How time flies - Lessons from Japan
04-Jan-2012Three Decades of Learning from Japan
It is amazing how time flies. It was December 1980 when we first started to write about the Toyota Production System in our newsletter Productivity. In February of the following year, we conducted our first two-week study mission to Japan, taking 19 top American executives from ALCOA, American Can, Fort Howard Paper, Insilco, Oscar Meyer, Hoover Universal, Chesebrough-Ponds, Trane, A.O. Smith, Timken, Sierracin Corporation, and Rockwell International to visit 16 companies. The trip was a dynamic learning experience for everyone who went. It was both exhausting and thrilling to see what the Japanese were doing at the time to lead the manufacturing world in quality and productivity growth.
Lesson 1 – Think Long Term
The travelers who went with us had many things to say about what they learned. They spoke of implementing systems for long-term improvement:
“It’s obvious that this is no instant band-aid they [the Japanese] have applied. We Americans are very susceptible to fads -- Zero Defects, MBO, Zero-Based Budgeting. We learn the hustle, the disco -- we can’t dance the same way for six months. Japan has developed a system That’s what’s important.”
“We do many of these things, but we don’t have the total system. From what we could see, it is the total approach to quality and productivity that makes the big difference for the companies we toured.”
“We have to go back and do things patiently.”
Lesson 2 – Utilize the Talent You Have
They also spoke of using the capabilities of everyone in an organization to improve quality:
“The next process is a customer, not just the end user. Everybody can propose suggestions and anything can be improved.”
“QC Circles were just a part of the quality control program, although a very important one. ‘Total Quality Control’ is the real name of the game in Japan. Drs. Juran and Deming taught the Japanese about quality control and stressed that 85% of quality problems can only be solved by top management, middle management and engineers: the remaining 15% of the problems can be identified and solved by the workers themselves.”
Lesson 3 – Employees Need Respect
Finally, they spoke of bringing dignity and respect into the workplace:
“There was a sincerity from everyone we heard that QC Circles are aimed at improving work life ... I think the basic concept is human dignity ... to the right of the worker to stop the assembly line when he sees a problem.”
“I was impressed by the clear direction, dedication, and commitment -- and the willingness to invest in capital equipment and dedicate time and money to training.”
The study mission marked the beginning of some big changes that would come to American manufacturing. Since that first trip in February 1981, I have been to Japan 79 times, discovering the marvelous tools and techniques Japanese companies used to become world leaders in manufacturing quality and productivity. I was very fortunate to meet Dr. Shigeo Shingo, Taiichi Ohno, Yoji Akao, Seiichi Nakajima, Ryuji Fukuda and publish hundreds of books on the Toyota Production System, SMED, TPM, Hoshin Planning, QFD, Kaizen Blitz, visual factory and 5S, CEDAC, quality control circles, Value Stream Mapping, cell design, poka-yoke, lean accounting, Andon, Kanban, Quick and Easy Kaizen, etc. These tools have raised American manufacturing productivity many times. But there is still more that can be done to make our companies stronger.
It Takes More Than Just Tools
The tools and techniques mentioned above primarily focused on the process side of manufacturing. People were just “slotted in” as an afterthought. Employees still come to work and are told what to do. Often, this work becomes boring and repetitive. This discourages workers and wastes their talents.
Most managers attempting to implement Lean and other Japanese methodologies have not been as successful as they could be because the tools and techniques were missing a very powerful ingredient. People need to find a real purpose (beyond simply receiving a paycheck) to be excited and motivated at work.
Bridge Lean Tools with the People Side of Lean
This is where my latest discovery from Japan, the Harada Method, comes in.
When we teach the Harada Method, we ask everyone to pick a future goal at work and to develop a clear plan to attain that goal. It doesn’t matter where a person starts in a company – all types of work are necessary – but people should be given the opportunity to develop themselves. Real empowerment comes to people when they can pick their own future goal that is aligned with their companies’ future success.
The Harada Method is Sweeping Japan
Mr. Takashi Harada was a junior high school coach in the worst school in Osaka and using his method, thirteen students won gold medals as the top athletes in all of Japan His school became number one out of 380 schools for five years in a row. In 2002, Mr. Harada opened his own consulting company in Tokyo and has now trained 55,000 people at 280 companies in the Harada Method. Based on the outstanding results in the companies that use it, the Japan Management Association rated the Harada Method the world’s best system for day-to-day management.
Is America Ready for the Harada Method? Yes.
Will it work in America? That question reminds me of when I first started Productivity and many people were skeptical if the TQM, SMED, TPM, and Lean would work here. Of course they work, and I am sure that the Harada Method will work here also.
Don’t just take my word for it. Two of the attendees at our last Harada Method workshop in October said:
“The Harada Method has helped me build the behaviors and routines I needed to be successful in achieving both my work and life goals. I now reflect on my actions and assess their impact against my goals on a daily basis. This intentional reflection has helped me to improve and has created a level of personal momentum and synergy between my life and my work that I have never experienced.”
– Lori E., manager, Talisman Energy
“Norm is great. He has lots of passion and knowledge and the willingness to share it. I would recommend you attend his sessions if possible. Will be a life changing experience.”
– Fahad Khan, manager, Suncor
The Harada Method:
- Teaches managers to become leaders and coaches
- Improves communication within an organization
- Helps you create a vision for your long-term personal success
- Teaches how to set long-term and short-term goals to realize that vision
- Raises your level of self-esteem
- Demonstrates that success is a repeatable technique
- Shows people to how to become achievers
- Gives employees a framework to develop their talents to their fullest potential
- Builds confidence
During a Harada Method Course, you will:
- Learn to focus on value-adding activities and to eliminate wasteful activities in your own life
- Understand how to be an independent, self-reliant person
- Create new habits to lead you to success
- Prepare yourself to build your skills and be trusted for making decisions
- Learn how to solve problems while making your work easier and more interesting
- Gain the tools to organize your time more effectively
- Work toward attaining personal mastery of a skill
- Learn the power of keeping a journal
- Be ready to equip everyone in an organization to work towards their personal and professional success
- Learn how to be a mentor and set up a mentor/mentee process in your organization
- Monitor your daily progress using the Daily Scorecard
- Understand the importance of coaching in developing people’s capabilities
The next Harada Workshop will be run January 16-18th at the Marriott Waterfront Hotel in Portland, Oregon. To register send an email to bodek@pcspress.com or call Norman at 360-737-1883. Go to pcspress.com for further details.
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