Lean Leadership - Governance

Lean Nation,

Continuing on our leadership series, this week's post will focus on governance.    There are two levels of governance that should be addressed when trying to transform your organization; enterprise and value stream.  Let's discuss each in turn.

Enterprise Wide Transformation Governance

To effectively implement the Toyota Production System across the enterprise you need an effective steering committee.  The steering committee should be comprised of the key change agents across the organization.  This powerful guiding coalition can come from management and staff.   I recommend about 10 people to particpate on the committee. The enterprise steering committe is responsible for at least eight main areas.

1. managing the pace of change
2. selecting the right areas of focus
3. ensuring value stream improvement
4. ensuring standard work is followed for improvement
5. managing the communication plan
6. developing people (improvement capabilities of the organization)
7. managing the improvement measures (process and outcomes)
8. removing corporate barriers

Value Stream Governance

Each value stream will need to have a governance structure.  The value stream makeup will consist of the value stream manager, the key process owners, and support process owners, along with key leadership from staff.  This committee, is much smaller and may only include 3-5 people. I like to have the primary lean lead resource as a part of this team as well.  The value stream governance will be responsible for the following:

1. managing the value stream improvement plan (priorities and intensity)
2. ensuring everyone in the value stream is particpating in improvement
3. ensure improvements are sustained
4. ensure improvements are sustained
5. ensure improvements are sustained (get the picture)
6. follow up on variances from the visual management system
7. ensure resources are allocated to localize improvement
8. hold staff accountible to standard work

If you are not getting the results you are expecting from your improvement efforts,  check your governance structure.  If you are not providing effective (or any) goverance to your improvement efforts,  you likely are skipping some important steps in the transformation process leading to spotty and un-sutained results.

Lean Blessings,

Ron

Ron Bercaw
President, Breakthrough Horizons
www.breakthroughhorizons.com