Do You Use Simple Measurements & Are They Easy to Interpret?

'Keeping it simple' and 'visual management' go hand in hand. Visual management uses intuitive visual signals to make concise,?accurate, and pertinent information available to us without delay. Often at all times when we need it most. This information is condensed down to its most basic form to give everything you need to know, and none of what you don’t. Visual management is essentially all about communicating a message to everyone, no matter the viewers background, education, and often regardless of our native language. Most common of these visuals are the are the safety warnings all around us every day. What makes these cues so effective are the exact reasons we need to take advantage of them in our workplace.?

The value here is that through communicating this information visually, it requires no interpretation to understand. We can absorb the information “at a glance”. That means even if we are unfamiliar with the workplace, office, or any place of business, we should be able to instantly see the current state of work, the flow through the area, and how the team is performing at any given time. Knowing the status of the operation in real time gives us the chance to make any necessary corrections we might need to get back on course while there is still time to avoid any costly issues.

Let’s for a moment imagine our lives without the visual management we have all come to expect. Highways and roads without signs and traffic signals. Airports without flight status boards that continually update in real time. A sporting event without the score in big numbers. You see, we have been using visual management all our lives. It seems silly to overlook it in the workplace. Yes, we use the airport flight status boards to make sure we have time for that cup of coffee before they close the boarding door. And sure, we might have the important lifesaving basics; fire extinguisher markings, evacuation routes, and storm shelters identified, but let’s not stop there. Let’s give our team what they need in an easy to interpret, “at a glance” visual that they can use to make informed decisions quickly, to prevent an issue from becoming a serious problem. After all, the best coffee in the world won’t taste very good if we miss our flight!

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