Why are so many organizations choosing to go 'Lean'?  An enterprise that is Lean is competitive, effective, and better-positioned to endure shifting economic trends. Of course, there are no guarantees, but Lean methods eliminate waste in the workplace and add value to the customer, while creating an environment where frustration, fatigue and burn-out do not plague employees. 

What is Lean?  It's not a system that tells people how to do their jobs more effectively.  It is an approach to business process that allows individuals at all levels to play an active part in establishing a streamlined workflow. How things are accomplished in a Lean enterprise is controlled by the workers, which leads to greater job satisfaction and company loyalty. For the end customer, the optimal result is the highest quality products and services possible, with zero defects, delivered on-time at the best price possible.

How does this all happen?  Whether in a manufacturing plant or in an office, Lean thinking  labels any expenditure of time or resource as 'waste' if it does not add value for the end customer.  Thus, 'value' is defined as any action or process that a customer is willing to pay for.

One of the key elements of the Lean method is to examine all process activities in order to identify and categorize them as steps that add customer value (value) and steps that do not (waste). Value added steps are targeted for improvement.  Waste is divided into 'required, but non-value added' waste and 'pure' waste. Defining waste in this manner is critical to identifying and challenging the assumptions and beliefs behind current work processes. The objective is to minimize waste and create a flowing stream of value-add activity (value stream), using ongoing process refinements (kaizens) that fundamentally and continually transform every aspect of the organization.  A Lean enterprise delivers on-time, as expected, with quality and efficiency.

Going Lean isn't simple.  It requires a commitment from everyone at every level, and time to train in the method.  To go Lean requires a change of direction.  To become Lean requires a change in thinking.  To stay Lean and effective requires a coherent Lean strategy across the entire organization - not merely choosing certain areas to make "lean". 

The amazing success of Lean in manufacturing environments over the years has driven it into administrative offices.  Lean Manufacturing and Lean Office methods work across every aspect of any kind of enterprise.  The great news is that, once Lean thinking begins to take hold in an organization, it creates a momentum and enthusiasm that drives it onward and keeps it robust and alive.  The best news is that an organization that is end-to-end Lean is a well-oiled machine — and its customers are highly satisfied. 

You may think that your organization is too small to benefit from Lean training.  Think again. 

What exactly IS lean training? 

It's training that provides any organization, large or small, with a proven method to streamline its core activity through productive changes that positively impact the bottom line. Along the way, Lean gives both manager and individual contributor an equal stake in gaining organizational efficiencies, by alleviating frustrating bottlenecks and redundancies that plague their daily work.  In fact, the smaller the organization, the greater the potential for Lean thinking to transform the entire operation and significantly increase both internal morale and business potential, in a continuously applied manner.

 How is all of this accomplished?

The fundamental factor to Lean success is: PEOPLE! Developing a lean environment means taking people through a whole new approach to performance measurement, to management and leadership, and to organizational structure. Lean is a very powerful way to transform an organization's overall effectiveness, and it involves a fundamental change in thinking that grows from the core outward. The decision to apply the Lean method to an organization through training isn't always easy but, like exercise for the body, it is always the right thing to do.

We've seen it again and again. A decision is made for Lean. A Lean training is arranged and is "imposed" upon a core group of workers who may feel too overwhelmed by their current workload to take time out for a multiple-day event they are required to attend. They enter the conference room or classroom the first day of training with arms folded in a closed posture, often with an attitude of skepticism. Upper level managers who agreed to the training walk into the room thinking that the Lean instructor will now "fix" all of their problems. 

By the end of the introductory sessions and the Value Stream Mapping, all eyes are wide open and everyone is highly enthusiastic. They see the potential of Lean and they realize that, rather than some outsider coming in to "fix" their problems, they are being handed a very powerful tool for identifying and resolving their own process and performance issues — and a tool that can easily be used over and over. They also see that every single worker, no matter what their job role in the organization, has an important stake in the Lean process. That is how Lean transforms entire organizations.