The Smartspeed Performance Improvement Blog

I see how many businesses handle their end of project reviews, or their non-conformance reports. I see how they try to skip along the process, trying to get back to what they were doing in the first place. For some of these businesses, what they were doing before is how they got into the bother they are looking at presently... so why go back to it? The root cause is important. It help organisations of all shapes and forms to improve. But only if you get to the root cause. The root cause is the aha moment, the point when you realise that the change is in your power to resolve. When you fail to dig down to the right level, you are left with vague conclusions. You aren't left with the clarity of a root cause realisation. You don't have a clear set of steps you can take. This is the power of the root cause and I urge you to embrace it if you aren't doing so presently. Available on Kindle and Paperback A few years ago I wrote a book on getting the most out of the 5 Why techniqu...

I get a lot of people tell me how serious they are about continuous improvement. It sounds like the right thing to say, doesn't it? And... there is a really simple way to determine how serious your business is about continuous improvement. Count the following: How many hours per week you and your team spend working on improvement activities? How many £ have you added to your bottom line because of your improvements? There are no right or wrong answers, but you'll know exactly whether you are serious about continuous improvement. About the author: Giles Johnston is a Chartered Engineer who specialises in helping businesses to grow and improve through better business processes and embracing Kaizen. Giles is also the author of Effective Root Cause Analysis and ' What Does Good Look Like? ' .   Available from Amazon

A question that I get asked a lot is: "How do I make progress if I just don't have the time?" It's a good question. Usually the person asking the questions has a lot on their plate and an ambition to implement lots of change all at once. My answer is to start paring back the number of projects you have on the go. Start to prioritise. Choose what will give you the biggest impact, for the least amount of effort, in the shortest time. If you park a few projects and you still aren't getting results, keep reducing the number, until you get to one project. This should be the single most important project you have in your list of opportunities. This is a project that will make a real difference. Available from Amazon Divert your attention and resources at this project until it is done. Get help from your team, your colleagues, your customers and suppliers... get help to get it done. And, if you have chosen wisely you'll start to gain some time back, so you can start...

My new book is free to download (Kindle version) this weekend . Specifically, it is free from the 13th of January 2023 to the 17th January 2023. I wrote it for business managers and owners that are fed up of being stuck in Groundhog Day! I wanted to challenge the thinking of this group about how routines are defined and used within their organisation. Most organisations have underdeveloped routines. They usually apply routines solely to the lower levels of an organisation. But what about the Board? What about the senior management team? Routines don't have to be rigid. You don't have to lose flexibility, creativity or talent. But, you can do something to stop you getting in your own way! If this rings a bell with you, then get hold of your free copy this weekend. Alternatively, if  Kindle isn't your thing, you can purchase a copy of the paperback from the same page . I hope that you get some good ideas from this short book (it has taken me three goes to condense the informa...

SOPs ( Standard Operating Procedures ) help everyone in a business. They help to clarify your own thoughts, if you are writing them. They help others to understand the expectations, safe effective methods and what has been agreed previously. For new starters, they help to speed up the training process. So, why don't so many people embrace this tool? I'd love to know the answer, but if you find yourself in this situation let me give you a few pointers. Capture the information any way you see fit. If you have an existing format that works, use it, otherwise make sure you capture the information in a way that makes sense to you. Make the information is understandable. Photos and images are great. Ensure the information is accessible. Get them off your desktop and into the hands of those using the information. Embrace the feedback. If the readers are confused, simplify the material. I heard the other day that a big mistake in a company I know has happened again. Guess what? The fir...

I visited a client last week and asked to join their production meeting. It turned out that the meeting had been cancelled. After a little probing I found out that the meeting wasn't satisfying the owner's requirements. Available from Amazon So, here's the question.... Could it have been repaired? The meeting was broken, but it was there for a reason. It had a purpose and it added value to the business. The owner acknowledged this. Pressures are on everyone at the moment, but dumping the meeting rather than fixing it? A question I ask all my clients is ' what does good look like? '. We debated this, my client and I. There were clearly a lot of good things that this meeting did. There were a handful of things this meeting didn't do. So, what did good look like? Quickly we were able to define some clearer guidance for the attendees. They now all know what they need to bring to their meeting and what responses need to be prepared in advance. My client even embraced...

We all know that we need to write things down. Available from Amazon This could be meeting actions, objectives, ideas for the future... or the knowledge we have in our heads. Let me focus on the last point, knowledge. For many organisations, this means capturing our experience so that others can use it. If you find your business growing then this is critical. You can't use telepathy! Often referred to as Standard Operating Procedures (or, SOPs), defining the one best way to do something is a great way to share knowledge in your organisation. But, why do so many people not bother to do this? Here are a few of the common issues I hear on my travels: They think it will take too long to write. They are worried that they'll get it wrong. Why bother? No one will read them. I've not done this before. Let's review. You don't have to spend hours writing SOPs. Even a few bullet points will move you in the right direction. If you are worried about getting the information wron...

Another weeks passes and another example of unnecessary fire fighting demonstrated by a business I have been to help. If you have this taking place in your business, let me ask you a few questions: 1. What keeps on happening? Regain control with this practical book Can you pin down what it is that you keep having to do, to get out of trouble? If you can't, is there a pattern you can observe? 2. Do you want it to stop? Is it causing you enough of a problem that you want it to stop? If the answer is yes, keep reading, if not park it for another day. 3. Find out what is going on Do you know why you are having this issue? If you aren't sure where the issue is arising from, then take a few minutes to have a look around. When you have some idea, go to the next step. 4. Cause and effect Do you know what is truly causing the fire fighting situation? If you spend the time to get to the root cause of the situation , you have a good chance of permanently eliminating this situation. Most p...

I have recently finished working with a team that were struggling. They were struggling to meet their production schedules. They were struggling to respond to customer enquiries on time. They were burnt out and frazzled. After some prodding and poking it became clear what their issues were. In particular, it became obvious that expectations of the team weren't clear or defined. Defining what you expect from teams is a standard management approach. The problem with most teams is that leadership describe the standards in vague terms . So, what happens if you get the standards crystal clear? You should expect to see the team produce the right outputs. They should produce the outputs at the right time. And, they should produce them in an agreed way. Be clear with your teams. Ask the question: What does good look like? If you want to get some more ideas on how to define effective standards and visions, get your copy of my book today . What does good look like? is a practical guide to h...

Do you find that your Kaizen improvements don't always go to plan? If you do, then you're with the majority! Whilst there is great deal of 'trial and error' there is a simple approach that can help. Available from Amazon Being specific about critical parts of your improvement can uplift your results. So, how do you go about doing this? The most direct route is to be clear about which parts of your improvement are critical. From here you can explain, in detail, what you want for those items. This might take some practice as many of us have become lazy in this regard. We take it for granted that our team 'get us' and will know what they need to do. If you ever feel that something basic is missing from an improvement ask this question: "What does good look like?" The answer should put you back on track. About the author: Giles Johnston is a Chartered Engineer who specialises in helping businesses to grow and improve through better business processes and...

When you make an improvement in your business, how do you finish it? Do you have a checklist of tasks you carry out, or do you claim that you're done? Many businesses take the latter approach. The question is, when is your task really finished? Having a close down approach to your improvements is key to sustainable benefits. If you recall PDCA (Plan, Do, Check and Act), this is very much an 'Act' issue. You've planned your improvement, you've delivered it and checked the results. Unless you need to improve the change, tying it into your business is critical. The risk, if you don't do this, is that you lose the improvement. People are busy. Minds are busy. Trying to remember the new method of working is at risk (I find that many changes disappear within two weeks). This is the case when the new method isn't a daily task! What can you do to help tie in your improvement to your 'business as usual'? Two practical options are: Develop a fo...

Kaizen is a great word. It is a word that can unleash the potential of both a business and an individual. Kaizen means more than just continuous improvement. It is a word that is linked to: Confidence Growth Exploration Courage Many people I speak to, that are new to improvement projects, aren't sure if they are on the right path when it comes to embracing the spirit of Kaizen. If you are also one of these people then let me share with you a few thoughts that can help you feel at ease about starting and leading change. Start with your concerns A great place to start your improvement life is with anything that isn't right. Getting your concerns out into the open really is the first step for most of us. If you aren't happy with something, raise it. This isn't only a great place to start, but something that you shouldn't give up. Whenever a standard is not being met, or not even defined, get vocal and then do something about it. Start small The intention of Kaizen is ...

It is funny how conversations with senior teams can turn frosty... when you get around to the topic of results. This is also the case when reviewing improvement objectives, when a similar result hasn't been produced before. Mostly the plans are great. They take time to produce and many people enjoy the planning process. When rubber hits the road, however, many teams seem to want to shy away. Does this happen with your team? A challenge for any leader in this situation is to make getting back on track with your improvement objectives a normal process. Not to hide the real position away, but to be honest about where you are and then do something about it. The RAG approach (Red, Amber, Green) in visual management is a good tool to use here. It can make the process of being honest an easier one. Whilst you need to come up with your own definitions of red, amber and green, a good starting point is: Red - completely off track and needs major support. Amber - slipping off track, but shoul...