There have been many attempts to improve work efficiency at the workplace. Various theories have been propounded about how to make work more rewarding and at the same time more productive.

The Kaizen Blitz is a concept suggested by a Japanese ex-Toyota employee by the name of Yoshiki Iwata. He actually developed this idea and taught it to all his co workers at the Toyota plant. According to his idea, small improvements can make a huge difference to your overall levels of productivity. Small improvements keep adding up and over a period of time these small improvements lead to higher skill levels and greater productivity. This is not a theoretical concept but a practical philosophy. Yoshiki may not have coined the term but it came about after he taught the concept at Mr. Imai’s Kaizen Institute. Thus the term Kaizen stuck and it was later on used more freely.

Timing for a Kaizen Blitz is important

One of the essential elements of a Kaizen Blitz is simply to do it. You start improving only when you are willing to experiment and do things. When you are willing to experiment you subconsciously pick up value creating habits. The most important aspect of this revolutionary concept is making gradual improvements. It also teaches the idea of effective time management and cost control. This can be practiced by all members of a team starting from the top. At all levels of management there is scope for small but continuous improvements. Improvements filter down from the top levels right down to the factory floor.

Another important concept is Kaizen Teian. In this concept, improvement through suggestions is considered a natural aspect of making continuous improvement in your work and productivity. Then there is the technique of Value Stream Mapping. This technique looks at the whole system of events in a chain that create value and not just one aspect of the chain. Using this technique it has been observed that quality control and productive maintenance can be improved.

Kaizen teaches you to create value. The essence of all work practices should be to create value and shun all wasteful work practices. If you eliminate waste from your work you can create value. When you see something of non-value in your everyday work you must eliminate it. Everyone from the manager to the worker on the factory floor needs to concentrate on creating value.

This whole notion of Kaizen can be beneficial only if people accept it as a workable concept. People must accept it as a part of their work culture. They must have a workable plan and then execute this plan. "Doing it" is a simple and yet essential aspect of this culture. A desire to commit yourself to making slow but incremental improvements in your work is the crux of this attitude to work. Without this desire there can be no improvement whatsoever.

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