What is Kaizen?

Kaizen is the Japanese name for continuous improvement. The word was made popular in the west by a book of the same name written by Masaaki Imai and is now widely used and understood. Kaizen is an approach to creating continuous improvement based on the idea that small, ongoing positive changes can reap significant improvements. When done properly, a company can cut costs, improve safety, quality and employee engagement, thus helping every aspect of the company.
A Kaizen event is not just a training session or workshop therefore all team members need to be prepared to do whatever is necessary to make their team successful. This may include cleaning, painting, or moving materials and equipment. A Kaizen event usually takes 3 to 5 days and involves employees directly impacted by the changes (operations, maintenance, quality, etc) manager/supervisor responsible for the process, and someone from outside the team who can often identify potential issues that would otherwise be overlooked. The teams are led by the team leader, who is responsible for the work rules within the team. However, every team member is expected to be fully focused on the team’s efforts. With a bias toward action, this group activity is meant to make rapid change. This is a focused and finite attack on a particular problem or opportunity for improvement.