Howdy folks, it's that time once again for another entry into the blog of the Lean Cowboy. This entry is going to cover the topic of education and how do I educate my team, better yet how do we sustain this education and pique their interest for more. So grab a cup of coffee and sit around the campfire for a while.
Every Wednesday morning it starts. We have 3 white boards near my desk, one is a 4x8 pick board in which we have divided up so that ideas can be solicited from the team. The other two are the Lean Term board where a Japanese term is written on the board with its definition. Since we clearly defined the word we have to use relevant examples in our environment. When doing this it makes the term relevant. If we were to use some example from say ohhh.. a Toyota factory yes it would still be a relevant example, though it wouldn't have direct context with the team. Something tangible where it is visible to the team and guess what? A lot of time I learn something, see something I'm not doing right as a leader, someone comes up while I'm writing on this board engages me in a conversation, etc... See where I'm going with this? It is a visible means in which to convey a term, define the term, keep it up there a week for all to see and engage with, see how it applies to us as a team and generally exposes everyone on the team to our term of the week.
The continuing education component of the term of the week comes in where I as the leader, circle back to everyone, yes thats right, everyone. When circling back engaging everyone in conversation. This does a few things, it affords me direct personal interface with the team to know how things are going with that individual, see if they understand what I was scribbling on our board, and most of all I get input back from what I was doing right or wrong in the course of the week and give them an opportunity to critique me and upwardly evaluate what I'm doing. See cowpokes a Lean culture is a learning culture. We are a collective learning unit that pull each other forward with simple things such as boards, 10 at 10 Ohno circles, the Wednesday morning huddle with the team. These are the elements of Lean that we are mastering. The basics are the key. My team knows that I've had a couple different careers before coming into manufacturing and that I bring a unique perspective and teaching style. They will tell you that a mastery of the basics is a mastery of the art, we train until we can't get it wrong. Hence we PDCA all the time. For you Demming purists, yeah we PDSA for we do not like reworking the improvement due to the fact we didn't think it out in the planning stages.
These sustainment component and continuing education modules come in the work. It is required of me as a leader to actively engage my people respectfully, even when the idea is unsound or my idea would be better served at the bottom of a campfire. The active engagement facilitates the learning processes and pulls us all forward. Though I may be the trail boss at this organization, I learn just as much from my team as they learn from me. This is the beauty of it all, the beauty of Lean. A learning collective coupled with implementation and improvement with active engagement from the team. For if it were not for those hardy souls that ride the trail with me on these 60 plus hours a week thru thick and thin, disagreements and victories, we wouldn't go anywhere. We would all be stuck back at the stable bickering about which horse we would get.
The continuing themes are prevalent here once again, People/Process/Culture, *head nod and smile to yoda*. We must engage our people to improve the process and change the culture. You'll notice I've only written about the first board and did so for a reason, I'm going to revisit this in a second entry discussing my second board where I discuss the concept board and how theory and application merge into what we do everyday. See as an engineering student I've got the hands on of manufacturing supervision first, my other careers where life and death were a daily and very real issue, and the cowboy code and lifestyle I lead are very unique to our Lean journey.
I'd like to thank you for stopping by my campfire this week and sharing in this entry. I'd also like to thank yoda, for without her, my journey to find true north would have never started and would have stayed the course a solitary man. Until next time buckaroos, keep your head up and keep smiling. Simple words and concepts, yet powerful when applied.
Cowboy
Sunday, February 22, 2015
Sunday, February 15, 2015
Who is your customer?
Howdy folks, I'm on the plane to work and it is a Sunday night. So fetch a cup of coffee and grab a seat around the campfire. I'm here tonight to talk about who is my customer and how do I serve them.
We all have customers internal and external, yet do we know who they really are? Do these customers have a voice or do we as suppliers push our solutions and goods to our customer? Oh yes, the push vs. pull concept is rearing its head once again just like an angry rattle snake ready to strike.
My direct customers are my guys and gals that report to me. Yes those 42 hardy souls who have watched our transformation from a push to a pull and all the continuous improvement we have done, along with all the improvement we have to go. These are my customers. Yes I know what you are thinking, "Cowboy what about the individuals downstream and your external customer?" I'll have to admit you are correct and that I am mindful of what we are doing. Note here buckaroo's, I said "WE" that is my team and I, not a push but a pull system of thoughts and actions. We are mindful of our internal customer in the value stream and our external customer who pays our bills. What I'm talking about is the day to day structure of what I do listening to my team.
There have been times in the past when I listened to an idea generated from a pick board, and discussed it with the individual who supplied the knowledge and experience along with the effort to write it on the board. The problem with before is that I shut the idea down based on my opinion. I was not listening to my customer. This is true when organizations don't listen to their internal customers and disconnects occur. Shop floor will not respond to a supplier that is unwilling to give them what they need. They disconnect and continue to struggle with their current problems while we, the supplier thinks that "we know better". That is far from the truth, the supplier may know the needs of his or her customer, but the customer more than likely will have a general scope of the issue and a list of resolutions at hand. Only if you are willing to listen.
I thought I had the answer to the worlds problems and how to cure boredom with this cart I designed and constructed for one of my guys. Boy was I proud of myself. Here is the catch, he didn't need that cart, the cart didn't fit the parts he was generally manufacturing, it didn't have a way for the individual to push the cart, etc... This was just a handful of items to this solution in search of a problem. If I would have only gone to gemba, spoken with my guys, LISTENED TO THEIR NEEDS, and collectively constructed a cart which would provide them a viable solution. I didn't listen nor understand who the customer was in this instance. I thought the customer was the paint department not the fabrication department. I failed to see or ask who my customer was and induced waste into the value stream. Ooops, you can say I left the barn door open and all the horses got out on that matter.
In all seriousness though we as Lean leaders and managers have to understand who our customer is, and ask the questions as to their needs and desires. Be they internal or external customers. When we figure out what problem it is we are trying to solve with our customer vs shoving answers and solutions at them we grow as Lean leaders. Growing also builds respect and bridges along with friendships
I'd like to thank you for stopping by once again to hear my frontline experience in leading and implementing Lean.
Cowboy
We all have customers internal and external, yet do we know who they really are? Do these customers have a voice or do we as suppliers push our solutions and goods to our customer? Oh yes, the push vs. pull concept is rearing its head once again just like an angry rattle snake ready to strike.
My direct customers are my guys and gals that report to me. Yes those 42 hardy souls who have watched our transformation from a push to a pull and all the continuous improvement we have done, along with all the improvement we have to go. These are my customers. Yes I know what you are thinking, "Cowboy what about the individuals downstream and your external customer?" I'll have to admit you are correct and that I am mindful of what we are doing. Note here buckaroo's, I said "WE" that is my team and I, not a push but a pull system of thoughts and actions. We are mindful of our internal customer in the value stream and our external customer who pays our bills. What I'm talking about is the day to day structure of what I do listening to my team.
There have been times in the past when I listened to an idea generated from a pick board, and discussed it with the individual who supplied the knowledge and experience along with the effort to write it on the board. The problem with before is that I shut the idea down based on my opinion. I was not listening to my customer. This is true when organizations don't listen to their internal customers and disconnects occur. Shop floor will not respond to a supplier that is unwilling to give them what they need. They disconnect and continue to struggle with their current problems while we, the supplier thinks that "we know better". That is far from the truth, the supplier may know the needs of his or her customer, but the customer more than likely will have a general scope of the issue and a list of resolutions at hand. Only if you are willing to listen.
I thought I had the answer to the worlds problems and how to cure boredom with this cart I designed and constructed for one of my guys. Boy was I proud of myself. Here is the catch, he didn't need that cart, the cart didn't fit the parts he was generally manufacturing, it didn't have a way for the individual to push the cart, etc... This was just a handful of items to this solution in search of a problem. If I would have only gone to gemba, spoken with my guys, LISTENED TO THEIR NEEDS, and collectively constructed a cart which would provide them a viable solution. I didn't listen nor understand who the customer was in this instance. I thought the customer was the paint department not the fabrication department. I failed to see or ask who my customer was and induced waste into the value stream. Ooops, you can say I left the barn door open and all the horses got out on that matter.
In all seriousness though we as Lean leaders and managers have to understand who our customer is, and ask the questions as to their needs and desires. Be they internal or external customers. When we figure out what problem it is we are trying to solve with our customer vs shoving answers and solutions at them we grow as Lean leaders. Growing also builds respect and bridges along with friendships
I'd like to thank you for stopping by once again to hear my frontline experience in leading and implementing Lean.
Cowboy
Sunday, February 8, 2015
Difficulty in Sustainment
Howdy folks, yes it has been awhile hasn't it? Sixty hour plus weeks are still the norm, yes I still am known by name at the airport, my favorite baristas at Starbucks in my town in AZ still shout my name when I show up, and yes I still am a Lean zealot and implementer. This cowboy has not given up. My focus has been on implementation and driving out waste this past month. Once again what a month it has been.
Grab that hammered copper cup and fill it with coffee while I discuss difficulty in sustainment in this blog posting. Yes that is right I'm talking about difficulty here. The nuts and bolts of our job as leaders teaching our team and following up with the plans we have implemented.
We all read of stories of win. Why? Well, wins make us feel good. Feeling good about something usually will reinforce a repeat of that behavior or performance. I'm not going to give out a win today. Let's look at the sustainment of a win.
I have a team of +/- 45 individuals. Yes, I have a bonafide team complete with early adopters, superstars, those who do the job great, and finally a few who would tell you the sky is purple just to be contrary. The best part of my job, I get to work with people. The most challenging part of my job, I get to work with people.
The area I'm going to discuss today has been one to cause this old cowboy to have a conniption fit of hopping mad proportions. So as the engineering student in me asks, "What problem are we trying to solve here cowboy?" I scope the problem. The area in question has poor 6S habits, the individual is disengaged, his work is of marginal quality, his adherence to standard work is something one would see mending a fence without tools circa 1885. So what do I do? I do what I do best and that is solve the problem on my own, implement the solution, issue an individual audit sheet, and wait for magic to happen. Wow, was I wrong.
Becoming frustrated with this I had to bring the problem to Yoda. She is my rock, and all knowing eye in the sky when it comes to the People, Process, Culture of Lean. She sat me down and within fifteen minutes I felt sheepish for I knew what the problem was. Yup, you guessed it folks. The problems wasn't with the individual the problem was with me. Though my process control was solid, the audit sheet and visual management of the area good, I pushed the solution onto this individual. He was not allowed any input into the solution, hence he took it as an invasion upon his work area. Yoda asked me to put myself in this individuals shoes. How would I feel? Then she hit me with her barrage of questions which all led back to, "What are you going to do to solve the root cause cowboy?" That is something I could answer and knew what to do.
I approached the individual about ten days later, and had to apologize for intruding into his area and forcing ideas and solutions upon him in which he had no input. Yeah, I started to feel his frustration as I too have been in this individuals situation before and here I was doing something that I so much despised.
Once I whipped out the A3 form, I carry those with me at work as I am quite passionate about teaching Lean to my team as they can attest, involved everyone pertinent to the situation. BOOM!!!! It happened, my individuals started to solve their own problem and implement their sustainment methods based on the requirement set forth. Yeah buddy, this is what Lean is about. Teaching, People, Process, Culture, Leading with Respect, Improvement. Yes this could be called a win, yet it is a teaching tool in sustainment.
The gold nugget of information here I'd like people to walk away with is this. To sustain true change, I'm talking about a lasting testament of PDCA and culture shift. We as leaders must lead from the inside out. We must know how to "show up" at various situations and not force our solutions or alter the creativity of our workforce. Yes it sounds easy and at times it is. Then there are times that we as leaders become myopic and ultra focused scoping the specific issue and not addressing the actual problem or root cause thereof. Give the vision and work WITH your people, TEACH your people, and LISTEN to your people. When you stick with these guidelines, I'm sure you will achieve a more desired outcome.
Wait, am I just issuing orders again without consulting my customer to scope their needs? I'll be traveling this week, and I am going to make an honest attempt to post from the aircraft and effectively utilize my time instead of reading the latest issue of Western Horseman. Thank you for dropping by and as always may the sun warm your face and may you never loose sight of what true north is.
Cowboy
Grab that hammered copper cup and fill it with coffee while I discuss difficulty in sustainment in this blog posting. Yes that is right I'm talking about difficulty here. The nuts and bolts of our job as leaders teaching our team and following up with the plans we have implemented.
We all read of stories of win. Why? Well, wins make us feel good. Feeling good about something usually will reinforce a repeat of that behavior or performance. I'm not going to give out a win today. Let's look at the sustainment of a win.
I have a team of +/- 45 individuals. Yes, I have a bonafide team complete with early adopters, superstars, those who do the job great, and finally a few who would tell you the sky is purple just to be contrary. The best part of my job, I get to work with people. The most challenging part of my job, I get to work with people.
The area I'm going to discuss today has been one to cause this old cowboy to have a conniption fit of hopping mad proportions. So as the engineering student in me asks, "What problem are we trying to solve here cowboy?" I scope the problem. The area in question has poor 6S habits, the individual is disengaged, his work is of marginal quality, his adherence to standard work is something one would see mending a fence without tools circa 1885. So what do I do? I do what I do best and that is solve the problem on my own, implement the solution, issue an individual audit sheet, and wait for magic to happen. Wow, was I wrong.
Becoming frustrated with this I had to bring the problem to Yoda. She is my rock, and all knowing eye in the sky when it comes to the People, Process, Culture of Lean. She sat me down and within fifteen minutes I felt sheepish for I knew what the problem was. Yup, you guessed it folks. The problems wasn't with the individual the problem was with me. Though my process control was solid, the audit sheet and visual management of the area good, I pushed the solution onto this individual. He was not allowed any input into the solution, hence he took it as an invasion upon his work area. Yoda asked me to put myself in this individuals shoes. How would I feel? Then she hit me with her barrage of questions which all led back to, "What are you going to do to solve the root cause cowboy?" That is something I could answer and knew what to do.
I approached the individual about ten days later, and had to apologize for intruding into his area and forcing ideas and solutions upon him in which he had no input. Yeah, I started to feel his frustration as I too have been in this individuals situation before and here I was doing something that I so much despised.
Once I whipped out the A3 form, I carry those with me at work as I am quite passionate about teaching Lean to my team as they can attest, involved everyone pertinent to the situation. BOOM!!!! It happened, my individuals started to solve their own problem and implement their sustainment methods based on the requirement set forth. Yeah buddy, this is what Lean is about. Teaching, People, Process, Culture, Leading with Respect, Improvement. Yes this could be called a win, yet it is a teaching tool in sustainment.
The gold nugget of information here I'd like people to walk away with is this. To sustain true change, I'm talking about a lasting testament of PDCA and culture shift. We as leaders must lead from the inside out. We must know how to "show up" at various situations and not force our solutions or alter the creativity of our workforce. Yes it sounds easy and at times it is. Then there are times that we as leaders become myopic and ultra focused scoping the specific issue and not addressing the actual problem or root cause thereof. Give the vision and work WITH your people, TEACH your people, and LISTEN to your people. When you stick with these guidelines, I'm sure you will achieve a more desired outcome.
Wait, am I just issuing orders again without consulting my customer to scope their needs? I'll be traveling this week, and I am going to make an honest attempt to post from the aircraft and effectively utilize my time instead of reading the latest issue of Western Horseman. Thank you for dropping by and as always may the sun warm your face and may you never loose sight of what true north is.
Cowboy
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Building Bridges vs Building Fires
Howdy folks, I hope everyone had a great holiday season and was able to spend time with friends and family. Yoda and I decided to take a couple days off our schedule and travel a few places, couple that with getting caught in the beginnings of a snow storm in the mountains it was outstanding. Just stepping back for a few days from our respective busy schedules allows us to reflect and enjoy life.
This topic I'm writing about tonight is one of great importance to anyone on the front line or board room implementing Lean. Building bridges vs building fires. Oh how the uber type A personalities such as myself see fire as the answer to all our problems. Burn the problems out, fire the problem children, fire the design engineers, fire the VP of manufacturing because he wouldn't know flow if he was placed in the middle of the Rio Grande during a flood, fire everyone. Let's just start over and do it RIGHT. Yes sometimes we as uber Alpha type A's see fire as the solution.
Then we have the opposite bridge builders, always trying to form some sort of connection, wanting to A3 every small problem from dust bunnies to the color of paint, wanting to hold meetings, always asking questions about everything, always desiring to get everyone from the "senior team" involved, all the way down to the contractor who installed the drop ceiling. These bridge builders appear to be caught in a "do loop" of communication. Yes it sounds great and their ideas and facilitation skills are beyond anything the type A's have. They just don't seem to get anything done. All hat and no cattle, as we would call them.
So how does all this relate to Lean? Well pull up a seat and grab a cup of coffee while I explain. I had a situation Monday dealing with the design engineers who want nothing more than to turn your manufacturing floor into a lab, a VP of design engineering working angles to get his projects done, and couple all that with THE CUSTOMER, the external customer wanting their product. Then we have me, the manufacturing supervisor over everything, looking for a solution. So what did I do?
As much as I wanted to dismiss the design guys, we have to remember that they are our INTERNAL CUSTOMER, and the VP of design engineering is their voice. I decided to play facilitator here. Start asking questions, look at due dates, how can I incorporate this as a standard work opportunity, who do I know that can help me with this, is everything programmed, how can I get better lead times so I can work this in as standard work. Those are the questions I asked internally, so I may lead Lean from the inside out.
Yes you heard that correctly I was leading Lean from the inside out. Running the entire scenario and looking at all the options, before I decided to act. Contacting my team members who knew the best way to perform the technical aspects of what needed to be done. Contacting the programmer to double check that all programs were at the appropriate equipment. Contacting the actual design engineers to give approximate times when things were going to be done for them. Ahhh... yes I'm sure some of you wise and educated Industrial Engineers and OPEX types are knowing exactly what my team and I were doing before we set one foot in motion. You guessed it, "THE PLAN"!!!!! The planning phase of the operation before we went to DO. CHECKED our results, by the way my team rocked it as you guys are the best. Then comes the ADJUST, or the after action "Well what can we do differently next time to increase tempo of the flow without affecting quality". Yeah more questions, don't you just love it? We are manufacturing types, we want to see a finished product. We don't want all these questions and planning.
This is where I have Yoda to thank. She being the wise and learned jedi with a couple fancy engineering degrees and facilitation skills that are truly world class. I hear her voice in my head saying "Now Cowboy....". Yeah I must slow down and involve people that are doing the work, inform my customer what is going on, create a vision on how we do this, then arc the sequences flawlessly into a steady stream.
Yes we must slow down to speed up, isn't that the truth. My team and I are learning that it is great to have drive and tenacity to get things done. Though where we are really progressing is our capability of vision. I am starting to learn how to construct a vision congruent with my organizations core values, explain this vision to all involved, execute the vision, and then.... and then.... WE go back and look to see what we will do better next time.
Each day my team and I are making those base hits and scoring runs in the process. A Lean transformation isn't an overnight thing. It is a long cattle drive. Involving many individuals at all levels with each playing a key role; all bound by respect for each other and clear communication.
There you have it folks, another story from the front line of Lean implementation. Given from an implementer and his team's perspective who are on the front line. Yes we are guys and gals in the middle of Gemba, not sideline casual observers. Thanks for stopping by and remember, Lean is a lifestyle of continuous improvement, it isn't a destination it is the beginning of a lifelong journey.
Cowboy
This topic I'm writing about tonight is one of great importance to anyone on the front line or board room implementing Lean. Building bridges vs building fires. Oh how the uber type A personalities such as myself see fire as the answer to all our problems. Burn the problems out, fire the problem children, fire the design engineers, fire the VP of manufacturing because he wouldn't know flow if he was placed in the middle of the Rio Grande during a flood, fire everyone. Let's just start over and do it RIGHT. Yes sometimes we as uber Alpha type A's see fire as the solution.
Then we have the opposite bridge builders, always trying to form some sort of connection, wanting to A3 every small problem from dust bunnies to the color of paint, wanting to hold meetings, always asking questions about everything, always desiring to get everyone from the "senior team" involved, all the way down to the contractor who installed the drop ceiling. These bridge builders appear to be caught in a "do loop" of communication. Yes it sounds great and their ideas and facilitation skills are beyond anything the type A's have. They just don't seem to get anything done. All hat and no cattle, as we would call them.
So how does all this relate to Lean? Well pull up a seat and grab a cup of coffee while I explain. I had a situation Monday dealing with the design engineers who want nothing more than to turn your manufacturing floor into a lab, a VP of design engineering working angles to get his projects done, and couple all that with THE CUSTOMER, the external customer wanting their product. Then we have me, the manufacturing supervisor over everything, looking for a solution. So what did I do?
As much as I wanted to dismiss the design guys, we have to remember that they are our INTERNAL CUSTOMER, and the VP of design engineering is their voice. I decided to play facilitator here. Start asking questions, look at due dates, how can I incorporate this as a standard work opportunity, who do I know that can help me with this, is everything programmed, how can I get better lead times so I can work this in as standard work. Those are the questions I asked internally, so I may lead Lean from the inside out.
Yes you heard that correctly I was leading Lean from the inside out. Running the entire scenario and looking at all the options, before I decided to act. Contacting my team members who knew the best way to perform the technical aspects of what needed to be done. Contacting the programmer to double check that all programs were at the appropriate equipment. Contacting the actual design engineers to give approximate times when things were going to be done for them. Ahhh... yes I'm sure some of you wise and educated Industrial Engineers and OPEX types are knowing exactly what my team and I were doing before we set one foot in motion. You guessed it, "THE PLAN"!!!!! The planning phase of the operation before we went to DO. CHECKED our results, by the way my team rocked it as you guys are the best. Then comes the ADJUST, or the after action "Well what can we do differently next time to increase tempo of the flow without affecting quality". Yeah more questions, don't you just love it? We are manufacturing types, we want to see a finished product. We don't want all these questions and planning.
This is where I have Yoda to thank. She being the wise and learned jedi with a couple fancy engineering degrees and facilitation skills that are truly world class. I hear her voice in my head saying "Now Cowboy....". Yeah I must slow down and involve people that are doing the work, inform my customer what is going on, create a vision on how we do this, then arc the sequences flawlessly into a steady stream.
Yes we must slow down to speed up, isn't that the truth. My team and I are learning that it is great to have drive and tenacity to get things done. Though where we are really progressing is our capability of vision. I am starting to learn how to construct a vision congruent with my organizations core values, explain this vision to all involved, execute the vision, and then.... and then.... WE go back and look to see what we will do better next time.
Each day my team and I are making those base hits and scoring runs in the process. A Lean transformation isn't an overnight thing. It is a long cattle drive. Involving many individuals at all levels with each playing a key role; all bound by respect for each other and clear communication.
There you have it folks, another story from the front line of Lean implementation. Given from an implementer and his team's perspective who are on the front line. Yes we are guys and gals in the middle of Gemba, not sideline casual observers. Thanks for stopping by and remember, Lean is a lifestyle of continuous improvement, it isn't a destination it is the beginning of a lifelong journey.
Cowboy
Sunday, December 14, 2014
Flow
Welcome once again to one of my campfire chats about Lean implementation from the front lines. Grab a cup of coffee and rest your bones while this cowboy talks today about flow.
What is flow really? Flow is the seamless transition of work from one station to the next without any interuption. From a flat piece of steel, to a stamping lasering process, to a forming process, to an assembly process, to a painting process, to a final assembly area and packing. We view that as flow correct? Well I'd like to say yes this is flow but there are many more components to it, such as the purchase individual who orders steel, the CSR who inputs the orders, the shop floor guys and gals whom I supervise that can improve the flow, the drivers who deliver the product etc.... This flow bussiness can and is extremely involved.
The aspect of flow I'll address today is on the shop floor. When my turret guys need steel to punch for sequenced shop orders the material handler brings them the steel and stages it on roller flow track. This had worked well for us in the past yet there were and are periods of downtime This puzzled me and posed a problem. What did we do to fix this?
The first thing I did was GO TO GEMBA. Yes, that is right I left my desk and went to GEMBA. You know the place on the shop floor where the work takes place? Where you are able to ask the questions to the guys and gals doing the work who may have a better way. The place where one can observe the bottleneck, safety hazard, improvement opportunity, etc. Yes, GEMBA. I'll fully admit that was a gig at suits who fail to goto the shop floor yet purport they understand Lean and Lean methodology while directing from a desk high in the sky.
When going to Gemba I found a few things. There was an absence of visual management of the shop order. I didn't have a vertical file, nor an andon *flag device denoting status of need with material handler*, guess who came up with the vertical file idea? You've got that right buckaroos, the brilliant minds that work for me. They are the ones who drove the solutions to our problem of proper flow. It wasn't my divine insight or cowboy swagger. It was and is the people who work for you that will more than likely drive improvement if you know how to ask the right questions and afford them time.
Do you see a pattern here in my blog postings, People/Process/Culture. The key elements in securing a foundation for a Lean culture, as my team and I are doing.
After implementing the andon and vertical file, we decided that a better roller track system of flat stock steel that was better able to support the higher volume of through put we were getting. With greater through one has a need to maximize capacity and reduce downtime. That birthed more roller track that helped the material handler pick up processed parts and deliver them to the next operation. Once again, a Lean culture is a learning culture and we are recognizing the benefits of Lean.
In closing this post of flow, I'd like to ask you the audience a few questions. What are you doing to actively engage your workforce as I'm doing? What are you doing with the answers your workforce is giving you, i.e. is there any action being taking on the ideas and improvements you people are giving you? What results are you seeing on your Lean journey and are you recording them with photographs? I hear all sorts of individuals talk from a consultant level about the theory of Lean and this is great, what my team and I are doing is actually IMPLEMENTING LEAN and making manufacturing a more efficient and hospitable place to learn and practice the art and science of continuous improvement.
I'd like to thank you all for stopping by and reading this post. With the holidays quickly approaching I'll have some time off the day job and may be doing some more postings as Yoda and I have house projects that we are going to complete.
Happy Trails...
-Cowboy
What is flow really? Flow is the seamless transition of work from one station to the next without any interuption. From a flat piece of steel, to a stamping lasering process, to a forming process, to an assembly process, to a painting process, to a final assembly area and packing. We view that as flow correct? Well I'd like to say yes this is flow but there are many more components to it, such as the purchase individual who orders steel, the CSR who inputs the orders, the shop floor guys and gals whom I supervise that can improve the flow, the drivers who deliver the product etc.... This flow bussiness can and is extremely involved.
The aspect of flow I'll address today is on the shop floor. When my turret guys need steel to punch for sequenced shop orders the material handler brings them the steel and stages it on roller flow track. This had worked well for us in the past yet there were and are periods of downtime This puzzled me and posed a problem. What did we do to fix this?
The first thing I did was GO TO GEMBA. Yes, that is right I left my desk and went to GEMBA. You know the place on the shop floor where the work takes place? Where you are able to ask the questions to the guys and gals doing the work who may have a better way. The place where one can observe the bottleneck, safety hazard, improvement opportunity, etc. Yes, GEMBA. I'll fully admit that was a gig at suits who fail to goto the shop floor yet purport they understand Lean and Lean methodology while directing from a desk high in the sky.
When going to Gemba I found a few things. There was an absence of visual management of the shop order. I didn't have a vertical file, nor an andon *flag device denoting status of need with material handler*, guess who came up with the vertical file idea? You've got that right buckaroos, the brilliant minds that work for me. They are the ones who drove the solutions to our problem of proper flow. It wasn't my divine insight or cowboy swagger. It was and is the people who work for you that will more than likely drive improvement if you know how to ask the right questions and afford them time.
Do you see a pattern here in my blog postings, People/Process/Culture. The key elements in securing a foundation for a Lean culture, as my team and I are doing.
After implementing the andon and vertical file, we decided that a better roller track system of flat stock steel that was better able to support the higher volume of through put we were getting. With greater through one has a need to maximize capacity and reduce downtime. That birthed more roller track that helped the material handler pick up processed parts and deliver them to the next operation. Once again, a Lean culture is a learning culture and we are recognizing the benefits of Lean.
In closing this post of flow, I'd like to ask you the audience a few questions. What are you doing to actively engage your workforce as I'm doing? What are you doing with the answers your workforce is giving you, i.e. is there any action being taking on the ideas and improvements you people are giving you? What results are you seeing on your Lean journey and are you recording them with photographs? I hear all sorts of individuals talk from a consultant level about the theory of Lean and this is great, what my team and I are doing is actually IMPLEMENTING LEAN and making manufacturing a more efficient and hospitable place to learn and practice the art and science of continuous improvement.
I'd like to thank you all for stopping by and reading this post. With the holidays quickly approaching I'll have some time off the day job and may be doing some more postings as Yoda and I have house projects that we are going to complete.
Happy Trails...
-Cowboy
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
Leadership Part #3
Howdy folks and I'm back for the 3rd installment of the Leadership from the front line. I'd like to take the time to address the action component of what leadership entails as for some of us, the action component can be the make a win or alienate our team due to overzealous action.
This week has been filled with actionable and quantifiable win. Just ask the hardy souls I have out there on the front lines with me. I've listened to my guys and gals, I've observed what the problems were with my eyes and ears and most importantly we are working together to accomplish the short range and mid range visions that I have outlined for my fabrication and assembly areas.
I am teaching my people what KPI's are all about, how to know when the trends are moving in the right direction, what to look for from an elevated position on the org chart and what the suits want to see happen. Yeah buckaroos I'm starting to sound like I've left the ranch and become a high dollar engineer but I haven't. What I am doing is pulling my workforce forward. I set an achievable goal with my leaders within the team. I then describe this goal and if we hit the goal or not. Teaching the short and mid range vision tactic. This is how I've been able to pull the team forward.
Here comes the real world component. You knew it was coming right, as I am not an academic preaching from a desk. We are living Lean everyday on the front line running the PDCA to constantly improve. I sometimes forget that not all my people are zealots and dive into Lean as I do. Yes having Yoda as my soul mate helps, but I personally have to interpret the education I'm receiving coupled with the long conversations she and I have on how to implement. For if I just take things right from the texts and lectures, run to the floor with it half-cocked pulling the trigger without a proper vision. Well, let's just say that I've learned the hard way. More than once have I made mistakes taking what I thought was the right information and implementing based on "gut feel" only to realize that I didn't have all the facts. Makes a guy feel sheepish to have to circle back to his cowhands and tell them "Yup, I was wrong again".
What the admission of being wrong does though is this. It demonstrates to your direct reports that you are not all knowing and will promptly admit mistakes. The humble component of being a leader. Look at some humble cowboys, Baxter Black the cowboy poet and Buck Taylor the actor. These guys have always had time for me when I have spoken with them and didn't outwardly demonstrate the "I'm too busy for you" attitude some leaders have been known to do. I'll openly admit to falling short of that from time to time. Though I have gotten better at it with age. Funny thing about age, with age wisdom doesn't always follow. Time to plug Burke Miller and Sam House once again for the Wisdom Discipline Leadership course. I'd suggest taking this course when available as you will learn about yourself as a Leader and as a coach. As being a good Leader, at times requires us to be a coach as well.
Looking at the content of this installment I've rambled somewhat and painted some really broad strokes. Hopefully you folks who are uber merchants out there on the Taylor Protocol CVI will be able to arc these points together. To those of you who are like myself and are uber builders with banker coming in a strong second. Look at this as a plan for direct action leveraging your innovator to lean how to ask the right question.
In closing I'd like to say this. It takes more than barking orders to be a Leader. It takes leading from the front and putting yourself on the line from time to time when doing the right thing isn't doing the right thing. You have to believe in your people and be willing to take risks with them and not use them as pawns. What it boils down to is the people component. As Leaders, we lead people. Without people we are just solitary individuals who roam the range.
Thanks for stopping by the campfire in this installment and I hope that you have taken something positive and useful away from a cowboys overview on his Lean journey right at the front line. Until we meet up again at Gemba. Happy Trails cowpokes...
Cowboy
This week has been filled with actionable and quantifiable win. Just ask the hardy souls I have out there on the front lines with me. I've listened to my guys and gals, I've observed what the problems were with my eyes and ears and most importantly we are working together to accomplish the short range and mid range visions that I have outlined for my fabrication and assembly areas.
I am teaching my people what KPI's are all about, how to know when the trends are moving in the right direction, what to look for from an elevated position on the org chart and what the suits want to see happen. Yeah buckaroos I'm starting to sound like I've left the ranch and become a high dollar engineer but I haven't. What I am doing is pulling my workforce forward. I set an achievable goal with my leaders within the team. I then describe this goal and if we hit the goal or not. Teaching the short and mid range vision tactic. This is how I've been able to pull the team forward.
Here comes the real world component. You knew it was coming right, as I am not an academic preaching from a desk. We are living Lean everyday on the front line running the PDCA to constantly improve. I sometimes forget that not all my people are zealots and dive into Lean as I do. Yes having Yoda as my soul mate helps, but I personally have to interpret the education I'm receiving coupled with the long conversations she and I have on how to implement. For if I just take things right from the texts and lectures, run to the floor with it half-cocked pulling the trigger without a proper vision. Well, let's just say that I've learned the hard way. More than once have I made mistakes taking what I thought was the right information and implementing based on "gut feel" only to realize that I didn't have all the facts. Makes a guy feel sheepish to have to circle back to his cowhands and tell them "Yup, I was wrong again".
What the admission of being wrong does though is this. It demonstrates to your direct reports that you are not all knowing and will promptly admit mistakes. The humble component of being a leader. Look at some humble cowboys, Baxter Black the cowboy poet and Buck Taylor the actor. These guys have always had time for me when I have spoken with them and didn't outwardly demonstrate the "I'm too busy for you" attitude some leaders have been known to do. I'll openly admit to falling short of that from time to time. Though I have gotten better at it with age. Funny thing about age, with age wisdom doesn't always follow. Time to plug Burke Miller and Sam House once again for the Wisdom Discipline Leadership course. I'd suggest taking this course when available as you will learn about yourself as a Leader and as a coach. As being a good Leader, at times requires us to be a coach as well.
Looking at the content of this installment I've rambled somewhat and painted some really broad strokes. Hopefully you folks who are uber merchants out there on the Taylor Protocol CVI will be able to arc these points together. To those of you who are like myself and are uber builders with banker coming in a strong second. Look at this as a plan for direct action leveraging your innovator to lean how to ask the right question.
In closing I'd like to say this. It takes more than barking orders to be a Leader. It takes leading from the front and putting yourself on the line from time to time when doing the right thing isn't doing the right thing. You have to believe in your people and be willing to take risks with them and not use them as pawns. What it boils down to is the people component. As Leaders, we lead people. Without people we are just solitary individuals who roam the range.
Thanks for stopping by the campfire in this installment and I hope that you have taken something positive and useful away from a cowboys overview on his Lean journey right at the front line. Until we meet up again at Gemba. Happy Trails cowpokes...
Cowboy
Monday, December 1, 2014
Leadership Part #2
Howdy folks and thanks for stopping by. Continuing on with our leadership series here out on the range. I'd like to really look at what leading and cultivating a Lean culture is. Leaders lead. What is that exactly one may ask? I'm here to tell you what leading is all about. Leading is knowing when to keep your mouth closed and listen to your direct reports. As we have seen in my past blog postings, at times as an uber Alpha, we have a hard time listening to our people. Isn't that where it all starts, the respect for people component. When we have a disconnect with the individuals doing the work, and those giving direction there is a problem. There must be open channels of clear direction and communication both ways from your direct reports. If you are the top performing cowboy on the ranch and your subordinates do not know where you are heading. You are more than likely going to infuse variation within the work, and guess what? Yes induce DOWNTIME.
It may sound elementary to effectively communicate, yet I see this every day as a real disconnect between leaders and their direct reports. Yes, that includes me. Now that we have identified a problem, let's look at some tools we can use to prevent these situations.
Standard work, elementary right.... Well standard work needs to be standard, not a constantly fluid process. Rather a continuously improving process that has set points in which we can check the results. Yes, we are looking at communication in a PDCA format.
Listening to our direct reports helps us as leaders in a few ways. First it gives them a voice, and secondly we as the leader receive a first hand report of what is going on from our front line people. I remind myself every day of how I need to listen. Yes, even this cowboy has a tendency to develop selective hearing. When that happens I am the cause of the breakdown, and we all have been part of that. Most recently I failed to listen to one of my lead individuals, guess what? A shop order that could have been prevented from going late went late due to my own arrogance for lack of a better term. Yet it is during these moments we emerge, or as my ink pen states I-Emerge.
I'd like to thank everyone for stopping by for part 2 and I hope that your Thanksgiving was filled with family and good spirits. I'll be back in a few days with more words from the front line and the lessons I'm learning as a Lean leader. Happy trails......
Cowboy
It may sound elementary to effectively communicate, yet I see this every day as a real disconnect between leaders and their direct reports. Yes, that includes me. Now that we have identified a problem, let's look at some tools we can use to prevent these situations.
Standard work, elementary right.... Well standard work needs to be standard, not a constantly fluid process. Rather a continuously improving process that has set points in which we can check the results. Yes, we are looking at communication in a PDCA format.
Listening to our direct reports helps us as leaders in a few ways. First it gives them a voice, and secondly we as the leader receive a first hand report of what is going on from our front line people. I remind myself every day of how I need to listen. Yes, even this cowboy has a tendency to develop selective hearing. When that happens I am the cause of the breakdown, and we all have been part of that. Most recently I failed to listen to one of my lead individuals, guess what? A shop order that could have been prevented from going late went late due to my own arrogance for lack of a better term. Yet it is during these moments we emerge, or as my ink pen states I-Emerge.
I'd like to thank everyone for stopping by for part 2 and I hope that your Thanksgiving was filled with family and good spirits. I'll be back in a few days with more words from the front line and the lessons I'm learning as a Lean leader. Happy trails......
Cowboy
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