In Lean management, Visual Management represents the nervous system. When implementing Lean, visual management is a must-have tool. By visually connecting Lean tools and Lean management Lean management, Visual Management helps to amplify the impact of Lean management.
Most businesses have Visual Management Boards, which are one of the most basic Visual Management forms. Some so-called “Visual Management Boards” are simply “show boards,” which only display information, documents, or plans and do not allow readers to engage with them. Worse, the information contained in them is frequently outdated.
How Can You Tell If Your Visual Management Board Is Effective?
The Rule of Thirty-One Seconds.
Standards, problems, and actions should all be included in a true Visual Management Board.
- Standard – Target performance, rather than average performance, is the benchmark in Lean. On the board, the criteria should be clearly stated, indicating how things should be if everything is flawless.
- Problems Problems – What exactly is the issue? The issue is a deviation from standard, either in terms of actual performance (e.g., below target) or in terms of the standard itself (inaccurate target). One ice-cream plant operations manager informed me that they don’t need to improve because their efficiency is over 120 % every day. Actually, based on my observations, they had twice as many operators on the production line as were required.
- Actions – When an issue arises, preventative steps should be done. Without action, a Visual Management Board is merely a display board. Your organization’s efficiency is determined by how effectively problems are addressed and actions are carried out. All of these features aid the user in comprehending what is happening in the work environment. It is only by bringing things to light that deviations (issues) can be identified and immediately addressed and resolved.
How does a Good Visual Management Board look like?
A good Visual Management Board, according to Visualmitra,
should follow the 31-second rule.
- 1 Second – It can tell us if it’s normal (everything is fine in the work area) and meets the requirements (goal or plan) in less than a second. In simple terms, the work environment should “speak” to you. Typically, companies use green to signify good status (e.g. met target, on time) and red to show poor status (e.g. missed target, delayed).
- 10 Seconds – If something isn’t normal, it notifies us in 10 seconds what the problem is. We implement effective visual management boards at Visualmitra to track and manage issues.
- 20 Seconds – It tells us what action to take in 20 seconds, who is responsible for it, and what assistance is required. Actions without checks, or problems without actions, are a total waste on the board!
A proper Visual Management Board will aid communication between users and viewers while also increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of your company. The only limitation to the Visual Management Board’s design is your imagination! Visualmitra can help you improve the overall performance by Visual Management.