Gemba Walks – A Foundational Methodology in Enterprise Excellence Deployment

Author(s)

Trainer, Coach & Mentoir for Enterprise Excellence, Consultant and Trainer
Currently...Trainer, Coach & Mentor for Enterprise Excellence: Focus on Enterprise Excellence model linking methodology, tools and techniques of Operational Excellence/Lean Six Sigma with the guiding principles & behaviors of an organization to deliver Business Ideal Results. It’s all about driving successful Business Transformation and Strategy (PLAN THE BUSINESS), running the Day to Day business operations to Goals & Objectives, (RUN THE BUSINESS), while delivering Continuous Improvement and Innovation (SOLVING BUSINESS PROBLEMS). Experiences: 12 Years – Product & Process Technology Leadership experience in Chemical and Plastics Industry (Aldrich Chemicals, General Electric Plastics); 8 Years Global Sourcing/Supply Chain Management (GE Plastics); 19 Years as Six Sigma Quality Leader in Plastics, Insurance, Health Care Industry (GE Plastics, -GE Financial Assurance, and United Health Group) with the last 12 years in BioTech (Drug & Device … Nektar Therapeutics, Amylin Pharmaceuticals, and Bristol-Myers Squibb). Education: Ph.D.-Organic Chemistry; B.A. in Chemistry/Zoology/Computer Science; Lean/Six Sigma Quality…Certified MBB, Trainer & Facilitator; Change Management Leader… Certified in GE CAP® & Facilitation; Quality Training and Certification … Lean, DMAIC, DMADOV, and Change Management; Certified “Train the Trainer”.

 As Part of a Business Transformation and Enterprise Excellence strategy, how can the methodologies & tools of Operational Excellence be integrated into Business Strategy?

A foundational Operational Excellence approach was highlighted in a 16MAY18 BPM article around 6 key methodologies … Visual Management, Gemba Walks, 5s, Value Stream Maps, Standard Work, & Kaizen Process Improvement Actions. Visual Management was covered in that article.1Today’s discussion will be around the powerful engagement & empowerment methodology of Gemba Walks.

Tell me more about Gemba Walks

As one of the Foundational methodologies, Gemba Walks are a key skillset for Leadership to leverage. The words of Toyota Chairman Fujio Cho, “Go see, ask why, show respect” are now famous as basic lean principles and are critical to keep in mind during a Gemba Walk2:

By definition, a Gembais the “place where value is created”. A Gemba Walk gets Leadership out of the office and conference room and down to the areas where the workforce produces that value.

“Gemba walks can actually serve a range of useful purposes:

  • Driving continuous improvement by helping managers and their teams to spot waste and quality risks, identify improvement opportunities, or find the root cause of issues.
  • In sales environments, helping managers to gain firsthand insights on real customer needs, concerns, and behaviors.
  • Building the right capabilities and behaviors, giving managers the chance to be visible role models and the opportunity to provide direct coaching and support to frontline personnel.
  • Build a strong culture, by enabling clear and direct communication between different levels of the organization.

Gemba can be also used to confirm quality processes—especially in the quality control (QC) lab but also for some quality assurance (QA) activities, such as batch review and release and in-process control. Gemba Walks should be an essential ingredient of any quality management system (QMS).”3

A Gemba Walk is well structured – prior to going to an area, the leaders identify specific goals to achieve or problems to better understand- making Gemba a powerful technique in driving the critical business areas of Safety & Compliance. 

What are the basics behind a Gemba Walk?

Via Gemba Walks … The currency of leadership is presence.

  • Walk the value streams of the site or business
    • Observe the product flow through the area
  • A vehicle to see how business is functioning
    • Understand the current environment in the area
    • Understand the state of communication & culture
    • Challenge teams to deliver future state improvements
  • A focus of observation & coaching
    • Act to remove obstacles that are hindering performance
    • Provide direct coaching on how to achieve desired performance to area owner (or responsible party)
    • Mentor management and team leadership on how to empower and engage the workforce

For a thorough Leadership Guide see “How to do a Gemba Walk” by Michael Bremer.5

How can Gemba Walks drive the next levels of improvements by Process Leadership?

  • Today’s leaders often try to apply sophisticated tools/technologies to deal with problems.
  • Gemba deals with the roles of Leaders and the need to develop a learning organization focused on how to improve performance.
  • One of the roles of top management is to challenge all managers to attain ever higher goals while engaging and energizing the workforce through Team Empowerment.
  • In turn, first-line supervisors need to challenge and mentor workers to do a better job all the time while workers need to feel empowered and as a partner to bring forward improvement ideas and suggestions for innovation.

So what are the main features for a successful Gemba Walk?

  • Observe & Ask to understand
  • Coach & Mentor
  • Take Action to remove obstacles

The takeaway

Most solutions to problems lie with the employees. Treat them properly and they are very willing and happy to share them – they just need to be asked.6

A Gemba Walk reinforces Leadership commitment, opens up the communications, and provides a way to reinforce a company’s mission – vision – values and engage the whole workforce to deliver a Business Transformation and Enterprise Excellence strategy.

Look for future articles on Enterprise Excellence Business Process Management as well as deployment strategies as shown below:

References:

 1.     “Visual Management in Enterprise Excellence Deployment” , 16MAY19 BPMInstitute.org article  https://www.bpminstitute.org/resources/articles/visual-management-enterprise-excellence-deployment

2.     “How To Go To The Gemba: Go see, Ask Why, Show Respect”by John Shook, Lean Enterprise Institute article: https://www.lean.org/shook/DisplayObject.cfm?o=1843

Gemba Walks, Expanded 2ndEdition by Jim Womack, ISBN-13:978-1934109380, ISBN-10:193410938X

3.     “Bringing quality closer to operations: The power of Gemba Walks” by Julie Rose, Paul Rutten, Vanya Telpis of McKenzie & Company from the book “Flawless … “From Measuring Failure to Building Quality Robustness in Pharma”:https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/dotcom/client_service/operations/pdfs/flawless_from_measuring_failure_to_building_quality_robustness_in_pharma_intro_chapter.ashx

4.     Safety & Compliance via Gemba Walks … “Lean Safety Gemba Walks: A Methodology for Workforce Engagement and Culture Change”,Robert B. Hafey, Productivity Press, Published November 24, 2014, ISBN 9781482258981 – CAT# K24162  https://www.crcpress.com/Lean-Safety-Gemba-Walks-A-Methodology-for-Workforce-Engagement-and-Culture/Hafey/p/book/9781482258981

The Gemba Safety Walk by Dave Collins, https://safetyrisk.net/the-gemba-safety-walk/

“Safety through Gemba” by Brian Fitzpatrick, https://www.lean.org/LeanPost/Posting.cfm?LeanPostId=436

5.     “How To Do A Gemba Walk, A Leaders Guide” by Michael S Bremer, Copyright @ The Cumberland Group

6.     “Why Compliance Professionals Need To Go to the Gemba” by Craig Thornton, https://www.mangolive.com/blog-mango/compliance-professionals-going-to-the-gemba-lean

Similar Resources

Enhancing Your Team’s BPM Capabilities: The Value of External Expertise

Enhancing Your Team’s BPM Capabilities: The Value of External Expertise

Author(s):

Editor & Founder, BPMInstitute.org, BAInstitute.org and DBIZInstitute.org

Enhancing Your Team's BPM Capabilities: The Value of External Expertise In today’s dynamic business environment, managing and improving business processes is critical for any organization aiming to maintain a competitive edge. Many companies consider handling Business...

Exploring Shared Data Model and Notation (SDMN) and Its Role in BPM+

Exploring Shared Data Model and Notation (SDMN) and Its Role in BPM+

Author(s):

Editor & Founder, BPMInstitute.org, BAInstitute.org and DBIZInstitute.org

Exploring Shared Data Model and Notation (SDMN) and Its Role in BPM+ Introduction In the evolving landscape of Business Process Management (BPM), the introduction of Shared Data Model Notation (SDMN) marks a significant advancement. As businesses increasingly seek to...

Embracing the Future: Low-Code and No-Code Platforms in BPM+

Embracing the Future: Low-Code and No-Code Platforms in BPM+

Author(s):

Editor & Founder, BPMInstitute.org, BAInstitute.org and DBIZInstitute.org

Embracing the Future: Low-Code and No-Code Platforms in BPM+ Introduction In the realm of business process management (BPM), low-code and no-code platforms have emerged as transformative tools, reshaping how organizations develop applications and manage workflows....

Featured Certificate: BPM Specialist

Everyone starts here.

You're looking for a way to improve your process improvement skills, but you're not sure where to start.

Earning your Business Process Management Specialist (BPMS) Certificate will give you the competitive advantage you need in today's world. Our courses help you deliver faster and makes projects easier.

Your skills will include building hierarchical process models, using tools to analyze and assess process performance, defining critical process metrics, using best practice principles to redesign processes, developing process improvement project plans, building a center of excellence, and establishing process governance.

The BPMS Certificate is the perfect way to show employers that you are serious about business process management. With in-depth knowledge of process improvement and management, you'll be able to take your business career to the next level.

Learn more about the BPM Specialist Certificate

Courses

  •  

 

Certificates

  • Business Process Management Specialist
  • Earning your Business Process Management Specialist (BPMS) Certificate will provide you with a distinct competitive advantage in today’s rapidly evolving business landscape. With in-depth knowledge of process improvement and management, you’ll be able to take your business career to the next level.
  • BPM Professional Certificate
    Business Process Management Professional
  • Earning your Business Process Management Professional (BPMP) Certificate will elevate your expertise and professional standing in the field of business process management. Our BPMP Certificate is a tangible symbol of your achievement, demonstrating your in-depth knowledge of process improvement and management.

Certification

BPM Certification

  • Make the most of your hard-earned skills. Earn the respect of your peers and superiors with Business Process Management Certification from the industry's top BPM educational organization.

Courses

 

Certificates

  • Operational Excellence Specialist
  • Earning your Operational Excellence Specialist Certificate will provide you with a distinct advantage in driving organizational excellence and achieving sustainable improvements in performance.
 

 

OpEx Professional Certificate

  • Operational Excellence Professional
  • Earn your Operational Excellence Professional Certificate and gain a competitive edge in driving organizational excellence and achieving sustainable improvements in performance.

Courses

Certificate
  •  

  • Agile BPM Specialist
  • Earn your Agile BPM Specialist Certificate and gain a competitive edge in driving business process management (BPM) with agile methodologies. You’ll gain a strong understanding of how to apply agile principles and concepts to business process management initiatives.  
 

Business Architecture

 

Certificates

  • Business Architecture Specialist
  • The Business Architecture Specialist (BAIS) Certificate is proof that you’ve begun your business architecture journey by committing to the industry’s most meaningful and credible business architecture training program.

  • Business Architecture Professional
  • When you earn your Business Architecture Professional (BAIP) Certificate, you will be able to design and implement a governance structure for your organization, develop and optimize business processes, and manage business information effectively.

BA CertificationCertification

  • Make the most of your hard-earned skills. Earn the respect of your peers and superiors with Business Architecture Certification from the industry's top BPM educational organization.

Courses

 

Certificates

  • Digital Transformation Specialist
  • Earning your Digital Transformation Specialist Certificate will provide you with a distinct advantage in today’s rapidly evolving business landscape. 
 

 

  • Digital Transformation Professional
  • The Digital Transformation Professional Certificate is the first program in the industry to cover all the key pillars of Digital Transformation holistically with practical recommendations and exercises.

Courses

Certificate

  • Agile Business Analysis Specialist
  • Earning your Agile Business Analysis Specialist Certificate will provide you with a distinct advantage in the world of agile software development.

Courses

Certificate
  • DAS Certificate
  • Decision Automation Specialist
  • Earning your Decision Automation Certificate will empower you to excel in the dynamic field of automated decision-making, where data-driven insights are pivotal to driving business innovation and efficiency.