Simplify the System

Written by Jason Haines

“That’s been one of my mantras-focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex: you have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you move mountains.” -Steve Jobs

Throughout the years I always thought that I had to be two things in life, busy and a know-it-all. I needed to constantly stay busy, so I wasn’t looked down upon as doing nothing. The second was to always know everything about what was being talked about, have an answer for everything, and not look foolish. This may have been my upbringing, but I don’t think I can say that it is fully on my upbringing because I see this thought process in the many places and people I’ve worked with. Many people are afraid they may not know something and are worried about being left behind. Why do we do this and how may this change?

One of the big things I always felt that I was less than, and this led me to add complexity to everything that I did. I probably still do this to an extent but have gotten a lot better at reducing the chaos in my life, you wouldn’t think that with a wife and two kids (Isn’t life supposed to get harder at that point?). Why did I decide to make this change at this point in my life? ?Pre-kids the stress I put on myself was unbearable and unhealthy. I wanted to be there for my family, but my mind was not with them, it was at work. Regardless of where I was at, I wasn’t truly present because I was thinking about work and what needed to be done. I forgot how to be in the moment because I was thinking about how to make the improvements at work. I knew that if I wanted to guide my family and our future, I needed to start simplifying the system that I was working in.

I had dreams growing up and they were big dreams. I was going to play professional baseball, and that is all that I focus on was to make it to the pros. But when I didn’t make it, I didn’t have a backup plan and I floundered around for a few years unsure where to turn. I tried to coach, didn’t think I was good enough and quit that. Tried to be a landscaper, didn’t think I was good enough and quit that. Constantly starting something and thinking I wasn’t worthy, the voice in my head telling me I wasn’t good enough to succeed. Whether that was from my upbringing or the area I came from, I was the only person who could change that way of thinking. As I say to many people during our trainings, we must work on our own jobs and complexity before we can work on others and lead others around us.

W. Edwards Deming talked about working on the system as a whole and creating cooperation over competition so everything worked together. This was something growing up I always thought about because of playing competitive team sports. In baseball we have teamwork and individual work in one sport. As a hitter, we are working individually to get onto the base while working as a team if there is someone already on base to drive that person in for a run. Much the same process in the field to keep the run from scoring. This is the same in many organizations as they should be working together in cooperation to build a better product or service for the customer. When we are cooperating, we are trying to find a way to simplify they system to make it easier for everyone to work within. When we simplify the system, we create a more efficient process that will reduce chaos and allow workers to make improvements and solve problems. This simpler system will also allow leaders to understand what is going on so they can make predictions for the future.

I learned to make my life simpler through studying Lean and the teachings of W. Edwards Deming. Simplification has provided not only for me, but for many I have worked, more confidence in what we do. When things are made simpler, we can find that our decision-making processes can be reduced, and we don’t second guess ourselves as much. We can determine how many people are needed for a job and what the cost of things will be without hesitation because we have a base to come back to. Lean gives us the tools to simplify the processes such as standard work, takt time, and many others that help guide us while we are mentoring and teaching others.

Simplifying things works in many areas of our lives and includes all people involved to make sure that the process is guided in the right direction, we are creating for the future and not for the short term. In my family my wife and I have a vision for our family and understand, or at least we are growing to understand, how the others job in the family and what we do affects the other. This is true in the working world as well. Therefore, we should start with a process map, or a value stream map first with everyone in the facility involved. With mapping we start to see the connections between departments, jobs, and people. We also see steps and start to ask questions about why each of the steps is necessary in the process and if they can be eliminated or not. I like to use just a simple process map in this case and have been successful in many cases because it allows people to see and understand the overall process.

After doing the mapping process then we can go out and study the process more in depth to make sure we didn’t miss anything and to see if the process is in control, or within the limits of what it can produce. See the mistake many people make is they want more and know what the numbers it will take to get more, but they do not understand the current state of the process. So, we buy a new piece of machinery or say yes to a new customer and think we can handle it, but we don’t go out and study the process to make sure we can handle it. This comes from looking at the data and not studying the real data and process. The first step, before making a change or buying new machinery, is to understand and improve the current process. Then we can buy machines that fit the process. Do not make the people fit the machines, software, or data. When we do this, we are not showing respect to the people.

Many times, we as leaders, go out and find the cheapest machine, box, etc. and buy it based on the price because that is our job to save money for the company. And don’t worry I have been in this trap as well. When really, to save money, and make more money for our organization, we could just go out and start working on the process. Making things simpler for ourselves and the people working in the process will increase throughput which increases profits. And trust me that is simpler than trying to find a vendor who is fighting their way to the bottom and giving you a big discount so they can make a sell. Not saying this is a bad thing, as they are working in the system they are put into, but it is defeating the purpose of providing a quality good or service that the customer really wants from those who are supplying them.

Helping build future leaders and ambassadors while also getting people home to their families. Allowing employees to enjoy their life and their jobs. This is what Lean is about. Respect for people (Stakeholders) in all areas and in all ways. If you don’t know where to start give Industrial Solutions a call to start the conversation.

Helping grow your business through process improvement!