Preparing for an Office 6S Event
Preparing for an Office 6S Event
This morning I am preparing for a 6S Event with an administrative team for a mechanical engineering company and I would like to take a few moment to reflect on how I prepare for these business organization and housekeeping events and how it might translate to 6S success at home.
6S can often be difficult to implement at new companies because most people, if they know anything at all about 6S, think that I am there to teach people how to clean. They also think “who is this guy to come into my sandbox and start messing with my stuff?”. Still others think “My precious! This ugly one will steal my preciouses!”. At times I try to use ice breakers and jokes like “Hi, my name is Phil and I am the housekeeping consultant here at the company.” I usually try to communicate very quickly that 6S is really a foundation of the Lean methodology and that as the Lean consultant to the company I am charged with helping teams identify and eliminate waste in their work processes so they can deliver the value that they want to deliver to the customer.
I also highlight the types of waste we are planning on addressing with 6S. We want to:
- Eliminate the time spent looking for things
- Find the true space the organization has for necessary items
- Remove obstacles and hazards from the workplace that hinder effectiveness
- Determine how things should be organized based on the flow of operations
- Standardize work practices to reduce variation in processes
I usually provide teams with two options to learn the framework and activities related to 6S. Teams can spend 60 minutes in a classroom environment and participate in a power point presentation covering the principles of 6S or they can start the event immediately, using a 6 page handout that summarizes activities and provides the steps to complete each activity. I also have print outs of the 6S Event Process and the 6S Audit Form.
If you haven’t seen the 6S Event process flow lately, it looks like this:
I will usually schedule 6S events 2-3 in advance so it gives teams plenty of notice and allows me to implement a communication over the next two weeks to communicate expectations and help the team prepare for the event. Here is a sample of the email I send out about a week before the event:
Hello 6S Event Team Members!
The 6S training event scheduled for 06/09 & 06/10 is a four hour event comprised of one hour of classroom type instruction and three hours of organization and housekeeping activities.
There are a few things that you should take the opportunity to address. Follow this simple checklist to ensure the highest possibility for success in your 6S activities.
Locate and gather cleaning supplies
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| Obtain a digital camera for before and after pictures | |
| Schedule a conference room that you can use for training and as a command center during the 4 hour event | |
| Obtain an LCD projector and computer for viewing of one hour long web presentation | |
| Obtain boxes and or tables for temporary storage in key areas | |
| Empty recycle bins. They will fill up fast during the event! | |
Print 6S training materials for each training participant (color if possible)
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| Make sure there is a good speaker phone in the conference room as well as a network connection | |
| Communicate to training participants to dress down for the event! |
On the day of the event, plan on being in the conference room early to set up. Check the conference room’s availability and try to schedule the room 15 minutes early so you can set up the computer and/or projector if necessary. You will be able to “tear down” the computer and projector if necessary after the one hour presentation, but keep the room if possible to use as a “command center.”
Do your best to log on to the web presentation and dial in to the conference call on time. We understand that there may be some special causes for not starting on time, but 6S training will begin at the time it is scheduled! Sometimes, several offices may participate in the same training, so there may be up to 50 participants online.
Please let me know if you need anything before the day of the event.
I usually also stop by their area at some point a couple days before the day of the event. I stop by, say hello, and scope out their areas. I’ll also reach out to any facilities services type staff at the company to give them a heads up and organize trash and recycling bins and how often we may need assistance to empty them. Facilities Services can also assist with locating and providing cleaning supplies for the day of the event. If you are using red tags during your Sort activity, Facilities Services may also quickly swoop in and know to look for red tags and immediately help you removed those items from the area.
Well, it’s time to print out my training materials and head over the target area.
I hope this helps you…
