Kaizen management system. Kaizen is a new management paradigm. The Ultimate Goal of Kaizen Strategies

Kaizen

Kaizen, kaizen (jap. 改善 kaizen, romaji Kaizen; there is an incorrect version of "kaizen") is a Japanese philosophy or practice that focuses on the continuous improvement of manufacturing, development, supporting business and management processes, and all aspects of life.

"Kaizen" in business is continuous improvement, from production to top management, from the director to the ordinary worker. By improving standardized activities and processes, the goal of kaizen is lossless production (see Lean Manufacturing).

The kaizen philosophy was first applied to a number of Japanese companies (including Toyota) during the recovery period after World War II, and has since spread around the world. The term "kaizen" became widely known thanks to Masaaki Imai's book of the same name (1986, Kaizen: The Key to Japan's Competitive Success).

Since 1986, when the book "Kaizen: The Key to Japan's Competitive Success" was published, the term "kaizen" has been adopted as one of the key concepts of management. In 1993, he entered the new edition of the New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, which defines kaizen as the continuous improvement of work methods, personal effectiveness, and so on, that is, as a business philosophy.

In Japanese, the word "kaizen" means "continuous improvement". Based on this strategy, everyone is involved in the improvement process - from managers to workers, and its implementation requires relatively small material costs. The philosophy of kaizen suggests that our life as a whole (work, public and private) should be focused on continuous improvement.

Kaizen principles

Focus on customers - for a company using kaizen, it is most important that their products (services) satisfy the needs of customers.
Continuous change is a principle that characterizes the very essence of kaizen, that is, continuous small changes in all areas of the organization - supply, production, marketing, personal relationships, and so on.
Open recognition of problems - all problems are openly brought up for discussion. (Where there are no problems, improvement is impossible)
Promotion of openness - a small degree of isolation (especially in comparison with Western companies) between departments and workplaces.
Creation of work teams - each employee becomes a member of the work team and the corresponding quality circle (a new employee for the organization is also a member of the first-year club).
Project management with cross-functional teams - no team will work effectively if it operates only in one functional group. Rotation inherent in Japanese management is closely related to this principle.
The formation of "supporting relationships" - for the organization are important not only and not so much financial results, how much involvement of employees in its activities and good relations between employees, since this will inevitably (albeit not in this reporting period) lead the organization to high results.
horizontal development. ( Personal experience should be shared with the entire company)
The development of self-discipline is the ability to control oneself and respect both oneself and other employees and the organization as a whole.
Self improvement. (Teach yourself to identify issues that are your own responsibility, as opposed to those for which others are responsible, and start by solving your own problems)
Informing each employee - all personnel must be fully informed about their company.
Delegation of authority to each employee - the transfer of a certain amount of authority to each employee. This becomes possible due to training in many specialties, possession of broad skills and abilities, etc.
To manage means to start with planning and compare the plan with the result.
Analysis of what is happening in the enterprise and action based on facts. (Make conclusions based on reliable data)
Elimination of the underlying cause and prevention of recurrence. (Do not confuse the cause of the problem with its manifestations).
Building quality into the process as early as possible. (Quality must be built into the process. Verification does not create quality)
Standardization. (Methods are needed to consolidate the success achieved)

Kaizen in software development

In the late 2000s, kaizen began to gain popularity in the development industry. software. In particular, one of the creators of the Scrum methodology, Jeff Sutherland ( English) considers kaizen as the process of eliminating interference (eng. impediments, by the team (and not by one Scrum Master). At the retrospective meeting, the most serious obstacle is identified, and the task to eliminate it is transferred to the next sprint reserve. sprint backlog) along with other stories (eng. user stories), i.e. together with labor estimates and acceptance tests.

Notes

Literature

Masaaki Imai Gemba kaizen. Pathway to Reduce Costs and Improve Quality = Gemba Kaizen: A Commonsense, Low-Cost Approach to Management. - M .: "Alpina Publisher", 2010. - S. 344. - ISBN 978-5-9614-1347-2
Masaaki Imai Kaizen. Key to the success of Japanese companies = Kaizen: The Key to Japan's Competitive Success. - M .: Alpina Publisher, 2011. - S. 280. - ISBN 978-5-9614-1618-3
Masaaki Imai Japanese miracle / M. Imai // Own business. - 2007. - No. 1. - S. 13-17.
Kaoru, I. Japanese methods of quality management / I. Kaoru. - M.: Economics, 1988. - 215 p.
P. Wellington Kaizen strategies for successful sales = Kaizen Strategies for Customer Care. - St. Petersburg. : Peter, 2004. - S. 272. - ISBN 5-94723-164-6
Colenso, M. Kaizen strategy for successful organizational change / M. Colenso. - M.: INFRA-M, 2002. - 175 p.
Kulikov, G.V. Japanese management and the theory of international competitiveness. - M.:: Economics, 2000. - S. 247. - ISBN ISBN 5-282-01982-5
Melnikova, E. V. Improvements in the style of kaizen / E. V. Melnikova // Methods of quality management. - 2007. - No. 3. - S. 8-11.
Staff motivation. Key management factor / ed. Y. Kondo. - N. Novgorod: SMC "Priority", 2002. - 206 p.
I. Oh Japanese Management: Past, Present and Future = Japanese Management: Past, Present and Future. - M.:: Eksmo, 2007. - S. 160. - ISBN ISBN 978-5-699-21789-2
Kaizen for Workers / Productivity Press Development Group. - M. Izd-vo IKSI, 2007. - 152 p.

Links

Kaizen. Japanese miracle. Interview with Masaaki Imai and O. S. Vikhansky

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Synonyms:

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Exist., number of synonyms: 1 relationship (6) ASIS Synonym Dictionary. V.N. Trishin. 2013 ... Synonym dictionary

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(Japanese 改善) is a Japanese philosophy/practice that focuses on continuous improvement processes of production, development, management, as well as all aspects of life.

The term "kaizen" became widely known thanks to the book of the same name by Masaaki Imai "Kaizen. The Key to the Success of Japanese Companies" (1986, Kaizen: The Key to Japan's Competitive Success), which has already gone through several editions in Russian:

I began to profess the philosophy of kaizen - continuous improvement - long before I got acquainted with the term itself, having read Imai's book. In principle, the attitude to life as a process of continuous improvement is characteristic of a large number of people. At the same time, the definition of kaizen allows one to systematize such an attitude to life, to identify new aspects, to compare one's philosophy and practice with Imai's approach.

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Is it necessary to use this term in Russian reality, or, perhaps, try to replace it with something more that meets our ears? Some authors believe that an incomprehensible Japanese term can scare off potential followers, but I believe that the use of the word "kaizen" allows you to save the roots, and facilitates the learning process using original (in the sense translated into English or Russian :)) materials.

Why is kaizen not widely used in Russia? In my opinion, the answer is contained in the words of V.A. Lapidus, said in the preface to Imai's book: “Kaizen is an excellent strategy for honest business and decent people who build success on the basis of partnership and trust. To the rest, please: do not worry about trifles. Unfortunately, in our country, the OTHER make up the majority ...

Why is kaizen able to defeat the dominant management paradigm? Because the world has changed, the external conditions for doing business have changed. Here is what Y.P. Imai writes about this in the preface to the book. Adler: “... it becomes clear that it is not profitable for a business to ... consider employees as an object of exploitation. He can look forward to something more if he makes employees ... his partners ... ". This approach correlates with the understanding that no one knows their work better than the performer. It is naive to think that the manager can "reach out" to all the nuances of the work if the performers do not cooperate with him. Recently, I came across another way of looking at the same problem: to increase efficiency (productivity), use the “ask” approach instead of the outdated (and less effective) “tell”. Involve employees in the improvement process, don't impose it.

In relation to the Japanese experience, they usually talk about "five great systems for creating relationships between a person and an organization" (Yu.P. Adler):

Lifetime employment system
Workplace learning system
Rotation system
Merit system
Reward system

Is there anything in this list that cannot be implemented in domestic business? Perhaps "lifetime employment" will cause the most controversy. I think that the idea should not be taken to extremes. Well, not for life ... but if you build relationships with employees, as with people hired for a long time, then this will allow you to implement kaizen. And there, you see, and lifetime employment will not look strange. For example, my father worked all his working life (30 years) in one research institute! I agree that in Soviet times it was less surprising than it is now.

What other elements of the new paradigm raise questions when first introduced to kaizen? (Yu.P. Adler):

Employees cannot be punished. This is not a blessing at all. This is the latest attempt by management to save their business. Fear of punishment breeds lies, and lies make it impossible to make timely decisions. effective solutions which makes the fate of the business uncertain.
Employees are not ordered. They are consulted, they are helped, explained, they are taught, decisions are made together with them. So you can ensure that employees work with an efficiency close to 100%! This means that they are involved, and there are no barriers for them. As you understand, modern control methods allow you to work with the efficiency of a steam locomotive, which is about 3-10% ...

Chapter 1. The concept of kaizen

The central idea of kaizen is that not a day should pass without improvement in the company. Kaizen is not a single technique, it is an umbrella under which most of the “unique to Japan” practices live:

The Japanese understanding of management boils down to the following: meet standards and improve them. The task of management within the framework of maintenance is to ensure that each employee of the company is able to follow the standard working procedure. If employees cannot follow the standard procedure, management must either educate them or revise and amend the standard so that it is possible to act in accordance with it. The higher the level of management, the more time it devotes to improvement:

The starting point for improvement is recognizing that there is a problem. Complacency and complacency are the sworn enemies of kaizen. That's why . By acknowledging that the complaint is related to a problem, you get a chance to improve the quality of the product/service. By brushing off the complaint, you lose this chance.

The most important element of kaizen is. Another important quality management tool is the Deming-Shewhart cycle:

The most important thing in this cycle is. Control without feedback - blindfolded riding ... 🙁

Japanese management involves employees in kaizen through a system of proposals. Each introduced innovation leads to a revision of the standard. But since the new standard is set by the will of the worker, they are proud of it, and willingly comply with it. If a person is forced to follow the standard set by management, he will work with less enthusiasm.

Kaizen breeds process-oriented thinking, because in order to get better results, you must first improve the process. Assessing the performance of employees, Japanese management pays Special attention person's attitude towards work. A process-oriented manager (P-criteria) is interested in: discipline, time management, skill development, participation and involvement, morality, communication:

Chapter 2

Those who follow the kaizen strategy believe that standards are temporary in nature. Another feature of kaizen is the requirement of each and every individual effort. Management has to make a conscious and continuous effort to maintain the spirit of improvement. Kaizen is focused on people, while innovation is focused on technology and money. The most significant failure of Western management is the lack of a philosophy of improvement.

Performance is a metric, not a reality. However, in our search for the “secret” to performance, we act as if the key is how to measure performance. This is reminiscent of the behavior of a person who, having discovered that the room is too cold, looks at the thermometer in search of a reason ... Managers who are result-oriented behave similarly. They look at the final numbers and try to improve them! Only possible path– improvement of the production process. The reality is the efforts made to improve quality and productivity.

American managers at meetings advocate own ideas and only occasionally rely on the opinions of other people. At the core of kaizen is the belief in the human desire for quality and excellence.

Chapter 3 Kaizen and Total Quality Control

Total Quality Control (TQC) focuses on the quality of people. Drop by drop to change a person - this has always been the basic principle of TQC. First you need to teach employees to identify problems, and then master the methods of solving them. The next step is to standardize the results to prevent recurrence of problems. The goal of TQC can also be formulated as follows: to contribute to the realization of the potential of employees to achieve the company's goal, paying special attention to aspects such as policy deployment and voluntary action. TQC stands for a statistical and systematic approach to kaizen and problem solving. Its methodological basis is the statistical application of the concept of quality control, including the use and analysis of statistical data. TQC is a way of thinking that can be expressed as follows: "Let's improve processes!"

In the West, processes are improved by engineers with knowledge. In Japan, a lot of work is being done to bring such knowledge to everyone, including production workers, which increases their ability to solve current problems. Quality control starts with training!

Talk to data.

Quality first, not profit. The main elements to be managed are quality (products, works, services), quantity, deliveries (time), safety, costs, and employee morale.

Control the previous process. The next process is your consumer. Workers from a neighboring workshop are consumers of your products. TQC is consumer-oriented, not producer-oriented. Break barriers between divisions!

The relationship between SDCA cycles (standardize - do - control - act) and PDCA (plan - ...):

Maintenance allows you to stabilize the process (reduce variations), and kaizen - to improve.

Kaizen means that everyone, regardless of rank and position, must openly admit any mistakes.

Where there are no standards, there can be no improvement. Everyone's work should be regulated by standards, and it is the responsibility of the manager to ensure that everyone works in accordance with established standards. This is called discipline.

If management can't get people to follow rules and regulations, they can't do anything.

TQC slogans at PENTEL:

The one who performs the next technological operation is your consumer.
Where there are no problems, improvement is impossible.
Let's spin the PDCA wheel and change the way we approach the work we do.
Chronic problems can teach you more than those that come on suddenly.
Correction and adjustment are problems that arise due to omissions in management. The solution to these problems is no longer management, but manipulation.
Draw conclusions based on reliable data. Do not rely on intuition or inner voice.
It is more important to eliminate deviations than to raise averages.
Classification helps better understanding.
Train yourself to identify issues for which you are personally responsible, as opposed to those for which others are responsible, and start by solving your own problems.
Do not confuse the cause of the problem with its manifestations.
Quality must be built into the process. Verification does not create quality.
Don't forget about standardization. We need methods to consolidate our success.
Personal experience should become the property of the whole company.
Pleasant and meaningful work on the shop floor begins with an active QC circle, which promotes mutual learning and self-development.

Chapter 4 Practice Kaizen

In the West, if the employee who made the proposal cannot guarantee the economic effect of the implementation, the proposal is shelved. The implementation of a kaizen initiative begins if common sense dictates that the initiative will lead to process improvement.

Graham Spurling, Managing Director of Mitsubishi Motors Australia: “I firmly believe that the Japanese worker is no more diligent and dedicated than his Australian counterpart, but he is better directed and better managed. Management in Japanese factories works better, which the worker is used to and appreciates. Better leaders provide better motivation and better training, which increases productivity and product quality.”

Taiichi Ȯno (Toyota) classified costs as follows:

Overproduction
Loss of machine time
Losses associated with the transportation of products
Loss in processing
Inventory losses
Losses associated with unnecessary movements
Losses in the form of defective parts

Taiichi Nono proposed a pull system (instead of a push system) using a kanban (tag). Jidoka (autonomization) - equipment, the design of which involves the automatic stop of the mechanism in the event of a malfunction. Visualized management - cards / scoreboards / other devices that can be used to control the process.

Information is also corrupted. If it is collected, but not used properly, it deteriorates extremely quickly. The problem with many managers is that they consider information to be a source of power and try to control subordinates, disposing of it monopoly.

Management should focus its efforts on improving systems (this is the most important task of kaizen for management).

Abandoning the traditional quality control, which was primarily inspection, Japanese management took up the task of solving this problem during the production process and at the stage of product development. Now the concept of quality control is understood even more broadly, since it involves the inclusion of suppliers and subcontractors in its scope.

As business begins to be defined by increasingly complex parameters, managers find they don't always have the numbers and facts they need to plan, issue orders, and track results. Since the current production activities are carried out by workers who are much closer to these problems, it is often easier for them to make a decision than for a manager ... If the workers do not offer ideas, most likely this is not their problem, but the manager.

The work of quality control circles is only about 10% of TQC work. Workers are satisfied if they are given the opportunity to participate in the work of the QC circle and see how their proposals find practical use. Some people even say that now they are happy to go to work and delve deeper into it.

Engineers don't always know what's going on on the shop floor. Existing guidelines and procedures are often outdated or, from the point of view of workers, not user friendly. Even if the instruction manual is up to date, people who are forced to use it often criticize it. However, after the instructions are rewritten at the initiative of the workers and thus become their own, they are used with pleasure.

Individual kaizen. The starting point is a positive attitude towards changing and improving the way you work. Management does not expect the effect of all proposals. If a manager wants his subordinates to become “thinkers”, striving for continuous improvement in working methods, he must be attentive and sensitive. The proposal system usually goes through three stages:

Submission of ideas, even the simplest ones
Emphasis on learning; in order to submit quality proposals, employees must be able to analyze problems in their environment, and this requires special training
Analysis of the economic effect of submitted proposals

Kenjiro Yamada, Managing Director of the Japan Human Relations Association: “…offers help bridge the gap between a person's ability and the job at hand. Therefore, they indicate that the qualifications of the employee are higher than his job requires.

Chapter 5 Kaizen Management

From a TQC point of view, management has two aspects:

1) maintaining the current level of business performance, which ensures results and profits

2) kaizen management aimed at improving processes and systems.

Kaizen-oriented management and maintenance-oriented management:

Cross-functional management (quality, cost, delivery discipline) and policy deployment are the two most important management concepts that support the TQC strategy.

If the consumer does not receive the products he needs, in the right volume and in a timely manner, the system collapses. This is the meaning of the concept of "discipline of delivery", and the achievement of the goals associated with the discipline requires a huge cross-functional effort. Only after the supply tasks are solved, the company can switch to the factors that affect its competitiveness - quality and costs. Cross-functional goals should be defined before departmental goals are defined.

Toyota: any serious defects in the management system show up in quality; low quality- the result of imperfect management - it is impossible to hide.

Policy deployment (Japanese: hoshin kanri) is the process of implementing an accepted kaizen program at all levels of the company, from top to bottom. An important aspect of policy deployment is prioritization (Pareto). Policy deployment is the relaying of the program outlined by top management to the lower levels of the organizational hierarchy. Conditions for policy deployments:

1) a clear understanding of the role of each manager in achieving the goals set for the company and in improving its activities (kaizen)

2) a clear idea (for managers of different levels) about the control points and control points established to achieve the goals

3) the presence of a stable system in the company current management aimed at maintaining the existing status quo

Control is carried out with the help of: when we find points outside the established limits, we must identify the factors that led to the abnormality. We go from the result to the cause and correct or eliminate the factors that led to the problem.

The control point is managed by data, and the control point is managed through its subordinates. Control point - P-criterion, control point - P-criterion:

Any goal must be accompanied by means to achieve it. All that a manager can do without them is to tell his subordinates: “I hope you do your best” or “You must work hard!” When the manager and his subordinates develop specific means to achieve the goal, he is able to give them clear instructions instead of calls.

By "goal" here we mean the point of control, and by "means" - points of control. The goal is result-oriented, and the means are process-oriented. Policy deployment is revolutionary because it involves the involvement of grassroots managers in setting goals and achieving them. The basis of this is the belief that working together contributes significantly to the desire to achieve the goal. Policy deployment goes from goals (control points, or criteria) to means (control points or P-criteria), from top management to foremen and workers in the shops.

One of the problems of management is that employees are willing to put up with the low standards of their products. The benefit of structuring (deploying) the quality function is to improve communication between sales and marketing people and development and production people.

Chapter 6

In daily activities, the first impulse when faced with difficulties is the desire to hide or ignore, instead of openly acknowledging their existence. This is because “the very existence of a problem is a problem” and no one wants to be blamed for creating it. However, taking the point of view positive thinking, we can turn every issue that needs to be addressed into a valuable opportunity for improvement. Where there is a problem, there is also potential for improvement.

It must be firmly grasped that it is impossible to transfer an unsolved problem to the next stage. In TQC, the term varusa-kagen is very popular, denoting a state of affairs when there seems to be no problem yet, but it can no longer be said that everything is going well. Managers should encourage workers to identify varus-kagen. In Western management, a lot of opportunities are missed simply because neither the worker nor the managers like trouble.

Most managerial problems arise in cross-functional areas. Japanese managers are very sensitive to the demands of other departments. In Western companies, cross-functional problems are perceived and settled as conflicts.

Productivity is the concept of continuous progress, both material and spiritual. To increase productivity, you need to enlist the support of workers, to carry out interaction on the basis of cooperation.

If you do not treat kaizen as a top priority, any attempt to implement it is doomed. The implementation and management of kaizen must be top-down. However, suggestions for improvement should come from the bottom up.

Chapter 7 corporate culture

From the point of view of kaizen, customer satisfaction is determined by such concepts as quality, costs, delivery discipline. Defects are measured in ppm (pieces per million). The director, who operates with interest, has a place in the museum.

Corporate strategy should not be monopolized by a handful of top management. It should become the basis for communication between all individuals in the business structure. The strategy must be linked to their needs and motivate their work. Creating an atmosphere of cooperation and a new corporate culture is an integral part of kaizen.

If management considers profit as the only criterion for performance, it will be reluctant to use P-criteria.

Applications

3- MU- checklist of kaizen actions (muda - actions that consume resources but do not create value, muri - overload, working with stress, mura - deviation from the process): human resources, technology, method, time, equipment, fixtures and tools, materials, production volume, stocks, place, way of thinking.

5- S- streamline, put in order, clean up, personal cleanliness, discipline.

5- W + 1- H Who, what, where, when, why, how.

5- M– operator, equipment, material, working method, measurement.

Kaizen tools: Pareto charts, cause and effect diagrams, histograms, control charts, scatter plots, graphs, checklists.

I have already written about the importance of definitions. Here is what Robin Williams says about it: “If you can name something, you are aware of it. You gain power over it. You own it. You have it under control."

There are four prefaces in Imai's book... J

In Robin Stewart-Kotze's book Performance. Secrets of effective behavior»

One of the 14 Deming principles.

Is it possible to achieve excellence in work or personal self-development? This is a difficult question and the answers to it are sometimes very categorical. Skeptics say that the ideal is an impossible dream that is nice to think about, but impossible to realize. But those who know what the philosophy of kaizen is, can confidently answer the achievement of the ideal is possible, you just need to learn how to achieve the goal by paying attention to even the smallest details.

Who created this philosophy and why?

For the first time, the kaizen method was applied in the post-war period (World War II) in several companies in Japan, among which the most a prime example the success of this philosophy has become Toyota. By applying all its rules without exception, enterprises were not only able to go through the recovery period very quickly, but also reached a higher level in terms of organization of work, provision of services and the level of the overall income of the company.

The term kaizen itself (you can also use a variant of kaizen) received and secured its name after the founder of the Cambridge Corporation and KAIZEN Institute Consulting Group, lean guru Masaaki Imai, published the book “Kaizen: the key to the success of Japanese companies” in 1986.

The origin of the term kaizen originates from the combination of two words. Kai means change, change, Zen means for the better, and together in Japanese it means continuous development (constant improvement). the main objective of this philosophy is the transition to lean production and the continuous improvement of all enterprise processes from the elimination of minor problems to a complete change in the approach to management and increase in efficiency.

5S, meaning and working principle

Kaizen has not only a clear definition and message, but also an impeccable guide to action. It includes several stages aimed at continuous improvement of the entire work of the company and is called 5S or 5 why. Their meaning (applicable in general and individual work, personal life):

Seiri (sorting, neatness)

Job:

To be successful and achieve results in your work, the first thing you need to do is change the approach to your work. Make a list of what the person does on this moment that he wants to change to improve the effectiveness of his work. Delete unnecessary actions from the list. Learn to do only their job, delegating responsibilities that are not included in his circle labor activity experts on these issues.

Personal life:

In this case, you also need to use a sheet and a pen to make a list listing everything that helps and hinders a person in achieving his goals. Then carefully study and see the problem, delete unnecessary and slowing down the process of action from life.

Seiton (rational ordering)

Job:

The second step is to separate the important things from the unimportant ones. Prioritize the list and do urgent things at the most productive time for the employee.

Personal life:

Here you also need a list in which you should take into account all the useful things that have already been and continue to be used to achieve desires. Then you should add a list of new actions that contribute to faster and better execution of the plan.

Seiso (cleaning, keeping clean)

Job:

Never leave the desktop after completion labor day in a mess. All things should be put away in their places, and the extra ones should be thrown away. It is also important to start a diary, where every day it will be possible to sum up the results of today's work, taking into account everything done and what needs to be done next time. Making corrections and notes. After that, do not remember about work until another working day.

Personal life:

To achieve what you want, you need to remove everything that can distract and negatively affect the achievement of the goal. Putting things in order in the house and in personal affairs is a prerequisite for success in any endeavors. At this stage, everything needs to find its place and get rid of the rubbish that hinders progress.

Seiketsu (systematization and standardization of work)

Job:

4S is a system designed to support all previous stages. A person must learn to carry out all the above points always, without missing anything and not forgetting about them, only then a positive result is possible.

Personal life:

To better consolidate the first 3S, you need to create a to-do list and follow it clearly, daily.

Shitsuke(discipline, continuous improvement)

This action appeared in the system later than the others and became the final element.

Job:

After passing 4S, the employee develops a stable habit, which he can improve in the process of work. The main thing is discipline and strict adherence to all the rules of kaizen. Failure to fulfill even one point means a return to inefficient production, hindering progress in work.

Personal life:

At stage 5S, a person already has a well-defined strategy for achieving success in his endeavors. Now he must consolidate this knowledge, be able to cut off unnecessary actions and introduce new steps that allow him to improve and achieve what he wants faster.

This list is summary Eastern philosophy and highlights the key rules. Kaizen at work will not bring a positive result if all employees, from the manager to the simple worker, do not adhere to it. Only full cooperation and a clear understanding of the 5S system can bring the necessary results.

By introducing kaizen into work as a permanent system, an enterprise can increase its income and increase the level of labor without spending extraneous resources (both physical and material).

For Japanese philosophy, every mistake is just an opportunity for growth. They do not have a division into higher and lower, each employee is equal and does his job. Their goal is lean manufacturing, and to achieve it, they use internal potential, solving errors from small to large, rather than making global costly changes (often unprofitable) all at once.

The 1 minute principle (as a way to implement kaizen in life)

People do not always have the strength and will to achieve any global change. Often, even if a person begins to achieve with the maximum expenditure of his own resources, then after some time the desire and motivation completely disappear and the goal again remains incomplete.

Example. Wishing to explore foreign language, the girl initially begins to force herself to study for 2 hours every day, after some time, due to such a pace (difficult for a beginner), the desire to learn disappears altogether and because of this, a steady rejection of further learning can even develop.

In order for the kaizen philosophy to work in business, Japanese managers reinforce it with practical tools for optimizing jobs, quality control, submitting rationalization proposals, careful use of resources, etc.

The Japanese economic miracle is an unprecedented growth of the Japanese economy from the mid-1950s until the 1973 oil crisis - about 10% per year. Japan, previously known in the world as a manufacturer of low-quality junk products, turned its image upside down and became a competitor to leading American corporations.

The Japanese attribute the rise of their economy to the use of kaizen as a way of thinking and approach to management. It is interesting that the Americans themselves brought the ideas of improving the quality of products to Japan.

Kaizen: definition, origin and history

In 1946, America sent its best engineers to lecture on quality and share their experience with Japanese industrialists. In 1950, lectures in Japan were delivered by W. Edwards Deming, the founder of the modern quality movement. The Japanese implemented his ideas so effectively that after 20-30 years, American delegations came to learn from the Japanese experience.

William Edwards Deming is an American scientist, developer of statistical quality control methods, management and quality management consultant. Co-inventor of the Shewhart-Deming Cycle (PDCA). It is directly related to the revival of the Japanese economy.

The term "kaizen" as a direction of management became widely known in 1986, after the publication Masaaki Imai "Kaizen: the key to the success of Japanese companies." Then the whole world learned what kaizen is and that it is to him that Japan owes its success.

Kaizen management approaches differ sharply from the methods of management adopted in the West. In Japan, people and the production process are of particular importance, while in the West, company management focuses on the product and the result. Consider the basic principles of kaizen.

Consumers

The most important link in the production chain, and all the efforts of the company are aimed at ensuring that he receives a quality product at a low price. It is important to anticipate market demands and adapt production to changing needs. Feedback with the consumer is one of the important components of kaizen.

Employees

The most valuable asset of the company, without their support, kaizen is impossible. Relations with personnel at Japanese enterprises are built in such a way that employees themselves are interested in producing high-quality and competitive products. Here the well-being of the enterprise means the well-being of the employee.

The pursuit of excellence is reinforced by five systems for shaping the relationship between a person and an organization:

lifetime employment system
workplace learning system
rotation system
merit system
reward system.

Management

Kaizen prefers leadership as opposed to Western formal bosses. Japanese managers deserve authority not with a sign on the office door, but with their knowledge, experience, decisions taken, personal example. They are open to subordinates, spend a lot of time in production, freely communicate with employees of any level.

Without the support of top management, it is impossible to deploy kaizen in a company: improvement goals are set at the top level and deployed from top to bottom. The implementation of the plans outlined requires a decision and investment. The higher the manager in the hierarchy, the more improvement actions are expected from him.

Orientation to the process, not to the result

Kaizen is based on process thinking, because Improving processes leads to better results. In Japan, the efforts of employees to optimize the work process are valued, even if this does not bring direct savings to the company.

In the West, employees are focused on getting results at any cost. Any rationalization proposal is considered from the standpoint of making a profit in the next quarter.

Gradual development plus innovation

Western companies prefer leaps and bounds through innovation without worrying about minor improvements. The Japanese combine kaizen and innovation and achieve long-term growth.

Building quality into the process

Quality - important element kaizen. The Japanese realized that checking finished products for defects is a waste of time and money, because. does not improve quality. Therefore, they began to build quality into all stages of production, from product development and supplier selection to the delivery of goods to consumers.

The next process is the consumer

Any production of goods or services can be decomposed into a chain of processes. In kaizen, each subsequent process is usually considered as an end user. Therefore, the next link in production will never receive defective parts or inaccurate information.

Differences between the Japanese kaizen approach and traditional management in Western companies

	Kaizen	Western style of management
Focus on		Result
Development	Gradual, emerging over time, sometimes plus innovation	Spasmodic, only through innovation
Resources	Lean Resource Management	Irrational use of resources - as long as there is a profit, there is no point in optimizing costs
Relationships in the team	Mutual assistance, support, knowledge sharing	Individualism, competition between individuals and divisions
Management		Boss with power
Favorable environment for application	Slow growth of the economy with a lack of resources	Economic boom, resources in abundance
perspective	Long term	Short term

Kaizen Goals

The Japanese resorted to kaizen and its methods to overcome the post-war devastation. As a result, the country not only recovered from the hostilities, but also turned into the world's leading manufacturer of high-quality competitive products - cars, equipment, electronics. And this is in the absence of resources, a small territory and relative closeness from the world. This is a side effect of kaizen.

The main goal of kaizen management is customer satisfaction.

To achieve this, top management sets clear priorities for product quality, costs, and delivery discipline, and deploys them from top to bottom throughout the enterprise.

In addition to customer satisfaction, the kaizen methodology allows:

improve product quality and reduce price at the same time
increase company profits
motivate staff and maximize their potential
remain competitive in the market for decades
rational use of limited and expensive resources.

In my opinion, kaizen is also an end in itself - improvement for the sake of improvement, because it is in this that many see the meaning of human existence.

Application of methods in the concept of kaizen

In practice, kaizen is implemented through practical tools and methodologies. Let's consider some of them.

Total Quality Management (TQM - Total Quality Management)

The philosophy of management, which consists in improving the quality of products, reducing costs, satisfying consumers and employees of the company. The most important and large-scale kaizen tool.

Just-in-time production system ()

Manufacturing method developed by Toyota Vice President Taiichi Ohno in 1954 and used in production system companies.

Its essence is that the parts necessary for production are fed to the assembly line in strictly certain period and in the right amount. Finished products It is produced in small batches and is not stored, but immediately shipped to consumers.

In this way, the company moved away from maintaining warehouses, which was impossible in conditions of limited expensive resources and territory, and also increased the quality and speed of assembly, completely optimizing the production process.

(TPM - Total Productive Maintenance)

TRM is the care of each employee about the entrusted equipment and workplace. Care of the machine for a long time keeps its working capacity, allows to foresee possible breakages. The actions of workers are supported by the development of standards for the operation of equipment, organization and order in the workplace, identifying problems, and minor repairs.

Proposal system

The Japanese adopted the practice of submitting proposals for improving production from the United States. There are two types of methodology - individual offers and suggestions from small groups. The system of proposals supports kaizen, forms a sense of involvement of workers in the fate of the company.

The Japanese leadership strongly supports the proposals of employees and issues awards and thanks for the initiative. The record number of proposals submitted to one company by one person in a year was 16,821.

Small group work

Right on the shop floor, groups of 6-10 workers are looking for ways to improve the quality of processes and products, reduce downtime and reduce material consumption. For the first time such voluntary associations appeared in 1962 as study groups that studied the theory of quality control and began to apply what they learned in their workplaces.

The most common small groups are quality control circles, QC circles. The area of responsibility of QC circles is usually limited to the workplace - reducing resource costs, improving labor safety and increasing productivity. QC circles use seven statistical tools to analyze problems and solve them: Pareto charts, cause and effect diagrams, histograms, control charts, scatter plots, graphs, and checklists.

At the time of writing the book on kaizen (1986), 170,000 KK circles were officially registered in Japan, and about the same number operated unofficially.

Members of QC circles get satisfaction from influencing the work process and participating in improvement, the element of creativity and initiative has a positive effect on corporate culture.

In the photo - the work of QC circles at the Toyota plant in Indonesia then and now

Another tool created at Toyota as part of the just-in-time methodology. Kanban are tags that are attached to a container of manufacturing parts. The container moves along the assembly line and the workers select the necessary parts. When all parts are selected, the empty container is returned for the next batch, and the tag serves as an application form. In essence, this is a communication system between production and warehouse workers, which minimizes the storage of parts in production.

Zero defects (ZD - zero defects)

The Zero Defect Program was developed by American Philip Crosby. Its essence is that no level of defects in production is acceptable. The number of defects must be zero.

This goal is realized in the following way:

Prevent defects, not find and fix them
efforts should be made to reduce the number of defects
the consumer deserves a defect-free product, and it is the manufacturer's responsibility to provide it
management should clearly set goals for improving product quality
quality is determined not only in the production process, but also by the activities of non-production personnel
quality assurance should be subject to financial analysis.

Advantages and disadvantages of Kaizen

The benefits of kaizen are obvious:

better product quality at lower costs
consumer satisfaction
rational use of resources and equipment
atmosphere of mutual assistance and cooperation
employee motivation.

But why then do not all companies arm themselves with kaizen techniques? Kaizen is not so easy to implement, for this you need to rebuild not only the production process, but also thinking.

Here are some of the challenges companies face on their journey to excellence:

process improvement requires an investment that will not pay off immediately
it takes a long time to see the effect - 3-5 years
Kaizen is not suitable for a rapidly developing economy
very difficult to involve employees at all levels
interfere human factors- laziness, greed, dishonesty
in Western companies there are no practices of lifetime employment, horizontal rotation, combination of several functions
employees' suggestions are not taken seriously.

Kaizen in practice

The philosophy of kaizen is supported by many Japanese corporations - Toyota, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Philips. As an example of a kaizen follower, I would like to give Western company— Nestlé S.A.

Nestle

Swiss multinational food and beverage manufacturer. Its product line includes baby food, medical nutrition, bottled water, breakfast cereals, coffee and tea, sweets, frozen food, snacks and pet food.

The corporation has been on the Fortune 500 list for 22 years, in 2016 it ranked 66th with a profit of $ 9,423 million. The previous year it was ranked 70th, and a year earlier - 72nd.

Lean production and zero waste are Nestlé's primary mission. Kaizen ideas are clearly visible in the Nestlé Corporate Principles and Nestlé Quality Policy.

The top management of the company undertakes to strive for the highest quality and safety of products in the following ways:

Cultivating a culture of quality to develop, manufacture and deliver zero-defect products and services that our customers trust.
Compliance with current legislation and international requirements.
Continuous improvement of the quality management system to ensure product safety, prevent quality incidents and eliminate defects.
Encouragement of participation and distribution of responsibility for quality among employees and partners through standards, education, training and mentoring, control and effective communications.

To create value and earn consumer trust, Nestlé implements 4 principles:

Nestlé Waters uses different methods to determine where to open a new factory. Techniques such as Value Stream Mapping illustrate the flow of materials and information needed to deliver the final product to the consumer. Thus, new factories are opened where they will initially work most efficiently.

Total Quality Management: definition and essence

Total Quality Management - total quality management, a term closely related to kaizen. Speaking about what Total Quality Management is, Masaaki Imai calls it “the main highway leading to kaizen” and often equates these concepts.

TQM is kaizen implemented through a systematic approach and statistical methods. They translate the company's problems into concrete numbers.

TQM is an activity aimed at improving the quality: they involve top and middle management, foremen and workers, employees of non-production divisions. These activities concern marketing research, design and development of new products, production, sales, relationships with suppliers and consumers, staff training, etc.

In Japan TQM implementation starts with people- when the employees of the organization are imbued with the desire for quality and have mastered kaizen thinking, then you can begin to improve the production and management processes.

While in the West there are special positions or departments for quality control, in Japan quality care is everyone's business. Employees at all levels are constantly trained to ensure that quality control is effective. In addition, TQM is supported at the state level.

Principles of TQM

One of the founders of the TQM movement, Professor Kaoru Ishikawa, formed six features of total quality management in Japan:

TQM is applied throughout the company with the participation of all employees.
The importance of education and training.
The work of the QC circles.
Regular TQM audits by senior management or external organizations.
Use of statistical methods.
State support for TQM.

The Total Quality Management methodology contrasts sharply with traditional quality management approaches:

Principles of Traditional Quality Management	Principles of TQM
Customer Satisfaction	Satisfaction of the consumer, employees and society as a whole
Actions to improve product quality	Actions to improve the quality of processes and systems
Corrective impact on quality	Preventive effect on quality
Training in quality management only for employees of the quality control department	Quality management training for all employees
Only the quality control department is responsible for quality	All employees are responsible for quality
Solving only urgent quality problems, "plugging holes"	Finding and solving chronic problems
Dedicated quality problem solving	Interaction of employees in solving quality problems

W. Edwards Deming was directly involved in the formation of the TQM concept. He formulated an algorithm of actions for the implementation of the TQM concept of 14 points:

Maintain consistent product and service improvement goals.
Embrace a new philosophy.
Eliminate dependence on inspections to achieve quality.
Stop choosing partners solely on price. Instead, reduce total cost by partnering with a single supplier.
Continuously and permanently improve every process of planning, production and service.
Introduce on-the-job training.
Encourage leadership.
Get rid of fears.
Break down barriers between staff in different functional areas.
Eliminate slogans, appeals and targets for work force.
Eliminate numerical quotas for workforce and numerical targets for managers.
Remove the barriers that keep people from taking pride in workmanship and eliminate the annual rating or merit system.
Organize a vigorous program of learning and self-improvement for all.
Involve everyone in the company in the work of transformation.

Advantages and disadvantages of TQM

The most obvious benefit of TQM is the improvement in product quality. But since total quality management affects all processes in the enterprise, the effect of its application is much wider than a product without defects.

Here are some of the benefits you can get with TQM:

product quality improvement
customer satisfaction and loyalty
lower production costs
company profit growth
company's adaptability to sudden changes in the environment
employee motivation through involvement in the company's activities
strengthening corporate culture.

Despite the positive effect, the implementation of TQM requires significant costs and efforts. Critics of the concept call such shortcomings:

large financial investments in the initial stages associated with staff training and hiring quality consultants
time spent on establishing communication processes and forming a new corporate culture
formalization of the production process due to the introduction of new standards, rules
difficulties in ensuring the right level of staff involvement
no effect in the short term
lack of adaptation of the approach to the service sector, small businesses, non-profit sector.

TQM in practice

As an example of Total Quality Management, I would like to cite an Indian company, the flagship company of the CK Birla Group. In 2015, she received the Deming Award, an honorary award in the field of quality management.

NEI manufactures bearings under the brand name NBC Bearings for the automotive and railroad industries. Production capacity NEI's four factories are designed to produce thousands of bearing sizes. It is the only bearing manufacturer in India that has its own R&D center. The company's products are exported to 21 countries, including the United States, Germany, Japan and Australia, and are used in the products of Honda, Suzuki, Daimler brands.

NEI puts the interests of consumers first and always adapts to changing market needs. In production and supply, the company adheres to the concept of "Zero Defects". Currently the defect rate is 100 ppm, over the next three years NEI plans to reduce it to 50 ppm, and in the future to fix it below 10 ppm.

Company Credo
Be the best you can be
Be the best that you can be.

Kaizen in IT

Kaizen philosophy is not only suitable for manufacturing enterprises. The principles of kaizen formed the basis of modern agile development methodologies and are actively used by teams around the world.

Scrum.

The creators were inspired by the practices of Japanese enterprises and many of the principles of kaizen are the basis of their methodology: the PDCA cycle, constant analysis of activities, elimination of interference, mutual support and openness of information.

Lean.

Development is a method adapted to IT lean manufacturing, one of the kaizen tools. Eliminating downtime and waste is just as important in a developer environment as it is in manufacturing. Lean is based on continuous learning, loss avoidance, reasonable acceptance solutions fast delivery product to the customer, team motivation, principles of frugality.

Kanban.

is another methodology that has migrated from the workshops to the developers' offices. Initially, this is one of the tools of the just-in-time concept.

Modern kanban is based on the principles:

development starts with existing methods which change for the better in the process
the team agrees in advance to make important changes
initiative is encouraged
Roles and responsibilities within the team are clearly defined. There is also quite a lot in common with the ideas of kaizen.

Remember and you will understand where everyone's legs grow from modern methods creating a quality product.

Similarly, the principles of TQM have been applied
in software development: quality is built into the process creating a software product at the stage of collecting customer requirements.

Applications

There are many project management services that allow you to control the work of production, IT teams and digital agencies that practice kaizen or Total quality management. And there is Worksection.

Saas-service allows you to establish such transparent communication between management and the team, between the company's client and the contractor, up to the hired freelancer, that quality control and continuous product improvement are inevitable.