For the professional manager or student of management, a comprehensive handbook of 16 Kaizen management practices that can be put to work. KAIZEN uses more than 100 examples in action and contains 15 corporate case studies.
Customer Reviews
Kaizen Myth:
For 25 years I have been teaching high level engineers and directors at Honda, Mitsubishi Fuso, Mazda and a host of auto part manufacturers.
Kaizen is a mythical term in modern day business practices. Japan’s ability to produce high quality products across the board stems foremost from the from the cultural value of obedience to authority. From a young age people are taught to follow an authority figure. Combine this allegiance with a deftness to be meticulous - also instilled through the education system - and you have a workforce which can attain high product quality. Kaizen only works because of the docile obedience of the workforce, not because the theory is a magic bullet.
Excellent Book on Kaizen Concept:
This is an excellent book on how production is organised in Japan. It explains the Kaizen concept of continuous improvement and its implementation, highlighting the essential differences between the production and operations management philosophies of the West with those of Japan. The foundation of the Kaizen method consists of five fundamental elements namely teamwork, personal discipline, improved morale, quality circles and suggestions for improvement.
This is a very enlightening book for those who want to understand the basic concepts of continuous improvement (as opposed to innovation or business process reengineering) in the production process and how this has been successfully applied in Japan. Some very successful companies like Toyota owe their success largely to the employment of this concept.
This is essential reading for those who wish to introduce Kaizen in their organisation. The book is written in a simple and easy to follow and understand style. However, the book is becoming a bit dated having been written two decades ago, and in any case, the spotlight nowadays has shifted to China, but nevertheless, this is excellent reading about a concept that is still delivering good value to those companies that are correctly employing it.
Excellent overview of Kaizen and TQC (Total Quality Control):
This book is a must-read for process improvement and Quality Assurance professionals. Senior corporate management would also benefit from selections, especially the first chapter and the chapter on problem solving. The book outlines the key fundamentals, principles, requirements, and expectations related to Kaizen (continuous improvement), with a focus on the highest-level cross-functional goals of Quality, Cost, and Schedule (in that order) that ultimately drive profitability. Appendices, including summaries of 5S, old and new seven statistical tools, Deming Prize criteria, and Cannon company case study are as informative as the body of the book. On the down side, there is some significant repitition. Although the book is nearly 20 years old, it is timeless and as relevant as ever.
Kaizen- the strategies for future success:
Kaizen, a Japanese word means improvement. How can Japanese enterprise success is the main topic in this book. Actually, Japan has been under economic recession for nearly 10 years. But the Japanese enterprise can still survive, and some enterprises are under the list of Fortune 500. There must be some secret behind.
This first version of this book is written in 1986, Japan at that moment still maintain a high growth, and Japanese enterprise takes a major role in the global business environment. The author found that the major reasons are due to their modification rather than innovation. And these management concepts were learned by foreign companies and used as a framework to develop their management structure. From this book, you will learn lots of the Japanese culture and Japanese management style.
Moreover, you also understand the history of management development. Most of the management concepts used in foreign countries are based on Japanese firm. Like the TQM, process oriented management, and strategies in R&D. So, after reading the book, you will learn the difference between western working culture and Japanese one.
Before writing this book, the author has done lots of primary research, and he try to summary all the findings and success factor of major Japanese enterprise, like Toyota, NTT. And all these companies now become the Global 100 companies. After reading this book, you will learn more about the success story of these enterprises, and you will also know that their history and culture as well.
But, there is some limitation, because the book has been written nearly twenty years before, the business environment is totally changed, the competition and the consumer behaviour have been changed, therefore some of the strategies are not applicable. Also, the failures of some Japanese enterprises during the economic recession also prove that some strategies mentioned here are not worked.
Kaizen is a good book for you to understand more about the Asia culture especially the Japanese firm culture. If you want to do business with Japanese partner, this book is a must to read.
Historical:
Most American businesses no longer worry so much about the Japanese miracle. International focus has moved from Japan to China and back to Europe. Many Japanese companies are now looking to the US for recapitalization and management assistance.
So why is a book on Japanese management techniques still so relevant?
First of all, continuous improvement and lean manufacturing have become universal management tools, not strictly limited to one country. This book presents as good an introduction to the subject as any. With today’s focus on execution, this topic are becoming even more current. (Dare I say topical?)
Additionally, understanding continuous improvement is still important in the context of broader corporate change. What are the strength and limitations of incremental changes versus more radical corporate moves? Read the book and learn more.
This book certainly won’t turn a mediocre manager into a great leader, but Kaizen is a useful addition to the toolbox of any manager.
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