How many times have you sucessfully implemented change using lean tools only to realize, after few weeks or months, that the manager and other people  have either reverted back to the old methods or have found ways to circumvent the newly established methods.

We learned the hard way that lean transformation cannot be supported and sustained with  traditional management system

Most of the times traditional management is results driven and may not focus on the process. Thus there is no inherent  motivation for the manager to improve the process. Also when lean tools are applied  this type of management does not provide a sustainable system to integrate, improve and sustain changes with daily feedback to realign to solve problems as they arise.

The “Lean Management” provides the framework to drive the lean culture. As identified by David Mann in his book “Creating Lean Culture“, there are 4 elements that makeup the Lean Management:

1. Leader  Standard Work

2. Daily Accountability

3. Visual Controls

4. Discipline

Leader Standard Work sustains the systems integrates the changes made during the transformation process. Visual Control and Daily Accountability helps keep the process and people aligned to solve problems as they arise. The Discipline of the leader ensures that standard work is followed and the whole system works coherently.

Visual controls are one of the most effective tools of lean managment. They are simple to use and when properly designed and used will provide real time information About the process.
Computerized data collection on other hand may not necessarily be real time. Someone has to enter the data and then it has to be processed to provide necessary information. By the time we realize any issues it may be too late to take any action. Also this could be capital intensive, cost of software, Computers etc.Visual controls usually will not require any capital investment.
This does not mean that visual controls is the only way to go. Both tools have it’s specific use in different aspects of the management.
Visual controls are most effective at operational level where we have to manage process by hour to hour basis or by pitch. Timeliness of the information is crucial to mitigate flow interupters.
Computerized data is very useful at strategic level. Use of dashboards generated from the collected data can provide information necessary for long term planing.