Here are 15 ways that Standard Work benefits organizations that leverage it.
When Standard Work is in place, each person who performs a task does it in the manner that is the best way to do it.
When each task is documented and clearly defined, bringing on new employees and getting them up to speed is painless. There is no ambiguity, and the results are consistent, even with different trainers.
Consistency is an essential ingredient of quality. When work is done according to the Standard, quality is baked-in, and customers get exactly what they expect.
Errors and unnecessary waste are often the results of work that are done according to the whim of the day and not the carefully constructed Standard.
If the same process or task produces the same outcome every time, you can predict results and control the flow of work and items through the value chain. You also get baseline metrics that can be used to measure future improvements.
Waste, errors, and inconsistent results make it tough to determine how much a particular process costs, and therefore, what price the product must get to be profitable.
One-off processes and individual judgment don’t scale. Standard Work makes it possible to get the same results with one person once, or 100 people, thousands of times.
When people perform their jobs according to the Standard Work, it is easy to shift blame for breakdowns and errors from the person to the process. After all, it's process problems, not people problems that keep organizations from achieving their objectives.
It's hard to improve a process that is not well understood or consistently applied. Once Standard Work is in place, opportunities for improvement become apparent, and there is an easy way to implement them.
Standard Work does not eliminate all problems, but it makes solving them much easier because you know exactly what the current state looks like.
Because the people who do the job are involved in the creation of the Standard Work, they become invested in making sure that it truly reflects the best approach.
The reduction in problems, errors, and inconsistent outcomes allow leaders, managers, and supervisors to focus instead on making sure employee needs are met, and adding value to the business.
People want to do good work and hate spending time correcting errors or apologizing for defects. Standard Work makes each individual more successful.
While it may seem counterintuitive, Standard Work promotes innovation. That’s because the Standard is only the best practice for today. Creative ideas for improvement are always welcome, and the Standard changes whenever a successful PDSA proves that there is a better way.
Having consistent safety measures prevents accidents and ensures that employees are protected from harm.
Like many of the techniques and tools that support Kaizen, Standard Work is not complicated at all. But it is paramount for organizations that want to eliminate waste, improve efficiency, maintain quality, and practice continuous improvement. We’re pretty sure everyone wants to do at least some of that.