Reinventing Manufacturing 

Get away from functional organization. Organize for pro­cesses. Cells are usually designed to handle an entire process, or even product. The organization is set up to serve the customer, mission, product, process— in that order.

It seems like it's only a matter of time after a new concept, such as TQM, MIS, etc., comes along, before a corps of arrogant technocrats materializes, spouting acronyms, rules, regulations, forms, and methodologies. Reengineer­ing is proving to be no exception to this. Don't let them gain a foothold. Make sure BPR stays with the people, by holding them accountable, organizing accordingly, and providing needed resources.

Define your system with simple statements, pictorial charts, tables, and where necessary, algorithms. If these can't be used for training purposes, consider tearing them up and starting over, until you can. If people should be able to use them to help perform their jobs.

Issues really drive a BPR project. Track all suggestions, disputes, problems, guidance from management. Keep them on "issues lists." Categorize, group and prioritize them. Develop/solicit suggested approaches to these. Use this list to guide the BPR project and to track resolution and implementation.

A corporate, bureaucratic approval process moving at a snail's pace swallows up ideas, innovation and enthusi­asm. Considerradicalchangestoyours. Use the "book club

trick." Some book clubs will automatically send you books and bill you for them, unless you object or specify different books.

Your company might use this idea too. Publish suggested approaches, maybe as part of the issues list. If nobody objects or comes up with better ideas, the suggestions are automatically assigned to be developed and implemented.

We have pondered the best approaches for documenting as-is and to-be systems configurations, and developed the following conclusions:

• KIS (Keep It Simple). The more complex methodolo­gies confuse and intimidate the very people you most need to involve. The tools can bog down the effort, and rapidly result in diminishing returns.

• People are inhibited from making changes to the more complex models, because of the sheer amount of work of constructing and maintaining the more complex modeling tools.

• Simple methods are more likely to be utilized and to bear fruit more rapidly.

• People think better in chart or pictorial format. Chart the process using actual documents or likenesses of forms, screens, reports, etc. Record issues, defect occurrences, delays, contradictions, cycle times, re­sponsibilities, procedure/policy references, right on the charts.

• Go down to the level that people understand in the process.

• Start with company level and process summary level charts. Do a mission statement for each process and sub-process before you get into the details.

• Use the charts as a diagnostic and design tool. Identify and correct non-value-added activities, bottlenecks, defect and delay producing points, organizational con­straints, gaps, overlaps, etc.

42 out of 40 hints promised ain't bad.

Lean Six Sigma Training   Thinking Out of the Box   
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Supply Chain Inventory Management  Total Quality Management Principles
Lean Manufacturing Implementation  Lean Manufacturing Principles