Kaizen Event Guide

© Operational Excellence Consulting. All rights reserved.
Guide for
Planning &
Conducting
a Kaizen Event

INTRODUCTION
1
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© Operational Excellence Consulting. All rights reserved. 7
Adopting The Necessary Attitude
• Adopt an attitude that supports changing the way things
have always been done
• It is very important that you understand that one purpose
of discovering waste is to take the frustration out of your
work
• Adopt the 10 principles for improvement (see the next
10 slides)

Do not make
excuses – Start by
questioning current
practices.
3
Source: Masaaki Imai

Do not spend
money for
continuous
improvement.
6

Seek the wisdom of
10 people rather
than the knowledge
of one.
9

Value
• Value Added
Any activity that increases the form or function of the product or
service
Something the customer is willing to pay for
• Non-Value Added (Waste or Muda)
Any activity that does not add form or function or is not necessary
No benefit to the client or customer
Things not necessary to run the department

Benefits of Kaizen & Kaizen Events
• Empowers employees, enriches the work experience
and brings out the best in every person
• Promotes personal growth of employees and the
company
• Improves quality, safety, cost structures, delivery,
environments, throughput and customer
service/satisfaction
• Provides guidance from employees, and serves as a
barometer for leadership

Select an Opportunity or a Problem for
Improvement
• Desirable selection criteria for initial projects
Unambiguously measurable
Management enthusiasm
A clear business need
Highly visible process
Fairly easy project
Strong environment for follow-up
Simple process
Stable and repeatable process
Allows contribution by all employees – not a technical exercise
Self-contained process

Setting Goals
• Set a limited number of improvement goals to be
achieved during the event
• Prioritize multiple objectives
• Use S.M.A.R.T. criteria for goal setting:
S=Specific; M=Measurable; A=Achievable; R=Realistic; T=Timely
• Goals should be challenging – requiring real creativity
• Team should be involved in setting improvement targets
• Objectives may not be completely met

Role of Team Leader (con’t)
Prepare daily team-leader meeting with sponsors
Ensure new processes are documented and that employees in
area are trained
Coordinate final presentation
• Post Kaizen
Submit final presentation to sponsors
Coordinate 30-day follow-up activity

Facilities and Logistics
• Work Areas
Notify people of upcoming Kaizen and purpose
Floor/equipment layout – obtain/create a schematic
• Training / Meeting Rooms
Reserve room
Flipcharts, overhead projector, Post-it® notes, etc.
• Food and Refreshments
• Location for Celebration

Preparing the Area, Materials and Resources
• Obtain Materials, Equipment and Supplies
• Prepare the Area (arrange tables; U-shape is best)
• Notify Support Personnel

Pre-Event Communications
• Communication from Leadership should:
Explain to employees what a Kaizen Event is and why it is
needed
Explain how it supports Lean initiatives
Focus on long-term improvement rather than short-term
disruption
Discuss safety and ergonomic concerns
Set expectations for step change, not insignificant incremental
improvement
When people are familiar with the Event prior to its occurrence,
they will be more receptive and productive during the Event

Kaizen Event Rules
1. Be open to change
2. Stay positive
3. Speak out if you
disagree
4. See waste as an
opportunity
5. No blame environment
6. Treat others as you
want to be treated
7. Ask the silly questions,
challenge the givens
8. Creativity before capital
9. Understand the data
and principles
10.Just do it!

Two Weeks Before Event…
Finalize Team Membership
Should be personally invited by the Executive Sponsor/Team Leader
Define Event Schedule
What training modules should be used?
Develop Event agenda
Determine time and place for mid-week reports and final Report Out
Develop Team Charter
Get buy-in from Executive Sponsor
Approval from PMO (to prevent duplication/coordinate lessons learned)
Publish Charter & Agenda to all Event Team Members and PMO
Send out ‘Invitation to Event’ email to each member and Sponsor
Reserve a room for the week and Final Report Out
Reserve overhead projector
Make food arrangements – Lunch and coffee breaks

Day of Event…
Arrive Early – One hour before start of Event
Make final preparations to the room
Setup computer and projector
Tape flipchart paper together for Value Stream Mapping exercises
as-is/current state VSM
to-be/future state VSM
Create Name Tents for participants (if needed), or participants can
write their names on Post-It notes and paste on their shirts/tops
Display Daily Agenda on flipchart paper
Display ‘Issues’, ‘Quick Wins’, ‘Parking Lot’, ‘Barriers’ each on a
separate flipchart paper taped on the wall

Kaizen Event Process
1. Orientation1. Orientation
2. Understand
Current Situation
2. Understand
Current Situation
3. Develop
Future State
Design
3. Develop
Future State
Design
4. Make the
Improvements
4. Make the
Improvements
5. Report &
Celebrate
5. Report &
Celebrate

How to conduct a 5S Kaizen event
1. Set up a team
2. Define 5S Kaizen
charter
3. Decide on event
duration
4. Provide training
5. Conduct pre-event
assessment
6. Take pictures
7. Start physical work for
5S
8. Perform post-event
assessment
9. Document and close
10.Present to management
11.Recognize the team

Orientation
• Welcome and introduce the Kaizen team
• Set expectations – what is the objective?
• Provide focused training, e.g. Kaizen overview, VSM
Limit to half a day maximum
• Identify the Customer – internal/external
• Define the Kaizen charterThis document is a partial preview. Full document download can be found on Flevy:

Code of Conduct
1. Keep an open mind
2. Maintain a positive
attitude
3. Never leave a silent
disagreement
4. Create a blameless
environment
5. Practice mutual respect
6. Every voice counts
7. No dumb questions
8. No magic wands, just
proper training and a
drive to working smarter
9. Be guided by this
thought…‘just do it,
now!’
10.Allow no hand grenades
(no hidden agendas)!

Day 2 –
Understand
current situation

Understand Current Situation
• Take measurements – lead time, cycle time, yield, WIP,
travel distance, no. of staff, etc.
• Identify Value Added (VA), Non-Value Added Required
(NVA-R), and Non-Value Added (NVA)
• Generally creates more questions than answers
Note: NVA-R may be required for regulatory or legal purposes

Identify VA, NVA-R, and NVA
Necessary
to Produce
Output?
Adds Value
to Customer?
Non-Value
Added
Sustaining
Customer
Value Added
Yes
Yes
No
NoYes
Activity
No
Agree Specifications
Manufacturing
VA NVA-R NVA
Contributes
to Business
Effectiveness?
Payroll
Testing
Development Activity
Back-up Database
Changeovers
Audits
Regulatory
Review & Approval
Scrap
Rework
Filing
Copying
Reconciliation

Identify Root Causes
• Cause and Effect Diagrams
• Five Whys Analysis
Manpower
Methods
Machines
(or Equipment)
Measurement
Output
Materials
(or Information)
Environment
Causes Effect

Brainstorm and Analyze
• Kaizen team brainstorming to develop new process
• Post improvement ideas on map or by category
Workflow
Technology
People / Organization
Procedures
• Develop detailed future state map
New workflow
Value Add and Non-Value Add
Cycle times
Identify Kaizen “bursts” (immediate radical change)

Day 4 –
Make the
improvements

Implement the New Process
• Think global / systems optimization
• Maximum impact to process
• Speed of implementation – create small victories
Quick wins
• Cost-benefit analysis

Standardize the Work
Materials &
Information
MeasurementsPeopleMethodsMachines
(equipment)
Feed in materials
& information
Ship to customers
Control Points for Stability
Standard
Sloppy work = defective,
off-standard products

Cross Train to Develop Multi-Skills
• A cross training matrix is
a good visual
management tool to plan
and track progress of
developing the skills of
employees
T = TRAINING C = CERTIFIED M = MASTERThis document is a partial preview. Full document download can be found on Flevy:

Day 5 –
Report &
celebrate

The Final Presentation
• Final Report Out
Before and after pictures (5S)
Team picture for newsletter
Before and after flowchart or value stream map
Quick wins
Next steps action items - timeline with ownership and due dates
Metrics to track success (or failure) of Kaizen
Communications plan (including training plan)

Kaizen Event Post-Work
• Follow up with Event Sponsor/Champion and Event
Leaders:
Ensure implementation plan is being met
Ensure action plan is being executed
Ensure the team is touching base on progress
• Teams should track progress against performance goals
Can be integrated into daily management activities
Meet monthly to assure changes are adhered to

Finally, understand that…
Continuous Improvement
=
Small Incremental Improvement
=
Kaizen
Continues
Every
Day

About
Operational
Excellence Consulting

APPENDICES

Kaizen Summary
Project type: ________________ Area: _________________Team Leader: ______________
Before/current state After/future state
Reasons project chosen:
Tools used on project:
Results:
Next steps:

Kaizen Storyboard
THEME: Concise statement of what this Kaizen is about.
BACKGROUND:
• Note any contextual or background information necessary to
fully understand the issue.
• Indicate how this problem affects the company’s goals or is
related to its values.
ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS:
• List the main problem(s)
• Ask appropriate “why?” questions until you reach the root
cause. A rule-of-thumb: you haven’t reached the root cause
until you’ve asked “why?” at least 5 times!
• List the answers to each why question
TARGET CONDITION:
• Insert a diagram that illustrates how the proposed process will
work, with labels.
• Note or list the countermeasure(s) that will address the root
cause(s) identified.
• Predict the expected improvement in the measure of interest
(specifically and quantitatively)
IMPLEMENTATION PLAN:
• List the actions which must be done in order to realize the
Target Condition, along with the individual responsible for the
action and a due date.
• Add other items, such as cost, that are relevant to the
implementation.
Action Responsibility Deadline
Action 1 D. Smith Oct. 1
Action 2 N. Jones Nov. 5
Action 3 M. Jordan Nov. 28
Etc.
COST: no expenditures required
FOLLOW-UP:
Plan Actual
• Note the plan to measure the
effectiveness of the proposed
change.
• Indicate when it will be
measured, and by whom.
• Leave blank initially
• After follow-up, record
the results of
implementation
• Record the date of actual
follow-up
To: ___________________
By: ___________________
Date: __________________
CURRENT CONDITION:
• Insert a diagram that illustrates how the current process
works.
• Label the diagram so that anyone knowledgeable about the
process can understand.
• Note the major problems
• Include quantified measures of the extent of the problem –
graphical representations are best!

Kaizen title:
Agenda

Kaizen title:
Results
Metric Before After % Improvement
Floor Space
Lead Time
Cycle Time
% Value Added
Yield
Labor Effort
Cost Savings
Others, as relevant

Kaizen title:
Mistake proofing improvements
• Problem • Solution

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