5 Steps to Implement Lean Processes in 2024

Lean processes help businesses work better by cutting waste and improving value for customers. Here’s a quick guide to implementing lean in 2024:

1. Know what customers want
2. Map out your current process
3. Make work flow smoothly
4. Produce based on demand
5. Always try to improve

Key benefits of lean:

Benefit	Description
Save money	Cut costs
Do more	Increase productivity
Better quality	Improve products/services
Customer satisfaction	Meet needs better
Continuous improvement	Keep getting better

Main lean tools:

• Value Stream Mapping
• 5S Workplace Organization
• Kanban
• Six Sigma
• Total Productive Maintenance

To start your lean journey:

1. Assess your current work
2. Set clear goals
3. Involve all employees
4. Start with small projects
5. Monitor progress and adjust

By following these steps and using lean tools, businesses can streamline operations, reduce waste, and boost customer value in 2024.

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Step 1: Know What Customers Want

To start lean processes, you need to understand what customers really need. This helps you cut out waste and make your work better.

Learn Customer Needs

Find out what customers want by:

• Asking them questions
• Looking at their comments and complaints
• Watching how they use your product
• Talking to them directly

These ways help you know what customers really care about.

Define Value for Customers

After learning about customers, make clear statements about what they want:

1. Find the main problems customers have
2. Show how your product fixes these problems
3. Focus on what customers will pay for
4. Write down clear ideas about your product’s value

Remember, value means what the customer thinks is important, not what you think.

Ways to Get Customer Feedback

Use different methods to keep learning about customer needs:

Method	What It Does	Why It’s Good
Net Promoter Score (NPS)	Checks if customers like your product	Fast, easy to measure
Customer Journey Map	Shows customer experience step-by-step	Finds problems and chances to improve
Focus Groups	Small group talks with customers	Gives detailed information
Online Surveys	Gets feedback from many customers	Cheap and easy to do
Social Media Checks	Looks at what customers say online	Shows current thoughts and trends

Cut Out Useless Steps

After knowing what customers want, remove steps that don’t help:

1. Draw out your current work steps
2. For each step, ask: “Does this help the customer?”
3. Find steps that don’t add value
4. Make plans to remove or reduce these steps
5. Keep checking and fixing your work process

Step 2: Map Out Your Process

To make your work better, you need to draw out how you do things now. This helps you see where you can improve.

Draw Your Process Map

To make a good process map:

1. Find where your work starts and ends
2. List all the main steps in order
3. Use boxes for steps and diamonds for choices
4. Add arrows to show which way things go
5. Put info boxes under each step

Here’s what an info box might look like:

What We Measure	How Much
How long it takes	5 minutes
Time to switch tasks	2 minutes
How often it works	95%
How many good products	98%

Find Problems

When you look at your map, check for these types of waste:

• Making too much
• Waiting around
• Moving things too much
• Doing extra work
• Having too much stuff
• Moving people too much
• Making mistakes

To find out why problems happen, keep asking “why” until you get to the root cause.

Tools for Making Maps

You can use these tools to help draw your process:

1. Value Stream Mapping (VSM) software
2. Flowchart tools
3. Swimlane diagrams
4. Spaghetti diagrams

These tools help you see how complex work is done and where you can make it better.

Compare Now vs. Future

To make your process better:

1. Draw how you work now
2. Draw how you want to work in the future
3. Mark areas where you can improve
4. Make a plan to change from how you work now to how you want to work

Step 3: Make Work Flow Smoothly

To make lean processes work well, you need to make sure work flows smoothly. Here’s how to do that.

Set Up Your Workspace Better

A good workspace helps people work faster. Try these ideas:

• Use the 5S method: Sort, Set in order, Shine, Standardize, and Sustain
• Make special areas for different jobs
• Put tools and materials where they’re easy to reach
• Use colors and labels to show where things go

When your workspace is neat, you waste less time moving around and get more done.

Cut Down Wait Times

Less waiting means work gets done faster. Here’s how to cut wait times:

Method	What It Does	How It Helps
Kanban boards	Show work progress	Find slow spots and fix them
Clear instructions	Give step-by-step guides	Make sure everyone does tasks the same way
Train workers for many jobs	Teach people different tasks	Fill in when someone’s away

These methods help work keep moving and stop waste.

Add Quality Checks

Checking work as you go helps keep things good. Try these ways:

1. Use the Jidoka idea:

• Find problems
• Stop work
• Fix the issue
• Look for why it happened

2. Use alerts for odd items

3. Get help fast when work piles up

4. Check quality at each step

These checks catch mistakes early so you don’t have to redo work later.

Order Tasks for Best Results

Doing tasks in the right order makes work go better. Here’s how:

1. Draw out your whole work process
2. Find steps that add value and those that don’t
3. Take out steps that don’t help
4. Put tasks in order to pass work less and wait less
5. Try to finish one thing before starting the next

When you put tasks in a good order, work goes smoother and you get more done.

Step 4: Make Only What’s Needed

This step focuses on making products based on what customers want, not on guesses. It helps cut costs and waste.

Produce Based on Demand

Making things only when customers ask for them is called a “pull system.” It’s different from making things based on guesses, which is a “push system.” A pull system helps:

• Keep less stuff in storage
• Cut down on waste
• Make work go smoother
• Use resources better

When you make only what’s needed, you don’t end up with too much stuff that might not sell.

Switch to Pull System

To start using a pull system:

1. Look at how you work now: See what you can make better.

2. Use Kanban: This is a way to show when to start making things based on orders.

3. Teach workers: Help your team learn how the new system works.

4. Start small: Try it in one area first before doing it everywhere.

5. Keep checking: See how it’s working and fix any problems.

Tools to Manage Stock and Costs

Here are some tools that can help:

Tool	What it does	How it helps
Kanban	Shows work progress	Stops making too much
Just-In-Time (JIT)	Makes products when needed	Keeps less stuff in storage
Value Stream Mapping	Shows how work flows	Finds ways to work better
Kaizen	Always trying to get better	Makes work easier and cheaper

These tools work together to help you use what you have better and make your work smoother.

React Faster to Customer Needs

A pull system helps you change quickly when customers want different things. This means:

• You can change what you make more easily
• You can finish orders faster
• Customers are happier
• You can keep up with what people want to buy

Step 5: Always Try to Improve

In Lean processes, getting better never stops. This last step is about making sure everyone keeps looking for ways to do things better.

Make Getting Better a Regular Thing

To really use Lean ideas, companies need to make getting better part of everyday work:

• Help everyone understand why getting better matters
• Ask workers to find ways to cut waste in their jobs
• Have regular meetings to check how things are going
• Make it okay to learn from mistakes

When getting better becomes normal, Lean ideas become a big part of how the company works.

Use Kaizen Ways

Kaizen means “change for the better.” It’s a good way to keep improving. Here’s what Kaizen does:

• Short projects to fix things quickly
• Small changes that add up over time
• Using a plan-do-check-act way to solve problems
• Letting workers suggest ways to make their work better

Kaizen helps companies build quality into their work and keep getting better.

Get Everyone to Help

Making things better isn’t just for bosses. Everyone needs to help. Here’s how to get everyone involved:

• Teach all workers about Lean
• Make teams with people from different parts of the company
• Have a way for workers to share their ideas
• Thank workers who help make things better

When everyone helps, the company can use all their know-how to make big changes.

Keep Track of How You’re Doing

To make sure your work to get better is helping, you need to measure things. Here’s how:

1. Pick important things to measure
2. Check how you’re doing often
3. Look at the numbers to see what else you can fix
4. Use charts and boards to show how things are going

What to Measure	What It Means	Why It’s Important
How long things take	Time from start to finish	Shows if work is fast
Time for one task	How long one part takes	Finds slow spots
How much you make	How fast you work	Shows if you’re working well
How many mistakes	How many things aren’t good	Shows if quality is good
How happy customers are	What customers think	Shows if you’re doing a good job

Key Lean Tools to Use

To make lean processes work well, you need the right tools. Here are some main lean tools that can help make your work better and keep improving:

Main Lean Tools

1. Value Stream Mapping (VSM)

• Shows how materials and information move
• Finds waste and problems in how work is done
• Helps make plans to do things better

2. 5S Workplace Organization

• Sort, Set in order, Shine, Standardize, Sustain
• Makes work safer and faster
• Keeps the workplace clean and tidy

3. Kanban

• Uses boards to show work in progress
• Helps control how much stuff you have and how it’s made
• Supports making things just when they’re needed

4. Six Sigma

• Uses numbers to find and fix problems
• Follows a plan: Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control
• Tries to make things the same every time

5. Total Productive Maintenance (TPM)

• Fixes machines before they break
• Makes machines last longer and work better
• Gets workers to help take care of machines

When to Use Each Tool

Tool	When to Use
Value Stream Mapping	When starting to make things better
5S	To clean up and organize work areas
Kanban	To manage how much stuff you have and make
Six Sigma	When you have big quality problems
TPM	To keep machines working well

Use Lean Tools Every Day

To keep getting better, use these tools all the time:

1. Start with easy tools like 5S
2. Teach workers how to use the tools
3. Fix problems every day using a plan-do-check-act way
4. Use boards to show how work is going
5. Keep checking and fixing how work is done

Dealing with Common Problems

When using lean processes, you might face some issues. Here’s how to fix the most common ones:

Handle Resistance to Change

Many people don’t like change. To help with this:

• Tell everyone why lean is good
• Let workers help make decisions
• Train workers well
• Show off small wins

When you talk openly about changes and show how they help, people often start to like the new way.

Keep Lean Efforts Going

It can be hard to keep using lean ideas over time. To keep going:

1. Make clear plans for change

• Write down how to do jobs
• Set clear goals
• Use A3 sheets to plan how to fix problems

2. Make getting better part of your work culture

• Ask workers what they think often
• Thank people who use lean ideas well
• Use lean in everyday work

3. Check how you’re doing

• Use numbers to see if you’re getting better
• Tell everyone about what’s working well

Balance Now and Later

It’s important to fix today’s problems while also planning for the future:

Today’s Focus	Future Plans
Fix big problems now	Make work better over time
Get quick wins to feel good	Help everyone think lean
Save money right away	Keep looking for ways to improve

To do both:

• Pick projects that help now and later
• Teach workers so they can use lean ideas for a long time
• Check your plans often to make sure they still fit your business

Measure Your Lean Success

Checking how well your Lean work is going helps you keep getting better. By looking at key numbers, you can see if your Lean processes are working and make smart choices to improve your work.

Key Lean Numbers to Watch

To see if Lean is working, look at these important numbers:

Number to Watch	What It Means	What You Want
Order Time	How long from order to delivery	Make it shorter
Work Time	Time to finish one unit of work	Make it shorter
Machine Use	How well machines are used and work	Make it higher
Mistake Rate	How many products or services have problems	Make it lower
Stock Turnover	How fast you use or sell your stock	Make it faster
Quality Cost	Money spent because of poor quality	Make it lower
Worker Involvement	How much workers join in Lean work	Make it higher

These numbers show how well Lean is working in different parts of your business.

How to Check Lean Progress

To keep an eye on your Lean work:

1. Set Clear Goals

• Choose what you want to achieve for each number
• Make sure these goals fit with what your company wants

2. Use Computer Tools

• Set up ways to collect information
• Use charts and reports to see the information easily

3. Look at Results Often

• Check how you’re doing regularly
• See how you compare to other companies in your field

4. Get Workers Involved

• Ask team members to help track important numbers
• Help workers feel responsible for making things better

Use Numbers to Improve

Use your Lean numbers to keep getting better:

1. Find Where to Improve

• Look at your numbers to see where work is slow or has problems
• Focus on areas that will make the biggest difference

2. Follow a Plan-Do-Check-Act Cycle

• Plan: Make plans based on what the numbers show
• Do: Try out changes in small ways
• Check: See if the changes helped by looking at the numbers
• Act: Keep changes that work and fix any new problems

3. Make Decisions Based on Numbers

• Use what the numbers tell you to make choices
• Be happy when you reach your goals

4. Keep Changing What You Measure

• Make sure you’re looking at the right things
• Change what you measure as your business changes

Wrap-Up

Quick Review of 5 Steps

1. Know What Customers Want: Find out what customers value

2. Map Out Your Process: Draw your work steps and find waste

3. Make Work Flow Smoothly: Set up work areas better and cut wait times

4. Make Only What’s Needed: Use pull systems and keep less stock

5. Always Try to Improve: Keep looking for ways to do better

Long-Term Gains from Lean

Using lean processes helps companies in many ways:

Gain	How It Helps
Better Work	Faster work with less waste
Lower Costs	Less waste and better stock control save money
Better Products	Checking quality often makes better goods
Quick Changes	Can change fast when customers want something new
Happy Workers	Workers who help make things better like their jobs more

Start Your Lean Journey

Here’s how to begin using lean ideas:

1. Look at How You Work Now: Check your work to see what you can make better.

2. Set Goals: Choose what you want to make better and by how much.

3. Get Everyone Involved: Help workers understand lean and share their ideas.

4. Start Small: Try lean ideas with one team first.

5. Check and Fix: Look at how you’re doing and make changes as needed.

FAQs

What is the lean process technique?

Lean process technique is a way to make work better by:

• Cutting out steps that don’t help
• Making work smoother
• Always trying to do better

It focuses on giving customers what they want while using less.

Main parts of lean include:

Part	What it does
Value Stream Mapping	Shows how work is done to find ways to make it better
Pull Systems	Makes things only when customers ask
Kaizen	Keeps making small changes to get better
5S	Makes work areas neat and easy to use

Lean is different from old ways of working because it:

• Makes things based on what customers want, not guesses
• Tries to have less work sitting around
• Asks all workers to help make things better

To use lean, you need:

• Everyone to agree it’s important
• Good talking between workers
• A workplace that likes to learn and get better