Lean times have focused new attention on the principles of lean management – the set of business practices geared to the elimination of waste at every step – for all providers of goods and services.

Urgency to Cut Costs
Fueling the renewed interest in getting lean is the urgency of cutting costs in the face of tighter and tighter profit margins in today’s fiercely competitive market. Lean systems provide the key for many companies to survive by offering cost savings that can allow a price cut.

Opportunities During Slowdown
Perhaps surprisingly, businesses that may have been just too busy to give lean transformation a try during the heady economy of the 1990s are finding opportunities during the current slowdown to give it a closer look. Slower times are freeing staff previously consumed with keeping daily operations humming. Now, they have the time to examine company performance at every level looking for all the sources of waste that add cost to their operation.

The Path to Change
True lean management is an ongoing effort that can never be considered complete, and even getting a good start can take a year or two. The path to change begins with a mixture of assessment and training efforts.

Identifying opportunities. By analyzing activities to determine which steps add value and which activities produce waste, managers pick out areas ripe for improvement. A popular approach to this analysis is value-stream mapping. (See  "Mapping the Value Stream".)

Assessing the base line. Collection of detailed data on fundamental operations in the targeted area helps set more precise goals for eliminating waste. Metrics to be tracked depend on the process under examination, but they might include figures in areas such as employee turnover, equipment downtime, or on-time delivery of goods or services.

Training managers. Intensive workshops for key managers help convert initial insights into solid programs of action to achieve waste reduction goals.

Getting ready to act. Training sessions for implementation teams and program coaches ease adoption of the new ideas throughout the enterprise by creating champions of the lean philosophy to spread the message among coworkers. Small groups of six to 10 help promote good interaction and participation.