In This Chapter
▶ Following a chain of events from start to finish using a process stapling
▶ Drawing a spaghetti diagram to see how the work gets done
▶ (Creating a map of the process)
To improve a process, you need to know precisely how these processes work. Only after you understand how the process works can you see the opportunity for improvement in your process and manage performance better.
Finding out how the work gets done
We look at two types of process maps: the deployment flowchart and the value stream map. These maps build on the high-level SIPOC diagram explained in the previous chapter(#3 당신의 고객은 누구인⋯), and provide really helpful pictures of how the work gets done.
Before you draw any kind of process map, visit the workplace and see for yourself what's really happening. The Japanese refer to this observation as 'going to the Gemba'. Gemba = げんば [現場: 현장: the actual place]
Practicing process stapling
Process stapling provides one way to really understand the process and the chain of events. For example, process stapling means taking a customer order and literally walking it through the entire process step by step as though you were the order. No matter where the order goes, you go too. By following the order you start to see what really happens, who does what and why, how, where, and when they do it.
Tip] Carrying out a stapling process exercise with a small team of people can be an ideal first step. Sometimes there can be advantages in the beginning of the exercise from the end of the process and working backward. People can be less familiar with this 'reverse flow', helping them more carefully about things. In addition to this, the reverse flow can make some people open their eyes.
Process stapling in action
This example reflects our process stapling in at least one of our client organizations. A receives a customer order - she needs to input some information to the system, print out an internal form, add some additional information to it and then send it to B.
You now need to staple this form to yourself and take it over to Brian (imagine attaching it to your clothing, for example). B is some distance away. Immediately, you have a sense of how much transport is involved.
When you get to B, you find that his first action is to correct all of A's mistakes. You ask A whether she's aware that she'd got things wrong. She's not happy about this, as she thinks she'd been doing what B needed, and had done it always in this way. A tells you that B has never mentioned anything about her mistake. You find B never bothers to tell A about the errors, which had caused by misunderstanding because he finds it easier to correct the mistake himself.
After B corrects the errors, he sends the paper to C. You're dismayed to find that C sits next to A - shame the papers didn't go straight to C in the first place!
C tells you that this step is a complete waste of time. She'd told her manager this, but her manager says the step is an important element of C's work. C just checks that the system is updated, that certain information is in the right box on the form, and that B has put his signature on the form. She finds this task boring and has yet never found a case that needs correction, so she simply puts these items to one side, lets the work build up, and then clears them all on a Friday afternoon before going home.
These why-on-earth-do-we-do-this activities show the importance of communication and understanding the process correctly at the Gemba. Unnecessary movement from A to C, the cause of bottle built up until C going home on Friday with absurd reasons.
It's not uncommon for only 10-15 percent of the steps in a process to add value, and more often than not, the 'thing' going through the process spends as little as 1 percent of the total process time in these steps.
When introducing the idea of process stapling, you may find some people telling you that this is what they already do. But what they actually do is get a group of people in a room and use sticky notes to help draw up the process. They're missing the point. The picture they draw will be what they think is happening. Process stapling enables you to see what's really happening.
Tip] Try taking photos of each step in the process. Apart from providing an ideal record of what you've seen, photos enable you to make an effective presentation to the management of what you've found. As your understanding of the process increases, you're likely to find real value in working with your customers to extend the process stapling concept to incorporate their activities with yours.
Drawing spaghetti diagrams
A spaghetti diagram provides a picture of what's happening in the process in terms of movement. The diagram tracks the movement of the thing or things going through the process, including the flow of information and the people carrying out the work.
In the below figure you can find a pretty confusing series of movement of documents as an example.
Series of movements can be complicated in some cases but also can be comparatively simple in other cases as you can see examples in the below figure.
The spaghetti diagram may throw up some real surprises about how much movement happens in your organization, including how often things go back and forth. This technic helps you identify waste and provides a visual catalyst to stimulate change in your workplace. Recording the total distance traveled on the baseline of the diagram and then doing the same for the new and improved method is good practice. People can easily find the difference between 'As-Is' and 'To-Be'.
This may be also a good technic you can use at home. Think about how much movement you make in your kitchen then you will know the importance of the triangle formed by the sink, cooker and fridge.
When you use spaghetti diagrams and process stapling together, you may see the opportunity for a significant reduction in wasted movement and in other non-value-added steps too. So, in the process stapling example described in the nearby sidebar, is B's step necessary? If it were, would sitting A, B and C more closely together make sense?
Unnecessary traveling and movement waste so much time. Sitting the relevant people and equipment together is often a relatively simple way of reducing waste and processing time. Here you can find another illustrative example showing the waste reduction by rearrangement of the workshop.
※ 참조: 본문은 책, "Dummy들을 위한 린 식스시그마(Lean Six Sigma)"와 The Toyota way를 정리한 내용을 기반으로 제 경험들을 조미한 글입니다. 현재는 원서 기반으로 내용을 정리하고 있는 중이며, 정리가 완료되면 한글로 번역을 추가할 예정입니다.
'Lean Six Sigma' 카테고리의 다른 글
| #8 VSM(Value Stream Map) 만들기 - Constructing a value stream map (0) | 2021.03.27 |
|---|---|
| #7 업무의 흐름 파악하기 Part 2 - Determining the Chain of Events (0) | 2021.03.27 |
| #5 고객의 니즈(Needs) 파악하기 Part 2 - Understanding Your Customers' Needs (0) | 2021.03.27 |
| #4 고객의 니즈(Needs) 파악하기 Part 1 - Understanding Your Customers' Needs (0) | 2021.03.27 |
| #3 당신의 고객은 누구인가?(SIPOC Diagram) - Identifying Your Customers (0) | 2021.03.27 |
