True Kaizen: Management's Role in Improving Work Climate and Culture

What does it take to manage an organization to success? No matter what industry you are in, an organization is primarily a group of people. This book focuses on that ever-important human element. In the rush to get 'lean', many organizations focus solely on tools for increasing productivity, but where do these tools come from? In this book, Collin McLoughlin and Toshihiko Miura look back on their decades of international consulting experience to examine how organizations around the world have transformed on a cultural level by respecting the people who work within them and leveraging their creativity to solve problems. As our workforce becomes more knowledgeable, skillful, and more perceptive of their needs and wants as employees, the ability to reach the true potential of an organization becomes more and more difficult. Managers must look at each individual element of an equation like this in order to fully understand how to achieve an answer. They must begin to answer more focused questions, such as: 1. How productive is the existing work climate and culture? 2. How do employees, as individuals, navigate the existing work climate? (How do they deal with day-today issues with each other?) 3. Where and how are individuals and their work processes assessed? 4. What obstacles do employees face every day, and are they empowered to fix these obstacles? 5. What role does leadership play at each level of the organization? (Looking at the organization in layers of management.) To address these challenges, this book focuses on three main aspects of leadership and management: 1. Addressing and Improving the Perspective of Management -- The ideas presented in this book are not limited to a certain industry or field of work, but can be applied in any setting because they speak to a universal human element. 2. Exploring and Improving Work Climate -- Organizations are social entities, operating within their own controlled environment. This book will explore the factors that contribute to, and encourage, a positive work climate. 3. Observing and Eliminating Wasteful Work Processes -- Observing wasteful activities and work processes requires a refined perspective. The case studies presented illustrate the How and Why to help refine expertise. This will also lead to the joy and benefits

Table of Contents:
Preface. Chapter 1. Why Leadership Matters. Assessing the Situation.The Ability to Assess a Situation Effectiveness: Doing the Right Thing Efficiently. Effective Observation. Management by Walking Around (MBWA). Management Two Layers Down. Starting with a Theme. Chapter 1 Conclusion. Chapter 2. The True Meaning of Kaizen. Difference between Kaizen and Improvement. Who Performs Kaizen In Your Company? The Power of 100 Ideas a Year. The Contagious Power of Kaizen. Inspiration Directly into Practice on the Shop Floor. The Process of Kaizen. Chapter 2 Conclusion. Chapter 3. An Attractive Workplace. The Art of Making: Monozukuri. Employees’ Collective Mindset. An Appealing Work Environment. Earn Trust, Then Introduce Change. Chapter 3 Conclusion. Chapter 4. Communicating Workplace Values. Toyota’s Two Pillars. Workplace Communication. The Importance of Front-Line Management. Skills to Management Level. Chapter 4 Conclusion. Chapter 5. Management Mindset. Confronting Waste. Providing a Challenging Environment is Essential. Setting Challenging Goals. Blending Kaizen and a Management Mindset. Chapter 5 Conclusion. Chapter 6. How to Assess Shop Floor Morale. Morale. Enthusiastically Greeting the Day. Greeting Visitors. Moving in the Morning. Morale and Physical Workplace Conditions.Entrances. Ancillary Displays. Parking Lots. Introduction to the Site. Welcome Signs. Department Boards. House Keeping of Business.Raise Your Voice to Raise Morale. The Elephant in Chains. Yaruzo Call. Chapter 6 Conclusion. Chapter 7. Identifying & Removing Waste. Defining Waste. Removing Waste Once Identified. Implementing the 5S’s.Maintaining 5S. Wastes of Stagnation and Motion. How Can We Identify Stagnation Waste? The Store and the Fridge. Give Your Materials the 3F. Using Kanban to Eliminate Stagnation Waste. Chapter 7 Conclusion. Chapter 8. Using Production Boards for Time Management. Daily Challenges of a Manager. Ensuring a Smooth Start to Each Day.Management’s Daily Routine. To Prepare, You Must Have Daily Data. Everyone Can Contribute to Tracking Data. Visualizing the Data. Visualizing Production Management. Transitioning from Daily to Hourly Management. Hourly Production Example – Nabeya. Leveling Your Production. Management by Time Units. Production Management Boards vs Electronic Scoreboards. Update the Board by Hand. Using Visual Management Boards to Reduce Overtime. Eliminating the Waste of Stagnation by Applying Time Management. Putting Production Boards into Action – Tanaka Foods.Reducing Production Breakdowns. Equipment Maintenance. An Example of Daily Maintenance in Practice.Material Checking.The First-In, First-Out (FIFO) Method.Having the Right Materials. Chapter 8 Conclusion. Chapter 9. Waste Elimination in Practice. A Flow Mentality. Deeper Examination of the Waste of Motion. Every Motion Matters. Removing Motion Waste in Administrative Tasks. Flexible Workers and the Waste of Space. Addressing Transportation Waste Within Your Facility. Turn Your Transportation into a Milk Run. Chapter 9 Conclusion. Chapter 10. The Kaizen Pyramid. Top-Down or Bottom-Up? So which approach is better? The Kaizen Pyramid. The AIDMA Law. Building Your Kaizen Pyramid. Your Kaizen Community. Increasing the Number of Kaizen Trainers. True Kaizen for Everyone. Kaizen Has No Boundaries. Chapter 10 Conclusion. Conclusion. About the Authors. List of Photos. List of Figures. References. Index.

About the Author :
Collin McLoughlin Collin has lead over 40 Kaizen Study Missions to Japan to benchmark and mentor leading organizational leadership. He is recognized for designing, coaching, and advising some of the most influential businesses in the world, including Carl Zeiss, Seattle Children’s Hospital, Mars, Harvard Medical, Siemens, Heinz, and Dole just to name a few. Collin has championed total organizational change across 12 different industries including healthcare. His knowledge of 21stCentury Kaizen has allowed him to author over 800 different books, training materials, workshop packages, and subject-based lesson videos to help organizations succeed at creating sustainable improvement systems. Toshihiko Miura Miura has helped organizations around the world achieve Kaizen transformations regardless of their industry. His Kaizen training is especially unique and invaluable as he first focuses on developing morale and the engagement level of each worker. After he confirms there is a true commitment toward Kaizen from every individual within an organization, he then guides companies through meaningful transformation. He has learned the true meaning of Kaizen from Sensei Hitoshi Yamada, who is a direct student of Taiichi Ohno. He has worked with Yamada’s Personal Education Center (PEC) to spread this knowledge around Japan and has been a contributor to many of their publications.