What is Kaizen

Definition

kai·zen /ˈkīz(ə)n,ˈkīˌzen/
noun

A Japanese business philosophy of continuous improvement based on the idea that small, ongoing positive changes can reap significant improvements.

Kaizen comes from two Japanese words: ‘kai’ meaning ‘change’ and ‘zen’ meaning ‘good’. The Japanese philosophy was first introduced by Toyota back in the 1980s and has since been adopted by thousands of companies around the globe.

Toyota led the charge in developing a business process for catching issues in production as soon as they occurred and implementing process solutions to ensure the issue did not happen again.

Kaizen Checklist

Kaizens ALWAYS have:

A defined problem statement and scope of action - this is typically part of the overall 'charter' More about charters
A defined team that includes employees who are actually executing the process to be created or improved
A defined set of qualitative AND quantitative objectives to be achieved

Kaizens SHOULD have:

A short time span to focus on the improvements - between 3 and 5 days
A clear quantitative connection to identified business priorities

Benefits

This lean transformation encourages an improvement culture that gradually increases quality, efficiency, and profitability. Kaizen can be implemented in manufacturing, transactional, retail and health care environments.

Some non manufacturing industries you may not have known about:

Mayo Clinic Laboratories

At Mayo Clinic Laboratories, we focus on continually optimizing quality and improving patient care and employee and patient safety. We are committed to excellent client service. One of the ways we accomplish this is by using Lean principles -- a systematic approach to analyzing the flow of information and materials to eliminate waste, process variation, and imbalance in work areas. Source

Gaming and Hospitality

Lean Operations Management has a strong foothold in the hospitality industry. Harrah's Entertainment, Caesars Entertainment, MGM Resorts International and Starwood Hotels and Resorts have been successfully using the proven methodology (roadmap) for over 20 years.