The Challenge Of: Creating Lean Managers

The Challenge of
CREATING
LEAN
MANAGERS
By Mike Rother
August 2014
This presentation was created with assistance
from Joakim Hillberg and Pia Anhede
© Mike Rother Toyota Kata

TO THE MLC MEMBERS
Thank you for the opportunity to share with you some things
we’re learning, at the August 2014 Michigan Lean Consortium
conference in Traverse City.
Please feel free to use any of the slides from

this presentation, which are copyrighted under
a Creative Commons Attribution license. The
only requirement is to note the source on each
slide you use, for instance by adding “By Mike
Rother” somewhere on the slide.
2
WHAT I’M FOCUSING ON TODAY
Lean tools and techniques

Visible to improve quality, cost
and delivery
• A systematic, scientific way

Less of thinking and acting
Visible • Managers as the teachers
of that way
This less visible part is a context

for making the Lean tools and practices work
3
Toyota
THE TOYOTA KATA RESEARCH Kata
Website
2004 - 2009
Guided by these two research questions:

1. What are the unseen managerial routines and
thinking that lie behind Toyota’s success with
continuous improvement and adaptation?
2. How can other companies develop similar
routines and thinking in their organizations?
Question 1:
If you study Toyota’s management system enough,
a common pattern of thinking and acting emerges,
which is evident at all levels inside the company.
4
THE IMPROVEMENT KATA MODEL
1 2 3 4
Understand Grasp the Establish the Iterate
the Direction Current Next Target Toward the
or Challenge Condition Condition Target Condition
TC
CC
Planning Executing
The pattern that came out of our investigations is similar to

other models of the iterative, creative, scientific process.
Such as:
Systems thinking, critical thinking, learning organization, design
thinking, creative thinking, solution-focused practice, preferred
futuring, skills of inquiry, evidence-based learning, etc.
5
THINKING AND WORKING SCIENTIFICALLY
Finding commonality between Toyota's

management approach and models of
human creative endeavor makes perfect
sense.
What Toyota managers do in their daily work is teach a

universal means of improving, adapting and innovating.
Toyota's management approach involves teaching
people a scientific mindset that can be applied to an
infinite number of objectives, creating a deliberate,
shared way of working throughout the organization.
6
THE IK PATTERN IS USED AT ALL LEVELS
The content of what is being worked on differs from area to area
and level to level, but the thinking pattern is the same
Understand Iterate
the Grasp the Establish the Toward the
Direction Current Next Target Target
(from level above) Condition Condition Condition
Organization
Level
Value Stream
Level
Value Stream
Loop Level
Process
Level
PLANNING EXECUTING
7
PART I
* Scientific Thinking *
8
LET’S LOOK AT
A WORK PROCESS
• In groups of 4
• Watch the video of the assembly
process. Each person watch one of
the 4 operators.
• Video will roll 5 minutes
• Record: What would you improve?
This could be any work process

9
YOUR ASSIGNMENT
• Count off 1 to 4 at your table.

• Watch the video of the assembly process.
• Each person watch one of the 4 operators.
• Video will roll ~4 minutes.
Record: What would you improve?
10
THE FAUCET ASSEMBLY PROCESS
11
ASK 5 PEOPLE WHAT TO IMPROVE,
GET 6 DIFFERENT ANSWERS
= Observed Wastes,
Problems, Opportunities
This seems
This seems important!
interesting
There's always too

much to do, and by
random choices
we get nowhere
We have limited time and

resources for improvement!
Illustration by Teemu Toivonen
12
IMPROVEMENT BASED ON
“ELIMINATE WASTE” IS FLAWED
The elimination of waste is an outcome

of pursuing a particular goal
13
FIRST YOU NEED A TARGET CONDITION
What do you
want to achieve?
Things
we HAVE
to do
Things
we
CAN do
14
THAT TAKES SOME ANALYSIS & PLANNING
✓ ✓ ✓
15
SO NOW WE CAN GET GOING, RIGHT?
We know the overall direction or challenge,
where we are now and our next target condition...
so it’s time to make an action plan!
Typical Action Plan

Well, not quite...
16
THE DICE EXPERIMENT
• I’ll roll a die three (3) times and sum the numbers.
• The sum will be a number between 3 and 18.
Before I roll, please write down:

What will be the sum of the 3 rolls?
17
Those of you who wrote down the
incorrect sum...
How do you feel?
18
Not so bad,
it’s just chance
19
QUESTION #2
2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, ?
What will be the next number in this series?

Please write down your answer
20
ANSWER
2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 2
Those of you who wrote down

the incorrect sum...
How do you feel this time?
21
Hey!
22
What was different
about these two scenarios?
23
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE SCENARIOS
How easy or hard it is to spot the current knowledge threshold
• In Round 1 with the dice, it was easy to see
the we didn’t know what the outcome would be.
• In Round 2 the knowledge threshold was more
difficult to see. We thought we knew the answer,
so we went over the threshold & answered.
Yet in both rounds the knowledge threshold was the
same: There were no facts beyond the initial setup.
Predictable Zone
2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12
Current
Knowledge
Threshold
 What would be a good answer in both rounds?

 Why don’t we say that?
24
THERE IS ALWAYS A KNOWLEDGE THRESHOLD
If we ignore it and set a course -- rather than testing and
learning our way forward -- that’s where trouble begins.
Action-Item Lists
Voting on Options
Deciding in
advance how
we will get
there Voting adds no facts or data
“It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble.
It's what you know for sure that just ain't so.”
Attributed to Mark Twain, Will Rodgers, Satchel Paige,
Artemus Ward, Josh Billings & others
25
THE THRESHOLD OF KNOWLEDGE
IS THE ‘LEARNING EDGE’
It’s where your next experiment should take place
The path is unpredictable
Key points at knowledge thresholds:

1) You have to acknowledge it to see it.
2) We see further by experimenting.
3) We don’t know what the result of a step/experiment will be.
26
IT’S THE SCIENTIFIC LEARNING CYCLE
The scientific process of acquiring knowledge
This cycle gives you a practical way to reach a target

condition, by providing a systematic way of working
through the grey zone between here and there.
27
SMALL, RAPID EXPERIMENTS
ADVANCE OUR KNOWLEDGE QUICKLY
The Grey Zone

Next
Current Target
Condition Condition
(date)
28
VIDEO - Working Iteratively
(3 minutes)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COKqiFaHm1s
Also available on the IK/CK YouTube Channel
29
GREAT, LET’S GO!
The Scientific IK Pattern...

...suits complex, dynamic
conditions!
...makes empowerment
possible!
But wait, there’s a problem…
30
PART II
Deliberate Practice
for *Developing*
Scientific Thinking
31
LET’S LOOK AT THE SECOND
TK RESEARCH QUESTION
Toyota Kata research questions:

1. What are the unseen managerial routines and
thinking that lie behind Toyota’s success with
continuous improvement and adaptation?
2. How can other companies develop similar
routines and thinking in their organizations?
32
Scientific
Thinking
Born? Learned
?
33
Scientific
Thinking
Born? Learned
We are notoriously bad
at scientific thinking, due
?
to natural, unconscious
mental mechanisms
34
Read what you see
IUMRING TQ
GQNGIUSIQNS
35
IUMRING TQ
GQNGIUSIQNS
Our brain automatically fills in
blanks, instead of saying to us
“Sorry, I don’t know yet”
36
SO WHAT WILL IT TAKE
FOR CHANGE TO HAPPEN?
• Get a piece of paper and a pen
• Start when I say “go”
• Sign your name 5 times normally
• When you are finished raise your hand
37
LET’S TRY JUST
A SMALL CHANGE
• Change hands, to non-dominant

• Start when I say “go”
• Sign your name 5 times again
• Raise your hand when you are finished
38
HOW DID IT FEEL THE SECOND TIME
COMPARED TO THE FIRST?
39
WE HAVE A LEAN DILEMMA
How did it feel • Why? Because we have well-established
the second time? neural pathways for signing with our
• “Different” dominant hand. It’s automatic, fast and
comfortable.
• “Difficult”
• “Weird” • We default to already-established
thought and behavior patterns because
• “Uncomfortable” they conserve mental resources.
1. We want to change to working scientifically,

according to something like the Improvement
Kata pattern.
-- however --
2. We naturally tend to stick with our current
ways of doing things because they use existing
neural circuits that require less energy.
40
INFORMATION ALONE IS NOT ENOUGH
TO CHANGE BEHAVIOR AND THINKING
Theories, information and steps may all be correct, but
just knowing them is not likely to change behavior.
41
Scientific
Thinking
Born It’s Learned

OK... HOW?
42
VIDEO - A Way the Brain Learns
(2 minutes)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELpfYCZa87g
43
4 INGREDIENTS FOR ACQUIRING NEW SKILLS
Brain research is clear: To develop new habits you should
practice new routines and experience a progressive sense
of mastering them. The following ingredients help us
rewire our brain to acquire new skills and mindset.
k PRACTICE
COACHING
Corrective
l
Daily feedback
j KATA MASTERY
Overcoming
m
Structured practice obstacles
routines (beginner)
Let’s take a quick look at each ingredient

44
1 WHAT ARE KATA?
Kata are structured routines you practice
deliberately, especially at the beginning, so their pattern
becomes a habit and leaves you with new abilities
KATA:
• Are typically for learning “Let’s begin by
fundamentals, to build on. practicing it
• Are a way of transferring skills and this way for a
developing shared abilities and while.”
mindset in a team or organization.
45
1 KATA ARE LIKE
ROCKET ENGINES
They help you get started
Beginners should follow Kata exactly;

KATA not deviating from them so the
Learner can internalize the patterns.
But with increasing proficiency each
Learner can start to (within limits)
develop their own style.
Likewise, over time each organization
can evolve the Kata it began with to
better suit and mesh with its culture.
The original Kata evolve into
organization-specific practice routines.
46
THERE ARE PRACTICE ROUTINES FOR
EACH STEP OF THE IMPROVEMENT KATA
See the online Improvement Kata Handbook*
The scientific
pattern of the
Improvement
Kata model is
universal
Structured
practice routines
are a way to
begin to
operationalize
the IK pattern
* http://www-personal.umich.edu/~mrother/Materials_to_Download.html
47
2 DAILY PRACTICE
If we only periodically conduct training events or only
episodically work on improvement -- and the rest of the
time itʼs business as usual -- then according to neuroscience
what weʼre actually teaching is business as usual.
48
3 COACHING
Careful... Practice makes permanent
Left alone, a Learner may unknowingly practice existing habits.
The Coach (manager) provides corrective inputs to ensure that
the Learner practices the new routine the right way.
The manager focuses not on the content

of what their people are working on, but
on their pattern of thinking & acting as
they strive for real goals.
The manager’s task is not to develop
solutions, but to develop the abilities of
their Learners.
49
3 THE COACHING KATA
The Coaching Kata is a set of practice routines for
managers to use in teaching the Improvement
Kata pattern... through daily Coaching Cycles
Establish Iterate
Understand Grasp the
the Next Toward the Improvement
the Current Target Target Kata
Direction Condition Condition Condition
Learner
‘Executing’ Coaching
‘Planning’ Coaching Cycles Coaching
Kata
Cycles
Coach
(Manager)
50
4 MASTERY
The role of the Learner’s emotions
For new skills and mindset to be learned, the Learner
should practice in the Learning Zone beyond their current
capability and get a sense they are making progress.
This is a responsibility of the Coach.
Apparent
Certainty Learner’s current
threshold of
knowledge & skill
51
VIDEO - A Coaching Cycle
(5 minutes)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySdYX4cNPsQ
52
PART III
The Challenge
of Creating
Lean Managers
The goal of this presentation is to make us
more aware of the task & challenge we face.
It’s not about scheduling Lean classes, going
on benchmarking trips or anything like that.
53
A SHIFT TO “21ST CENTURY LEAN”
54
MANAGERS ARE TEACHERS (by default)
With their everyday words and actions, managers teach their
people a mindset and approach, which has a significant effect
on creating an organization’s capability and culture.
COACH
to D
Teaching a way of thinking and acting
– a deliberate culture – should get COACH
integrated into the organization’s to C
normal chain of management. COACH
to B
Vice
President
COACH
to A Value-Stream
Manager
LEARNER
Department to E
Manager
LEARNER
Process to D
Supervisor
LEARNER
Process to C
Operator
LEARNER
to B
55
HOW IT WORKS WHEN IT’S IN PLACE
Understand Iterate
Organization
Level
Value Stream
Level
Value Stream
Loop Level
Process
Level
PLANNING EXECUTING
56
HOW IT WORKS WHEN IT’S IN PLACE
Understand Iterate
Organization Longer-
Level Cycle
Experiments
Value Stream Current State Future State

Value Stream Value Stream
Level Mapping Mapping
Value Stream
Loop Level
Process Short-
Cycle
Level Experiments
PLANNING EXECUTING
57
BUT GETTING THERE IS THE CHALLENGE
Catch-22: Managers have to be Learners first
Here you understand the

Able to TEACH it thinking behind the Kata
“Management” and can teach others
Skill development
Able to DO it begins here
Learning begins when
you start applying the
Improvement Kata yourself
AWARE of it Concepts alone generally
don’t change anything
58
THERE IS
ONE GOOD ANSWER
59
APPLY THE IMPROVEMENT KATA!
1 2 3 4
Understand Grasp the Establish the Iterate
the Direction Current Next Target Toward the
or Challenge Condition Condition Target Condition
TC
CC
60
Toyota
Kata
Website
Best wishes for your practice
Join us at the Kata Summit in Miami

on February 18-19, 2015
katasummit.com
61

The Challenge Of: Creating Lean Managers

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Challenge Of: Creating Lean Managers

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Challenge of

© Mike Rother Toyota Kata

Please feel free to use any of the slides from

Lean tools and techniques

• A systematic, scientific way

This less visible part is a context

Guided by these two research questions:

The pattern that came out of our investigations is similar to

Finding commonality between Toyota's

What Toyota managers do in their daily work is teach a

This could be any work process

• Count off 1 to 4 at your table.

Record: What would you improve?

There's always too

We have limited time and

The elimination of waste is an outcome

Typical Action Plan

Before I roll, please write down:

What will be the next number in this series?

Those of you who wrote down

How do you feel this time?

 What would be a good answer in both rounds?

The path is unpredictable

Key points at knowledge thresholds:

This cycle gives you a practical way to reach a target

The Grey Zone

The Scientific IK Pattern...

But wait, there’s a problem…

Toyota Kata research questions:

• Change hands, to non-dominant

1. We want to change to working scientifically,

Born It’s Learned

Let’s take a quick look at each ingredient

Beginners should follow Kata exactly;

The manager focuses not on the content

Value Stream Current State Future State

Here you understand the

Best wishes for your practice

Join us at the Kata Summit in Miami

You might also like