Here’s the irony of the improvement process. Everywhere we go, we ask two questions:

1. “Would you like to improve business operations?” The answer is always yes.
2. “How much time do you set aside for your team to make improvements?” This is usually met with silence, followed by a reluctant “none.”

The obvious question is, if you want to improve but allocate no time for it, how can you improve? The fix is simple but requires discipline and a leap of faith: Set aside 15–30 minutes every morning for what we call “Improvement Time.” During this time, the entire organization focuses on improvements instead of production.

It might sound counterproductive, and somewhere, there’s an accountant calculating the productivity lost. But if every team member saves just one minute per day by addressing inefficiencies, the time pays off in 30 days. Over time, the compounding results are just staggering.

However, if you simply announce, “30 minutes for improvements,” it will feel like herding uncooperative cats, and results will be minimal. The key is alignment, ensuring the entire organization is on the same page about what improvement means and how to achieve it.

Train your team for success
To ensure your success, train everyone in the basics of lean manufacturing principles, particularly the “3 M’s of Lean”:

• Muda (waste): Eliminate inefficiencies.
• Muri (overburden): Reduce stress on processes or people.
• Mura (unevenness): Streamline workflows for consistency.

The focus should always be on making jobs easier, not directly on making money. The moment you say, “We’re doing this to make more money,” you risk losing employee buy-in. 

Simpler processes will naturally be faster and more efficient. If you neglect to address the “what’s in it for me,” it will be hard to rally your team. 

Training can take various forms. You can bring in an expert to guide your team, start a book club, or use daily morning meetings for education. Whatever method you choose, it will require an upfront investment of time and resources.

Once the team understands the principles, can you turn them loose? Not yet. You will need some clarity around who is responsible for what. Remember, if it’s everyone’s responsibility, it’s no one’s responsibility. 

Improvements fall into three categories:
1. Individual jobs and workspaces
Everyone should focus on making their jobs easier. This involves activities like shadow boarding, tool organization, deep cleaning, decluttering, and creating SOPs (standard operating procedures) or jigs. The rule of thumb is: “Fix what bugs you.”

If you find something messy, annoying, or tedious in your day-to-day work, address it. These improvements are usually low-cost or free. Management support can go a long way with a small budget for labels, Kaizen foam, paint, or basic tools.

Don’t worry about running out of improvements. The more you fix, the more opportunities you’ll uncover. This mindset creates a culture of constant enhancement, where everyone is empowered to take ownership of their workspace.

2. Overall company throughput
At this level, team leads or plant managers play a critical role. Leaders must not only participate in daily workspace improvements but also focus on increasing the overall throughput of the company.

This requires identifying the factory’s bottleneck. Follow these steps:

• Identify the constraint
• Exploit the constraint
• Subordinate and synchronize to the constraint
• Elevate the performance of the constraint
• Repeat the process

Improving the bottleneck is the only way to increase throughput. These changes are typically more complex and may involve layout changes, work cell revamps, or new equipment purchases. Such initiatives require careful planning to balance financial and downtime impacts.

3. Capital expenditures
Large-scale improvements, such as expensive equipment purchases should be handled at the ownership level. These recommendations often bubble up from team leads or plant managers when significant investments are needed to elevate constraints.
It’s important to avoid relying solely on money to solve problems. 

Financial constraints often spark creative solutions, encouraging teams to innovate. Remember, money stifles creativity. By focusing on improvements that don’t require spending, you’ll tap into the “creative genius” in everyone.

Sustaining continuous improvement
After training and assigning responsibilities, appoint someone to oversee improvement activities. This person should be a passionate advocate for lean principles and continuous improvement.

In the beginning, progress will be rapid as the team tackles low-hanging fruit. However, over time, the pace may slow as obvious improvements are completed. The appointed leader plays a vital role in keeping the momentum alive by:

• Tracking opportunities.
• Helping team members who are stuck.
• Coordinating efforts across departments.
• Preventing conflicting changes.

Without this leadership, improvement efforts may stagnate. The leader ensures everyone remains aligned and motivated. You will be amazed at how many times one person’s improvement is taking apart someone else’s. If efforts are not aligned, this will become a problem. 

Getting started
Now your team is trained, roles are defined, and objectives are clear. Can you set them loose? Almost.

The final step is communication and reinforcement. Leaders must consistently emphasize the importance of improvement time and demonstrate their own commitment by participating in daily improvements. 

Employees will follow suit when they see leadership modeling the desired behavior.  I have personally found that an entire team will do about 80% of what they see their boss doing. 

So, if the owner is only engaged by about 60%, the managers will be at about 48%, team leaders 38% and gemba (shop floor) people a mere 30%. So, make sure ownership is engaged heavily and management is setting a high standard for continuous improvement. 

With this foundation, your organization is armed and ready to embark on a journey of continuous improvement. While this process introduces only the basics, it’s an excellent starting point for building a culture of operational excellence.

There are many more tools in the lean manufacturing toolbox to drive improvement, but this approach lays the groundwork for mind-blowing change.

For help or additional resources, contact [email protected].