One of my favorite field guides is The Hitchhikers Guide to Lean. I equate this book to a desert survival manual issued by the military. Not every desert is the same, but its sure would be nice to have some principles for collecting water.
I had a chance to do a virtual interview with one of the authors of the book, Jaime Flinchbaugh, to expand on some of the concepts.
CulturalKaizen©: Many companies have started a Lean Journey and, likely, many companies have made many of the mistakes you discussed throughout your book. If a manager realizes that they are in this group, what steps do they take to correct the transformation midstream?
Jaime Flinchbaugh: I think the two fundamental countermeasures are roadmaps and reflection. Reflection is the process by which a team (regardless of what tools you use, but we prefer the After Action Review) explores their recent past, learns from it, and then makes adjustments. When it comes to the lean journey itself, so many people develop a plan, and they execute. They get stuck in the PDCA cycle with Plan, Do, Do, Do - they never Check and reexamine. The Roadmap is a means of developing a multidimensional plan or strategy. This helps you break out of what is often a 1-dimensional strategy, whether that one dimension is focusing on education, or on application. Having a long term roadmap, sometimes out several years with diminishing details the further out you get, ensures that you know how the journey will evolve as you proceed.
CulturalKaizen©: Following up on your quote:
Measurement/evaluation systems dramatically influence organizational behaviors. Unfortunately, the resulting behaviors often conflict with the desired behaviors of a lean initiative. A company should carefully look at what it measures and evaluates, and who is accountable.
A lean transformation can be nebulous at times; how can you tell that you are on the right track quantitatively? What should managers be measuring?
Jaime Flinchbaugh: I don't think you can tell if you're on the right track quantitatively. Of course, your overall performance should be improving, and that's quantitative. However, that is such a massively-multiple-variable equation, there is never a way to truly prove cause-and-effect. Understanding if you're on the right track requires engagement and observation. If you think in terms of metrics, this is what I would use (even though I would never put it to a number): voluntary lean activities to involuntary ratio. Involuntary are planned activities such as kaizen events, or daily huddles on management boards, etc. Involuntary is a team that just gets together to look at a problem in a different way. The more voluntary activities you see, the more you know it is taking hold.
CulturalKaizen©: THE LEAN DEPARTMENT SHOULD NOT BE LEADING LEAN- I absolutely agree with this quote from your book; is there an ideal way to set up your organizational structure to facilitate this axiom. Are there other steps we can take to support the lean department, yet hold everyone accountable for the transformation?
Jaime Flinchbaugh: I believe there are two major points here. First, there is a difference between ownership and execution. Your lean team might draft a strategy, facilitate discussions, provide feedback, and of course help execute the strategy. But ownership is about engagement and accountability, and that must remain with the leadership team. If the leadership team looks to the "lean team" and says "keep us updated once in a while", then you are losing the battle. The other aspect of this question is how you should be organized. Not to cop-out on the answer, but it depends. Each environment is different - it's culture, infrastructure, business conditions, etc. And these factors should drive the setup of your lean team, and how they engage with leaders. It may be centralized or decentralized - I've seen both extremes work when they match the environment. I've seen them reporting to the CEO, and reporting to front-line supervisors, both successful. There is no one right way, but there is probably a right way for your unique organization.
For more great insight into the minds of true lean thinkers, get your copy of The Hitchhikers Guide to Lean.
Jaime Flinchbaugh: I don't think you can tell if you're on the right track quantitatively. Of course, your overall performance should be improving, and that's quantitative. However, that is such a massively-multiple-variable equation, there is never a way to truly prove cause-and-effect. Understanding if you're on the right track requires engagement and observation. If you think in terms of metrics, this is what I would use (even though I would never put it to a number): voluntary lean activities to involuntary ratio. Involuntary are planned activities such as kaizen events, or daily huddles on management boards, etc. Involuntary is a team that just gets together to look at a problem in a different way. The more voluntary activities you see, the more you know it is taking hold.
CulturalKaizen©: THE LEAN DEPARTMENT SHOULD NOT BE LEADING LEAN- I absolutely agree with this quote from your book; is there an ideal way to set up your organizational structure to facilitate this axiom. Are there other steps we can take to support the lean department, yet hold everyone accountable for the transformation?
Jaime Flinchbaugh: I believe there are two major points here. First, there is a difference between ownership and execution. Your lean team might draft a strategy, facilitate discussions, provide feedback, and of course help execute the strategy. But ownership is about engagement and accountability, and that must remain with the leadership team. If the leadership team looks to the "lean team" and says "keep us updated once in a while", then you are losing the battle. The other aspect of this question is how you should be organized. Not to cop-out on the answer, but it depends. Each environment is different - it's culture, infrastructure, business conditions, etc. And these factors should drive the setup of your lean team, and how they engage with leaders. It may be centralized or decentralized - I've seen both extremes work when they match the environment. I've seen them reporting to the CEO, and reporting to front-line supervisors, both successful. There is no one right way, but there is probably a right way for your unique organization.
For more great insight into the minds of true lean thinkers, get your copy of The Hitchhikers Guide to Lean.
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