Ease Into Lean Management for Smooth Transition
With the push in today’s business environment for constant change and improvement it makes sense to improve the process of change itself.
The new rule of
business is change. Almost every company out
there these days is undergoing some form of
change, implementing initiatives to change and
improve their business.
The problem with change in most companies is
that is it can cause more problems than it
fixes. It is often cumbersome, slow,
inefficient, and often just a waste of time and
resources.
Many people wonder how change can still be
fraught with so many problems after more than a
decade of change being standard in
organizations. Shouldn’t it be easy by now?
While we are not sure about all the reasons for
the problems, we are sure of some of the
solutions.
Solution One
The business must view change as a work state,
as valuable task that will bring the business to
a more effective way of operating. Change can no
longer be viewed as a one time event, but needs
to be seen as a continual process that is a core
business process which keeps the corporation
competitive. Change should be viewed as a
constant process which is always in motion in
the corporation.
Solution Two
The process of change should no longer be a
source of corporate waste. Change should be
viewed as a process which is able to be
improved, just like any other business process.
One excellent approach to use is lean thinking.
Lean Manufacturing is a powerful process that
has been used by many companies to reduce waste
from their change management process. Some of
the key steps in the Lean Manufacturing process
include:
- Documentation - Writing down the value streams (processes) that are used in the companies change initiatives. Some of the key areas that need documentation include communications, tool redesign, tool deployment, and vision creation.
- Analysis - To eliminate any non-value-added steps kaizen events are performed. These events are modeled like retreats and allow members of the organization to look objectively at how things are currently done and find improvements.
- Continuous Improvement - The process of improvement never stops, kaizen like events can still be held occasionally. Additionally, improvements can be frequently discussed in more informal settings including regular meetings.
With the push in today’s business environment for constant change and improvement it makes sense to improve the process of change itself. The process of Lean Manufacturing allows corporations to document and analyze the methods they use for corporate change and make necessary adjustments. The process of improvement would be continual, with time taken regularly to see if there is any way to improve efficiency. Using the process of Lean Manufacturing can take the struggle and waste out of change for your organization.