No Time To Waste

by LeanTeams

On Purpose: Communicating purpose clearly at all levels

Can everyone in our organisation state:

Who we serve (our clients),
Why it matters
How we deliver an excellent service

Can this be translated into no more than 5 measurable outcomes for each team?
(e.g. speed, quality, reliability, NPS)

Is our performance against these outcomes communicated and easy to understand?

If everyone can describe how their task outcomes link to our purpose, we’ve nailed it!

People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.

Simon Sinek from his TED talk How Great Leaders Inspire Action (2009)

On Process: Use process maps to visualise current state

Follow the journey of the product or service — from customer trigger to completed outcome.

This should be done at the Gemba (where the work actually happens).
List each step, who does it, inputs/outputs, and decision points.
Use swim lanes for each function to clearly visualise handoffs,

For a more complete understanding, consider a Value Stream Map and add basic data: how long each steps takes, any wait time, % right first time, volumes.
Complete a value-add & non-value-add analysis.
These exercises facilitate a more productive discussion on potential improvements.

Value-stream maps are the blueprints for lean transformations.

Mike Rother & John Shook, Learning to See (1998)

Leader's task of the week: Map One Process, Fast.

Pick one customer-facing process with issues. Define the boundaries (trigger → done). Map the process at the Gemba involving those actively involved in the process. Use a physical or virtual whiteboard, to facilitate an interactive session. Estimate step times, wait times, % right first time. Estimate value-added & non-value-added time. (Note: the total time should equate to the lead time experienced by the customer of the process) Identify potential improvements and support addressing ‘quick wins’ immediately to achieve some initial momentum.

On People: Identify learning opportunities in your organisation

The only way to develop true confidence is to earn it.

The confidence that you can bounce back from failure is earned by working through previous failures.
The confidence that you can deliver the speech is earned by the previous speeches you have given.
The confidence that you can perform on game day is earned by the previous performances in practice.
In the beginning, you need enough courage to practice even though it may not go very well. And over time, as your skills improve, courage transforms into confidence. Courage first, confidence later.

James Clear, in his 3-2-1 Newsletter (Sept 11, 2025)”

Drive out fear, so that everyone may work effectively for the company.

W. Edwards Deming, Fourteen Points https://deming.org/explore/fourteen-points/

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