Lean management’s goal of continuous improvement is reliant upon optimal information flow. In other words, you’ve got to get the right information to the right people at the right time if you want to improve. If you’re managing an operation that keeps much of its information on paper, you might be struggling with the right people/right time/right information intersection.
A major part of the lean management philosophy is the elimination of waste, including excess wait time, excess motion, excess inventory, and overproduction. Paper documents, and the information they contain, can take time to locate (excess wait time). They generally aren’t ready to hand, and require extra physical effort to use (excess motion). And because of paper’s excess wait time and motion, people tend to generate extra copies (overproduction) which then become a storage problem, a security problem, or a sustainability problem.
Document digitization – converting paper documents to digital documents – streamlines the flow of information. Digital documents are organized into a file structure that can be searched with electronic speed. They can be accessed instantly with the touch of a screen or a keyboard. When everyone who needs the information can easily access the centrally-controlled digital documents, there’s no pressure to make multiple copies. With document digitization, there’s no more excess wait time, excess motion, or excess production.
Paper’s inherent properties run counter to the lean management philosophy. Digitization of paper documents supports lean management by reducing waste. Learn more about digitization, and get lean.
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Whether you’re managing life sciences research, product manufacturing, or a professional-services practice, process is at the heart of any successful business operation.
Waste and inefficiency inevitably lead to a downward spiral in profits, as proponents of Lean and Six Sigma have said for years. Some experts cite studies showing:
- Teams spend almost 30% of their time on finding data and doing menial tasks rather than conducting analysis.
- 64% of a sales rep’s counted hours are spent doing things that don’t contribute to the company’s bottom line.
- 50% of companies also spend between $5 to $25 on manually processed invoices.
Improving processes is one of the keys to enhanced earnings. Writing in Industry Week, Jason Piatt outlines 6 criteria that go into a “good” process – one that improves operations, productivity, and throughput. Not surprisingly, RFID fits into each of these six criteria:
- A good process should be simple, to avoid opportunities for error. RFID tags and doorway or handheld RFID readers provide easy and error-free tracking and inventories.
- A good process should be robust, ready to handle unexpected environmental or emergency situations. RFID tags withstand extreme temperatures and can assist in emergency locational tracking of products and personnel.
- A good process should be documented to maintain accuracy and information integrity. RFID systems output periodic reports providing confirmation of other system’s documentation, such as ERP and MISys.
- A good process should be controlled so activities are repetitive and identical. RFID systems can be polled on a set schedule, conducted the same way every time, so areas of improvement can be identified.
- A good process should be communicated among all parties up and down the line. RFID’s data can easily be shared among other systems and reported to stakeholders, adding transparency and accountability to the process.
- A good process is error-proofed, with safeguards for novice-user mistakes. Because an RFID system is simple to use, it protects against the errors typically found in manual inventories and tracking.
Process is not merely a step-by-step series of activities. It is a deliberately designed sequence leading to delivery. A good process is flexible and test-able. It builds on test results to yield continuous improvements. Incorporate RFID into your operational process and move toward a good process.
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Continuous improvement – it’s a principle of Kaizen, or lean management, which encourages constant incremental advancements and uses past performance to suggest changes for future improvements. The coming new year is always a good time to reflect on the previous twelve months and look for new opportunities for improvement. With that in mind, here’s a recap of our informational offerings which we hope will help you achieve your goals for next year.
Flexibility
This year has seen remarkable changes, and one of the key elements to successful change management is flexibility. In February, we discussed how adaptability allowed ancient man to survive in hostile climates, and how it makes it possible for today’s facilities managers to handle the changing spatial needs of businesses and institutions. From telecommuting (August) to staffing fluctuations and workspace repurposing (January), adaptive furnishings are a good fit for agile organizations.
Proactive management
A proactive approach is one of the building blocks of continuous improvement, as well as a cost-effective way to manage change. Innovations in automation (February) help facilities and logistics managers monitor inventories and usage in real time, allowing them to respond to unexpected changes without any loss of throughput. A sound disaster recovery plan (September), including storage systems and inventory records that reduce or prevent loss, is the kind of forward-facing planning that supports business continuity and continuous improvement.
Efficiency
More efficient use of resources, whether it’s space, time, or finances, always results in better productivity – the ultimate goal of continuous improvement. When your facility can reclaim 50% of storage floor space with a mobile storage system or a vertical carousel system (October), that extra space can be utilized for more productive activities. RFID inventory management (August) lets retailers and logistics managers respond to unexpected demand with efficient JIT supply chains (July), with a resulting increase in sales productivity.
As the saying goes, hindsight is 20/20. A clear-sighted look at your organization’s productivity during the past year will show areas where you’re achieving continuous improvement, and areas where you can add flexibility, efficiency, and proactive management to take your processes to a new level in the new year.
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Lean management techniques are most commonly associated with manufacturing and logistics, and not with collections of historic artifacts or centuries-old artworks. Is there a place for the new lean leadership style in institutions that are, by their very nature, conservative?
The answer is an emphatic “Yes,” according to presenters at the Museums and the Web Conference. Lean management relies on bottom-up processes rather than top-down methods, with the goal of maximizing productivity while minimizing waste. It relies on feedback to learn what works, continuously testing and improving processes for best performance. For museums, this means listening to patrons to discover how they use the museum, the museum’s website, and the museum’s other outreach efforts. Senior management solicits input from “boots on the ground” staffers to gain insight into what’s popular with patrons and what patrons tell staffers informally. With this kind of knowledge, directors can re-shape the museum’s programs to fit the demands of the market, without wasting resources on exhibits that the market doesn’t want.
Working in tandem with lean management is the agile workplace. The agile framework builds on incremental successes, and responds to changes in the real world rather than following a plan that may be based on false assumptions. For museums, this means testing a small program, measuring its success, and building on that success with a larger program. It means that new information should be acted on quickly, and staffers should be empowered to self-organize into teams to implement the changes required by the new information. Like lean management, the agile workplace aims for greater efficiencies and therefore lower costs.
Translating lean, agile management into the physical realities of a museum can be a challenge for facilities managers. Bricks and mortar don’t respond quickly to market demands and new knowledge. Nevertheless, there are ways to make interior spaces more responsive, adaptive, and efficient. One is high-density mobile storage. If a museum patron survey demands fewer artworks or artifacts on display, then the surplus has to be stored, but building out new climate-controlled storage is impractical and costly. A mobile storage system increases storage capacity by condensing shelving area, without expanding the existing storage footprint. Shelving compartments can be customized to fit collections of all shapes and sizes, and storage surfaces can be treated with non-interactive coatings to preserve items in their original condition. Storage space is used with maximum efficiency, reflecting the goals of the agile workplace.
Museums may be dealing with the past, but their management style can be thoroughly up to date. Mobile storage fits right in with the needs of the lean and agile workplace.
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“Lean” has been a manufacturing buzz word for decades. Law firms, however, have been slow to adopt this proven management technique, but in the past few years, some savvy practice managers have been introducing the lean philosophy to their law firms. Lisa Pansini, writing in LegalProductivity.com, recommends putting these three lean ideas into practice to improve efficiency, increase output, and reduce the cost of repetitive actions.
- Assume nothing – You may think you know what your clients value, but if you don’t ask them first, you’ll find yourself wasting time on services your clients didn’t ask for or need.
- Track your projects – Productivity increases exponentially when you focus on the task at hand, and a kanban board organized into to-do, in-process, and finished tasks keeps you on target.
- Speak up – The firm’s culture should encourage suggestions that challenge the status quo and lead to continuous improvement.
By their very nature, law firms are conservative and tend to cling to old ways of doing things. But as a wise teacher once said, “Change is slow. Change is inevitable.” Taking small, consistent steps toward lean management will ultimately yield greater productivity.
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