There’s Always Room for Improvement
A few months ago I met with a group that wanted to learn about Lean Six Sigma. As we began our discussion, they assured me everything was going well. They just wanted to get more information on how we might consider a continuous improvement process. As we talked, it became apparent that there were several potential areas that could be evaluated. These included a very complicated production process, a multi-stage transportation process from factory to warehouse, and a lot of variation in the intermediate and final products that they were producing. I asked them about bottlenecks -areas where things are not going as smoothly as one would hope or expect. As we delved into the processes that they were using, they began to realize that there were multiple areas that, while not broken, could certainly use a tweak here or there to help improve productivity. Our discussion led into several areas of Lean, talking about transportation, over-engineering, and loss of time. We decided however to focus on a bigger issue dealing with defects, and that a Six Sigma project would be very appropriate for what they needed to evaluate. It’s often interesting to talk to individuals or groups to understand how things are done at their company. At first, everything is fine. But the more you talk, the more anecdotal information you get about what is really happening — problems that have bubbled up or excess resources devoted to working around issues. One of the first steps in any continuous improvement program is admitting that there is room for improvement. A “perfect” system doesn’t need any help, because the people using it won’t admit they need help. It’s important as one considers either a new cip or one that’s been well established for some time to keep an open mind about what could be changed and what could be gained by those changes. 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 Power of Checklists
My wife and I recently went on a trip for business and pleasure. As we were preparing to go, she put together a packing list. I, being a non-list person, began filling up my suitcase and finished much sooner than she did. Needless to say, I discovered a few key items that I had forgotten to pack once we reached our destination, necessitating a stop at the local drug store. In looking back on this incident, I can see the advantage that my wife had in creating a checklist of items she wanted to take with her. We’ve traveled enough that she has a standard list that she works from each time. Although she may add or subtract a few items based on our destination or time of year that we’re traveling, it seems that she never forgets any of the items that she wants to bring for the trip. Lists such as this are very useful in a variety of settings. While discussing airplanes with a pilot friend, he told me that he uses a checklist each time he goes flying. And while he’s been flying more than 30 years (currently in a two-seater instead of a 747), he still uses a checklist for each flight. Checklists have also been utilized in medicine, particularly in hospital settings. In his book The Checklist Manifesto, surgeon and researcher Atul Gawande, MD, MPH, argues that today’s workplaces have become so incredibly complicated that mistakes of one kind or another are virtually inevitable. He illustrates how a simple, low-tech checklist can make all the difference in reducing errors and ensuring patient safety. When designing a new continuous improvement process, checklists can be extremely handy in ensuring that everyone knows what the process is, and follows the process the same way. This helps to ensure uniformity and completeness of the new process. It also prevents the tendency to relapse into old methodologies, thus negating the gains from the new process. Most organizations have standard operating procedures of some nature. Within those, how many actually have a checklist of the steps involved within that process? Does your organization use checklists, and, are there ways to incorporate checklists in the work that you are doing? I look forward to hearing your thoughts! 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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