Two of the fundamental principles of lean are the concepts of continuous improvement and removing waste. Read on to learn how Luz Solaegui, Region HR Director, LATAM, applied those principles to her Leader Standard Work to simplify and improve her work.
When Luz Solaegui, Region HR Director, LATAM, first started hearing about Leader Standard Work (LSW), it’s safe to say she wasn’t ready to jump right in. While she understood the purpose and that it would be a beneficial tool for her and her team, she was still feeling skeptical on the process itself.
The tools she was looking at to start creating her LSW seemed overwhelming and complicated, but everything she heard and read told her that LSW was designed to make her life easier. With that goal in mind, she sat down and worked out a process for recording her LSW that could make sense and be easy for her and her team to implement.
Luz discovered that using a digital template was the best way for HER to utilize LSW. Using the template that the FieldCore Lean team had provided as her guide, Luz developed her own system of keeping tabs on what she has completed, where she’s at in certain projects, what items are outstanding, and what needs to be followed-up on.
Seeing the benefits of LSW
Already, Luz has started to realize the benefits promised by Lean. With her LSW document at hand, she can now see exactly where she is spending her time, where she needs to invest more time, and where she has availability to meet with others to discuss projects and action items.
The more she uses the tool, the more she realizes just how much it helps her day-to-day. As her co-workers implement their own versions of LSW, they often share tips and tricks to help each other. “By everyone sharing their own way of doing things, it gives others ideas on how they can also improve their LSW strategy,” says Luz. She adds that she ‘loves the fact that people all across the globe at FieldCore are using LSW and making it work for them.’
As an ever-evolving tool, LSW is designed to change the focus of managers and employees from being the primary problem solvers to finding an overall problem-solving solution. If used correctly, it helps us work towards making continual gains in our performance. The beauty of LSW is that it fits perfectly into Lean concepts, and it instills a sense of ownership, accountability, and empowerment throughout the entire organization. When we feel confident in our work and purpose, we can see that continuous improvement is possible.
