Lean Management is one of the most advanced methodologies in the management of business activity. As a business model, it offers a competitive framework for managing a company by putting the customer at the center. Today it has become a practical method that makes it easier to successfully address the growing complexity and demands of the markets.
When we talk about Lean, we talk about value, about reducing waste (which does not create value). It is a process of continuous improvement within a company that aims to eliminate everything that is not productive, such as:
- Waste of time. Lean Management analyzes the work and processes of the company to optimize the time needed to carry them out.
- Unnecessary efforts. All actions within a company will be subject to review to find the best way to be carried out, minimizing the necessary effort.
- Control of expenses. All those expenses that are not related to an increase in productivity or profit will be eliminated.
The popularity of Lean Management in the business world is increasing and has become widespread in all industries. Thanks to the efficiency of its principles and the positive impact of this management approach on the general performance of companies, the Lean concept has become universal. In fact, Lean Management can be applied to any business or production process, from manufacturing to marketing to software development.
¿What were its origins?
This Lean Management strategy was created in the 1940s when the Toyota automobile company sought to reduce all those processes in the production chain that did not contribute anything to the manufacture of its cars. By employing Lean Management, they observed that productivity, efficiency, and business costs were reduced.
Later, the founders of Lean Enterprise unveiled this new technique and created the organizational foundations to make Lean Management a consolidated process that could serve any company in the world.
The Lean methodology seeks to continuously improve work processes, purposes, and people. Instead of trying to maintain full control of work processes and put them at the center of focus, Lean Management encourages shared responsibility and leadership.
The Lean culture is used in all sectors, on a regular basis, and in those that have production peaks, thanks to the fact that, by reducing the costs to make their products, they can hire the people they need at that time of greatest demand. In short, Lean Management succeeds because it is a flexible tool that advocates cost reduction without neglecting quality.
5 basic principles of Lean Management.
Identify the value you want to deliver.
When we talk about value, we refer to the solution that the company offers to the client. In fact, the processes that do not give value to the final product must be discarded. Identifying this value is the first step that every company must take in its Lean Management strategy.
Analyze production processes.
This second stage consists of studying how the production phases of the products are developed and how this final good is delivered to the client. If we carry out this action correctly, we will know which parts of the process do not add anything of value and, therefore, can be eliminated.
Distribute work, key to Lean Management.
Once we know what works and what doesn't, it is essential to avoid interruptions. This stage of Lean Management can be achieved by dividing the work to facilitate the detection of failures and correct them as quickly as possible.
Create a perfectly established work system.
If all workers know the process they must follow, depending on the characteristics of the order, the work will be carried out continuously and with all the guarantees of success. In this way the company will optimize existing resources, processes will be faster, require less effort and less investment.
It is increasingly present in companies that to ensure performance, each one of the phases of the worker's life cycle must be taken care of.
Troubleshooting and process improvement.
This last step of Lean Management is essential. The development of products or the provision of services is something dynamic. It is necessary to observe the previous stages carefully, detect the problems that may arise and encourage the workers to get involved in the continuous improvement of the production procedure.
Each company is different and, consequently, the application of the principles of Lean Management will not be the same since it is not a fixed method. Quite the contrary. This strategy must be adapted to the needs of each entity.
Advantages of implementing Lean Management in an organization.
- Improves the relationship with the client, by giving importance to the interactions with the client in order to improve their experience and respond to their needs. This necessarily entails an improvement in the production process or in the provision of services.
- It contributes to increasing the volume of business, considering that companies can better control their costs, by eliminating waste and generating savings.
- Optimizes processes to avoid errors, saving time, resources and ensuring Quality Management throughout the production process.
- Strengthens the business culture, by implementing ways of working that privilege communication, recognizing the value of human talent in the proper development of workflows.
- Creates more resilient companies, capable of responding in a practical way to unforeseen events and inconveniences, through the improvement of business processes and a clearer global vision of them.
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