The five pillars of Lean to apply in your business
The answer to the question posed by our research, “Is it possible to steer a company’s strategy in times of crisis through Lean management ?” starts with a simple premise: the company faces problems and wants to solve them.
Embracing Lean and Management Control, we navigated the turbulent waves of life, finding serenity in simplicity, and delivering excellence to our customers.
1. Having the attitude to solve problems
Change is based on small daily improvements, constantly. A key success factor we find relevant and obvious is team training in problem-solving methods. In Lean, a problem is, by definition, measurable. Since the aim of this thesis is not to explain in detail Lean tools, we won’t go into great detail about the methods used here, such as Obeya, QQOQCCP, 5 Whys, 5M, Pareto… but it seems pertinent to prioritize managerial action around these tools and train the staff to use them, perhaps in an agile, scrum, or sprint mode. The higher the level of maturity in these methods, the more the company will continuously improve its processes.
The more employees see the positive impact of the proposed and implemented improvements in their daily work, the more open-mindedness and creativity will grow when dealing with the problems. The solutions found for the problems can feed into the company’s “PDCA” (Deming wheel) and the implementation of “Poka Yoke,” which ensures that the company has learned from its mistakes and knows not to repeat them.
This implementation is often accompanied by the allocation of a dedicated room for problem-solving and, more broadly, continuous improvement, such as the Obeya Room, Dojo, Focus Point, or War Room. Simplification. For us, Lean represents a mindset, a philosophy, and even an art.
2. The art of simplification
Whether it’s simplifying a process, a method, a product, a service, an interface, a company, or a group, the ability to simplify is essential to creating high-performing companies, and beyond, large companies. The art of understanding the environment, having a vision, turning that vision into an opportunity, and creating a product or service so effective, beautiful, and user-friendly that anyone who uses it recommends it to others.
Simplification, for us, is a key factor for profitable and indispensable success in managing an organization.
Simplify the product, simplify the design, simplify the purchasing process, simplify the message, simplify the product range, simplify production, simplify the service…
Happy CEO
“Simplify to perfection. Streamlining processes, products, and services, inspired by minimalism, is the key to achieving effectiveness and universal acclaim, paving the path to continuous success. Remember, perfection is an ephemeral endpoint, not a permanent one.”
By simplifying, you gain time for a second key success factor, improvement, and perfection. Like a virtuous circle towards continuous success. In our quest to understand the importance of simplification, the study of Lean led us to focus on a country, Japan, and more specifically on a philosophy that has influenced Japanese culture for centuries: Zen.
When traveling to Japan and interacting with Japanese people, you can feel the inspiration of Zen everywhere.
For them, simplification is a way of life, from the simple act of breathing or eating to the design of new technologies.
Zen is both an inner discipline, the absence of thought, and an external discipline, the contemplation of perfection. To feel, repeat, and perfect a gesture until it reaches perfection is the essence of Zen. Everything becomes one. It seemed essential to us to mention this life philosophy to explain the mindset implied by the Lean approach: simplification.
3. The formalization of processes
A quality professional’s first task when dealing with ISO 9001 (V2015) is to map the organization’s processes and consider a standardized quality management system.
In smaller businesses (SMEs), it might not be necessary to have ISO certification or full Lean maturity to meet customer expectations and quality. However, as a company grows or shrinks significantly, there’s an expectation for consistent quality, performance, and customer satisfaction.
Involving employees in discussions about customer expectations and quality, especially when leaders are committed to continuous improvement and financial management, increases the likelihood of building sustainable organizations.
The Lean tool of value stream analysis (VSM), along with risk assessment and assessing the financial profitability of equipment and methods, is crucial. During crises, having precise financial data on what adds value to the company and aligning this with accounting enables SME leaders and operational managers to set meaningful goals, track indicators, and measure deviations from the planned strategy.
“A quality professional helps a company figure out how to do things right, especially as the company grows or faces challenges, and it’s like guiding the company to follow a clear path to success.“
Happy CEO
While we won’t delve into all Lean tools in this post, the VSM and Management Control tools appear more challenging to implement without expert guidance. Their cross-functional nature requires strong commitment and collaboration from managers. The questions arising from risk and net profitability analysis demand leaders’ active involvement in decision-making.
In SMEs, certain risks can be critical, particularly when specific technical tasks unique to the company or profession are challenging to transfer to other employees. Additionally, the analysis may reveal positions that aren’t sufficiently profitable, which raises questions about workforce planning and multi-competence grids.
When it comes to analyzing process value and using associated management control matrices, obtaining them is not straightforward, and enforcing them might not be the ideal solution. Nonetheless, investing in this managerial approach appears essential to us.
4. The art of placing the cursor between demand-based production and standardization.
Finding the sweet spot between creating personalized products and maintaining efficient, standardized processes is essential, especially when facing turbulent times. This requires a special skill from leaders, particularly in smaller companies. They must make critical decisions about how much they can customize their products or services to meet each customer’s unique desires.
The leader’s approach and decisions affect every aspect of the company, from research and marketing to sales and production. Achieving the level of customization seen in large corporations like Toyota is quite challenging for smaller businesses.
For example : Toyota Yaris’s assembly line in Valenciennes, France for instance, produces a Yaris car every 58 seconds, with each one differing from the previous in terms of color, options, and model. It’s remarkable that by customizing their products, Toyota has surpassed its larger competitors. Balancing customization with efficiency is complex but vital for survival.
Some leaders may be tempted to overproduce standardized products in anticipation of customer demand. However, this can be risky, as excess inventory can lead to financial losses during crises. Agile and creative teams are essential to find the right balance for profitability.
Adapting to the clients and the market, which is becoming increasingly intricate, demands agility and responsiveness. Kaizen principles offer a way to align performance with business goals during times of crisis. The role of a manager is to ensure employees can adapt to these changes.
In summary, steering a company through difficult times requires a combination of Lean principles and effective financial management. Implementing these strategies well in advance of a crisis is crucial, as is embedding these values and philosophies throughout the organization for sustained growth.
Customizing Lean practices and financial control tools for each company’s unique needs is key. Furthermore, this approach should be tailored to fit each leader and their individual goals, both personally and professionally.
5. Prioritizing people and customers
It’s important to remember that economic success should serve people, not the other way around. While measuring profitability is essential, it should never come at the expense of customers and employees. Setting clear goals and using performance indicators is crucial, but an excessive focus on numbers can be counterproductive.
When indicators are too numerous or too focused on individual performance, it can lead to fragmented, less effective performance. An underperforming indicator may indicate real challenges on the ground. In fact, setting unattainable goals can harm morale and reduce trust among teams.
The key is to strike a balance between productivity, performance, and quality. Employees should have the time and space to take pride in their work. When they do, they produce high-quality results, and customers will notice and appreciate it.
Ultimately, performance goals should serve as a means to support employees in their work and drive innovation and progress, rather than driving them relentlessly. When a company faces challenges, it’s important to identify the true underlying issues and empower employees to take ownership and initiative, beyond just the numbers.
Our journey unveiled the enduring strength of Lean and Financial Control, emphasizing the significance of a harmonious balance for lasting success.
In summary, How to achieve Excellence in Processes, Products, Services, and People
- Problem-Solving Attitude
- Regularly address issues with a problem-solving mindset.
- Train teams in Lean problem-solving methods like Obeya, QQOQCCP, 5 Whys, and Pareto.
- Promote continuous improvement and maturity in problem-solving methods.
- Implement ‘PDCA’ (Deming wheel) and ‘Poka Yoke’ to learn from mistakes.
- The Art of Simplification
- Simplify processes, products, services, and more for high performance.
- Embrace simplification as a mindset and philosophy.
- Create effective and user-friendly products or services.
- Continuous simplification leads to improved efficiency.
- Formalization of Processes
- Map organization’s processes and consider a standardized quality management system.
- Smaller businesses may not require ISO certification or full Lean maturity but need to meet customer expectations.
- Involve employees in discussions on customer expectations and quality.
- Use Lean tools like value stream analysis (VSM) and Management Control for continuous improvement.
- Collaborate with managers to ensure successful implementation.
- Balancing Personalization and Standardization
- Find the right balance between personalized products and standardized processes.
- Leader’s decisions impact all aspects of the company.
- Customization, as seen at Toyota, can be challenging for smaller companies.
- Overproduction of standardized products can lead to financial losses during crises.
- Agile teams are crucial to achieving the right balance.
- Prioritizing People and Customers
- Economic success should serve people and not the other way around.
- Maintain a balance between measuring profitability and focusing on customer and employee well-being.
- Use performance indicators wisely; excessive focus on numbers can be counterproductive.
- Promote a balanced approach to productivity, performance, and quality.
- Empower employees to take ownership, initiative, and go beyond just the numbers during challenging times.
“In the midst of adversity, we embarked on a journey to integrate the wisdom of Kaizen in our small company, where the art of simplification led to remarkable improvements. This path reminds us that even in turbulent times, long-term success blooms from harmony and balance, and that the journey itself is the destination.”
Happy CEO
Happy CEO 