Just like any program that you want to stand the test of time, the progression of your lean and/or six sigma programs is one that needs your continual attention to detail.  The concern is that the successful future of our companies is buoyed upon ensuring the continual innovation of our people. Our job as executives, managers, and Continuous Improvement (CI) practitioners and leaders is to continue to create the right environment and corporate culture that encourages our people to be their creative best.

Here are three things to consider when developing that environment and culture:

1. Change is scary and new ideas can present fragile until they are tested and verified. A team that continually has a positive emotional experience to express new ideas will in turn, continually develop new opportunities across the organization. And failure is not a bad thing! We should be encouraging our peers to fail fast until we find the results we are looking for.

2. The next critical idea for leaders, mentors and coaches to consider is the truth that “faster is not always better!” Often, new technologies and ideas that can develop a significantly new solution(s) are never identified due to the focus upon making things happen fast! Ensure your next improvement project is looking at all solutions, not only the faster one.Technology may be the best solution, but push the team to identify non-technology solutions that keep the team moving forward.

3. The final idea for you and your teams to consider may seem challenging. It is important to limit standardizing your
transactional processes to ensure continual innovation from within.Transaction
processes tend to be more customer–focused. By allowing more freedom to your teams, you will naturally identify new innovative methods to ensure “customer first”

Let me leave you with a final thought: finding a good solution brings a positive emotional experience to your employees and teams, which in turn continues to develop your people. Your job as a manager, CI practitioner or executive is to continue to create a culture which encourages a favorable environment for defining, developing and creating a favorable structure, for new opportunities to blossom for our people.

Strive to expand their minds and by doing this, they will use innovation as they look for a balance between complexity and simplification.  This often quoted phrase brings it home! An hourly employee is retiring after 37 years of service and they are asked if they had any final thoughts to share: “I am grateful to have worked my entire career for one company, you paid for the use of my hands for the past 37 years, but you could have had my mind for free!”