How do you use lean thinking in product design?

1 Define value

The first step in using lean thinking in product design is to define value from the customer's perspective. Value is what the customer is willing to pay for, and what solves their problem or satisfies their desire. You need to understand who your customers are, what they need, what they want, and how they use your product. You can use various methods to gather customer feedback, such as surveys, interviews, observations, or experiments.

2 Identify value stream

The second step in using lean thinking in product design is to identify the value stream, which is the set of activities and resources that are required to deliver value to the customer. The value stream includes the design, development, testing, production, distribution, and maintenance of your product. You need to map out the value stream and identify the sources of waste, such as overproduction, defects, waiting, inventory, motion, transportation, or overprocessing.

3 Eliminate waste

The third step in using lean thinking in product design is to eliminate waste from the value stream. Waste is anything that does not add value to the customer, or that consumes more resources than necessary. You need to analyze the value stream and eliminate or minimize the waste by applying various lean tools and techniques, such as 5S, kaizen, kanban, poka-yoke, or standard work.

4 Implement flow

The fourth step in using lean thinking in product design is to implement flow, which is the smooth and uninterrupted movement of value from the beginning to the end of the value stream. Flow reduces the cycle time, inventory, and costs of your product, and increases the quality, flexibility, and responsiveness to customer demand. You need to design your product and your processes to enable flow by eliminating bottlenecks, reducing batch sizes, synchronizing activities, and balancing workloads.

5 Seek perfection

The fifth step in using lean thinking in product design is to seek perfection, which is the continuous improvement of your product and your processes to meet or exceed customer expectations. Perfection is not a final destination, but a journey of learning and innovation. You need to monitor your product performance and customer feedback, and identify opportunities for improvement. You also need to involve your team and your stakeholders in the improvement process, and empower them to make decisions and implement changes.

6 Apply agile methods

The sixth step in using lean thinking in product design is to apply agile methods, which are a set of practices and principles that emphasize collaboration, adaptation, and delivery of value in short iterations. Agile methods are compatible with lean thinking, as they both focus on customer satisfaction, waste elimination, and continuous improvement. You can use agile methods to design your product in an iterative and incremental way, by defining user stories, creating prototypes, testing assumptions, and delivering working features.

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?