About
Exploring Solution Spaces, Keith Ray's blog on Software development and other topics.
Send comments to:
keithray@mac.com
| For Agile Training, eLearning, or Coaching contact: |
| Industrial Logic, Inc. |
| 866-540-8336 (toll free) |
| 510-540-8336 (Berkeley, California) |
| Links |
| xpminifaq |
| Résumé |
| “Adopting XP” Article 2002 (pdf) |
| “ Refactoring” Article 2006 |
| AYE Conference |
| Lucien W. Dupont |
| Elisabeth Hendrickson |
| Johanna Rothman's Managing Product Development |
| Brian Marick's Exploration Through Example |
| Esther Derby's Insights You Can Use |
| Laurent Bossavit's Incipient(thoughts) |
| Dale Emery's Conversations with Dale |
| Martin Fowler's Bliki |
| Creating Passionate Users |
Archives
Subscribe
RSS Exploring Solution Spaces XML
2003.Sep.21 Sun
I looked up Kaizen Events because of a blog entry by Joe Ely. He emphasizes that kaizen events take practice, must adapt to local conditions. They reshape expectations about change, and help you re-think your job. He says that goal clarity is critical, simple real-time documentation is essential, and visual tools are critical too.
Google finds this definition:
The Kaizen method is a "rapid improvement process" utilizing a cross-functioning group of managers and employees working as a team to meet targets in a results-oriented focus on a predefined project area. The process may take the following steps: define the problem/opportunity, choose the best people, and correct the problem in one week or less using Kaizen tools and techniques. The ultimate goal is to significantly reduce costs, reduce lead times, reduce required inventory space, enhance workforce empowerment, eliminate waste, and focus on continuous improvement. The Kaizen process may include: new product development, robotics, total quality control, Just-in-Time, statistical quality control, labor and management relations, or other concepts.
Another page claims these results from Kaizen Events
- 30-50% Productivity Improvements
- 30-50% Reductions in Floor Space Requirements
- 50-70% Quality Improvements
- 70-80% Reductions in WIP [Work-In-Process] Inventory
- 40-50% Reductions in Lead Time
Of course, those results came from improving conditions and processes of manufacturing (not the processes of designing and engineering), but I think most typical software processes, from requirements gathering to delivery, could obtain a 50% gain in productivity and an even higher reduction in defects by adapting a lean / agile software development process.
How would a company do this? Perhaps by starting with a facilitated retrospective. Maybe followed or preceded by a few observant people walking through the entire requirements-to-delivery process - counting how many information-lossy hand-offs there are between workers, how often work sits in queues waiting for actions or approvals, and other efficiency-killers.
Just found another definition, here:
Kaizen Event
Any action whose output is intended to be an improvement to an existing process. Kaizen Events are commonly refered to as a tool that:
- Gathers operators, managers, and owners of a process in one place
- Maps the existing process (using a deployment flowchart, in most cases)
- Improves on the existing process
- Solicits buy-in from all parties related to the process
Kaizen Events are an extremely efficient to quickly improve a process with a low Sigma score. Kaizen Events are also useful for convincing organizations new to Six Sigma of the methodology's value.
The true intent of a kaizen event is to hold small events attended by the owners and operators of a process to make improvements to that process which are within the scope of the process participants