Why Lean Fails: Considering How We Manage Our Initiatives

10 Reasons Why Lean Initiatives Fail

Despite the longevity of Lean, its enormous popularity and the documented gains in productivity and waste reduction that many companies have experienced, the track record for successful implementations is spotty. Keep reading to learn about why Lean initiatives fail.

In 1936, with the assistance of Shigeo Shingo and Taiichi Ohno, Koichiro Toyoda developed “Kaizen” improvement teams. These dealt with the manufacturing issues. Ohno then brought this and other concepts together. It has become the Toyota Production System (TPS). It is from the TPS that Lean production was developed.

In his 1988 article, “Triumph of the Lean Production System” John Krafcik coined the term “Lean”. The article states that:

• A well-trained, flexible workforce
• Product designs that are easy to build with high quality
• A supportive, high-performance supplier network.

1. None or a lack of customer focus. Companies exist because they have customers. Improvements are made with a focus on them. This includes improving your products, costs and services for them. By doing so, you can also attract more customers. If the Lean program is not geared towards this, the reason for…