The Truth About 'Lean'

In 1990, Womack, Jones & Ross introduced Lean Manufacturing to the world in their book ‘The Machine That Changed The World’. Lean is the western adaptation of the Japanese manufacturing principles pioneered by Toyota under the name Toyota Production System (TPS).

Truth # 1: Lean is widely misunderstood

Unfortunately, over the years, the word ‘Lean’ has become some kind of a buzz word associated with several misconceptions. Just look up ‘lean misconceptions’ on any internet search engine, and you will come across hundreds of online articles providing a long list of Lean misconceptions stated by various Lean experts around the world.

Personally, I have come across a few of these misconceptions:

• "Be Lean & Mean":

Sometimes top management may use this phrase to encourage department heads to reduce their headcount. This misconception assumes that implementing Lean means reduced headcount. Do this as part of a Lean implementation and you are set for failure. A basic philosophy of Lean is that resources that are made redundant because of Lean implementation are kept so that top performers are relieved from their day-to-day activities to focus on leading the Kaizen (continuous improvement) process, instead. Poor performers still need to be laid off, but this should always be the case, regardless of Lean.

• Lean means ‘Just In Time’:

Many people use the terms ‘Lean’ and ‘Just-in-Time (JIT)’ interchangeably. In fact, Just-in-Time is only one of the four basic building blocks of the House of Lean, which includes in addition to JIT: Standardisation, Respect for People and Autonomation.

• Lean means 'Zero Inventory':

Although ‘zero’ inventory is one of the objectives in Lean manufacturing, it is in reality more of a theoretical objective. Even Toyota cannot achieve ‘zero inventory’. A realistic objective would be minimum inventory: only as much as needed, which is subject to continuous review and improvement.

Truth # 2: Lean is not for everyone

Let me start by clarifying the statement. It is “Lean is not for everyone”, as opposed to “Lean is not for every organisation”.

In other words, this is not to say that Lean does not work in every type of business. I participated in a research paper that supports the concept that Lean is a universal system that suits every industry, showcasing the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) industry as an example: (http://bibliotecadigital.fgv.br/ojs/index.php/joscm/article/view/41516/40262)

However, it is important to understand that Lean is a ‘way of thinking’ rather than a well-structured system with clear steps for implementation. Think of Lean as an open source system that you can take and customise to suit your business.

There is no user’s guide for Lean. This is why I say Lean is not for everyone. Many people prefer to have a system that provides them with clear steps for implementation. There is nothing wrong with that. It just means that Lean is not their cup of tea.

Truth # 3: You don’t need a consultant to implement Lean

I am not against consultants. I actually think consultants add a lot of value, but only when used wisely and in the right capacity. Consultants carry out projects in different businesses and gain a wide range experiences, which is something that is not easily found within a single organisation.

The best way to start on the Lean journey is by building the foundation yourself. Start by reading as much Lean literature as you can; books, journal articles and online content. Here’s a list of reading material to help you get started:

• The Machine That Changed The World: Womack & Jones.
• Lean Thinking: Womack & Jones.
• Toyota Production System: Taiichi Ohno.
• The Lean Toolbox: John Bicheno.

Visit manufacturing sites that have successfully implemented Lean. This is a good example of where consultants come in handy. They can help you in finding and having access to such sites.

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