The gemba walk is a physical visit to the front line of operations to identify process improvements, rooted in lean manufacturing principles. The term 'gemba' means 'the real place' in Japanese, emphasizing the importance of observing work where it happens. Benefits of gemba walks include increased employee engagement, higher morale, better communication, and improved customer satisfaction, guided by principles such as going to see, asking why, and showing respect.

1. What is the Gemba Walk?
• It involves physically visiting the
front line where team members
work to get a better sense of how
things are running and what
improvements might be possible.
• The Gemba walk is an effective tool for
identifying and promoting continuous
process improvement. It is a core
component of the lean manufacturing
philosophy.

2. What is the origin of the Gemba Walk?
The word “Gemba,” sometimes written with
an “n” as “Genba,” comes from the
Japanese word meaning “the real place” or
“the place where value is created.” The
idea behind a Gemba Walk is to go to the
actual place where the work is done, such
as the production floor, to understand what
goes on.

3. Benefits of Gemba Walk
Some of the benefits of the Gemba walk include:
•Increased employee engagement
•Higher Morale of Employees
•Better communication and collaboration between teams
•Faster problem-solving
•Decision-making
•higher levels of customer satisfaction and loyalty.

4. Rules of Gemba-Kaizen?
The three rules of Gemba Kaizen are:
 Go and see
 Ask why
 Show respect.
These three rules are critical in the Gemba Kaizen approach to
continuous improvement as they promote effective
communication and mutual respect between managers and
employees. These rules help managers understand the situation
and adjust management practices accordingly.

5. What are five principles of Gemba-Kaizen?
These principles are part of the 5S methodology, a fundamental practice in
continuous improvement processes. The 5S principles are designed to reduce
waste, improve safety, and increase efficiency by organizing the work
environment in a structured and consistent way.
Sort
Set in order
Shine
Standardize
Sustain

6. How to do a Gemba Walk:
While implementing a Gemba Walk may
vary from company to company, depending
on the type of work product produced, the
following steps provide a general outline of
the process from start to finish.
Make a plan
Prepare the
team
Focus on
the process

7. Ask who, what, when, where, and why.
If you prepared questions during the
planning phase, the walk is the time to
ask them. 5 whys analysis and the five
Ws—who, what, when, where, and why—
are great starting points. For example,
you might ask:

8. How often should you do
Gemba Walks?
How often you should do a Gemba Walk
depends on many factors, including
industry, work product, company size,
goals and objectives, and more.
In a production setting, some supervisors
may Gemba Walk daily to different parts
of the shop floor to keep constant tabs on
how things are working.