DailyKaizen

We have begun to run into one of our first significant challenges as we work to transform our organization.  The challenge is time.  More specifically, it is how managers and leaders spend their time.  As we begin to rollout Daily Management Training (TWI) and begin conducting Kaizen events it is essential to our success that our managers and leaders are present in the work environment supporting production and their staff.  The change will be hard on the organization, and we need solid leadership to coach, mentor and communicate to staff that will be looking for direction.  Thus not only will the role of frontline staff change, but also the role of leadership.
 
The challenge is that most of the organization is still operating in a functional mode.  This requires that managers and leaders spend their time in meetings trying to coordinate the complexity of our systems and the handoffs that are common in a vertically aligned organization.   There is a great fear among leaders that if they are not present there will be decisions made without their input and problems will arise.  At the same time, they are sick of the meetings and would much rather spend their time working with staff in the production areas.  My fear is they will try and do both, and LEAN will become an add-on to their jobs as opposed to being their jobs. 

This is the tension we live in and a problem that we need to work out.  Overall, there is probably a middle ground, where managers attend only the most important meeting, fill in for each other and then spend more time in production where they can add value. 

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