The Second Edition of “The Complete Lean Enterprise: Value Stream Mapping for Office and Services” -- Why Is It Needed?

It has been 10 years since the publication of the award-winning, best-selling book called The Complete Lean Enterprise: Value Stream Mapping for Office and Services. This book brought value stream mapping and Lean thinking out of the factory and into office and service environments in all industries. The authors, Beau Keyte and Drew Locher, have just published a second edition of this book, and I recently asked them: “Why is a second edition of this book needed?” Here is Drew Locher's complete response:

During this time, my co-author, Beau Keyte, and I have continued to deeply learn about the application of this powerful methodology in our work with a wide variety of organizations and industries, including financial institutions, healthcare, hospitality, the “back office” in manufacturers, and engineering firms. Beyond the “mechanics” of the use of the tool, we have come to better appreciate the “social” benefits of the approach to any organization. The second edition represents our collective experiences over during those 10 years and captures many key lessons.

The collaboration that the methodology ignites between departments and functions (that have traditionally not worked effectively together) is nothing short of stunning in most cases. Through the process, they learn from each other, develop a common vision going forward, and form a true team that is critical to the successful implementation of the "future state" that provides breakthrough results for their organization. In addition, we learned many other success factors. For example, it is not solely the objective to implement the tools and techniques envisioned in the future state that fundamentally change the way work is processed and flows -- a new way to manage the value stream is needed. Only then will sustainable change occur and continuous improvement be practiced beyond the first future state – the true objective of Lean Thinking.

The new content includes an entire chapter dedicated to the “management process,” and “learning your way to the future state.” In addition, during the past 10 years, we have observed many individuals and organizations practice their own use of the methodology, often with mixed results. Most commonly, we have seen current state maps without proper future state designs. Value stream mapping should result in radical improvement resulting in significant improvement in key metrics; greater than 50% reduction in lead time, up to 90% improvement in information or service quality, and the like. Very often, however, the projected results are modest and represent incremental improvement. Other times the future state is nothing more than the current state with up to 100 ideas for improvement noted. Long “to-do” lists are created and responsibilities and dates assigned. This represents a “waste war" or a ”drive-by kaizen” approach rather than the thoughtful redesign of the value stream based on the key principles of Lean that will achieve the aforementioned breakthrough results.

We have honed our messaging and teaching with regard to future state design in the second edition. The future state questions have been revised and applied to a new case study so the reader will find them easier to put into actual practice.

We feel that even seasoned practitioners will benefit from the second edition if they are open to honing their skills in the powerful value stream mapping methodology. And for those who are new to the subject, here is the opportunity to learn the current thinking from the original leaders on the application of value stream mapping and Lean to office and services. 

What do readers of this book think? Do you feel the second edition of this book is a welcome addition to the Lean literature currently available?

The Production Preparation Process (3P) -- A True "Game Changer"?

At a recent conference, I had the chance to speak with Drew Locher about the Production Preparation Process (3P), and how it is used. Drew recently co-authored a book titled Unleashing the Power of 3P: The Key to Breakthrough Improvement with Dan McDonnell. I asked Drew: "How does 3P provide a real breakthrough? And, how does it function within a Lean initiative?" Here is Drew's full response:

3P can provide breakthrough results since it is foremost a methodology for innovation.  First, one needs a clear problem statement of a problem that should be resolved.  This can be the function that a new or existing product is expected to perform. Then, two key principles are used to expand people's creative thought process. "Biomimicry" is where examples of that function are identified in nature.  Why nature?  Nature has already solved countless problems over millions of years. This principle also helps people "get out of their box" and expand their thought process. The next principle is "Seven Ways" -- Do not simply identify one possible solution, identify seven. This stretches the creative process. The creative process ceases when people converge too quickly on a possible solution, and perhaps overlook a better one. At some point, those examples from nature are translated to possible human-made solutions, and the best elements of the seven ways are combined to form a better solution.  A third principle is rapid simulation -- to make the "fuzzy" as tangible as possible, as early as possible.  This provides the means for rapid learning cycles, which improves the solution that results.

As for "fitting in" with Lean, think of 3P as kaizen on steroids.  Instead of making incremental improvements on existing products or processes, 3P is intended for major redesigns of either or both simultaneously.  Therefore it must be fully supported by leaders in terms of the commitment of appropriate resources to insure success.  It is not for the weak of heart!  The underlying principles, however, can still be applied in many business contexts.  Consider an example of a cellular/flow kaizen event on an existing process and where major change is not possible. A team should be encouraged to consider multiple alternative cell or flow line designs for the purpose of identify a better one.  And the team should rapidly simulate proposed designs using simple materials.  In this way, the "spirit" of 3P is maintained though the exact methodology is not necessarily followed.

What do you think of Drew's explanations? Have any of you used 3P at the front end of the design process? Do you believe 3P is key to designing market-changing products?

Here is a video of Drew speaking directly about his new book:

Lean Office? Really?

Last week at the Annual Shingo Prize Conference, I had a chance to talk with Drew Locher, who just recently published a book titled Lean Office and Service Simplified: The Definitive How-To Guide and has previously won a Shingo award for a book he co-authored titled The Complete Lean Enterprise: Value Stream Mapping for Administrative and Office Processes. During our conversation, I asked Drew: "Can lean really be applied in an office and service environment where so much variation exists?" Here is Drew's complete response: Much of the variation found in an office and service environment is "self created." Lean concepts such as standard work, batch reduction, and leveling are just a few that directly address much of the variation that is encountered. For example, the lack of standard work usually means that people perform similar activities in different ways. This creates variation. An individual "batching" a particular activity creates variation in the amount of work that moves from person to person or department to department. For example, if a person performs an activity once a week, then a week’s worth of work will arrive at the next step all at once. Further, if the person performs this weekly activity at different times it creates still more variation for the recipient. From the recipient’s viewpoint, the demand for this work will appear to be very unpredictable. It is due to the manner in which it is processed by the previous person, however, and this can be changed and improved. Now, not all variation can be eliminated. We can, however, often accommodate still more of the variation that remains. Believe it or not, unplanned work can be planned for. We can put aside time for "drop-in" work so that it can be processed in a way that minimizes disruption. Experience has shown that up to 90% of the variation that people struggle with can be addressed by the application of lean concepts. The result is a much more predictable work environment that is more productive and less stressful. Has any reader of this blog tried apply Lean to an office, service, or transactional environment? Do you agree with Drew's comments?