Kaizen Processing

The original kanji characters for this word are shown below:

In Japanese this is pronounced 'Kaizen'.

改 ('kai') KAI means 'change' or 'the action to correct'.

善 ('zen') ZEN means 'good'.

In Chinese this is pronounced 'gai shan' which means 'change for the better' or 'improve'.

改 ('gǎi') means 'change' or 'the action to correct'.

善 ('shàn') means 'good' or 'benefit'.

'Benefit' is more related to the Taoist or Buddhist philosophy, which gives the definition as the action that 'benefits' the society but not one particular individual. In other words, one cannot benefit at another's expense. The quality of benefit that is involved here should be sustained forever, in other words the 'shan' is an act that truly benefits others.

Why is the concept of Kaisen now at the centre of our Team Building processing?

Continuous improvement! However good you are, you can always improve.

That's the basis of kaizen, the Japanese doctrine that changed the world. It's bluntly expressed by the 'half-way to-the-wall' school of practitioners: every year, managers are expected to improve operations on key parameters by half the distance between the present position and the wall - that is, zero cost or time.

As keen mathematicians will spot, you never reach the wall. The wall in the questions above is to make or supply the right things in the most effective way and at the lowest cost. You never get there: a Yes answer only states that you've done and are doing your damnedest.

The basic model is simplicity itself, and uses three key questions:

1. What have I (or we) done well?

2. What could I (or we) have done better?

3. What do I (or we) need to do or put in place to ensure we raise the bar next time?

A word of warning!

Although the model itself is simple to follow it does require a change of approach, and sometimes culture as well. At Mission Possible we work to identify key company, team, or individual issues that potentially inhibit progress, enabling us to support you in the understanding and implementation of the Kaisen model.

For more information look here: http://www.graphicproducts.com/tutorials/kaizen/index.php

Our Kaizen Based Processing Model