Kaizen  Process  Blitz  Kari Lamont

Baltimore Lean Startup August 21, 2012

Before  Our  PI  Program  Work  and  problem  solving  were  traditional  

“If it’s not broken, don’t fix it” “There’s no time to think about improvement”

“But that’s the way we’ve always done it” “We tried that 5 years ago and it didn’t work”

“Let’s add an audit or metric to monitor” “Let’s form a long term project team to evaluate”

Another  Approach  The Process Blitz

Process  Blitz  O A Blitz is a facilitated approach to rapid problem solving

comprised of 3 Phases: O PLAN:

O Agree to a charter O Identify scope of process needing improvement O Select a representative team O Schedule 1-5 full days, scope dependent

O IMPLEMENT: O Map the current process so that everyone understands it end-to-end O Utilize map and other problem-solving tools to identify issues/gaps/waste and

potential solutions O Present findings to stakeholders O Implement/trial proposed solutions during the blitz where possible O Identify outstanding action items, longer term projects, and communication/

change management plans O FOLLOW-UP:

O 6 weeks post-blitz, meet to resolve/evaluate process changes 4

Sample  Charter  Background:

Paragraph – why are we doing this blitz   Scope:

Process starts at: clearly define beginning Process ends at: clearly define endpoint

  Objectives/Deliverables:

To increase productivity/decrease errors…… by x%…. Improve communication Develop RACI model

Follow-up Owner: Team Members: Facilitator: Stakeholders: Prework:

Gather baseline metrics Solicit input from extended team members Observe process in action

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Sample  Map  

O On this map: O Pink = current state process step O Blue = waste/ pain/ opportunity O Purple = swim lanes / handoffs

Current State Map

Sample  Blitz  Topics  and  Accomplishments  

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O Processes O Global Competitive Action O Internal Orders O Capital Forecasting O Data Workflows O Budget Generation O Speed to Market O Interco Billing O Pricing Actions O Short Term Disability O Invoice Discrepancies

O Results O Time savings O Elimination of redundancies O Clarification of roles and

responsibilities O Simplification &

Standardization O Enhanced use of technology O Improved controls

Keys  to  Process  Blitz  Success  O Blitz ownership O Stakeholder (leadership) support O No-blame environment O Establishment of clear objectives and scope O Objective facilitation O Flexibility O Publicity for continued momentum

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