Countdown to LEAN
Elimination of Waste
As the Senate Office commences LEAN training and implementation, now is a good time to introduce primary qualities of this philosophy, so we can start to think about how they apply within the office and to committee/council business. This will establish a firmer foundation when we start training in spring 2019.
Broadly simplified, LEAN aims to differentiate between value-added and non-value-added activities. Once the differentiation between what is value-added and what is not is complete, the process of reducing waste can start.
It’s anticipated that there will be between three or four Countdown to LEAN Newsletters to introduce the primary components, and to start Value Stream Mapping on the process for the Senate’s Chancellor’s Funds.
What is Waste in LEAN
The LEAN framework identifies three types of waste, and within that, eight sources of waste.
Muda represents waste in its most physical form. It is what many organizations would most easily classify as waste. We will go into more detail of what this is, later in this newsletter.
Mura is waste in the sense of unevenness. Distinct from Muda, this is less easily recognized, but can lead to downtime or unnecessary stress on employees. Which can also reduce responsiveness as we might think we have more time than we do.
Muri is overburden and the effect of it on employees and the system itself.
In conjunction with the overriding goal of waste reduction lies the philosophy of kaizen, or creation of a culture of continuous improvement.
Different Types of Waste
This component of LEAN focuses largely on Muda. The acronym D.O.W.N.T.I.M.E. can be used to remember the eight sources of waste.
Defective Production
In some situations, defective production can double the cost of production and clearly contributes to waste. It is also obviously a non-value-added activity. If we examine the Senate Office processes, this can be shown as IT problems during meetings, printer problems making us unable to bring the correct papers booking rooms that are not be able to be used or having to find rooms at the last minute or even the simple problem of having to use a computer that is not charged. Some of this is out of our control, but whatever isn’t, we should manage better.
Overprocessing
This refers to wasteful motion, unnecessary waiting, inventory and transportation costs, plus the increased risk of defective production due to overprocessing. From a Senate Office point of view, this type of waste may be rare, but could occur if we spend too much time on a project without checking in with faculty chairs or colleagues to see if we’re on the right track. “Boomerang” emails where there are multiple responses on a single thread – which might have been more easily addressed as a new business item on an upcoming committee meeting – is another example of overprocessing as defined by LEAN.
Waiting
The elimination of waiting-related matters will result from changes to operations or logistics. Waiting is not a value-added activity and represented wasted time. This is present when we are waiting for sign offs from faculty chairs or waiting for a quorum for members to vote on an issue. From the Senate Office, waiting is an unfortunate side effect of working with faculty that have a lot of work on their plates. That being said, however, the Senate Office doesn’t advocate you log on Sunday night to write emails that end up at the top of a faculty chair’s in-box on Monday morning. But, a well-timed reminder email can work wonders.
Non-Used Employee Talent
While other causes of waste may concrete causes, or consequences, unused employee talent is harder to quantify. Determining when employee talent has been wasted in the first place also comes with challenges, but by using the various elements of LEAN, the environment can be altered permitting employees to live up to their potential.
Transportation
In terms of LEAN and manufacturing, transportation speaks to the movement of a product, which exposes the item to risks such as damage, delay, or loss, and will incur costs. LEAN philosophy doesn’t prescribe that goods should stay in warehouses, but advocates that transportation be minimized and sensible. While often a necessary part of working at UCSF, it is also a non-value-added activity. This was part of the reason behind the Senate Office seeking hotel space at Mission Hall, and behind the search for permanent space at Mission Bay. It would also be helpful for analysts to stay on one campus per day. Thus, if you have a meeting at Laurel Heights or Mission Bay, you should work there the full day.
Inventory
Inventory in all forms represents income that has not been realized and more importantly represents cost. LEAN considers inventory that at any time that isn’t being actively processed is considered waste, as any other production state is a non-value-added activity. Senate’s inventory can fit into a small closet. However, there is an empty desk in the main office which represents unused space as well as some office supplies that aren’t being used. The question is whether getting rid of that inventory can increase Senate’s productivity. Could turning that empty desk into a collaborative working/meeting space help?
Motion
Motion is differentiated from Transportation as being individual repeated actions, some which could be transferred to a machine to address. Wear and tear, other than what is absolutely necessary for production is non-valued added activity. At its simplest, “motion” here could be defined as repetitive actions that could lead to physical issues, i.e. carpal tunnel syndrome. Taking a broader look, “boomerang” emails—mentioned earlier—with repetitive emails on a single thread could also lead to motion issues.
Excessive Production
Excessive Production is linked to waste in the areas of inventory, transportation, and motion. Anytime there is more product than consumers translates into waste. Narrowing down the production to be specific to a relative committee or council. Senate sends out so many emails, many of them that take analysts more than an hour to write. If we could make our emails more effective and better able to catch faculty attention, we could have to write less of them.
Dignify Every Try
While much of the above may not translate directly into Senate Office activities, it could translate to initiatives driven by committees or councils. Between now and when we start LEAN training in early spring 2019, we encourage people to start brainstorming around the office and on particular initiatives (i.e., Senate’s Chancellor’s Funds) on LEAN-inspired attempts at streamlining activities. No idea is worthless, for even ideas that are not pursued serve as springboards to other ideas.