Continuous

Improvement
Improvement is the mainstay of every successful enterprise.
This guide shows you how to implement this principle into
your company’s culture.
 The Necessity of Improvement

Progress is the necessary goal of companies in every field of industry. Without

progress, there’s only one direction to go: backwards.

In water management, stagnation is the enemy. When water isn’t flowing, when
it pools and then settles, bacteria begins to grow. Unwanted parasites can
breed. Similarly, stagnation in business is the enemy to growth and prosperity.
The antidote? Continuous improvement, also known as kaizen.

Improvement keeps businesses moving forward, toward a lucrative and

productive future. When a company adapts a continuous improvement model,
that company strives to grow and be better in its processes in small but
impactful ways. A commitment to excellence by testing and improving workflow
and processes means more efficient production and less overall waste.

Kaizen—a Japanese phrase that roughly translates to continuous improvement,

and is often used synonymously with continuous improvement programs in
the West—first became a part of manufacturing at Toyota in the early 1950s.
Kaizen has long been an integral stitch in the fabric of Japan—the idea of
always working toward betterment can be seen everywhere, from the top office
of a major corporation to a fishing village off the Western Coast. Many scholars
attribute kaizen to Japan’s transformation from a defeated wartime nation to an
industrialized global powerhouse.

Continuous improvement is a philosophy that enables everyone to take control

of their work process and improve the system in which they work. By learning
to watching for possible improvements, people are able to contribute in small
ways that benefit the organization.

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 Continuous Improvement: An Overview

Once implemented, continuous improvement will transform the culture of your

workplace. All teams companywide will be striving toward working smarter,
more effectively. Unlike many innovations, continuous improvement campaigns
do not require expensive implementation costs. The core principle behind
this philosophy is to make small, immediate changes in the processes and
standards of the workplace. Searching for paths to a better process should
be a part of everyone’s job. It should be the question workers, managers, and
leaders ask themselves a few times a day:

How could we have done that quicker, safer, or more efficiently?

Kaizen is an attitude and a lifestyle; this philosophy of continuous workplace

improvement isn’t a quick fix. This is a long-term attitude shift that, one step
at a time, transforms the way a company operates for the better. Continuous
improvement is the tortoise; quick fixes are the hare. In order to truly experience

the benefits of continuous improvement, a company must have patience and

faith in the slow but steady process, which relies on long-term, long-lasting,
and relatively nondramatic changes. Kaizen is a group effort; everyone needs
to be involved. The process requires minimal monetary investment, but a
large investment in effort, cooperation, and training. The results, if done right,
will be revolutionary.

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 Continuous Improvement (kaizen) is a process.

It is not a one-time adjustment made to make this quarter’s numbers look

better. It must become a daily part of every worker’s routine. It must become
part of the company’s culture so managers and employees are constantly
looking for small ways to improve the workflow. When that happens, you will
have an organization that has become lean, mean, and efficient. This is the
essence of kaizen.

This is its greatest strength.

Gemba: The Necessary Piece of Continuous Improvement

Gemba is to continuous improvement as Robin is to Batman. It is the necessary

component that makes continuous improvement the powerful facility-changing
philosophy it is.

Gemba is a Japanese term that means “real place.” In kaizen, the mantra is “Go
to Gemba First.” This means that you must go to where the work is done—the
production floor, the warehouse, the factory, etc.—in order to get a good idea
of what can be improved upon. To make changes in a process, you must first
understand the process.

This free Gemba guide will

help you understand and
implement Gemba walks in
your facility.

Gemba Guide

Managers’ work often keeps them in their offices or attending meetings. They
often know about the manufacturing process in only an abstract sense through
reports. The continuous improvement process requires them to get out and
see production for themselves. Once they know the processes, they’ll be able to
help make the small improvements that are the backbone to kaizen.

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 Mangers need to watch and learn how their teams are completing their work.
Japanese companies require gemba to be the responsibility of all employees,
from custodians to CFOs. They are required to observe processes to get a
better understanding of their own positions. Continuous improvement is a
model that relies on every worker’s participation to succeed.

Continuous Improvement Concepts

Management has two functions in continuous improvement: maintenance

and improvement. Setting standards, then keeping them is a critical element
of continuous improvement. Management’s primary role is to maintain the
technological and operating standards agreed upon by their respective
companies. Managers ensure that the members of the team have the tools and
resources to perform their role in the way the standards dictate.

Management’s other important task is pushing for, and facilitating,

improvement. They must be constantly seeking paths towards better
processes and higher standards, and they need to encourage workers to do
the same. It’s important for management to foster an environment that allows
workers to pitch ideas for improvement. Continuous improvement comes from
everyone working toward that goal.

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 Process vs Results

Process is the sacred pursuit of continuous improvement. Traditionally,

companies focused too much on results and cared little for the process. Kaizen
aims to reverse those priorities. Continuous improvement’s focuses its energy
on process, knowing that strong processes yield stronger results.

PDCA Cycle

The PDCA cycle is a system that compounds continuous improvement

principles. It is a vital part of the process.

Plan refers to establishing a target and a strategy for improvement. This is

a must. Without a target, how do you know if you have achieved success?

Do refers to the implementation of your plan.

Check is when you determine if your plan actually improved the process.

Act is the process of standardizing the improved procedure so that it

can be continued and so that the problem will not return.

By following the PDCA cycle, you will ensure that your process improves and
does not degrade.

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 Quality First

Quality is always the highest priority in a continuous improvement system, but

not just in the way you think. Quality does not only refer to the finished product,
it also refers to the processes and standards that create the product. It runs
through all phases of company activity: design, production, management, sales,
and service. It is both the goal and the method of the production cycle.

Speak with Data

Continuous improvement’s whole objective is to solve problems. To do this,

a company needs gather relevant data. Without it, improvement becomes a
guessing game; you’ll have no clear understanding of where problems are
happening. Data gives you a map to the problem, and from there you can start
charting a path to a long-term solution.

The Next Process Is the Customer

Products are made by a variety of steps that make up a standard process.

These processes are sequential. The continuous improvement model stresses
the value of quality in each stage of manufacturing. Workers responsible for
each stage needs to stay vigilant and catch defective parts before they go onto
to the next stage in the process. This is the definition of “the next process is the

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 customer.” The phrase emphasizes how the worker should inspect and examine
the product in front of him: like a customer. This process has produced
dramatic drops in defective products in companies all over the world.

Visual Management

Another major concept of continuous improvement is visual management. The

opportunities for improvement may present themselves
on a daily basis, but if
you are not able to
see them, they will be missed. One of the primary methods
used in kaizen is creating an environment where tools, supplies, and processes
that are out of place or out of sync can be seen right away.

5S

The bedrock of visual management is 5S. This foundational Lean concept

is a systematic approach to workplace organization and cleaning that
will transform a disorganized workplace into an efficient machine. This
strategy of organization does more than merely clears away the clutter—5S
teaches workers and managers alike to prioritize and value organizational
improvements. This Lean method teaches people that efficiency is
synonymous with organization, and that 5S is worth investing in. 5S creates a
strong baseline that allows businesses to employ additional lean manufacturing
tools like kaizen. It’s for these reasons that companies like Toyota, Coca-Cola,
and many others across the globe have implemented 5S into their facilities.
5S, along with the other Lean concepts, have changed the way the world
manufactures.

When a work environment is orderly, people can more easily identify

opportunities for improvement.

Kick off your 5S project with

this 5S Starter Kit. Useful
supplies and visuals to get
things rolling!

5S Starter Kit

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 5S STEPS TO SUCCESS

Japanese American
Definition
Term Term

Sort through materials, keeping only the essential items

needed to complete tasks. (This action involves going
through all the contents of a workspace to determine
Seiri Sort which are needed and which can be removed. Everything
that is not used to complete a work process should leave
the work area.)

Ensure that all items are organized and each item has
a designated place. Organize all the items left in the
workplace in a logical way so they make tasks easier for
Seiton Set in Order workers to complete. This often involves placing items in
ergonomic locations where people will not need to bend
or make extra movements to reach them.

Proactive efforts to keep workplace areas clean and orderly

to ensure purpose-driven work. This means cleaning and
Seiso Shine maintaining the newly organized workspace. It can involve
routine tasks such as mopping, dusting, etc. or performing
maintenance on machinery, tools, and other equipment.

Create a set of standards for both organization and

processes. In essence, this is where you take the first
Seiketsu Standardize three S’s and make rules for how and when these
tasks will be performed. These standards can involve
schedules, charts, lists, etc.

Sustain new practices and conduct audits to maintain

discipline. This means the previous four S’s must be
Shitsuke Sustain continued over time. This is achieved by developing a sense
of self-discipline in employees who will participate in 5S.

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 The 5 M’s

The 5 M’s is a powerful tool for management to control and improve the
workflow in their facilities. By always abiding by the 5 M’s, managers will be
able to track inconsistencies in processes more easily.

1. Manpower - Managers must know their employees’ jobs intimately.

They must know if they are completing their tasks in the right way and
what the skill level of each employee is. Is the morale high, or is there a
lot of absenteeism or indifference?

2. Machines - Each manager
must also have an excellent working

knowledge of each machine and tool in his department. He must
check to see if they are being regularly maintained and if they are in
good working order. Are they producing high quality products? If not, is
it the fault of the machine?

3. Materials - The flow of materials is very important in kaizen. The

just-in-time model dictates how materials should flow in a process.
Only those materials that are needed should be in the work zone. If
there are more materials than are needed, they should be stored away
in a separate location. Each workstation should have a minimum and
maximum inventory level for each process.

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 4. Methods - By having standardized methods, the manager will be able
to see if the worker is doing his or her
job correctly. Posted worksheets
and diagrams that show the sequence and quality control for each
process will help achieve proper adherence to the standard methods.

5. Measurements - How do you know if a process is running

smoothly? Productions, schedules, and targets should be displayed
so everyone can see if improvement is being made. Gauges should be
clearly marked to show the proper operating ranges of the equipment.

Continuous improvement and the tools associated with it will improve your
company’s culture by implementing a companywide priority on making
processes and standards better. This shift will raise morale, safety practices,
and, ultimately, your profits.

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