Use Your Feet to Improve Your Workplace
I recently adopted a dog from our local humane shelter. It goes without saying that I now have a new personal trainer. Now, twice a day every day, we take a walk through the community. Along with the extra exercise, a bonus has been a new awareness of my subdivision. Instead of just driving quickly past my neighbor’s homes, I’m able to see many details of my neighborhood that I had never noted before. Mark Twain (Samuel Clements) is credited with saying “Golf is a good walk spoiled.”While that might be a good description of golf, it certainly is not a good depiction of taking a walk around the office or factory floor. A stroll through the workplace can be time very well spent. One of the primary activities of a good continuous improvement (CI) program is to actually see what is happening in the workplace. It is important for managers of all levels to explore their office or factory areas to personally observe any obstacles that may be facing their employees. The Japanese term for this is gemba, which can be translated “the real place.” By going to the gemba, one can directly observe issues rather than hear about them second-hand. First-hand observation is the best way to truly understand if a problem is actually a concern that needs to be addressed by the CI team, or just an issue that is being blown out of proportion. This can help you prioritize CI activities and eliminate unnecessary CI projects. Try taking a walk this week to improve your workplace. Drop me a note and let me know how it goes! If your business processes need a “check-up,” please email me at michael@leadingchangeforgood.com! I’d love to help you get back to a healthy, productive...
Read MoreWhy Why Why Why Why?
Most adults (and especially parents) can relate to the irritation of a child repeatedly asking, “Why?” After the second or third time the question is asked, the response may be, “Because I said so!” While these seemingly endless questions may be aggravating, they are often one of the best ways children learn. The same is true for work teams. Work teams generally begin process improvement initiatives to correct known or perceived business problems. Some of these issues can be easily identified (i. e., obvious manufacturing defects), while others may not be so easily recognized (i. e., billing delays). To correct a problem, a process improvement team must first define the cause(s) of the issue before developing and implementing meaningful and impactful improvements. To truly understand what is occurring, we often need to recognize the underlying causes. One way to do this is using a technique called “5 Whys.” By asking “why?” several times, the team digs deeper into an issue to determine the root cause, rather than accept the first superficial answer on face value. For example, many physician offices struggle with patients missing their appointments. This can lead to underutilization of resources (staff, facilities) and loss of revenues. A typical 5 Why session could look like this: Issue: The patient missed his/her doctor’s appointment Why did the patient miss his appointment? (S)he forgot about it. Why did (s)he forget? (S)he did not receive a reminder card. Why did (s)he not receive a reminder card? No card was issued when the appointment was made. Why was no card issued? Not a part of the check-out process. Why wasn’t it part of the check-out process? No written check-out process has been defined for staff Once the team has this information, then they can suggest a solution. Recommended improvements: Provide each patient with a reminder card listing the date and time of his/her next appointment as a standard part of the check-out process Call to remind the patient 24-48 hours before the appointment Establish a checklist for the scheduling team, including reminder information This type of resolution has been implemented in many physician offices and hospitals, resulting in greatly increased patient attendance and improved revenue streams. Often, the best solutions are the simplest. But before any solution is implemented, the team needs to understand the “why?” of the situation. How are you helping your employees to work smarter by reducing the amount of time they spend on non-productive activities? If your business processes need a “check-up,” please email me at michael@leadingchangeforgood.com! I’d love to help you get back to a healthy, productive...
Read MoreAre You Listening to the Voices in Your Head? Perhaps You Should
How often do you hear voices in your head? Often, those voices are telling you that something needs to be done about “this” at your company. “This” can include anything from how to prepare the morning coffee to how to restructure the corporate leadership team. As a manager and/or business owner, it is important to be able to sort out the important ideas from the noise. When starting a continuous improvement (CI) project, it is important for the CI team to listen to voices too — gathering enough information to meet the needs of both the customer and the business. These necessities, often referred to as critical customer requirements (CCRs), establish the foundation of a successful CI project and program. As the names imply, the voice of the customer (VOC) focuses on internal and/or external customers, while the voice of the business (VOB) concentrates on the needs of the business and its stakeholders (including profitability, revenue, growth, market share, staffing availability, etc.). A strong CI program incorporates inputs from both the VOC and VOB. These can be collected from various sources, via personal interviews, surveys, and focus groups. By establishing CCRs based on input from both the VOC and the VOB, a CI team can ensure that they are truly working on a project that will have impact on, and buy in from, both the business and the customers. This not only helps to ensure a successful project, but also happy customers and stakeholders. How are you helping your employees to work smarter by reducing the amount of time they spend on non-productive activities? If your business processes need a “check-up,” please email me at michael@leadingchangeforgood.com! I’d love to help you get back to a healthy, productive...
Read MoreUse the 5S Tool to Improve Your Workplace
I recently visited a friend at his office. As we were talking, I asked to borrow a pen and piece of paper. While he had a pad of paper handy, it took several minutes for him to find a pen. He had almost everything else someone would use in an office, including three broken staplers, a dozen mechanical pencils (without lead), and a copy of the company’s 2004 directory. While each of these items had a purpose in the past, their current value was, to say the least, questionable. As a Six Sigma Black belt, I have seen many situations similar to this. While the settings may be different, the results are the same: outdated materials taking up space, merchandise scattered around the facility, and time squandered looking for the right item. Not only is a lot of money wasted on unnecessary work and excess inventory, employees often have a lot of frustration when they are simply trying to do their jobs. A very effective method to combat this type of wasted effort is known as 5S. This is named after the five Japanese words used to describe the process: sort (seiri), set in order (seiton), shine (seiso), standardize (seiketsu), and sustain (shitsuke). Through the use of 5S methodologies, one can sort through and eliminate unnecessary items, clean up those items deemed important, standardize the items to be used (brand, size, color, placement/storage), and establish ways to sustain the improvements. This can lead to savings based on reduced excess inventory (such as tossing out old pens and staplers) and elimination of variation (four suppliers of machine bolts when only one is needed). While 5S is popular in manufacturing sites, it is just as applicable in office and healthcare settings. By using standardized materials and locations, it is easy for everyone in the office / clinic / manufacturing facility to know what materials are available and how to easily locate them. 5S is more than just housekeeping. If you could improve the efficiency of your work environment by 10% or more, wouldn’t you want it? How are you helping your employees to work smarter by reducing the amount of time they spend on non-productive activities? If you have a business process that needs a “check-up,” please email me at michael@leadingchangeforgood.com! I’d love to help you get back to a healthy, productive...
Read MoreSwimming in the Fast Lane: How to Improve the Flow of Your Workplace Processes
When evaluating a process as part of a continuous improvement (CI) project, it is generally very helpful, if not essential, to map out the process. This can allow a team to better understand the various steps involved and help identify bottlenecks and pain points. While there are several ways to create process maps, I have found that a swim lane map is often very useful in permitting the CI team to see several aspects of a process at a glance. According to mindtools.com, “this method of diagramming allows you to quickly and easily plot and trace processes and, in particular, the interconnections between processes, departments and teams.” As the name implies, this type of map looks very similar to an Olympic swimming pool, with lanes and distance markers. The lanes are the individuals or departments involved in the process, while the distance markers are the steps of the process. The true power of this type of mapping exercise is that, as the team walks through the steps of the process, they can follow the work flow, identify who is involved in each step, and see where and between whom handoffs can occur. In general, the fewer number of handoffs in a procedure, the less time is required to complete it. While this kind of process map can take longer for a team to construct, it is always worth the extra time. It’s a lot of information in one place, and a great place to start when you’re ready to start developing an improvement strategy. How are you helping your employees to work smarter by reducing the amount of time they spend on non-productive activities? If you have a business process that needs a “check-up,” please email me at michael@leadingchangeforgood.com! I’d love to help you get back to a healthy, productive...
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