Traditional thinking 'v' Lean/CI thinking

Back in 2018 I was working with some colleagues in the Organisational Development and Learning space, trying to better locally frame what good looks like in an organisation that has made (or is making) the shift away from a traditional culture to more of a Lean/CI (Continuous Improvement) culture. David Mann frames this very well in the introduction to his book ‘Creating a Lean Culture’.

“Why, when it seems so simple, are successful lean implementations so difficult to achieve? The answer is in an overlooked but crucial aspect of lean. It requires an almost completely different approach in day-to-day and hour-to-hour management, compared to anything with which leaders in conventional environments are familiar or comfortable”.

In my 2018 research I stumbled across a presentation by Karen Martin from TKMG, in which she suggested 14 aspects that better contrast the difference in Traditional thinking and Lean/CI thinking. I found these super useful in pointing out to leaders and teams how they (or their company) still has some way to go to truly create a Lean culture. Have a look at the table below and think about which column you predominantly operate within. It’s important to be self-critical of this before you contemplate where the supervisors, leaders and managers around you are positioned.

Once you wrap your head around the above, then you can start to see where the cultural gaps around you exist. It is this culture which drives the behaviours which drive the habits we are looking for, so any gaps need to be called out. Also remember the importance of calling out good behaviours and any attempts to close these gaps. The above 14 aspects give a very material and focussed way to do this.

Working with a few leaders over the last 4 months has caused me dust off this approach and turn it into a set of ‘behavioural cards’. These 14 laminated cards can be dropped into your own tool kit and then be used to promote engagement and focused conversation at the work location. These pocket-sized cards are double-sided, with focussed questions on each behaviour included on the reverse to stimulate the right huddle conversations. As well as being able to be embedded into a team huddle, they can also be used by leadership teams to provoke deeper, more challenging discussions around the culture and behaviours they themselves see.

If anyone wished to do something similar, then please just reach out and I’d be happy to share any thinking or material that you might need to use this approach within your own teams. If you want to know the kind of provoking questions to use at huddles or to kick-start Lean/CI events then please get in touch, I’d be only too happy to assist.