Digitizing to Control the Process
The nature of knowledge work is that it is very hard to see. Knowledge work takes one form of informational input and translates it into another form of information. Much […]
Maintaining Human Engagement in an Increasingly Digital World
I see a lot of Gemba boards in my work. It is a fun thing in consulting to see so many different companies and variations in how information is gathered, […]
Optimize Human and Machine Interaction and Minimize Machine Downtime
Machine uptime is crucial to the efficiency of all our operations. Machines are intertwined with all areas of our operations. We enter data into them and they process the data […]
When Is Automation The Right Answer?
When is the right time to automate? One of my clients asked us to look at automation for their receiving dock. They were short on labor and saw a machine […]
Thinking About The Role of Technology
Spring has sprung! The year is in full swing now. As a fan of change, I truly enjoy the change of seasons and all the natural splendor. I’m lucky to […]
Don’t Bias Your Discovery!
I will close out this series of articles covering the process of discovery by touching on some of the less tangible considerations of performing a solid discovery. The context, the […]
Visualize the Discovery
So far in my discussion on the process of discovery I have focused on methods of collection. Specifically, process observation, interviewing people, and performing frequent waste walks. Discovery goes further […]
Quantifying the Discovery
We can agree that in the process of discovery observation is not enough. To make characterizations about a process we need hard data. Observation can be a form of data, […]
Waste Walks In Action
This article will focus on waste walks as a part of the discovery process. I suspect most of my readers know what a waste walk is, but I would still […]
Interviewing to Discover the Current State
A great deal of knowledge can be gained through observation. But observation alone does not tell you everything. In the process of discovery we have to employ a multitude of […]