A survey conducted by PA Consulting Group has found that, despite claims that IT, and in particular Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, are inflexible and hamper the implementation of Lean, there is actually a synergy between Lean and IT.
The survey of around 110 Operations Managers and IT Management staff revealed that 57% of the Operations Managers in Lean organisations see harmony between the existing IT infrastructure and Lean techniques.
The survey concluded that the greatest benefits are achieved using a variety of Lean tools, supported by cultural change. Analysis shows that 95% of organisations have implemented only one or more tools from the Lean toolbox, rather than adopting an all-out Lean culture change. The organisations that have gone through the all-out change report the most benefits.
It was clear that IT Managers need to broaden their knowledge of Lean. Only 50% of the implementing organisations' IT Managers are involved or informed of a Lean project within their organisation. Many do not realise the impact that Lean could have on IT requirements and therefore do not see its potential to improve the service that they provide to their clients.
Integrating IT in the implementation of Lean to achieve added value has provided 60% of the Lean implementations with additional functionality and applications support.
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What is Lean production?
Lean Production is a continuous improvement approach based on the principles and methods of the Toyota Production System. Lean is about two areas of focus.
The first is that a company should focus all its efforts on ensuring value is delivered to the customer; where activities do not add value they should, wherever possible, be removed. The second is ‘one piece flow’ – flow is regarded as the key to achieving best quality at the lowest cost, highest safety and morale. One piece flow is incredibly demanding as it immediately brings to the surface problems that demand quick solutions or production will stop. The Lean approach provides a wide range of tools and techniques (Lean toolbox) to improve performance and support an efficiency programme.
An organisation can decide to use a single tool (such as Six Sigma for quality improvement) or co-ordinate a number of them to improve its performance. But to really succeed Lean requires more than just tools; it demands cultural change to ensure that the philosophy of continuous improvement is embedded in the mindset of people at every level in the organisation. Organisations that have successfully implemented Lean can experience a productivity increase of up to 50%, a marked improvement in customer satisfaction, and improved staff morale or commitment, leading to increased sales and market share.
By its very nature, Lean demands increased flexibility from IT, both in terms of work methods and systems. However, there have been consistent comments on the culture clash between Lean’s flexible and responsive nature and the more rigid nature of IT systems. PA Consulting Group (PA) therefore decided to conduct a survey covering IT and Operations Managers to better comprehend the interaction and differences, and to help them implement Lean more smoothly across their organisations.
Despite the claims from magazines, academics and Lean practitioners that IT, and in particular Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, are inflexible and that they hamper the implementation of Lean, our findings prove that there is actually synergy between Lean and IT. The results show that, whilst both can exist without each other, greater success will be realised if you join IT and Lean together: 57% of the Operations Managers in Lean organisations see harmony between the existing IT infrastructure and Lean techniques.
