KAIZEN
„ The continuous Improvement
process program

What is Kaizen ?
„ A kanji word - made up of KAI & ZEN. KAI
means ‘change’ and ZEN means for the
‘better’.
„ Thus KAIZEN means ‘Change for the
Better’ and implies Continuous
Improvements in all areas & at all levels.
„ It implies a continuous improvement in all
company functions, and at all levels.

What is Kaizen ? Cont…
„ The wider meaning is continuous
improvements, done consistently, at every
time, every step, every place, leading to self
development.
„ This in turn influences the neighborhood
development , not only at the company
level, but also the society at all the three
levels that one plays – such as producer,
consumer and a good social being…….

Kaizen and Innovation
„ Kaizen believes on continuous
incremental improvements.
„ Innovation is based on “ sudden and
drastic improvement ”

How is Kaizen is different from
Innovation ?
„ Effect – Long Term and long lasting but
undramatic v/s the Short Term
„ Change – gradual and constant v/s abrupt and
volatile
„ Involvement – everybody v/s few champions
„ Requirement – little invst. reqd, but great efforts
to maintain it.
„ Efforts of orientation – People v/s Technology

Kaizen System concept
„ Starting from top management to total
employee involvement by supporting and
encouraging self-directed KAIZEN teams.
The system necessarily starts with faith,
conviction, complete commitment, and the
impassioned involvement by the top
management team in the KAIZEN system.
Thereafter it should percolate to middle
management, and with successful
implementation at both these levels, it should
go down to all lower levels.

Kaizen System concept. Cont…
„ Empowering people and giving them
protected freedom.
Empowerment means effective
delegation of authority to the lower
level to take decisions in their work
area, but keeping the responsibility with
the self. This shall create an
environment of protected freedom at
the work place.

Kaizen or Continuous Process
Improvement, implementation
Goal:
To achieve perfection by continuously
improving the business & production
process.
Perfection is an Elusive goal, however
one must continuously strive for
attaining it.

Problem solving method( Phases of Kaizen)
Phase-VII
Continuously improve
Phase-I
Identify the oppertunities
Phase- II
Define the Scope
Phase-VI
Pilot or Varify changes
Phase-V
Implement changes
Phase-IV
Envision the future
process
Phase-III
Analyse the current
process

Phase I
„ Identify and prioritize
opportunities
for improvement, through the
following two steps
„ Identify the problem
„ Form the ‘TEAM’

Identification of Problem
„ Pareto analysis of Repetitive External
Alarm
„ Field failures
„ Complaints
„ Return
„ Other complaints

Pareto analysis of Repetitive
External Alarm
„ Provides Information on
1. Scrap
2. Rework
3. Sorting

Feed back information
„ Proposals from suggestion schemes
„ Field survey of user needs
„ Data on performance of products v/s
competitors
„ Comments of key people (customers,
suppliers, critics, journalists)
„ Brain storm with working groups
These feed backs provides opportunities for
improvement

Formation of Team
„ If the team is a natural work group it is
complete
„ If the problem is Multifunctional in
nature, then it must selected by
“Quality Council”
„ The team leader is the owner of the
process
„ Goals and dead lines are determined
„ Work is carried

Organizational Structure of KAIZEN
Advisor
Member Member Member Member
Team Coordinators
Facilitators
KAIZEN COMMITTEE
CEO

Phase II
„ Problem statement must be crystal clear
“ A Well Defined Problem is Half Solved”
„ The characters required are
1. Clear description & that must be
understood easily
2. What is wrong, when it happens and
where it is occurring. ( not why it is
wrong and who is responsible)

Phase II. Cont…
„ It should focus on
1. What is known
2. What is un known
3. What needs to be done
„ It should be with the facts & must be free
of judgements
„ Should emphasize on the Impact on
customer

Problem statement charter
to the team
„ Charter specifics
1. Authority who authorized the team
2. Objective and Scope specific areas to
be improved and the expected outputs
3. Composition who are the team
members, process and sub process owners
4. Direction and control guide lines for the
operation of the team
5. General methods to be used,
resources and specific mile stones.

Phase III
Analyzing the current process
„ Key activities are to determine
measurements needed to analyse the
process
1. Gather data
2. Define process boundaries
3. Out puts
4. Customer and supplier inputs
5. Process flow
6. Identification of root causes
7. The levels of customer satisfaction

Process flow Diagram
„ Team must develop a process flow
diagram
„ Process flow diagram is an “Eye opener”
„ Target performance measures are
defined
“NO MEASUREMENT, NO IMPROVEMENT”
“WHAT GETS MEASURED, GETS DONE”

Measurement of product
characteristics
„ Establish performance measures
W.R.T customer requirements
„ Determine the data needed to
manage the process
„ Establish regular feed back with
customers and suppliers
„ Establish measures for Quality/cost
and inputs/out puts

Required data
„ Design information data
„ Process information data
„ Statistical information data
„ Quality information data

Phase IV
Envision the future process
„ Finding the solution using creativity
techniques such as
1. Brain storming
2. Check listing
3. Attribute listing
4. Synectic and so on….

Phase V
Implement changes
Objectives are to provide
1. Implementation plan
2. Obtaining approval from the
quality council
3. Implementing the process

Phase VI
Pilot or verifying the changes.
1. Monitoring
2. Evaluating
3. Finding the effectiveness of the
process
4. Reviewing the process
5. Making pilot changes in small scales
To monitor measurements must be taken

Phase VII
Continuous improvement
„ Continuously strive to improve
1. Quality
2. Delivery
3. Reduce cost
„ Continuously strive to reduce
1. Complexity
2. Variation
3. Out of control process

Phase VII. cont…
„ Continuously review the progress made by
1. Quality council
2. Work group
„ Establish areas for future improvements
and track performance W.R.T. Internal and
External customers.

Aligning the continuous
improvements by HOSHIN KANRI
HOSHIN=Objectives
KANRI=Control or Management
„ To delight the customer through the
manufacturing and servicing
process by implementing the quality
goals of the organization.
„ Implementation of 5’s techniques.

5S – The House Keeping Tool
SEIRI
Sorting out
Sort of unnecessary items in the work-place
and discard them
SEITON
Systematic
Arrangement
Arrange necessary items in good order so that
they can be easily picked for use. A place for
everything & Everything in its place
SEISO
Spic &Span
Clean your work place completely so that there
is no dust on floor, machine and equipment.
SEIKETSU
Standardising
Maintain high standard of housekeeping and
work place organisation at all times.
SHITSUKE
Self Discipline
Train people to follow good house keeping
disciplines autonomously

Why House keeping is Important…?
„ Workplaces become clean and better organised.
„ Results are visible to everyone – Insider and
outsider.
„ Visible results enhances generation of more and
new ideas.
„ People get automatically disciplined.
„ People become proud of clean and organised
workplace.
„ Resultant good company Image generates more
business.
„ Happier people involvement
„ Greater people involvement.

Why House keeping is
Important…?
„ Low employee turnover.
„ Increased number of suggestions.
„ Better use of floor space.
„ Less inventories
„ Better flow of work
„ Low accident rates
„ High yield of materials
„ Stepping stone to TQM, ISO and
other QMS

Where can 5S be implemented ?
AT OFFICE
Sorting Out:
„ Used./broken pens
„ Useless papers/files
„ Old diaries
„ Broken furniture
Systematic arrangement:
„ File cabinets unlabeled
„ Cluttered drawers, shelves,
bookcases, tables
„ Records and documents not
arranged well
„ File heaps and papers all over
AT HOME
Sorting Out:
„ Broken toys
„ Old clothes
„ Broken suitcases
„ Old packing cases
Systematic arrangement:
„ Cluttered drawers, cupboards,
book cases.
„ Kitchen things in disarray
„ Clothes not kept well in
almirahs
„ Newspapers left in a heap in
store rooms

Where can 5S be implemented ?
AT OFFICE
Spic & Span:
„ Dirty furniture
„ Dust and grime in computer,
copiers, OHP’s etc
„ Littered dirty floor
„ Cobwebs
„ Dirty windows
„ Dust in hidden places and top
of shelves
Standardizing:
„ Lack of pest control
„ Toilets not disinfected
Self Discipline:
„ Continuous Training &
education
AT HOME
Spic & Span:
„ Dirty furniture
„ Unclean floor
„ Dusty windows, bookshelves,
walls, cupboards, etc
„ Cobwebs
„ Grime in kitchen,
„ Grime in fans, lamps, other
equipments
Standardizing:
„ Lack of pest control
„ Toilets not disinfected
Self Discipline:
„ Continuous Training &
education