1. Oregon Department of
Environmental Quality
Lean Process Improvement is all about empowering employees to simplify their business processes. Kaizen is a thorough, team oriented approach that brings together a variety of employees from across
the agency to identify ways to enhance their current business processes. DEQ Lean – Kaizen teams discover and address unidentified resource wastes, excessive processing steps, quality-issue rework,
ambiguous intent and miscommunications.
DEQ uses a five day kaizen event which features a powerful set of process improvement tools. DEQ’s Office of Compliance and Enforcement, Laboratory and Environmental Assessment Divison and
Business Systems Development program have already participated in Lean-Kaizen and have implemented quick, cost effective solutions.
How does Lean Process Improvement work?
Lean uses a series of tools that identify process inefficiencies that are common in all businesses. The team maps out the current business process, identifies all issues and determines solutions that have a
high improvement value to the business and can be implemented quickly, with little associated costs. The newly designed system is mapped and implemented.
• Lean will help your program identify who your customers are, what they need, and how to provide services efficiently.
• Lean is simply applying common sense… uncommonly
• Lean is about business process and not about the people within the process
• Lean is improvements before technology
• Lean is a set of interlocking tools and methods that deliver stellar results
• Lean is empowering managers and staff to improve business processes
• Lean identifies the customer, their requirements, and their deliverables
• Lean shifts a workgroup culture to teamwork
• Lean maps out the business processes allowing for full understanding
• Lean clarifies workgroup roles and responsibilities
What can Lean do for my program or project?
• Immediate and effective implementation, completed within 6 months or less
• Improve your process. Lean has a solid track record in both the public and private sector
• Define your customers, their expectations, and how to measure service deliverables
• Redirect resources to other business needs
• Reduce backlogs
• Springboard for continuous improvement
• Measurable results
• Improved relationships and better communications
• Reduce unnecessary products and services
• Improve quality of services and quality control
O r e g o n D E Q L E A N P r o c e s s I m p r o v e m e n t
DEQ’s Executive Management Team has endorsed and supported the Lean-Kaizen
excercises. Director Dick Pedersen, Management Services Division Administrator
Kerri Nelson and BSD Manager Sohng Shin pose during the BSD Lean-Kaizen “re-
port out” where the team presented their findings for process improvement.
DEQ Lean-Kaizen Excercises
The following programs have already taken advantage of Lean-Kaizen process improvements:
Business Systems Development
Office of Compliance and Enforcement
Laboratory and Environmental Assessment Divison
Contact John Reel, MSD for more information on how you can improve your processes,
strengthen internal and external relationships, and energize your program!
LEAN