Change is never easy for anyone and how you manage the change process is very important to your success as you deploy and implement lean in the office. The application of several principles will help as you conduct kaizen events.
- Be open-minded to continuous improvement.
- Maintain a positive attitude.
- Waste elimination is everyone’s responsibility.
- Which kaizen events you choose to implement are important especially with limited resources.
- Select events that are clear and supported by management, satisfy a business need, are simple, have stable repeatable processes, and will involve employee contribution.
- Have a specific objective and keep the scope narrow so that it can be completed quickly and effectively.
- Ensure everyone understands the need to change and also the benefits that will result from conducting the kaizen event.
- Provide clarity around the role everyone will play in achieving the success that lean implementation promises.
- Communicate! Make sure everyone knows what is happening and why.
- Pay attention to people’s concerns and work to resolve them.
- Don’t let a problem stop the process. Acknowledge it and reschedule the event for completion as soon as the problem is resolved.
- Close the loop at the end of the event by publishing and communicating the results of the improvement to all employees within the organization.
- Reward and recognize people’s efforts.
- Be flexible. Things will happen that weren’t planned for. These should be looked at as opportunities for learning more about the process.
- Kaizen needs long-term direction. Management should establish clear targets to guide everyone and be certain to provide leadership for all kaizen activities directed toward achieving the targets.