On your Lean Journey here are Five Tips to Engage!
by Rob Connelly
Our personal Lean Journey is filled with new treasures as we explore and learn. But these treasures of wonder are
often hidden in what seem like deep, large pitch black caverns of unknown and uncomfortable territory. While I was
recently listening to the LSSAcademy Podcast I was prompted to consider my own answer to Ron Pereira’s first
question, “What is your favorite Lean quote?” I’m going to have to use Captain Picard on this one: “Engage!”
It seems too often we approach a new situation or a new problem and our protective nature turns on and suggests
subconsciously for us to retreat to more safe territory. Each of us reacts differently when exposed to unfamiliar
issues. But this is where the quote comes in. I realized this perspective when I was going through my graduate
school program and subsequently when I started working as a manufacturing engineer. I consistently was surprised
to find that many people respected me. I just could not figure out why for a long time. I never felt any “smarter” than
others, so what was it?
Eventually I came to realize that my “defense” mechanism when I am in a new situation or approaching a new issue
is to embrace that discomfort and engage! That is, I start poking at what I don’t understand. Ask questions. Look
around for understanding elsewhere. Look for motives and root causes. Be stubbornly curious. This can be very
uncomfortable at first because you are exposing your ignorance to others. Just remember many others may not
even have a full understanding themselves. Or if they happen to be an expert I think you will find they will respect
you for engaging the material until you have a full understanding. We need to remind ourselves to “get out of our
comfort zone.” That simple act of showing you will not be satisfied until you “get it” will earn you miles of respect. I
guarantee it.
Here are some tips:
1. Remind yourself and others that “we are all always learning”
2. Acknowledge and embrace the discomfort you feel when exposed to new situations and new problems
3. Engage that discomfort by asking questions
4. Accept any foolishness you may feel is normal when you expose your ignorance
5. Be patient, persistent and trust yourself
After years of this behavior, you will be well respected and sought after as the expert you never thought you could
be.
Photo copyright owner: Paramount Pictures
Rob Connelly | April 21, 2014 at 8:00 am | Tags: Continuous Improvement, Lean Journey | Categories: Continuous Improvement, Lean | URL:
http://leanprotoolbox.com/?p=130
Lean Stand-Up Meeting: Get Ready for
Action!
Posted on April 25, 2014 by Rob Connelly
Many Lean focused organizations adopt some sort of daily stand-up meeting. These daily meetings may take different forms depending on the type of team, the typical problems to
solve, and the nature of the business. Common elements to the daily stand-up meeting are: they tend to be short (5-15 minutes), have a visual management component (such as a
whiteboard), and are conducted standing (as opposed to sitting) to keep discussions brief. There are multitudes of potential formats appropriate for these meetings. However I am
going to present one type of format you can use for a daily meeting that may be well suited for bringing together a cross-functional team, such as management or supervision staff.
This particular format was developed in part by two of my mentors, Kevin Meyer and Steven Kane. Both have many years of experience in Lean culture transformations.
The problems this format aims to address include:



How to communicate issues that need attention between functional groups
How to motivate individuals into action on particular issues
How to provide a forum for discussion of various business problems
The types of problems that are brought up in this meeting format tend to be “smaller” nagging types of issues that need attention. Many of these items deserve problem solving for
continuous improvement, but some issues may be simply a matter of calibrating priorities between teams or individuals.
What’s needed:




A white board (preferably a magnetic white board) formatted into a grid with the first column for the names of those present at the meeting, and then 31 columns to show
visibility for an entire month
“Super sticky” 2×2 Post-It notes (click here for more info)
Other magnet “do-dads” for other needs of the group (month names, stars, lines, etc.)
Black, red and green markers
How it works:

Each person comes to the meeting with any issues for others on a pre-written Post-It note. The comment could be in the form of a necessary action item or problem to
solve. The Post-It note should include the name of the person originating the issue, the date, and the person receiving the issue.


The receiving individual will choose on what day they will report back the resolution and place the sticky on that date.
For the current day, each person reports back the status of any sticky notes. If the issue is not resolved, they place a “red dot” with a marker on the sticky note and moves
the issue out to a new date. If the issue is continuously moved out, it will end up with “lots of red dots” which eventually becomes more and more uncomfortable as the
person continues to move out the issue.





When the issue is completed, a “green dot” is placed on the sticky note to show closure. The individual would give an update on the closure, as necessary.

You can also incorporate KPI’s, Project updates, etc. into this meeting, depending on your needs.
A magnetic line indicator shows today’s date above the corresponding column and delineates the current month (to the right) and the following month (to the left)
Green dot items are left until the first of the month
Include a line above the weekend dates
Note, it is important to use this system as a way to create action and accountability and to celebrate the improvements that result in the Action Board. Use stars or other
decorations to celebrate accomplishments and continuous improvements to keep the meeting positive.
Why it works:

The forum provides just enough peer pressure to support action and accountability, but not so much that it becomes overly stressful. The point is not finger pointing; it’s
about action.
If you would like to watch the (free) LSSAcademy podcast describing this stand-up meeting format, click here.
Visual Management of Focused Teams using a Whiteboard
by Rob Connelly
Visual Management is an important tool in your organization’s quest for Operational Excellence. I mentioned in my
last post a great way to create action using a whiteboard for cross functional teams. Today I want to present a
whiteboard layout that I have used for well over a year with a focused team (such as an engineering support team).
This particular layout is suitable for teams of individuals who generally work on similar tasks, but tend to work
individually (or as team members on other teams).
It can be very challenging to maintain focus on one’s highest priority task. We often face a constant supply of
distractions and other “fires” that may interrupt working on “the #1 priority.” In addition, I believe many people tend to
procrastinate tasks they find stressful, difficult, or simply feel ill prepared to work on. How do you deal with that?
I believe there are three components to break work down to maintain progress on the highest priority work.
1. Focus - Maintain visual focus on what is the #1 priority. This simple task is critical. Having daily meetings with
one’s team and the team leader or manager is where the #1 priority is clearly communicated. This is not a
“command and control” mechanism - this allows each team member to communicate with their team what is their
top priority. A whiteboard is a critical component to this communication system.
2. Disciplined Thought - Inevitably other issues and questions arise during the day which interrupt one’s work. This
is where disciplined thought comes into play. Everyone must be able to prioritize their work individually. Sometimes
higher priority issues do arise, and we need to exercise our professional judgment to go ahead and switch gears. At
other times, we’ll need to embrace the issue and have the discipline to set it aside and continue working on the
previous (#1) priority.
3. Disciplined Action - “Work is work” as I say. Our work is challenging, isn’t it?! Embrace that. Enjoy the challenge
of becoming a master. This takes practice to continue working on your priority task through distractions that arise.
Consider the important concept of “pulling work” not “pushing it.” Do not begin work on your next action until your
first priority is complete. Agree with yourself and your team what your priority is and maintain laser focus on that
item until completion.
This whiteboard layout uses a grid pattern and “super sticky” Post-It Notes. The tasks or projects (actions) are
written on the stickies and placed in the appropriate region on the board. The top two rows are for the top two
priorities for each person. The “Interruptions” area is to communicate what interruptions have taken away from the
priority items. During the daily meeting, the interruptions can be discussed and prioritized accordingly. Below this
row is an area of queued items to be worked on next. There is an “On Hold” area near the bottom of the board for
tasks that needed to be halted or stalled for some reason. And at the bottom there is an area for completed tasks.
This area can be cleaned out every week or two as appropriate.
Another important note is that it is very helpful for each individual to meet with the team leader or manager
periodically (every week or two) to re-prioritize tasks in the queue and discuss progress and needed feedback.
Rob Connelly | April 28, 2014 at 8:00 am | Tags: Leadership, Teams, Visual Management, Whiteboard Ideas | Categories: Leadership, Lean,
Visual Management | URL: http://leanprotoolbox.com/?p=155