Value Stream Mapping and Daily Kaizen Using Toyota Kata

After having been introduced to us by James Womack and Daniel Jones in the book Lean Thinking back in the '90's and then explained thoroughly in the book Learning to See by lean experts Mike Rother and John Shook, Value Stream Mapping has endured as one of the most talked-about Lean methods.  Daily kaizen, the idea that improvement should happen everyday, is also an often discussed concept within Lean Manufacturing.  But, what is the relationship between these two concepts?  This video explains the relationship between value stream mapping and daily kaizen utilizing the Improvement Kata (introduced to us by Mike Rother in the book Toyota Kata).

Toyota Kata: A Better Approach to Developing a Lean Culture

We recently held a Lean Leadership training program in Orange County, California.  One of the key topics we covered was the improvement kata, developed by Mike Rother.  We feel that this methodology is a key to spreading and teaching lean thinking throughout an organization.  The concept involves utilizing a routine of practicing A3 Problem Solving (or Toyota Business Practices) utilizing 5 key questions that a coach or mentor asks his/her learner/mentee.   In the following video, a student describes the improvement kata: