“Waste Walk” Adds Up to Big Savings
My dad’s prize possession was a 1965 Ford Fairlane that he meticulously restored. Everything on the car worked great, except it had one small oil leak that he just could not fix. He didn’t worry about it too much. He just added a quart of oil every once in awhile and kept on driving it. Years went by. He never really added up the amount of oil that he had to put into that old car. If he had, he might have been surprised. The quarts soon became gallons, and the cumulative cost over the years would have been extremely high. Over all, it would have been cheaper to pay someone to repair the car than to keep pouring in the oil. This illustration reminds me of how simple, small issues can actually add up to be extremely costly for an organization — because it’s so easy to overlook them. For example, last year staff at University Medical Center in Lubbock, Texas noticed that the hand sanitizer containers throughout the facility would occasionally leak a little. By simply changing the containers to ones that waste less hand sanitizer, they were able to save approximately $12,000 per year. Staff members discovered this improvement opportunity through a “waste walk.” A waste walk is a planned visit to where work is being performed to observe what’s happening and to note the waste. The UMC team looked at relatively small items (often less than $5,000) that were easily ignored, but also easily corrected. In evaluating these issues, the hospital found approximately $3.7 million in hard dollar savings that year. The staff utilized the waste walk not only to look for good improvement ideas, but also to foster good stewardship of scarce resources. In 2017, the health center is participating in a second waste walk. They anticipate saving up to $8 million, and increasing revenue by $2 million. By paying attention to little things, savings can really add up. The longer you have worked at an organization, the harder it is to see the waste around you. Taking a “waste walk” is one way to make the waste visible again. If you’d like to try a waste walk at your organization, here’s a sample tool you can use. Let me know how it goes! How are you helping your employees to work smarter by reducing the amount of time they spend on non-productive activities and correcting errors? 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 MoreThe Butterfly Effect
Have you ever worked several weeks or months putting together a large project that would affect your entire company, then felt the overwhelming disappointment when it failed? Often the most intricate plans go awry and a lot of effort is spent on something that is not useful for the organization. There are many expressions to describe starting something, including, “the longest trip begins with a single step,” or, “the entire ocean is affected by a single pebble.” In chaos theory, the term “butterfly effect” was coined by Edward Lorenz to describe a small effect in one area that ends up having significant impact in other, seemingly unrelated, areas. This is often described in weather prediction as a butterfly flapping its wings in South America, leading to a tornado occurring in China. This concept can be applied to process improvement initiatives. Many companies go into process improvement with a “big bang” approach, dedicating a lot of resources to initially roll out a Continuous Improvement (CI) plan across the company. Unfortunately, this type of approach often fails because the underlying support that is necessary to maintain the initiative hasn’t been developed. I worked for a company that actually did not have a continuous improvement program, but instead identified one individual who had training in Lean Six Sigma (LSS). Through small but steady efforts, he completed a project that provided success in multiple areas of this global company. Often, it’s not the big broad strokes that are required, but much more the small strategic steps, building one upon the other. By building support and successes one step at a time, a company can nurture a CI program that becomes truly a part of the company’s culture. What first step can you take to help your company on its journey to CI? How are you helping your employees to work smarter by reducing the amount of time they spend on non-productive activities and correcting errors? 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 MoreTime to Put On Your Six Thinking Hats
Several years ago while visiting with my dad, I heard a recitation by radio broadcaster Paul Harvey. My dad was a big Paul Harvey fan, and thus I heard a lot of Paul Harvey recitations. This particular recitation was at Christmas time. It was about a farmer who was trying to get a bunch of birds out of the snow and cold into a nice warm barn. The farmer thought to himself, “If only I could think like a bird, I could help them understand where to go for warmth and shelter.” Often we are like the farmer as we sit in a meeting, trying to get our coworkers to understand our point of view. It can be very difficult, especially in trying to be creative while problem-solving. To help address this issue, particularly in developing solutions for Continuous Improvement programs, one can use a system designed by Edward de Bono, which he referred to as the “Six Thinking Hats.” Using this technique, team members are coached to consider ideas the way that other team members may see them. The six hats — managing, information, emotions, discernment, optimistic response and creativity — can be used to help direct one’s point of view. For instance, an engineer that normally will use logic when approaching an issue may be asked to put on an emotions hat, thinking more intuitively and instinctively. Or someone who is deeply devoted to information, considering only the facts, may be asked to wear the creativity hat, thinking beyond just data. In each case, the team member is really looking at the same issue, but in a different manner than they normally would. By evaluating an issue or problem from a different point of view, team members can gain insights into their own thought processes and those of others and be able to expand upon potential ideas for solutions. While this is not a technique to be used for all phases of a project, it is quite commonly used in developing improvement strategies. How do you help the farmers on your team understand the point of view of other team members? Give six thinking hats a try. You might be surprised at the results. How are you helping your employees to work smarter by reducing the amount of time they spend on non-productive activities and correcting errors? 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 MoreThe Unsung 20%
Many Continuous Improve (CI) programs suggest using the 80/20 rule. In this, the team determines a list of root causes for an issue, defines a numeric ranking for each one as a percentage of 100, and then adds them up, listing the highest to the lowest. The results are then displayed in graphic form, often in a Pareto chart. Conventional methods then recommend focusing on the top 80% of the root causes, as the other 20% may be a list of several small issues. Often, these smaller issues are not ever addressed, and are simply placed as a footnote in the presentation. Conversely, they can be used as a starting place for another project. Again, the team can focus on the top 80% of that group, resulting in an additional 16% on the root causes being addressed, or 96% total. It is important that a CI team remembers to take another look at the 20% that was not originally addressed, based on the Pareto chart. When some original issues are resolved, other smaller issues may begin to express themselves. While 20% may not sound like a lot, it can make a big difference in the long run with a systematic approach! How are you helping your employees to work smarter by reducing the amount of time they spend on non-productive activities and correcting errors? 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...
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