Systemic Change
Most Lean and system transformations don’t fail because of tools or processes. They fail because of people — or more precisely, the lack of connection between purpose, people, process and performance.
If you’re just starting out or are already in the thick of transformation, this short read might offer a perspective that helps your initiative to stay the course.
The Lean Lesson Many Organisations Miss
I once stood on a factory floor with a Sensei who was part of the original Lean movement in Japan in the 1950’s and 60’s.
He wasn’t watching the machine. He was observing the people. He did this, clipboard in hand, for a full 30 minutes. No mean feat for a man in his eighties.
I watched as he observed how operators interacted with the machine, and with each other. How they responded when lines blocked and when alarms sounded.
My takeaway from this experience was this: The machine does what the machine does. The people, and how they work together, matter just as much, if not more.
In other words. Lean isn’t just about processes or tools. It’s about people, and how they interact with the system around them.
The problem today
In my work I often operate at the interface of large-scale change initiatives, such as Lean and system transformations, and the human side of organisations. We help organisations to bridge and connect mindsets, behaviours, and values together with the processes and systems required to get the work done.
Yet in many organisations I observe, the “people side” (encompassing mindsets, behaviours and values) is either avoided, neglected, addressed too late, or outsourced to external consultants. The result? Initiatives that stall, fail, or burn out the teams they’re meant to engage.
What the research says
If you look at research on Lean and similar large-scale change initiatives, the findings are consistent: when these initiatives fail, often as much as 80% of the time, the root cause is people, not process. Much of this research comes from the very consultancies delivering these kinds of programmes.
Lessons from the origins
In the Japan of the 1950’s, I can imagine that resources were scarce, tools minimal, but mindset, behaviours and values were strong: collaboration, ingenuity, shared purpose.
Lean philosophy and methods emerged from these attributes, not the other way around. Form (process and tools, the How) followed function (purpose and people, the Why).
Today, I believe many organisations try to drive mindset and behaviour change from process and tools, and perhaps that’s why so many initiatives stall.
An invitation to pause and reflect
If your initiative has lost momentum, consider:
Purpose – Are we clear on why we’re doing this, and how we’ll know it’s really working in day-to-day terms?
People – Do we understand the real issues our colleagues face, and is this initiative measurably improving their work and engagement?
Process – Are our processes and tools genuinely serving people and purpose, or are we expecting people to bend themselves around the system?
Performance – Are leaders actively modelling the right mindsets and behaviours, and are we rewarding outcomes and learning — not just activity?
Returning to my Sensei experience. Maybe one day, Lean and other large-scale change initiatives will lead with function (people and purpose) rather than form (process and tools).
Until then, reflecting on the questions above can be a practical first step towards programmes that begin to buck the research trend, and really make a difference.
If you’d like to explore further options for connecting people, process and performance, please get in touch.
