Statistical control charts are a useful tool for managing and improving all sorts of processes. They’ve been used in manufacturing for decades and are increasingly popular in other industries from healthcare to higher education. Control charts give leaders a clear and consistent way of evaluating and talking about process behavior and performance. They help managers make good decisions about which processes are stable and which require attention.

While at first glance, they may look very simple, just a line graph with data points plotted over time, there are some important concepts that you should understand if you are new to the approach.

This post covers the basic, yet critical principles of control charts.

We get the chance to talk to leaders implementing the Kaizen approach to continuous improvement on a regular basis. One of the questions people who are new to the Kaizen way often ask is, “Should I do daily Kaizen or Kaizen events?”

The short answer is, “Yes.”

Daily Kaizen is essential for tackling small problems before they become big ones and for sustaining improvements that have been implemented. Making continuous improvement part of everyone’s job forms the basis of Kaizen culture.

However, some challenges require a more focused approach. Kaizen events require a significant investment of human capital. The team puts their other work aside for three to five days to focus on the target process or problem. That’s not trivial, so Kaizen events aren’t always the right tool for the job. But here are some situations where they make perfect sense.  

Chicks dig the long ball. At least, that’s what the Nike ad from the late 90s told us. If you don’t recall this particular ad, you can watch it here. Simply put, the ad shows that everyone likes home runs better than base hits or strikeouts. And home runs are way cooler than bunting.

When someone comes to us asking for information about our Kaizen software, we like to ask a ton of questions. It helps us to understand their business and their approach to improvement. We ask about the team, the key business objectives, and past improvement efforts.

The subject of Kaizen events comes up often because so many organizations have tried or are looking to try the technique. These conversations reveal that there is a lot of “fake news” floating around about Kaizen events.

We’d like to set the record straight.

Here are things people say about Kaizen events that aren’t true:

We are starting to see a sharp increase in the number of construction companies that are coming to us in search of a software solution to support their efforts to implement Lean management principles.

Many leaders in the space recognize that they can reduce costs, improve safety, deliver more value, and adhere to budgets by applying the tools and techniques that have been popular in healthcare and manufacturing for so long.

For those in that camp, we’d like to share some important advice that we have learned from our clients in construction and related industries.

Maybe it is because it is a brand-new year, or perhaps it is the cold weather, but lately, we’ve been getting a lot of questions about the Lean management technique of Gemba walks. We compiled them for this post that we hope will be helpful for people who are new to the approach and even seasoned pros who want to get more from each visit to the workplace.

What is a Gemba Walk?

Gemba walks are an improvement technique used in the Lean business methodology and by others who are interested in continuous improvement. During a Gemba walk a supervisor, manager, or other leader goes to the place where work is done to get deeper insight into how processes are performing and to spot potential opportunities improvement. The technique is often described as:

• Go see
• Ask why
• Show respect

When starting a new project or initiative, it's helpful to call an expert. Sports coaches, tutors, and even chefs, offer their services to both beginners and experts to help guide and lead them to success.

One thing that great coaches do is talk about the right tools. A baseball coach can’t teach batters how to hit with a shoddy bat and a chef can’t be effective with a cheap knife.

The same goes for improvement coaches and consultants. Consultants are brought in for help because they provide the knowledge and skills to create, spread, and maintain a culture of continuous improvement. Lean coaches accomplish these goals in a variety of ways, often teaching problem-solving techniques, sourcing ideas, and promoting open dialogues.

We are occasionally asked if it is possible to implement Kaizen without using software .

The answer is yes.

It is possible to adopt a continuous improvement mindset, embrace the belief that positive change is everyone’s responsibility, and execute improvement projects all without a dedicated solution to support the effort. Heck, Toyota did it before email was a thing.

However, we can say with confidence that organizations that do choose to leverage a Kaizen software solution see more impactful improvements in a shorter period of time. They are able to manage more projects and capture more opportunities.

This post is about how and why.

You know what phrase makes us very sad?

“We tried that before and it didn’t work.”

We hate hearing that because too often a failure or two prevents organizations from using improvement techniques with huge potential benefits. Unfortunately, we’ve heard this sad statement regarding Kaizen events.

When we dig into what happened, we usually find that the event was never set up for success. On the flip side, we have clients that credit Kaizen events for their most important accomplishments.

Here’s what they do really well.

When you’re a Lean consultant, a big part of your job is to visit your clients on site and help coach them and build their Lean or continuous improvement program. Of course you want to have a big impact while you’re there, but more importantly, you want the results you help your clients achieve to sustain in the long run. In order for that to happen, you need visibility into what your clients are doing on a daily basis.

If you’re lucky, all of your clients are right in your backyard.

But what if they’re more spread out? What if they have multiple locations around the country - or even the world? You might be in San Francisco one week and New York the next.

What problems arise when your clients are spread out and you can’t be everywhere at once?