Implementing Lean in IT

• Overview

Foreword

Executive summary

• Lean fits service organizations (like IT)
• Implement Focused Lean for short-term business value and to prove that Lean works
• Undertake Transformational Lean for a resilient organization and sustained benefits

Lean fits service organizations (like IT)

• Lean is a powerful, proven and effective way to create and sustain a continuously improving enterprise
• Lean works well in service organizations
• CIOs can use a Focused Lean or Transformational Lean approach
• Other performance improvement techniques complement Lean
• Tailor messages to build support for Lean initiatives
• Positioning can make or break a Lean initiative
• Which Lean is right for you?
• How to interpret your score

Implement Focused Lean for short-term business value and to prove that Lean works

• Focused Lean delivers “the next 10%”
• Two ways to implement Focused Lean: “Prove and proceed” and “bank and stop”
• Implement Focused Lean using a six-stage process
• 1. Create the organizational foundation for Focused Lean
• 2. Understand how your customers perceive value
• 3. Set up the flow from start to finish
• 4. Produce what is “pulled” by customers, without building in anticipation of customer demand
• 5. Remove waste from your value streams
• 6. Take steps to prevent backsliding
• Are you ready for Focused Lean?
• How to interpret your score

Undertake Transformational Lean for a resilient organization and sustained benefits

• Transformational Lean can deliver a 25% improvement
• Approach Transformational Lean as a major cultural change
• 1. Create the organizational foundation for Transformational Lean
• 2. Apply Lean’s five principles
• 3. Measure the right things
• 4. Begin continuous improvement and then institutionalize it
• 5. Expand the Transformational Lean initiative as the organization matures
• Are you ready for Transformational Lean?
• How to interpret your score
• Conclusion

Appendix 1: Summary of selected Lean tools and techniques

• Understand value streams: What the customer values and how that value is delivered
• Flow activities cleanly from start to finish, without interruption: Flow tools
• Produce what is “pulled” by customers; do not build solutions or provide features that exceed business requirements: Pull tools
• Eliminate waste from value streams
• Continually improve the value stream through further elimination of waste

Appendix 2: Lean abbreviations and terminology

Further Reading

• Gartner Executive Programs reports
• Core research
• AMR research
• Books