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Leading a Lean Conversion:

Lessons from Experience at


Steelcase, Inc.
Successful projects hinge on strong leadership.

David W. Mann, Ph.D.

S
uccessful mass-to-lean conversions example, a family of storage bins or cabi-
turn primarily on the quality of local nets, a particular model of high performance
line leadership thats the lesson task chairs, a line of laminate-topped work
Steelcase is learning as it converts its 12 surfaces, or a family of workstation space
main North American plants from mass to division panels. Some product lines are
lean production. Case study material from highly vertically integrated from coil steel
17 mass-to-lean projects in ten Steelcase through final assembly. Others include many
plants over the past four years illustrates this purchased parts.
lesson. Weve learned there are seven key Value streams are led by a superintend-
attributes of leaders in successful lean imple- ent and range in size from about 75 to 250
mentations and weve converted these people, with one first line supervisor for every
lessons into practices and procedures to help 30 or so production people and a team leader
leaders be more effective in leading lean con- for every seven to 12 people. Each plant has
versions. a lean core team of people from operations
technical support departments. Each lean
Company Background conversion project is led by an implementa-
Steelcase provides a classic example of tion team of the value stream superintendent,
a supervisor from the area (each backfilled
brownfield conversion. Our conventional
for the design phase of the project), one or
manufacturing process relies on many sepa-
rate work center schedules pushing lots of two team leaders, and several operators from
the area.
inventory, and many expediters who fight
The corporate lean support team
through daily shortages to meet the produc-
tion schedule. Value-added time is typically a includes three internal technical consultants
and two members specializing in cultural
decimal proportion of total cycle time. Our
change. The corporate team develops train-
lean conversions seek to cut cycle times by
half or more, increase productivity by a third ing and support materials and provides on-
site consulting support for project teams and
or more, and cut inventory by half or more by
lean operations. We get external support
converting batch and push to flow and pull.
Weve approached lean by taking on from the TWI Network, a group of Toyota-
trained experts in lean manufacturing.
one value stream at a time in a plant, with
projects going on in several plants at once.
Steelcase produces office furniture and inte- Leadership Differentiates
rior architectural products on a make-to- Our lean conversions have initially pro-
order basis. A value stream might be, for duced uneven results. As project results

28
Target Volume 17, Number 3
accumulated, we sought to identify the seven characteristics of leadership that dis-
factors that accounted for success so we tinguish successful projects. The seven lead-
could develop a standardized approach ership characteristics are: accountability,
based on them. Our first cut in this analysis project management orientation, lean think-
considered five broad factors: leadership, ing, sense of ownership, tension between
project staffing, technical design, shop floor technical and applied perspectives, commit-
culture, and line management ownership. ment to cultural as well as technical change,
The findings were striking: Strong leadership and effective relations with support groups. The findings
characterized all the successful projects. Behind each of these dimensions are stories
Weak leadership scores characterized the of optimism overturned by events, intuitions were striking:
disappointing ones. No other factor yielded which either proved out or not, some sur- Strong leadership
such clear demarcation between success and prises, and an increasing focus on the crucial
something less than that. nature of the leader of the value stream.
characterized all
There are lots of books on lean, and Heres what weve learned about lead- the successful
plenty of consulting expertise and experi- ership, and what weve done to convert these
projects.
ence. Weve taken advantage of both and lessons to tools and practices for more effec-
have learned much from each source. What tive, successful lean projects.
emerges from practice is that nobody can tell
you how to implement lean in your organi- Seven Leadership Success Factors
zation; unfortunately, there is no answer The dimensions of leadership weve
sheet in the backs of those books or in con- identified are not cleanly independent from
sultants project plans. Rather, as in the line one another. Rather, they are different facets
from the song: Youve got to suffer if you
want to sing the blues! (Bromberg, 1977). In
other words, you earn success by experi-
menting within your particular circum-
stances, experiencing the consequences, and
We Called It World-Class Manufacturing
building on them. (For a brief reminiscence of
Todays lean conversion follows earlier efforts to streamline Steelcase
yesteryears conversion experiences, see the operations. In 1989, we called it World-Class Manufacturing (WCM).
box, We Called It World-Class Manufacturing.) In these early efforts to implement the Toyota Production Systems
Lean, after all, is more than anything principles under a different name, we looked for ways to involve
else a set of principles. Weve had to work employees, eliminate waste, improve quality, focus on the value stream,
our way through learning how those princi- etc. One reason why these efforts failed was we were emphasizing flow
ples apply to our processes, products, people, and reduced inventory, but at the same time we were paying employ-
and culture. A key lesson weve learned is: ees by the piece rewarding people to build inventory!
The technical side of the conversions is actu-
There were other reasons. WCM was an optional effort that
ally the easier part. Technical design is some-
plants could adopt or skip. It was presented as a smorgasbord; plants
thing you can hire out, if you so choose.
Changing the day-to-day habits by which
could pick and choose various improvement techniques hardly the
your operation runs is an entirely different same as implementing a production system. Another roadblock was
matter. Without these new habits, practices, that we lacked a case for change; Steelcase was, as it remains today,
and skills, lean layout and pull systems the industry leader. We were comfortably profitable. It was almost
quickly deteriorate. Nobody can establish unthinkable to many in the company that we needed to make dramatic
new daily procedures for you. Getting it done changes. And we lacked focus on the people side of change plus the
takes tenacious, prepared, skillful leadership. discipline needed to establish a different day-to-day culture. We
Weve carefully reviewed projects com- gained valuable lessons from our experience, learning the impor-
pleted in the past four years, taking a closer
tance of focus, implementation strategy, leader preparation, and the
look at the ways in which leadership mani-
fested itself, at what has worked, and what
need to support cultural change.
hasnt. Weve identified in observable terms

29
Third Quarter 2001
of what weve found to make up effective Figure 1 summarizes the dimensions
lean leadership practices. None of these and the observable behaviors weve identi-
attributes by itself is sufficient for a success- fied and now look for in lean leaders.
ful implementation. Weve found in our most
successful projects that these dimensions Accountability
balance and complement each other, making Accountability means making sure
the whole more than the sum of the parts.
people understand what has to be done and
Our successful projects have dramati- how to do it, then making sure they execute.
cally shrunken floor space and inventory A simple three-part model sums this up well:
levels. Theyve cut cycle times from weeks to knowledge, practice, and feedback. The
less than a day. Most importantly, they have superintendents with the most successful
followed up on the flow interrupters their
projects applied this model once the equip-
new lean layouts exposed, with the result of
ment rearrangements and new material
productivity increases of 20-30 percent in the
flows were put in place. It is important to
first pass. There are benefits beyond those
note that line supervisors who are not on the
from the first pass, and successful conversion project team have been busy up until Monday
projects continue to pursue them.
morning running the old production system.

Dimension Behavior
1. Accountability History of consistently producing good results the numbers
Holds people accountable using a process for tracking and following up on repetitive commit-
ments, takes corrective action when results fall short of goals.

2. Project management History of getting projects implemented effectively.


orientation Holds people accountable using a process for tracking and following up project tasks, takes
corrective Action on late items
Logical, organized approach to complex problems, thinks situations through in clear, step by
step fashion.

3. Lean thinking Understands and has already applied lean concepts; talks about, promotes, and uses lean ideas.

4. Ownership Thinks and talks about the area as theirs to lead, set direction for, change, and improve.

5. Tension between Understands the need to sweat the details as well as to get things done.
applied and technical Willing to listen to technical experts and consider their advice in planning.

6. Commitment to History of effective give and take communication in the area in large groups, small groups,
cultural as well as and one-on-one.
technical change Trusted by people in the area.
Eager for and open to greater employee participation in day-to-day operations and
improvement activities.

7. Effective relations with History of getting things done with support from operations support groups (such as
support groups engineering, quality, production control, safety, finance, HR).

Figure 1. Leadership Success Dimenesions

30
Target Volume 17, Number 3
Theyve had no significant opportunity to same kind as in the example above. Many
practice in the new system because it didnt took weeks or months to complete. Unlike
exist yet. So, most supervisors need to learn the previous example, this superintendent
their jobs all over again. Weve found that had no routine for following up and no
conventional training is not the answer in system for even recording the assignments
this situation. hed made. It was not uncommon for this
Instead, weve found the most effective superintendent to be surprised and frustrated
approach is through real time, on the job, on when he ran across instances where assign-
the floor coaching by the superintendent. In ments hadnt been carried out. Hed get mad
our most successful projects, the superin- at the supervisors and chew them out, but
tendent holds a one-on-one review with each that was it. Simple items such as getting team
supervisor each quarter or more frequently information boards in the area took half a
depending on performance. In these reviews, year to accomplish. In the first example,
expectations for performance on items from above, the same boards were designed, spec-
a list of 16 day-to-day lean practices (such as ified, built, and in use within three weeks.
visually displaying the standard work Mind you, both superintendents are in
sequence at each station and monitoring favor of the lean conversions and the
adherence, maintaining hour by hour pro- improvements to be made. The difference is
duction tracking and reasons for misses, that one doesnt follow up, doesnt establish Weekly, the
maintaining a visual daily information board expectations, nor hold people accountable superintendent
for each team, visually recording and acting for meeting them. He allows technical
on team members improvement sugges- support staff to work in his area, and even and supervisor
tions) are agreed to. New items go onto the frees supervisors time to focus on lean spend an hour
active list to monitor, joining previous items improvement projects. The difference here
from the list that have been mastered. is between letting improvement happen on the production
Weekly, the superintendent and supervisor compared to making it happen. Put another floor engaged
spend an hour on the production floor way, a major difference between these two
examples is in practices for holding people
in inspection,
engaged in inspection, feedback, and coach-
ing. They cover the targeted items as well as accountable for delivering. feedback, and
examining the new lean production process- coaching.
es, seeing how theyre running, identifying Project Management Orientation
abnormalities, and discussing appropriate Project management orientation shows
corrective action. We call these tours gemba most clearly in the design and physical imple-
walks, after the Japanese term for, roughly, mentation phases of a lean conversion, when
where the action is (Imai, 1997). the work is basically a large-scale project.
On the gemba walks, the superintend- Accountability here involves making sure
ent takes the time to clarify expectations and, project tasks are completed as specified and
where needed, explain, or offer suggestions on time.
or direction about how a particular task The complete project plan is essentially
might be approached. Supervisors note items a composite of a set of sub-projects. Exam-
to be improved before the next weeks walk. ples include calculating demand to arrive at
In the most effective implementation, the take time, defining the pull system in various
superintendent virtually never misses the parts of the operation, applying standardized
weekly review and instruction hour on the work and line balancing tools to define the
floor with each supervisor, even if it has to be numbers of stations and operators required,
rescheduled. designing layouts, material replenishment
By contrast, in a project that has systems, keeping all parties informed of
dragged and dragged despite a high level of progress, and the like. Simply put, many
technical consulting support, the superin- things have to be accomplished in the right
tendent routinely made assignments of the sequence and on time.

31
Third Quarter 2001
Theyve had no significant opportunity to same kind as in the example above. Many
practice in the new system because it didnt took weeks or months to complete. Unlike
exist yet. So, most supervisors need to learn the previous example, this superintendent
their jobs all over again. Weve found that had no routine for following up and no
conventional training is not the answer in system for even recording the assignments
this situation. hed made. It was not uncommon for this
Instead, weve found the most effective superintendent to be surprised and frustrated
approach is through real time, on the job, on when he ran across instances where assign-
the floor coaching by the superintendent. In ments hadnt been carried out. Hed get mad
our most successful projects, the superin- at the supervisors and chew them out, but
tendent holds a one-on-one review with each that was it. Simple items such as getting team
supervisor each quarter or more frequently information boards in the area took half a
depending on performance. In these reviews, year to accomplish. In the first example,
expectations for performance on items from above, the same boards were designed, spec-
a list of 16 day-to-day lean practices (such as ified, built, and in use within three weeks.
visually displaying the standard work Mind you, both superintendents are in
sequence at each station and monitoring favor of the lean conversions and the
adherence, maintaining hour by hour pro- improvements to be made. The difference is
duction tracking and reasons for misses, that one doesnt follow up, doesnt establish Weekly, the
maintaining a visual daily information board expectations, nor hold people accountable superintendent
for each team, visually recording and acting for meeting them. He allows technical
on team members improvement sugges- support staff to work in his area, and even and supervisor
tions) are agreed to. New items go onto the frees supervisors time to focus on lean spend an hour
active list to monitor, joining previous items improvement projects. The difference here
from the list that have been mastered. is between letting improvement happen on the production
Weekly, the superintendent and supervisor compared to making it happen. Put another floor engaged
spend an hour on the production floor way, a major difference between these two
examples is in practices for holding people
in inspection,
engaged in inspection, feedback, and coach-
ing. They cover the targeted items as well as accountable for delivering. feedback, and
examining the new lean production process- coaching.
es, seeing how theyre running, identifying Project Management Orientation
abnormalities, and discussing appropriate Project management orientation shows
corrective action. We call these tours gemba most clearly in the design and physical imple-
walks, after the Japanese term for, roughly, mentation phases of a lean conversion, when
where the action is (Imai, 1997). the work is basically a large-scale project.
On the gemba walks, the superintend- Accountability here involves making sure
ent takes the time to clarify expectations and, project tasks are completed as specified and
where needed, explain, or offer suggestions on time.
or direction about how a particular task The complete project plan is essentially
might be approached. Supervisors note items a composite of a set of sub-projects. Exam-
to be improved before the next weeks walk. ples include calculating demand to arrive at
In the most effective implementation, the take time, defining the pull system in various
superintendent virtually never misses the parts of the operation, applying standardized
weekly review and instruction hour on the work and line balancing tools to define the
floor with each supervisor, even if it has to be numbers of stations and operators required,
rescheduled. designing layouts, material replenishment
By contrast, in a project that has systems, keeping all parties informed of
dragged and dragged despite a high level of progress, and the like. Simply put, many
technical consulting support, the superin- things have to be accomplished in the right
tendent routinely made assignments of the sequence and on time.

31
Third Quarter 2001
The most effective implementations leaders had to be prodded by his technical
weve experienced used direct, powerful, team to even put together a list of items that
methods for maintaining accountability for needed follow-up. One of the plant support
project tasks. The conventional approaches staff put together elaborate progress charts
used Gantt charts and weekly project review listing these to do items, their due dates,
meetings. The most powerful and creative and a color code for complete on time
approach involved a six-foot by 12-foot (green), at risk of going overdue (yellow),
whiteboard wall, a red string, and a daily and behind schedule (red). The plant
standup meeting. Running down one side of manager, corporate consultants, and the
the wall were the calendar weeks in the plant project team attended weekly review
project schedule, with each week defining a meetings to check status on these to do
row running acrOss the wall. Each sub- items. The main product of these meetings,
project name and its leader were written at which soon trailed off and ceased, were
the top of the wall, defining the columns. excuses for why it had not been possible to
Each sub-projects weekly task was written in meet one or another date. In the end, virtually
marker week by week, a few weeks at a time. nothing got done except those items dele-
The red string running across the board got gated to the support staff member who put
moved down to mark the current week. together the tracking system. Many items on
The entire project team, including the the list never were completed.
implementation team, met at the board every Without accountability and follow up,
day at 10 a.m. The plant manager and his project plans and color codes are just ink on
staff met for a briefing at the project wall paper. It takes committed, tenacious follow-
once a week. At each meeting, all incom- up by leadership to convert ink to action.
plete tasks remaining above the red string
(that is, late tasks) got talked about every day Lean Thinking
until they were completed. These discussions In a recent assessment of one of the
focused on help needed, unanticipated inter- lean implementation projects, we asked the
dependencies with other activities that superintendent a standard question about
required support, resource conflicts, and the his vision of a lean future for the area. He
like. Each Sub-project leader gave a status stopped to think, then said that his vision
report at the 10 a.m. meeting once each was an area with good housekeeping and
week. Between meetings, the project leader that was clean and well organized.
met with the sub-leaders to check on and We asked the same question to the
work on progress, task clarity, resource superintendent in a different area. He imme-
deployment, technical integration with the diately started talking about rearranging iso-
rest of the project, and corrective action lated pieces of equipment into cells that run
where tasks had fallen behind schedule. to kanban production signals, dramatically
This project moved fast and with preci- reducing quantities of inventory, establish-
sion. Everyone on the project knew and could ing supermarkets and flow lanes for raw and
see the status of all aspects of the project painted parts that allowed anyone to see
every day. Integration among aspects of the what was on hand and what and how many
project was clear. Resource deployment to make next, and replacing a series of build-
could be optimized daily; that is, where complete benches and the setup activities
someone in a temporarily slow period could they required with a one-piece-flow progres-
lend a hand in a part of the project that sive build line.
needed extra help to get through a rough Granted, it takes more than a clear, spe-
spot. The atmosphere was open and sup- cific vision for a project to be successful, but
portive, so problems got surfaced as soon as weve also found the old saying is also true:
they arose, and could be worked on immediately. When you dont know where youre going,
By contrast, one of the least effective any road will take you there. One thing

32
Target Volume 17, Number 3
leaders need to do is to lead, to be able to tendents have been firmly engaged in the
paint a clear and compelling picture of the project in the planning and development
future, what it will be like to be in it, the ben- phase, and in the drive for continuing to
efits it will bring compared with the present, experiment, refine, and extend the applica-
and how to get there. This aspect of leader- tion of lean principles following up on
ship is required to motivate people, to per- implementation.
suade them to take the leap of faith that a Not all superintendents with a strong
major change from mass to lean requires, sense of ownership had the other attributes
and to help keep peoples eyes on the prize as needed for the complete package. But
they slog through the inevitable snags that without an appetite to dig into an area, to
come with large scale change. In the few bring it to a new level, the results have fallen
cases where leaders havent had this kind of far short of what should have been accom-
vision, their projects have failed to make plished, and no follow-up work has been
progress and they have had difficulty moti- done to eliminate the flow interrupters
vating people to believe in the possibility that inevitably exposed in a lean conversion.
a lean future just might be a better one.
Tension Between Applied
Ownership and Technical
Leaders of effective projects demonstrate Lean manufacturing is two things
a sense of proprietorship over their areas. reflected in the two words: lean and manu-
Indeed, they think of their area as their facturing. Lean by itself is a philosophy. To
responsibility to set direction, to change, to grasp it requires study, the struggle to find
improve. These leaders tend to recruit tech- understanding, putting it in, learning from
nical experts from inside or out to work on the experience, then changing it so it works
changes, to try new things, to push the enve- better. One thing about lean is clear: When
lope of performance. Weve also had the you put it in, you lower the metaphorical
unfortunate experience of working with a water level and in doing so, expose rocks
superintendent who never really engaged in that interrupt flow. The lean journey is a cycle
the project activity and was reluctant to give of progressively lowering the water, exposing
up his day-to-day responsibilities to become and then eliminating the flow interrupters.
part of the design process. Instead, this Manufacturing by itself is direct and
superintendent stood back from the project, urgent. When its time to make a decision in
as though waiting for the keys to be handed a manufacturing setting, the decision gets
over to him once the design work, pull made based on the best information available
systems, and equipment moves were com- at the time. If leans questions are philo-
plete and ready to run. In his previous five sophical ones about the best path for the
years in the area he had made no process journey, the questions in manufacturing are
changes but rather had simply concentrated generally more focused, like: What do I have
on managing what was already in place to do to meet todays production schedule?
when he moved in. What must I do to hit my cost target?
Fortunately, weve seen many examples On a project design team, both the
of a strong sense of ownership. We look for philosophical and the practical need to be
some degree of competition between the vigorously represented. In one dramatic case,
plant lean team leader and the superintend- a conversion project had been moving in fits
ent, at least initially, as a sign that the super- and starts caused by many interruptions by
intendent sees the area as his or hers to make immediate and pressing questions the plant
something of, change, and improve. As well had to address. But, once allowed to con-
see in the next section, this tension needs to centrate on its task, the team began making
come to a balanced resolution. In our most progress. A number of upstream schedules
successful lean conversions, the superin- were replaced by pull systems. Some equip-

33
Third Quarter 2001
ment moves were made to form cells running refinish process was sized based on the
to the new pull signals. The big task, referred assumed high yield. So were the areas set
to in an earlier section, was to convert from aside for the painted FIFO queue leading to
a bench build method in which the product the stations on the progressive build line and
was completely assembled by one person at for the repair area adjacent to the end of the
a workbench, to a progressive build line line.
an assembly line. The line was to replace the The team met its deadline. Everything
benches and eliminate the need for some they had designed worked right off the bat.
setup positions. Most significantly, the queue Everything, that is, but the paint line. The
of painted parts awaiting assembly was to yield was lower than expected the lowest
be cut from 36-plus hours to three hours. The any plant had experienced. The equipment
single schedule point was to be at paint line vendor and our finishing technology group
On a project loading. From there, everything was a first in, had teams working intensively on the
first out (FIFO) flow through paint application process. Meanwhile, parts were being reject-
design team, and unload, and assembly. All the parts are ed at the line because of paint problems. The
both the made in house under the control of the value refinish process was overwhelmed, buried in
stream superintendent. The product line was rejected parts. The repair area was flooded.
philosophical Partially built units were everywhere waiting
mature so the forming and fabrication oper-
and the ations involved in the production process for good parts. The area largely kept on
practical need were well understood and relatively stable. schedule by working 60 hours for many
The paint line, on the other hand, was new weeks in a row. Eventually, more space for
to be vigorously and just being installed. It used a recently painted queue was added to be able to hold
represented. developed powder paint technology new another 12 hours worth of painted inventory
to us and to the equipment supplier. as safety stock. The new paint equipment
Just as the design work was to begin on took months to come up to a reasonable
converting from bench to progressive build, yield, but never reached the expectations the
the plant lean team leader was promoted to equipment supplier and we had planned on.
a new job at a different site. The lean team, Someone on the project team needs to
and especially the lean team leader, an engi- worry about the details, needs to exercise a
neer, had been the technical conscience of healthy skepticism, needs to insist that con-
the project. The lean team provided most of tingency plans be thought through. Convert-
the analytical work for the project and did the ing an operating production area to lean is
modeling for alternative scenarios. The definitely not a just do it proposition. It can
superintendent leading the implementation be done with speed, but it always must be
team was an ebullient individual, a bundle of done with care, an understanding of the
energy full of enthusiasm and impatience to details, and a clear assessment of risks and
see the project completed and running. He rewards.
had a high level of tolerance for ambiguity
and risk. When the lean team leader left, the
Commitment to Cultural as Well as
plant decided not to replace him since the Technical Change
project was about halfway done. Instead, the One of our most experienced lean team
plant turned over all aspects of the project to leaders says that its only after youve
the superintendent. rearranged the furniture with equipment
From that point, the project was focused moves, pull systems, and the like that youre
primarily on a deadline, which had been ready to start working on lean. His point is
established as an arbitrary date. The team this: lean appears to be about layouts, mate-
made the assumption that first pass yield rial movement, visual signals, etc. Whats its
from the new paint line would be high, higher really about is a work culture based on
in fact than any of the several dozen other precise and disciplined execution of many,
paint lines in the corporation. The off-line many day-to-day aspects of a production

34
Target Volume 17, Number 3
operation. Early on, our emphasis had been tendent and supervisors are working from a
on clarifying and documenting a technical set of 16 specific expectations and tools that
implementation process and developing a provide clarity to floor leaders on what they
method (Mann, 2000) to prepare floor leaders are to do to establish lean operations in their
to bring the people in their departments and new lean layout.
on their teams with them through the technical The items in the set start with basic dis-
implementation rearranging the furniture. cipline, like starting and stopping on time
Simply put, that turns out to be but the first (whats become known as working buzzer
step in a considerably longer journey to lean to buzzer) and maintaining 5S (unnecessary
operation and a lean culture. material and equipment removed, everything
Consider this contrast. One project has clean, everything in designated and marked
had an unusually high level of ongoing tech- locations) in the area. They also cover the
nical support from internal and external con- basics of participation, such as holding team
sultants. New layouts and material handling start-up meetings each shift at the team
processes have been put in place. Feeder information board and keeping the informa-
lines have replaced batch subassembly oper- tion on it up to date. Part of this process is an
ations. Bench build stations have been improvement suggestion card system with
replaced by progressive lines. the cards and progress on the suggestions
In other words, there has been steady displayed on the teams information board.
technical improvement. Unfortunately, it took Team leaders, supervisors, and the superin-
a long time to see any of the benefit from the tendent have targets for number of imple-
improvement, because the leaders in the area mented suggestions per month. Another Lean is
the superintendent and supervisors didnt element is something we call participative
realize that these physical changes had to be design, a simple structured method for
paradoxical.
accompanied by the development of new involving those affected by a process, layout, Its easy to
habits to make them function as designed. or equipment change in a hands-on evalua- understand
Operators were allowed to build ahead tion of a prototype or mock-up of the pro-
in subassembly areas even when the com- posed change. (Technical details, like but difficult
ponents were not needed. The operators monitoring standardized work and the status to do.
were keeping busy, so it seemed OK. The of visual pull systems, also get attention.)
specified in-process queues were not moni- On the weekly gemba walks, the super-
tored, so theyd vary between overflowing or intendent follows up on these day-to-day
empty. Operators were pulled off of flow lines practices that taken together establish and
by supervisors to chase parts, causing the maintain a culture of responsibility, pride,
lines to stop. Or, extra operators were put participation, and contribution. In contrast, in
into lines balanced to take time that were the area that only looked lean, operators indi-
backing up, throwing off the lines balance cate they feel uninformed and uninvolved
without addressing the flow problem. The unless they happened to be one of the few on
supervisors didnt know what to do in a lean a project team. They havent been directly
operation, so they did what had been effec- involved and havent had an opportunity to
tive in the mass production, batch and queue be exposed in any application-based depth to
environments from which they came. The the principles and rationale for lean
superintendent didnt know what to do, approaches. In general, they have a feeling of
either. The result was that the area looked having been done to even though their pay
lean, in terms of its layout, but it didnt has benefited from the project-driven
operate that way. improvements in productivity. Many of them
In our best implementation to date, the cringe at the mention of more change.
superintendent conducts gemba walks with In the best implementation, operators
each supervisor each week, as noted in the have come to understand quite a bit about
discussion of accountability. The superin- lean. Theyre now practicing the lean day-to-

35
Third Quarter 2001
day routines without thinking much about most effective superintendents recognize that
them, but its clear that the area runs more lean means a new day in relationships across
smoothly, more predictably, and far more effi- professional boundaries. These leaders have
ciently. (Improved efficiency is reflected in a taken affirmative stances toward including
productivity bonus in each areas pay plan.) support groups in their planning teams, lis-
Improvements in this area in the ten weeks tening to their advice, and incorporating the
prior to the time of this writing have resulted support groups in the routine operation and
in productivity gains of over half a million management of the area. Lean changes
dollars in a workforce of about 150 people. everyones role, and it certainly changes what
These improvements have all come with the the support groups need to do for lean to
participation of the people involved in the work. The best leaders recognize that
In the best changed work, and theyre ready for more. changes will be required of the support
groups, too, and help them understand what
implementation, Effective Relations With Support their new roles entail and why theyre impor-
operators have Groups tant for the entire enterprise to succeed.
come to Many of our lean implementations have Lessons Learned And Applied
involved changes to the flow of material
understand Weve worked our way through many
through the plants, the quantities of invento-
quite a bit ry on the floor or in storage, and the method conversion projects and, as those things go,
for scheduling or signaling production. These have made many mistakes. Fortunately, each
about lean. project has gone better than the ones before
are all part of the responsibility of the pro-
duction and inventory control department it. Weve tried to learn from our experience
(PIC). Call them the Hatfields. and to put in place measures to prevent what
The project team (call them the weve seen go awry. Heres a list of some of
McCoys) overwhelmingly representing man- the countermeasures we have routinely
ufacturing, designs the changes to these come to use.
processes in most projects. In the past, man- 1. Follow a roadmap. Though working
ufacturing would set up a kanban with PIC, with external expert consultants has
but fail to execute according to its signals. been helpful, they tend to introduce
Then, when manufacturing ran short of parts, one step at a time. Weve found a need
it would blame PIC. The same is too-often to provide the big picture, or a com-
true between maintenance and manufactur- plete model project plan. Plant teams
ing, in which when the equipment is running want to know the major tasks theyll
it belongs to manufacturing, and when its need to tackle and in what order. And,
broken down it belongs to maintenance. An significantly, the roadmap weve built
effectively functioning lean value stream a detailed project plan in MS Project
requires precise and disciplined execution of intersperses the technical steps with
the pull system, and the pull system requires the elements of cultural change and
regular adjustments and refinements based communication they drive. The techni-
on changes in mix and volume. An effective- cal project provides the leverage for
ly functioning lean value stream requires getting started on the cultural changes
equipment ready on demand. In turn, this on which the long-term success of the
entails regular preventive maintenance work activity depends. The corporate lean
by the skilled trades, and regular cleaning, team assesses progress and complete
inspection, lubrication, and routine adjust- ness against the plan at periodic
ment by the operators. milestone reviews.
Establishing new working relationships 2. Readiness assessment. Weve started
with groups where conflict across bound- doing readiness assessments with the
aries has been the norm for many years is not superintendents whose areas are
an easy thing, and not without setbacks. The about to go through a lean conversion.

36
Target Volume 17, Number 3
The dimensions of the assessment are expose all leaders to a detailed picture
the same seven dimensions detailed in of what will be expected of them in the
the leadership section of this article. An future. We also begin actively working
organizational psychologist and a at that time with the superintendent on
quality system assessor jointly conduct his or her role in these expectations.
a 90-minute interview with the super- That includes understanding these
intendent. We produce a report with a expectations, being able to teach and
readiness profile (further from ready, inspect for them, and in holding super-
closer to ready, ready) for each dimen- visors accountable for implementing
sion, specific recommendations, and them personally and through their
detailed findings. We go over the report team leaders at an appropriate pace
with the plant manager and the super- both during and after the project phase.
intendent. A summary profile goes to 5. Create a change lead on the project
the manufacturing vice president. The team. The change lead (see Mann,
idea is to identify the support needed 2001) is a new, crucial position on the
to augment a superintendents skills project team and later, working with
and experiences so we can go into a newly converted lean areas. The
project with everyones eyes open change lead works with the project
about the resources and support that team to be sure technical progress (for
will be needed for success. example, prototype design of new
3. Backfill leaders. This is a must-do first workstations or detailed operation of
step in the initial phase of our model kanban signal movements) is reviewed
project plan. A lean conversion of an and critiqued by operators who will
operating value stream is a big deal, have to live with the new system. The
not something to be done in ones change lead brings participative
spare time. The value stream leader processes to the design phase of the
needs to be taken out of his or her day- project, for two reasons. The first is to
to-day responsibilities in order to get a better design through input from
concentrate fully on the details of the a broader range of people. The second
conversion project. Not incidentally, is to begin giving people practice in
the superintendent and a supervisor or participative methods where they have
two become deeply immersed in lean been absent or weak. After implemen-
principles and their application during tation, the change lead coaches super
this process. They develop the under- visors as theyre learning the new
standing theyll need to operate and aspects of their jobs, especially the
improve on the work of the projeCt cultural elements. The change lead
team when the design phase is com- also conducts weekly gemba walks
plete and the project has been focused on the new cultural practices.
implemented. 6. Begin gemba walking right away, and
4. Set expectations in advance. We now continue it. Leaders need to walk the
have a clearer view of what it takes to processes on the floor to be sure that
operate a lean area day-to-day and what was designed in the project
what the main elements are of a phase is understood and being imple-
participative, lean shop floor culture. mented as intended. The first gemba
Weve documented these expectations walks will be with the superintendent
and some tools to go with them. We go and a lean expert with the purpose of
over this material in detail with all teaching the superintendent to see
those in leadership positions in the what is lean and what isnt (Rother and
area early in the design phase of Shook, 1998). Then, the superintendent
conversion projects. We want to begins to gemba walk every week with

37
Third Quarter 2001
each supervisor, as described in the out of the way, humanely but quickly.
leadership sections on accountability Dont make it the superintendents job
and cultural change earlier. The learn- to find them a new home. Thats for
ing model for lean quickly transitions someone else to do the plant
from classroom and concept to some manager, HR, or whoever else. Move
thing much more like an apprentice- fast; people are watching, they know
master, in which the master first whos working with the new system
shows, then looks for understanding, and whos not, and theyll be highly
then for proficiency on the part of the alert to failure to follow through. Your
apprentice. Here, the superintendent commitment will be judged by your
must become the master, then the actions, not by your words.
teacher. This is absolutely critical to 9. A note on consultants. I often hire a
establish and instill new habits and guide when I go fishing in a new area
new skills. Dont neglect it! for the first time. Its helpful to benefit
7. Gemba walk for cultural practices as from one with knowledge and experi-
well as technical ones. Dont forget to ence when in a new territory. The
inspect what you expect in the way of same is true for lean. Expert, experi-
A lean cultural practices. Be explicit about enced consultation is an essential
expectations for things like startup ingredient in the mix as youre pursu-
conversion of ing a lean conversion. You can teach
meetings, team information boards,
an operating suggestion systems and improvement yourself, but its likely that your organi-
value stream is plans, participative design to involve zation wont be that patient, plus you
operators in virtually any change, can easily avoid some mistakes based
a big deal, not sustaining 5S gains, and maintaining on others informed advice. (See Figure
something to be and extending visual controls. The 2, What Consultants Can and Cant Do
superintendents gemba walks definitely For You.)
done in ones include the new cultural practices. Using a consultant in lean is like
spare time. These walks are supplemented by ones fishing in another way, too. Folk wisdom
conducted by the local change lead or holds that if you give a person a fish, you
corporate change management con- can feed them for day, but if you can teach
sultants in order to assess progress them how to fish, they can feed themselves
and provide feedback and, as needed, for a lifetime. In other words, lean is a do-it-
coaching to the superintendent. yourself proposition. To make it work, you
8. Move low performers quickly. Most need the knowledge gained from deep
organizations have discipline processes immersion in the philosophy, principles, tools
to respond to those who wont perform and techniques and their application. You
in a new system. Few have systems to need to make some of your own mistakes,
respond to those who cant, despite and you definitely need to make your own
their best efforts. This is a policy area decisions about how to implement. If you
thats important to support a takt time abdicate decision-making to your consult-
production environment. Most organi- ant, when you no longer can afford to keep
zations have a difficult time removing them available, you wont have learned what
supervisors and others from leadership you need to know in order maintain, sustain,
positions who either cant or wont get and improve on the system.
it, understand what they need to do
differently, and execute the new Summary
responsibilities. This is a fatal flaw and Lean is paradoxical. Its easy to under-
will stall progress and undermine stand but difficult to do. Most aspects of a
commitment faster than anything. lean implementation are not technically com-
Develop a process to get those people plicated, but none of them is easy to imple-

38
Target Volume 17, Number 3
ment. Getting lean implemented is further What Consultants Can and Cant Do For You
compounded in a brownfield conversion if,
like us, youre committed in advance to Rely on Consultants To: Rely on Internal Resources To:
working with most of those already in place
in leadership positions. Our leadership group Teach lean principles, techniques, Implement a new lean system
and how to see
is about average. There are a few outstanding
performers for whom achieving a successful Offer advice, critique, and Make the decisions regarding your
conversion is well within their grasp. There suggestions lean system
are a few who simply arent up to the chal-
Stretch your thinking Make the decisions regarding your
lenge. The majority of our leaders are in the
lean system
middle. Until recently we have not had a
stringent process for selecting and promoting Provide Ah-ha insights and Create and maintain disciplined
leaders in manufacturing, nor until recently prods adherence to the system
have we invested much in their professional Stimulate you to take action Sustain and continuously improve.
development.
Our challenge has been to devise
Figure 2.
approaches and tools to improve the odds
that our average leaders will be able to lead
above-average lean conversion projects and
then go on to operate their new, lean areas
with above-average results. A key to this
effort was to recognize leadership as the
central factor predicting success and further,
References
Bromberg, D., Suffer to sing the blues, Out of the
to recognize the dimensions that contribute Blues, Columbia Records, New York, 1977.
to effective leadership. Imai, M., Gemba Kaizen, New York, McGraw-Hill, 1997.
Weve elected to support and develop Mann, D. W., Why supervisors resist change and
the leaders who have grown up with the what you can do about it, Journal for Quality and Par-
company. Perhaps the most positive sign that ticipation, 23,3, 2000.
this strategy is working is this: We dont find Mann, D. W., High participation communication in
ourselves making the same mistakes over managing change, Cincinnati: Association for Quality
and Participation Annual Conference Proceedings, 2001.
again and were not making many new ones.
Rother, M. and J. Shook, Learning to See, Lean Enter-
Our record of completed projects is evening
prise Institute, Brookline, MA 1998.
out with a string of solid successes. Weve
stayed on the learning curve long enough to
have built our own momentum. We have
confidence it will carry us into a much leaner David Mann, Ph.D. is responible for operations change
management, Steelcase, Inc.; he can be reached by e-mail
future.
at dmann@steelcase.com. He is a presenter for the October
8-11, 2001 AME Annual Conference in Raleigh-Durham, NC..
Authors note: This article represents the work
and accumulated experience of the Steelcase
Production System (SPS) office, which Ive had 2001 AME For information on reprints, contact:
Association for Manufacturing Excellence
the good fortune to be part of since its incep- 380 West Palatine Road
tion. My colleagues have included Ken Knister, Wheeling, IL 60090-5863
847/520-3282
John Duba, Dave Rottiers, Al TenHor, Larry www.ame.org
McCrum, and Gina Wieczorek all of Steel-
case.

39
Third Quarter 2001

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