How can Lean Manufacturing professionals prioritize their workloads?

1 Identify value

The first step to prioritize your workload is to identify what value means for your customers and stakeholders. Value is anything that meets or exceeds their needs and expectations, and that they are willing to pay for. You can use tools such as value stream mapping, customer feedback, and market research to understand the value proposition of your products or services, and how they flow through your processes. By identifying value, you can focus on the activities that create and deliver it, and eliminate or reduce the ones that do not.

3 Optimize flow

The third step to prioritize your workload is to optimize the flow of your processes. Flow is the smooth and uninterrupted movement of materials, information, and people through your processes, from start to finish. You can use tools such as kanban, pull systems, and takt time to optimize the flow of your processes, and balance the supply and demand of your products or services. By optimizing flow, you can reduce cycle times, inventory levels, and waiting times, and increase productivity, quality, and customer satisfaction.

4 Implement pull

The fourth step to prioritize your workload is to implement pull in your processes. Pull is the principle of producing only what is needed, when it is needed, and in the amount needed, by the customer or stakeholder. You can use tools such as kanban boards, visual signals, and batch size reduction to implement pull in your processes, and avoid overproduction and underproduction of your products or services. By implementing pull, you can align your workload with the actual demand of your customers or stakeholders, and reduce waste and costs.

6 Adapt to change

The sixth step to prioritize your workload is to adapt to change in your environment. Change is the constant and inevitable variation of customer needs, market conditions, technology, and regulations, that affect your processes, products, and services. You can use tools such as hoshin kanri, A3, and agile methods to adapt to change in your environment, and respond quickly and effectively to new opportunities and challenges. By adapting to change, you can maintain or increase your value proposition, and satisfy or exceed your customer and stakeholder expectations.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?