This document discusses lean methodology, including its origins and philosophy. It describes lean as focusing on improving processes for customers and employees through continuous improvement, problem solving and employee involvement. The document outlines four main approaches to lean: Hoshin (strategic planning), Kaizen (continuous improvement), Kaikaku (breakthrough improvement), and Six Sigma (variability reduction). It also discusses lean tools and how they should be adapted to an organization's specific needs.

1. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
My vision of
lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches
and tools
Eponine Pauchard, eng., LBC
february 2012
http://eponine-pauchard.com

2. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
Improvment in our daily life
Period / event Method Indicator
490 B.C.. : Marathon
battle victory
Running messenger 42 km in 3 h
1285 to 1390 : Attack
on rival lord (Europe)
Signal towers (fire /
smoke)
80 km in 1h30
1745: Colonies to
mainland
Letter sent by boat 5500 km in 6 weeks
1870 &t 1915: War
front news
Pigeon voyageur 20-25 km/h
1945: 2nd World War Télégraphe, radio,
télévision
Entire world in 24h
2011: « Arab spring »
Internet Entire world in 5 min

3. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
Small history of lean
 1574: Henri III finds out venitians ship builders
could assemble a galley in less than one hour
 1900: in United States and Japan, automotive
industry defines news work methods
 1950: Americans and Japanese develop together
in Japan the basis of the Toyota Production System
 1980: MIT associates the word « lean » and
publicize the method troughtout the world

4. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
Double-edged lean
 When Einstein discovered nuclear fission, he knew
this innovation could have dramatic
consequences.
 Lean methodology can serve to justify massive
lay-off. This is not the philosophy and principles as
they were created.
« Any technology or
methodology can be diverted
to do the wrong thing ».

5. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
What is lean?
 The best practices known to date
 A model and tools in constant evolution
 More concretely, the 3 major axes of the lean are:
 A mentality based on the value of individuals and their
actions
 A management model that emphasizes everyone's initiative
in their daily tasks
 A technical tools kit
Lean is not a definite method that applies as-is in all organizations. Everyone
must look and take what they need at each stage of their journey.
"Lean" and Six Sigma apply to flows of product or information, their cycle
time and their process

6. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
What is lean used for?
Lean is a complete system that creates value
 For customers :
 satisfaction,
 response to needs,
 for employees:
 personal development and skills,
 autonomy,
 For shareholders / company:
 performance benefits,
 sustainability of the organization.

7. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
Practice lean or be lean?
Practice lean Be lean
Objective Cost reduction Improve processes for the benefit of
patients and employees
Leadership Delegate to middle
managers
Senior management, constant
reinforcement with employees and
professionals
Analysis unit Project EnsSet of processes and value
chains
Methodology Reference to the
approach and use of tools
in projects
Approach and tools used by
everyone in everyday life. The focus
is on problem solving
Performance
measure
Complex, manny
indicators
Simple, visual, linked to strategic
objectives
Paradigm Finally « lean » ? Endless…
Analysis of Stéphane Lemire MD, MSc et Sylvain Landry PhD, based on Thedacare model,
Lean Healthcare seminar, Orford, Canada, January 2012

8. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
Decisions
Decisions
Lean mentality
Head
Management
Supervision
Operations - realisation
Managers
Workers, technicians, professionals
Hierarchical model Lean participatory model
Head
Management
Supervision
Managers
Support
Directive
The head management decides, it
knows what is "good", the teams must
execute the orders, they are
attributable results.
Authority and imputablity are shared
among stakeholders. The head
management supports the operational
teams.
Operations - realisation
Workers, technicians, professionals

9. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
4 approaches to become lean
Hoshin
(strategic
planning)
Kaizen
(continuous
improvement)
Kaikaku
(breakthrough
improvement)
Six-Sigma
(variability
reduction)

10. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
Hoshin: strategic planning
 Planning is looking at the future and deciding where to
bring the organization.
 As part of planning, head management identifies
obstacles that are on its path.
 Depending on their size, projects can be initiated.
 The vision of the future is then described in the form
of objectives, which are deployed to each individual in
the organization.
 Everyone must know which objective(s) of the
organization they contribute to
 Objectives must be few and precise

11. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
Kaizen : continuous improvement
 Use the lean approach every day:
 Start of shift meetings,
 performance indicators,
 suggestion systems,
 small improvements made by each
 This is what makes the method live: once
implanted, it is through kaizen that the company
progresses
 Having 100% of your teams dedicated to continuous
improvement brings a lot more results!

12. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
Kaikaku : breakthrough improvement
 To keep the team mobilized and quickly achieve a
result.
 Breakthrough creates a major change in the
organization.
 Also known as "workshop" or "blitz", used for
short-term projects (2 days to 2 weeks).
 This approach is appreciated for its effort /
benefits ratio, but be careful with the tensions it
can create.

13. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
Six Sigma : variability reduction
 Used on more complex projects, for which the
solution is not obvious
 Approach structured over 6 to 18 months, but not
full time
 Provides very good results, taking less efforts than
a blitz on the short term.
 Beware of tiredness and discouragement, must
keep up the pace and follow up with the people
waiting for the results.

14. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
« Lean » approach
 Whether the approach is described in 4, 5 or 8
steps, the principle remains the same:
 Plan, define: what do we want to do and why, what
are our limits?
 Realize: using selected measures and tools.
 Check and improve: have we reached the goal?
What do we miss? Have we had new ideas along the
way?
 To sustain: to share the successes and the
difficulties, to deploy the results more widely.
 The last step of feedback is often forgotten, but is
crucial to keep moving forward.

15. My vision of lean
Origin, philosophy, approaches and tools
© 2012 Eponine Pauchard
« Lean » tools
 The tools are numerous and well described.
 A tool can be used in different approaches.
 A tool should not be applied as it is, it must be adapted
to the needs of the organization.
 Types of tools available:
 Process mapping
 Brainstorming / creativity
 Visual management
 Employee involvement
 Problems solving
 Data analysis (statistics, trends)
 Risk analysis