There are many challenges in implementing and sustaining operational excellence. Here are some common implementation challenges:
- Fear of headcount reduction and job losses. Many employees view operational excellence, especially lean, as a means by management to lean out the organization, resulting in job cuts. Rightly or wrongly, that’s the view and fear. Senior management has to address this fear head on. Not through pronouncements, but through actions. When processes of value streams become more efficient, any displaced workers should be reassigned to fill useful roles elsewhere within the company. And as the company grows, these folks can fill new roles, first removing any need for new hires.
- Lack of buy-in and acceptance. Most people don’t like change. To improve buy-in, and acceptance of changes and improvements, ensure that the right metrics and performance targets are implemented. Metrics and rewards that motivate the right mindsets, behaviors, and results much support the changes. For example, traditionally incentive pay is based on piece count or number of transactions. Instead, reward based on the percentage of defect-free pieces produced or the percentage of correct and accurate transactions processed.
- Reverting back to old habits and the good old days. It’s just human nature to take the easiest path or the path of least resistance. Ensure that the new way of doing the work is easier than the old way. If it is more cumbersome and more involved, it will not be sustainable. Employees should love the new improved way of getting things done because it is now easier and more user-friendly than ever. Keep it simple.
- Too many initiatives and projects. Most organizations are already stretched thin with very lean staffing levels. It is not uncommon to here that everyone’s busy with their regular jobs and to top it off, there are too many projects in progress, tying up whatever little time and resources there are left. A common challenge is that there’s no time and no resources available for projects. To address this, take inventory of all existing projects and initiatives. Map them to the company’s annual goals and strategies to see if there is any connection. If there is no connection, let alone alignment, then either kill those projects, put a hold, or postpone them. For the remaining projects, prioritize them to gather the new operational excellence projects. Such a mapping and alignment exercise will reduce the number of ongoing projects. And to keep it streamlined, senior management can proactively select and prioritize the list of projects.
- Too many metrics. This is another common challenge when in the rush and temptation to measure and be data-driven, the list of metrics to be monitored and controlled keeps growing. As the list grows, so grows the frustration of employees. To address this, evaluate the reason for every metric by checking to see how well the metric maps through CTQs and all the company’s business priorities. And any KPIs or key performance indicators should be limited to just the key ones. Imagine the stress and nightmare if you drive a car with a dashboard showing more than a dozen indicators on digital displays. You don’t need to measure everything, just what matters.
These common challenges should be addressed head on. Management must follow through, actively demonstrate their own buy-in and walk the talk. It is management’s responsibility to make the new operationally excellent way of working a routine. Everyone in the organization will then be engaged, and able, and empowered to achieve the desired results.