CHAPTER 7: PURSUE PERFECTION
‘If your weapon is only 99% perfect, you have a 1% chance of it letting you down when you need it most.’ – Kailash Limbu ‘Gurkha’, Abacus 2015
Introduction
Having considered the first four principles of lean, the fifth one relates to the pursuit of perfection by continuous (incremental) improvement. Perfection is like an elusive target, or an end point on a journey that keeps moving the closer we get to it! This is because of:
• Perceptions of perfection change over time – competitors will find a different way of doing something, or new technologies can be exploited.
• By making changes, new opportunities for change become apparent.
• Sometimes we get a change wrong and it does not have the effect we were expecting – hence we need to make a different change.
The search for perfection needs to include cultural change. The aim is to:
• Wow ALL customers – standing out from competitors.
• Develop a positive environment where staff are happy but strive to do more, by being more aware of customer value and being creative, and being able to constructively challenge assumptions and existing ways of working/areas of waste.
This will form the basis for a total quality management (TQM) system.
The first stage is for the senior stakeholders to agree a vision of what perfection currently looks like for them. They then review where they are at present to understand the size of the gap. If this gap is significant, a plan will be needed to undertake a major series of projects and programmes to narrow this gap (referred to as kaikaku – see below). Following this, or if the gap is not too great, a series of ongoing changes need to be made to ensure that the organisation gets close to the ultimate goal of perfection (kaizen).
One way of showing perfection is to be able to demonstrate a clean and tidy work environment that is well structured and methodical. Lean also has a tool for this – the ‘5Ss’ (see later in the chapter). When people visit the McLaren Technology Group workshops in Woking they comment on how clean and well presented the offices are, with excellent storage of tools and spares to hand for the technicians (see www.mclaren.com). The floors and walls are all the same colour grey (Ron Dennis’s favourite colour – his personal aircraft has the same colour scheme).
TQM – Total quality management
Many organisations committed to improving quality on a continuous basis adopt the TQM approach, to improve quality at all levels of their organisation. TQM is particularly attuned to the lean objectives of maximising customer value whilst minimising waste. The definition of quality is therefore that defined by the customer – with the organisation aiming to meet, or exceed, the expectation of existing and new customers. Like the rest of lean, the TQM concepts can be applied to any service or product based organisation adopting lean thinking.
TQM originated in the 1950s and has been developed by W Edwards Deming and others (www.deming.org/theman/theories/fourteenpoints. Although Deming did not use the phrase ‘TQM’, the 14 principles in his book Out of the Crisis are widely regarded as a basis. These can be summarised as follows:
1. Create consistency – based on long term strategy of continuing to trade and provide work for employees.
2. Adopt a new philosophy of accepting leadership responsibility for change.
3. Do not rely on inspection for quality management – instead build quality into the process – it is better to get it right first time than rely on capturing errors and correcting afterwards.
4. Aim for long term trust with suppliers – based on minimising overall costs rather than holding them to lowest price.
5. Constantly improve to reduce costs and improve quality.
6. Provide on-the-job training and apprenticeships.
7. Supervise to lead rather than control.
8. Remove fear from the workplace.
9. Break down departmental barriers. The silo approach causes unhealthy internal competition and loses focus from the ultimate customer.
11. Remove work floor targets that discourage pride in workmanship.
12. Remove management targets that discourage pride in workmanship.
13. Institute programmes for self-improvement and development.
14. Seek commitment from all for transformation of the organisation.
Kaizen – continuous improvement
Kaizen is about striving for continuous incremental improvement. The converse is ‘kaikaku’ which means revolutionary radical improvement. The approach is cyclical, as once completed it is started again. Each turn of the cycle should be a refinement on the last so that we incrementally move towards perfection.
The success of a kaizen continuous improvement programme depends largely on the culture of the organisation. For Kaizen to work effectively, this culture should be based upon:
PDCA (Deming) change cycle
The lean change process can be illustrated by the PDCA or kaizen cycle for continuous improvement. The same steps could be used for any change (including kaikaku). The difference is that for kaizen/continuous improvement, the cycle never stops but merely repeats itself.
Figure 8: PDCA cycle adapted for kaizen
Plan – this involves scoping and agreeing the objectives to be covered, including agreeing any metrics to measure the achievement of the change. A plan should cover the Who? Why? How? When? questions and arrangements to gather metrics to measure the progress of the change.
Do – carry out the plan to make the change, collect metrics on its effectiveness and lessons learnt for future changes.
Change (sometimes referred to as study) – complete analysis of the metrics and other data (e.g. surveys of prospective customers). The results should be compared to the predictions made in the original plan. This can also include testing and show and tells, etc.
Adjust (aka ‘Act’) – implement the change and decide what is to be covered in the next iteration cycle.
Kaikaku
Sometimes organisations require large radical changes – rather than slower evolutionary ones. This could be in response to a ‘PEST’ change (political, economic, social and technological) or after, for example, a major business change, such as a merger or acquisition. Most traditional projects are generally based on kaikaku. Lean projects are based on kaizen (gradual change) and are therefore more aligned with business as usual activity than with projects and programmes. A number of books on lean just ignore kaikaku completely. In Lean Thinking, however, Womack and Jones recommend a combination; using kaikaku to make the large changes and then kaizen to make the smaller ongoing incremental changes. The implementation of lean thinking itself may require a kaikaku type approach to radically change the culture, tools and approach of the organisation. It can be used to reach an initial benchmark that can then be further improved with the use of kaizen. The skill for management is to know which approach should be used in each situation – the rapid major implementation (via kaikaku) or the sustained longer improvement of kaizen? Both will use lean tools and techniques – the difference is the scope and timespan of each.
If we take the concept of kaizen, rather than kaikaku, to a logical conclusion we could be seeing the end of large scale projects and a move to constantly changing processes. This would require a radical re-think about how we perform, manage and govern projects.
The 5Ss
Lean thinking has a tool to help with housekeeping, and as we will see, this tool has wider uses. It is called the 5Ss. I am always puzzled how alliteration works in both Japanese and English – but maybe something gets lost in translation. Like most of lean, the approach is thought to have started at Toyota. The five Ss are:
1. Seiri (translated as sort or simplify)
2. Seiton (set, stabilise, orderliness or organise)
3. Seiso (shine)
4. Seiketsu (standardise)
5. Shitsuke (sustain).
Seiri (translated as sort or simplify)
Seiri is the identification and implementation of the most successful organisation of the workspace. It involves the identification of what is required, when it is required, and by whom. By implication this includes removing clutter, or those things not required, as they will cause confusion and potential waste, as well as being potential hazards. This can include the reduction of work in progress and removal of excess materials. One local authority was spending far higher than average amounts on office stationery. We conducted a simple audit to review the levels of paper, pencils, pens, etc. by walking around all of the offices and looking in stationery cupboards. We found that there were many years of supplies being hoarded and not used – including gallons of correcting fluid that was past its use by date. By tagging and recording items for disposal or return to central store, we were able to identify what really needed to be bought and what could be returned to central store for re-issue instead of buying new supplies.
In the 1990s we found six sacks of town gas valves (used before the introduction of North Sea Gas in the 1970s) at a local authority housing depot that were of no use. They were constantly getting in the way of staff and being moved or transferred between depots. By flagging them they were eventually sold for scrap.
Such reviews are now common throughout the public and private sectors to identify potential clutter and waste. Other examples include the organisation of operating theatre trays, or storage of medical records in the NHS.
In summary, seiri is about reviewing the workspace to ensure that it is organised to reduce wasted effort and is clear of items that are not likely to be required for the task in hand.
Seiton (set, stabilise, orderliness or organise)
Having reviewed the workspace (seiri – above), the next step is to implement improvements. To coin a phrase, seiton is about ‘a place for everything and everything in its place’. It is also about ensuring the right quantities are stored in the right places.
I once met an IT operations manager who told me whenever he was called in to solve a problem, the first thing he always did was to tidy the working area. His philosophy was that it is easier to solve problems in a clean and tidy environment. It is easier to be productive in an uncluttered, tidy work area. Ask any experienced and skilled craftsman and they will agree. The impact is not only physical cleanliness – it also has a psychological impact on most of us, making us feel happier and safer, and the implication is that we are prepared to work harder and more carefully.
These days this is as true of the virtual workspace as it is of the physical workspace. I have worked with people who regularly have over 500 unread emails in their inbox – and usually have not noticed the important ones that I have sent to them.
Professional craftsman, for example, take great effort to organise their tools and other requirements, and to ensure the working area is well organised so that they:
• Know the items they need most are close at hand.
• Know the location of all their tools and can quickly tell if one is missing, or in need of repair.
• Can ensure tools are cleaned and maintained after use.
• Avoid injury from badly stored blades or other potentially dangerous tools.
• Know what additional tools they need to buy and do not buy tools they already have.
• Reduce continuous moving, recording and storing of items no longer needed.
Another example could be the way that modern kitchens are organised to ensure that the tools or ingredients needed most (e.g. chopping boards and knives) are close to hand, whilst those needed less often are stored out of the way (e.g. ice cream makers in the winter or Christmas cake decorations for most of the year).
This can extend to computer desktops – for example in the way that applications are organised, ensuring that users only open those required. Emphasis is on reducing clutter to make the workspace easier and more effective to use.
In summary, seiton is about ensuring a standard way of doing things, as supported by an organised workspace. This includes organisation of requirements to ensure they can be found and used with minimal effort and waste.
Seiso (shine, sweep or clean)
Most of us prefer to work, live and shop in clean and tidy environments. These are also safer, more secure and more efficient than the alternate. This is why most offices have a clear desk policy and insist that meeting rooms are cleared after each meeting. I wouldn’t want to take a prospective client into a meeting room with dirty coffee cups and whiteboards showing confidential information about other customers – it would definitely lead to a negative perception.
Although most of us like to be in a clean environment, most of us also do not like to actually do anything to make it clean. I like the sign in my local chip shop ‘Don’t lean – Clean’. It shows an emphasis on hygiene and also makes individual staff responsible for ensuring a clean environment. The implementation of seiso is based upon:
• removing potential sources of contamination
• regular inspections and feedback
• clearly assigned responsibilities for cleanliness of specific areas
• schedules to show who does what and when
• preparation – ensuring the tools and materials are to hand (see seiton above).
We even have this at our local bowls club – I know what dates I am on cleaning duty and there is a checklist to ensure I know what I need to do, and telling me where I can find the vacuum and the dusters.
In summary, a clean workspace is safer and healthier, it promotes customer confidence and is more efficient as it reduces waste and supports standardisation.
Seiketsu (standardise, embed process)
Seiketsu is the means for sustaining the first three Ss as described above. Drives to improve housekeeping can be seen in some organisations as one-offs or just ‘flavour of the month’ topics. In which case they become forgotten during the next management initiative and so need to be repeated at regular intervals to achieve the same status quo with little progress forward. Seiketsu is about embedding processes for seiri, seiton and seiso so they become part of normal everyday routines rather than being one off exercises. This includes scheduling 5S tasks and ensuring that the infrastructure and other resources are in place, including independent audit, to support the related activities. This is important to indicate early any falling in standards that may not be apparent to those performing the processes.
The benefits of this standardisation are that it provides a schedule of 5S activities, embeds the habits for the first three Ss, and begins problem solving whilst promoting discipline and the ability to sustain activities.
Shitsuke (sustain)
The fifth S is about discipline and retaining the benefits achieved. Whereas Seiketsu (the fourth S) is about introducing formal rigorous reviews, shitsuke is less mechanical and more about approaches to change behaviours in the medium to longer term. It is hence about persuasion and stimulation and so is based on:
• Communication of the objectives and building of trust so that processes and procedures become the habitual norm.
• Acceptance by all.
• Awareness of what concepts they need to understand and the techniques to be used. This includes new joiners.
• Reward and recognition for effort so that the benefits are shared and buy-in is obtained.
• Time to complete the assigned activities.
• Structure – What? Who? When? How? performed and how recorded.
By creating the right behaviours, we establish and maintain more efficient, safer and more secure workplaces. This not only includes the physical workplace but also cyberspace – for example by encouraging best password and other IT security practices.
Auditing TQM the change process (kaikaku and kaizen)
The audit of the change process will vary depending on the circumstances. The following guideline questions are intended to provide a generic approach. One of the best sources for audit of TQM and PDCA is the ISO9001/19011 standard. The ‘check’ stage of PDCA could itself be considered as audit. The ISO website states:
ISO19011:2011 provides guidance on auditing management systems, including the principles of auditing, managing an audit programme and conducting management system audits, as well as guidance on the evaluation of competence of individuals involved in the audit process, including the person managing the audit programme, auditors and audit teams.
Any audit of TQM needs to first consider the arrangements and culture that management has established to achieve TQM. This can then be used as the benchmark for individual project or assignment audits. The following table summarises some of the areas to consider:
Ethics/integrity/trust
• How has the code of ethics been updated and communicated to all?
• What is the evidence that it is understood and applied consistently and effectively?
• Is there evidence in the press and social media that demonstrates an apparent lack of integrity? If so, how have management reacted to this?
• Is there evidence from staff and customer surveys that they trust the organisation?
• Are there adequate signs of commitment of TQM?
Training/teamwork/leadership/recognition/communication
• What training do new joiners receive to make them aware of the organisation’s commitment to TQM and codes of conduct, etc. (obtain and review copies)?
• Is there a culture for celebrating and sharing success?
The best way to audit the 5Ss is by direct observation. You can often tell an organisation’s attitude to order and cleanliness just from the reception area.
Seiri (translated as sort or simplify)
1. What policies and procedures are in place for archiving and retention?
2. How often are stock levels reviewed to identify items no longer required?
3. What evidence is there to show that the policies and procedures are being applied effectively in practice (e.g. no evidence of clutter)?
Seiton (set, stabilise, orderliness or organise)
4. Are team sites and work areas well structured and organised?
5. What suggestions do the team have for improving the organisation of these?
Seiso (shine)
6. Are there any signs of contamination?
7. What evidence is there to show that policies for cleaning and sorting are applied in everyday practice?
Seiketsu (standardise)
8. What evidence is there to confirm that audits and review inspections are conducted regularly and that findings (positive and negative) are reported back to the teams concerned?
Shitsuke (sustain)
9. How are benefits achieved, quantified and staff recognised and rewarded for their efforts?
This area may also be suitable for softer controls, such as interviewing key staff to understand their motivation and attitudes and how these align with the expected ethos, etc. that the organisation is trying to achieve.
Summary
The pursuit of perfection is a key principle of lean. This pursuit may be a radical change (kaikaku) or by continuous improvement (kaizen). Both should be underpinned by a strong commitment to total quality management.
Audit/checking has an important role to ensure that continuous improvement is being achieved. The use of the 5Ss also demonstrates that this commitment includes the provision and maintenance of a workplace that will encourage continuous improvement.