“You Keep Saying ‘Improvement, Improvement,’ But Are You Saying We’re Slow?”

Hello everyone! I’m Shohei.
This column is written mainly based on my field experience.
After being on site for over 10 years, there are truly many things that happen. I’m writing about things I remember, as they come to mind.
Well, please read it casually, like “Oh, so that’s how other factories are.”

The Spell Called “Improvement” ~ From the Plant Factory Floor ~

“You keep talking about improvement, but does that mean we’re too slow?”
Those words came flying at me in the plant factory workspace, illuminated by the blue-white LED lights. When those words were said to me with a straight face, I instinctively stopped my work.

In many plant factories, along with the president’s favorite rallying cry of “Improve profitability!”, the quotas on the front lines increase visibly in no time. It’s a common sight. The magic words “speed up operations” and “cut personnel costs” dance on the whiteboard, and before you know it, an invisible pressure to “work faster, do more” grows more abundantly than the lettuce on the factory floor.

“Improvement” Allergy

One day at the morning meeting. The moment the supervisor enthusiastically announced, “We’ll strengthen improvement activities starting this week!”, I could see the expressions of the workers clouding over. The atmosphere was as if they were saying, “Here we go again…”

It’s more like an “improvement allergy” than distrust toward improvement activities. No wonder. Until now, “improvement” typically meant “work harder.”

What is True “Improvement”?

In fact, true improvement activities are meant to make work on the front lines easier. Creating an environment where people can work with less effort, more efficiently, and above all, more safely.

But somehow, this essence rarely reaches the work floor.

At the factory where I worked, the improvement proposal forms always had sections for “purpose,” “effect,” and “benefits.” However, most of them were written for upper management, leaving the workers on the front lines wondering, “So? What’s good about this for us?”

Communication Breakdown

One day, I asked a veteran worker:
“Why are you reluctant about improvement activities?”

Her answer was unexpected:
“I don’t dislike improvement itself. But you know, just being told to ‘do it’ from above doesn’t motivate me. If they listen to our voices and think together with us, I’d be willing to cooperate.”

I see, what they were seeking wasn’t top-down orders, but dialogue.

The Persuasiveness of Data

The following week, I boldly approached the morning meeting with graphs that visualized floor data.

“With this improvement, work will be 30% faster, and overtime will decrease by 10 hours per month. Annually, that’s a reduction of ¥○○. We’ve submitted a proposal to add that amount to bonuses.”

By clearly showing the numbers and benefits, the reaction on the floor completely changed. There were even voices saying, “In that case, I’ll cooperate!”

Improvement isn’t something you do once and it’s over. Like plants growing day by day, improvement activities show their effects through continuity.

What’s even more important is continuing the dialogue with the front lines. The quality of improvements also increases by continuously picking up voices saying, “How was this improvement, really?” or “Wouldn’t it be better if we did it this way?”

Improvement Walking Together with the Front Lines

Improvement activities show their true effects only when advanced in unity with the front lines. From my experience, what I can say is that the greatest secret to successful improvement is “listening to the voices from the front lines and walking together with them.”

Just like the plants illuminated by LED lights, the people on the front lines will also grow on their own and bear fruit if given the appropriate environment.

This column is sourced from a collection of know-how for improving field operations

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