From genesis to Genba: Unveiling the Transformative Genba Process

Yesterday, I traveled to Greenville to facilitate a Genba and Kata training for the GE Vernova Engineering executives. Returning to Greenville always feels like a homecoming. After 12 years with GE, Greenville still captivates me like a young engineer discovering its vast equipment for the first time.

What is Genba?:

Genba is an integral concept in lean business systems, serving as the catalyst for various lean events such as problem-solving and kaizens. However, its primary purpose isn't just to initiate continuous improvement projects; it's about enabling managers and leaders to witness the actual work process, engage with employees, and demonstrate respect. Continuous improvement opportunities are a bonus.

?Genba is a core component of the San Gen Shugi (3 Real ideology).

Genchi Genbutsu, a Japanese principle adopted by Toyota, translates to "Go get your boots on," emphasizing the importance of personally observing a location and its conditions to understand and resolve problems more efficiently.

What are the steps for Genba?:

1)Preparation: Like every process, good preparation makes or breaks the Genba walk. Ask yourself these questions, before going to the genba walk:

What processes are you visiting?

?Identify key processes and behaviors under your responsibility

?Establish the frequency of observation / verification

?Confirm a method for visual management of the processes and behaviors

?Define the team involved

?Communicate with your team how you will support them

?Determine the schedule to observe as many times as needed with as many people as required to understand a process or situation

Prepare to understand the process

?Understand the process based on the documentation available (Standard Work, Best practices...)

?Use a checklist for Genba Walk preparation:

1. Have you decided what you are going to observe or theme for the Gemba walk?? (Safety and Environment, Visual management implementation…)
2. Has the team decided who would go with you?
3. Has the team been informed before hand on the schedule and location where to meet?
4. Have you budgeted enough time?
5. Have you gone through the standard of the process, recent performance trend, Customer feedback , process standard…
6. Have you shared / briefed the team on the theme and focus of your Gemba walk before starting the Gemba?

Remember you are going there to understand, learn and identify areas of improvement. Blame the process, not the people!

2)Conducting the Genba:

- Seek to learn and recognize

- Reinforce Lean principles & vision

- Observe & ask open-ended questions: We cannot treat Genba as an audit. It is all about humility and understanding.

- Observe alignment of KPIs to business goals

- Support critical thinking & problem identification

- Celebrate wins & positive behaviors

3)Reflection: This is usually an overlooked step, but an important one!

Follow up plan after walk:

Share what you observed and learned

If you need to take actions…explain next steps

Follow up with progress (If you can't measure it, how can you take credit for the improvement?

Differences exist between Manufacturing and Transactional Genba:

Toyota and how they solved a major quality problem through genba:

Properly executed Genba has the potential to alter a company's trajectory. Toyota was one of the companies that reaped the benefits of it. In the early 2000s, Toyota faced a significant challenge in its U.S. operations. Several vehicle recalls and quality issues had damaged the company's reputation for reliability and safety. Toyota's response to this crisis exemplifies the application of the genba philosophy:

Toyota leadership, including Akio Toyoda, the company's president at the time, recognized that they needed to get closer to the genba, which in this case meant the manufacturing plants and dealerships in the U.S. They understood that to address quality issues, they needed to be where the problems were occurring.

Toyota encouraged its employees at all levels to speak up about quality concerns. Employees on the genba were empowered to report issues without fear of retaliation. This open communication allowed problems to be identified and addressed quickly.

Toyota implemented a series of quality control measures, including enhanced training, more rigorous testing, and improvements in supply chain management. They continuously monitored and improved their processes to prevent future issues.

Executives and managers, including Akio Toyoda himself, conducted "genba walks" to directly observe and understand the manufacturing processes and the challenges faced by workers. This hands-on approach allowed them to gain insights and make informed decisions for improvement.

By embracing the genba philosophy and making a concerted effort to be closer to the source of their problems, Toyota was able to rebuild its reputation for quality and safety. Over time, they regained customer trust and continued to thrive in the global automotive industry.

?This case illustrates how the genba philosophy, with its focus on real-time observation, problem-solving, and continuous improvement at the source, helped Toyota overcome a significant business challenge. It can do the same for our businesses.

Let's remember Genba is more than continuous improvement. It is about showing respect and humility to our employees. Also, understanding the most important question of all: "WHY?"

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