Are you caught in an agonizing journey?

05 June

First of all, why do I work within the Lean framework for business process improvements?

Because Lean works! Also, because attendees enjoy learning about Lean’s history, practices, and tools as a means of improving their quality of life. They realize that we live in a complex world and they want to eliminate unnecessary complexity. The good news is that Lean has a long, successful history of eliminating unnecessary complexity or “waste” as long as the “9th type of waste” is managed!

 

What is this “9th type of waste”?

This past week, I was facilitating a Lean workshop and we were discussing “waste” in the context of improving value streams. Once we had reviewed the 8 types of waste with acronym TIM WOODS below, we came to the conclusion that there exists another type of waste – a “9th type of waste” – which all teams need to be aware of prior to engaging in business process improvement. We decided that the acronym for this waste should be “SNR” making-up “TIM WOODS SNR” – our new acronym.  SNR stands for “Shows No Reaction” and this refers to individuals that are unwilling to change.

We all concluded that “SNR” within the teams or in management can negatively influence the success of business process improvement and if teams initiate a journey of improvement without being aware of this fact, their success will always be limited and their journey sometimes agonizing.

 

What are the characteristics of “SNR” and how to manage properly?

The characteristics of “SNR” are present in ”outdated management” and “command-control” individuals.  Management that unfortunately believes that Fredrick Winslow Taylor’s early 1900 principles of management hold true in today’s information-based global economy. (1)  This reality is highlighted by Dan Pink in his YouTube video “The surprising truth about what motivates us” when he states that some managers regard employees as “smaller, better-smelling horses!” (2)  And then there are ”command-control” individuals that create unsafe-to-fail environments as managers and some, because of their ego ”hold their cards close to their chest” for personal gain instead of collaborating towards the success of the team. (3)

Since “SNRs” are set in their thinking and actions, they are very unlikely to change so the only solution is to make true progress with leaders that are servant leaders. Servant leaders that fall in alignment with Lao Tzu’s ageless definition of true leaders: “The greatest leader forgets himself and attends to the development of others”. (4)   These leaders foster trust, collaboration, empathy, and ethical use of power. (5)  I might suggest that these are the type of individuals that enable business process improvements and the ones you want on your team.  Alternatively, it may be a good option to manage the situation per the outline presented in my post “Thinking Agile for Change Management? Think Again!”

So the key is to identify and manage “SNRs” properly.   Once this is done, the other types of common waste in software development such as waiting (i.e. concept phases that take months vs. a week or two to complete) and over-processing (i.e. building-in features that are beyond the minimal marketable feature set) can be improved and sometimes eliminated through Lean’s continuous improvement cycle.

In future blog entries, I will be discussing tools for eliminating waste as 40-90% of all effort that goes into a process is wasted effort. (6)  This has been the key to the success for decades at Japan Inc., 3M, Apple, Dell, BMW, among others, and is presently being adopted by companies worldwide because Lean works!

What has been your experience with Lean?……. Check-out the FREE online Lean book below!

 

Tim Woods SNR

Transportation: movement of materials or documentation that adds no value to the product or solution

Inventory: items in excess of items that meet immediate demand

Motion: movement that adds no value to the product or solution

Waiting: idle time due to machines, people, or inspection not in “flow”

Over-processing: designed in such a manner in which it requires more space, energy, or people than truly required

Overproduction: making more products or features than the customers need

Defects: level of quality that does not meet the requirements of internal and external customers

Skills: not fully utilizing the skills of employees or having the wrong person in the role

SNR or Shows No Reaction: no willingness to adapt to process improvement (individual or management)

 

References:

(1)     Fredrick Winslow Taylor, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fredrick_Winslow_Taylor

(2)    “The surprising truth about what motivates us”, Dan Pink,  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6XAPnuFjJc

(3)     The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, Patrick Lencioni, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Five_Dysfunctions_of_a_Team

(4)     Lao Tzu, http://www.answers.com/topic/lao-zi

(5)     Robert Greenleaf, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_K._Greenleaf

(6)     Lean IT, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lean_IT

 

FREE online book from www.lean.org, “Reflections on Lean”

http://lean.richfx.com/catalog/media/reflections_on_lean/?rfx_staging=1

 

About the author: 

Juan Barberis is a Lean/Kanban and Agile practitioner, coach, and trainer.  He enjoys leading teams through their change management journeys with focus on business process improvements.  He is passionate about Lean and is grateful to all the thought leaders who have contributed to his understanding and development over the past 25 years in Japan, the United States of America, Europe, and Australia.

Juan’s LinkedIn profile: http://au.linkedin.com/in/juanbarberisthurdekoos

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