #1808 – Encourage Creativity Amongst Your Team.

Let your team know you are open to their ideas. Empower them to take their ideas to the next level by giving positive feedback and constructive advice as warranted. The opportunity to present and try out ideas can lead employees to deeper commitment, enhanced problem-solving abilities and greater productivity. Reward creativity and recognize that these actions help your staff develop their full potential.

Lean Tip #1809 – Stamp Out ‘Them and Us’ Culture

In many organizations, employees feel distant from senior management. Leaders need to be aware of this and stamp it out in their organization. The message must be clear: we all work together, but leaders need to work hard to ensure this filters through to everyone in the organization.

Lean Tip #1810 – Allow Time for Innovation

It’s important to give staff time to innovate and come up with new ideas, different ways of doing things, and solutions to problems. However, be clear that a decision is expected; set a time limit and stick to it. Allow time but be mindful that a good pace is better for business energy.

Lean Tip #1811 – Be a Motivator

Human beings do things because we want to. Sometimes we want to because the consequences of not wanting to do something are unpleasant.

However, most of the time we want to do things because of what we get out of it.

It's no different at work; people do good work for the pay, or the prestige, or the recognition. They do bad work because they want to take it easy and still get paid. They work hard because they want to impress someone. To motivate your people better, figure out what they want and how you can give that to them for doing what you want them to do.

Lean Tip #1812 – Provide Rewards

Of course, team members need to know when they’ve made mistakes or when they need to make improvements. But if you only ever communicate with them when they’ve done something wrong, it can leave them disenfranchised when it comes to your business. To be a better leader, consider taking the time to recognize or reward their good work—it may improve the likelihood that they’ll be motivated and productive at work.

Lean Tip #1813 – Encourage People to Make Contributions

Let the members of your team know that you welcome their ideas. Leaders who encourage involvement from group members are often referred to as democratic or participative leaders. While they retain the final say over all decisions, they encourage team members to take an active role in coming up with ideas and plans.

Research has shown that using a democratic leadership style leads to greater commitment, more creative problem-solving and improved productivity.

Lean Tip #1814 – Keep Trying New Things

Who says leadership is a one-way relationship? As you work toward developing some of these leadership qualities, don't forget to look to your followers for feedback and inspiration. Pay attention to the things that have been effective in the past and always be on the lookout for new ways to inspire, motivate and reward group members.

Lean Tip #1815 – Keep Learning

Great leaders constantly read in order to improve the thoughts and ideas that are produced in their mind. Reading helps to expand your mind and think quickly when forced to make tough decisions. You also will want to take any classes that can help you improve your individual performance and leadership capabilities. Once you stop learning, you not only fail yourself but you also fail your team.