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Creating a culture of Kaizen and Learning

In today’s complex and competitive world, organizations need to constantly improve their processes and performance to survive and thrive. One of the approaches that has been widely adopted by many organizations is lean management, which is based on the principles and practices of the Toyota Production System.

Lean management aims to eliminate waste, increase value, and achieve operational excellence. However, implementing lean management is not a simple task. It requires a culture of continuous improvement (Kaizen) and organizational learning that involves all the stakeholders in the value chain. We will explore the challenges and benefits of this approach.

The role of Kaizen and Lean in fostering organizational learning and performance

Continuous improvement (Kaizen) should be the cornerstone of a learning organization, regardless of the level of maturity of the Lean approach.

Stimec (1) asserts that there are two essential conditions for fostering a learning culture :

• The first condition is that a comprehensive Lean system, with a mature continuous improvement process, must be structured and produce visible results that are recognized and appreciated by the teams without any conflicts.
  
  
• The second condition is that the field managers are the ones who lead the operational changes in alignment with the suggestions of the field teams.
  

Based on this premise, the management of the human resources strategy and the measurement of social tension become crucial factors for the success of a strategic orientation in times of crisis and over time, since conflicts are inherently detrimental to performance.

The cost of underusing skills

Lean primarily aims to enhance the work methods and conditions of employees and not to underutilize their skills (Eighth Muda) and will positively impact overall performance, provided that the improvements are perceived.

Moreover, if the ideas for improvement are disregarded, ineffective, or unnoticed by the teams, the management of the actions may encounter a decline in participation, motivation, and engagement. And the challenge is that perceptions are intrinsically individual and it is impossible to master the human complexity.

How to avoid it and boost your performance ?

How to structure the Value Chain for competitive advantage

To manage a strategy, especially in times of crisis, it seems vital to design and structure the value chain of operational processes and more specifically the engineering of Kaizen.

Continuous improvement is not an operational tool that ascends to management but rather a distinct strategic management tool at the service of the crisis decision-making process.

Bertrand (2) documented the harms of imposed Lean tools suffered by teams and causing problems; increased stress, MSDs and accidents.

The work of Tortorrella (3) demonstrates the link between a Kaizen approach and the learning organization, but also the importance of how to implement continuous improvement and the perception of progress by operators. He presents Kaizen as a human resource management issue.

The management planning of jobs and careers and the training plan will not potentially be perceived as a waste of time endured by teams sometimes pointing to the lack of time resources, but as a dynamic Kaizen tool serving the vision and overall performance.

Return to the origins and principles of Lean

In its original philosophy, a Lean approach highlighting Kaizen through training improves the well-being of employees. It will also be perceived as a tool in the service of occupational health and therefore a source of sustainable organizational performance.

“The first principle of the Toyota Production System is to make decisions based on a long-term philosophy, even at the expense of short-term financial goals.”

A progressive and structured lean approach will make organizational learning a higher goal than immediate performance objectives.

Since Kaizen approaches are difficult to implement in the long term, especially in SMEs, the strategy pilots must be directly involved in the implementation of lean within a learning organization.

Stimec (1) even describes the importance of integrating an HR specialist at the operational level in the field to allow the participation of all actors and to regulate the social tensions involved in the change. His work confirms that kaizen-type devices do indeed make it possible to encourage organizational learning in teams.

Kaizen and lean can boost organizational learning and performance by eliminating waste and increasing value. However, they also demand a radical shift in the organizational culture and structure. They need a long-term vision, a collaborative culture, and a human-centered approach.

They also need to adapt to the emerging challenges and opportunities of the modern business environment, such as environmental sustainability, artificial intelligence, and industry 4.0. By embracing the original philosophy of lean and Kaizen, organizations can create a learning culture that fosters innovation, engagement, and well-being.

In summary, How to build a Learning organization

• Kaizen requires a comprehensive Lean system, field managers’ leadership, and conflict-free teams
• Underusing skills is a huge waste that can demotivate and disengage employees
• Structuring the value chain and the engineering of Kaizen is vital for managing a strategy in times of crisis
• Imposed Lean tools can harm employees’ health and well-being
• Kaizen is a human resource management issue that involves training, career planning, and participation
• Lean philosophy is based on long-term vision and organizational learning
• Strategy pilots and HR specialists should be involved in implementing lean within a learning organization

“Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.”

Andrew Carnegie

References :

1. Arnaud Stimec 2018. “Is Lean management an organizational learning enabler: the impact of continuous improvement”
2. Thierry Bertrand 2011 “Occupational health: A trip in lean management land”
3. Guilherme Luz Tortorella, Renato Garcia, Flavio Sanson Fogliatto and Rajesh Sawhney 2015 “The impact of contextual variables on learning organization in firms that are implementing lean: a study in Southern Brazil”.