As good managers of organizations in general, we must be very interested that everything goes well, everything is coordinated in advance, everything is clean and orderly, finally everything is ok. Without a doubt it must be like that, because thanks to this we will be able to achieve the objectives set.
I am particularly interested in everyday life, to know recipes and tips, recommendations and techniques, and I make the most of any valid instrument that helps me work better and makes me feel better.
In this daily effort, the following phrase quoted in an article on continuous improvement and quality has caught my attention: "We must be householders and also be in our work." Reflecting a bit and making an analogy of the contexts, the householder shows an internal concern that in his home everything is neat and orderly because he wants to feel good and make his family feel good, it is the valid objective. I wonder then why not be a householder at my job?
All these words in the order of ideas refer to the internal management of an organization, known in the English language as HOUSEKEEPING and which precisely leads us to apply a technique for Total Quality, devised in Japan and which refers to "comprehensive maintenance ”, Not only of machinery, equipment and infrastructure; but also to the integral maintenance of the environment and all the resources.
This comprehensive maintenance has to do with the 5 s technique, the central theme of this article. By the way, it is a simple and easy technique to apply and above all very effective as it helps us improve quality levels, eliminate downtime and reduce costs.
In order for it to function properly, personal commitment is required from all employees, led by managers and heads of the area, owners or promoters of the business as the main stakeholders, since their assets and resources are involved. Teamwork is necessary, assessment of contributions and knowledge, continuous improvement as everyone's task and an orientation towards an authentic model of organization, cleaning, safety and hygiene.
Improving productivity means producing more and better with fewer resources. We will have fewer defective products, fewer breakdowns, fewer accidents, fewer claims, fewer unproductive movements, fewer useless transfers, among others. In other words, we will be more efficient.
A better workplace means, necessary space, pride in the place where we work, a better image before our clients, greater cooperation and motivation of the position and the place where it is developed. Greater security to carry out my tasks without fear of accident.
How interesting all this sounds, said the director of the educational organization who was listening carefully to the presentation of this topic and who at the same time posed the following question, how do I apply the 5 S ? , Here is the development of each.
The first S refers to SEIRI, related to the classification and disposal of physical resources that produce nothing and, on the contrary, hinder, interrupt the work flow and make the workload heavier.
Let's analyze our company or area for a moment by asking the following questions, by the way, you can come up with other questions with your team:
- What should we throw away? What should we keep? What can be useful for another area or department? - you have plenty, but another is missing What should we sell? There are things that generate maintenance costs.
I am sure that we will have more than one problem as an answer. It is then time to act.
The second S refers to SEITON, and has to do with the organization. We can measure the response capacity we give to a customer or user request. It has to do with the availability of supplies, the amount needed in the right place and at the right time, and how we identify the products for quick use and attention.
We can measure the organization of our company with the following questions:
- Do we have the resources in the right place and are they identified with their name? Is each product coded? Does each person know their roles? Do we know the company's procedures? Do we have the necessary shelves to place the products?
The third S refers to SEITON, the Seiso, which has to do with cleanliness, where each one assumes the responsibility of keeping their workplace clean and tidy. You have to create habits about the use of resources and spaces. There must be order and an appropriate place to develop activities and needs. We must create favorable conditions for cleanliness. Don't wait for others to do it for me. Let us give the example.
Here are some questions to help us do it.
- Is there a cleaning protocol in the area that we must comply with? Are there any quality standards, quantity of inputs that we must meet? What inputs do we have and what are we missing? What tools do we lack? How to achieve this cleaning?
Judge by the answers the situation that you have at this moment, but do not worry, you have to start now.
The fourth S refers to SEIKETSU, which indicates the benefits of maintaining hygiene and, above all, visualizing it, and for this I must be concerned with the signs of dangerous places and the indications of the correct flow or movement to avoid inconveniences. Indications on the use of environments, places to carry out certain activities using colors, notices and instructions on PPE (personal protective equipment) must be encouraged, and above all, enforce them.
Together with your team of collaborators, analyze how we are working on this S. Do not forget that as soon as you have the answer, an action plan must be executed.
Finally, the fifth S, no less important in the order in which it is presented, is the SHITSUKE that requires commitment and discipline, for which we must generate will in the people. You have to teach them to do things, to feel and identify with what they do, you have to generate autonomy and independence under the culture of initiative and pro-activity. You have to train people, break the old paradigms like the one here yes, not there. The company is an open system where the performance of one generates an impact on others.You have to create a sense of belonging to an organization and that they feel pride in what they do and where they do it, I am sure it will help them grow and develop. What is promised must be fulfilled. Accustom people to work with goals and plans that have to be measured with indicators that relate the mission and vision of the company. It is necessary to train and evaluate with positive feedback, which not only recognizes the weak points or aspects for improvement, but also highlights the positive aspects. You have to show that all this does work.
I do not want to close this article, without first generating in the readers and especially those responsible and promoters of the organizations, the commitment to continuous improvement because we have to live better, we have to work better every day. Let's not wait for the other to do it, we have to start ourselves and we have to do it now, from our own spaces. Remember that if we change, the rest also changes.
