ONLINE EXCLUSIVE: The Power of Everyday Front-Line Employee-Driven Innovation
Andy Brophy
Employees see problems and opportunities every day in their work areas that their managers do not. Effectively harnessing this reservoir of intelligence through an effective kaizen-style idea system offers huge rewards for an organization, compounding over time as cost savings and employee engagement. If each employee improves his or her job 0.1 percent every day, that adds up to a 20-percent improvement per employee per year. In turn, it equates to a colossal competitive advantage.
Competitors cannot copy these amalgamated small improvements. In 2009, the Idea System at The Baptist Healthcare, a group of four hospitals in Florida, yielded $25 million in cost improvements. The Larsen & Shaw plant in Walkerton, Ontario, has a remarkable 99-percent implementation rate for employee ideas brought forward.
“Bright Ideas” at Baptist Healthcare
The success of the “Bright Ideas” system at The Baptist Healthcare resulted from several factors. The idea system is driven from the top of the organization. People receive clear expectations. They are held accountable for implementing improvement ideas. For example, an employee idea prompted process mapping in a hospital emergency department patient arrival area. A project team identified 24 unnecessary steps, from presentation at the front door to triage. These findings led to changes such as eliminating the need for repeated requests about patients’ personal details among care providers and reduced walking distances for ill patients. In turn, the revamped process — and resulting faster access to doctors and specialists — brought greatly improved patient satisfaction scores. Many employees implement their own improvement with their teams. They achieve small, quick wins, such as having needed supplies available at the point of use. Management encourages time spent on improvement activities. They don’t distinguish improvement work from routine daily activities.
Engaging Employees: Larsen & Shaw
Asking people to make their jobs easier (to meet their needs) enables success. In turn, people feel empowered and listened to, like someone cares. They are happy about coming to work and no longer park their brains at the door. The key is tapping into people’s intrinsic motivation, the natural desire to make a positive difference. The process for recognition is that management reads an idea and goes to see the employee. The leader then asks about the idea and the employee is engaged in sharing an idea.
In many companies, the only time a manager speaks to an employee is to give direction or critique an employee’s actions. Recognition, practiced at Larsen & Shaw, changes this communication model. (It leaves employees with a good feeling.) The greatest reward for employees is seeing their ideas used. Though cost savings are not formally tracked, cost savings from two ideas were tracked (to prove a point). Approximately $6,000 annual savings resulted from their implementation (two hours implementation time). Management’s strategy: Coach people to recognize “hidden” waste and ensure the idea system is integrated into daily problem solving.
Idea Process Flow
Recommendations for nurturing and sustaining a successful employee idea process:
- Employees write down ideas every time they find a problem or see an improvement opportunity, then post them on the local idea board.
- The idea originator should implement the idea or with his or her work team. If additional help is needed, the idea owner oversees coordination of this process.
- Monthly metrics track performance against the goal (such as targeting two ideas per employee/month).
If this cycle flows smoothly, improvement activity will also flow. One idea leads to another. In turn, continuous improvement translates into improved performance and higher employee engagement.
Andy Brophy is co-author with John Bicheno of the book Innovative Lean: A Guide to Releasing the Untapped Gold in Your Organisation to Engage Employees, Drive Out Waste, and Create Prosperity.
