Creating The Frontline Of The Future, Part 10

Does your facility have a suggestion box?

Or is there a more formal framework for collecting and implementing process feedback from your frontline workers?

Most manufacturers fall somewhere in between. Dozuki has helped hundreds of companies at every stage of the digital transformation curve, and the principle we always come back to is improvement.

When organizations use a scalable digital tool that’s connected to their process delivery and operational training platform (that allows for improvement feedback to be quickly implemented and adhered to) they will be equipped to win.

Here’s what the future holds for continuous improvement culture:

Here’s why continuous improvement is so important, and how you can make it second nature on your frontline:

Empower your frontline workforce

Some companies have a low appetite for continuous improvement. They clock in and clock out, since it's not part of their job duties. Your team can differentiate by developing an interest in the “why” behind your continuous improvement efforts.

Give workers a foundation to drive continuous improvement so they can improve the process within the constraints. Teach them to do the work conscientiously. Also, when you find a person who thinks recording processes is fun, turn them loose. Tell them to go forth and document. If someone thinks they can take better pictures, give them a camera and unleash their passion.

Quicker efficiency gains

Companies should be just as efficient with their internal processes as they are with their products and services. As we explained in our popular ebook The Modern Guide to Standard Work, continuous improvement means the quality and efficiency of a process will improve, along with the standards themselves. This is essential for driving efficiency gains.

However, it all starts at the top with the mindset of your leaders. Instead of viewing employees as cogs in the machine, it’s imperative that you recognize the value of a well trained and highly skilled workforce. Unlocking the potential of the frontline is the way domestic manufacturing has been (and will be) sustainable. Incredible efficiency can be unlocked if the right tools overlap within the right people.

Formalized feedback

It’s essential to enable the feedback loop between authors of processes and those on the floor. If they know how valuable their feedback is, your frontline will enthusiastically comment on areas for improvement.

We recommend using Dozuki to create a streamlined method of information sharing that easily captures operator knowledge. Don’t let insight go unshared, get it recorded in a consistent and formalized manner.

What’s more, once you have formalized your feedback process, now you can easily collect data during work execution to identify opportunities for new growth. Dozuki helps you leverage live production data to review opportunities to optimize production performance.

Here’s one of our favorite stories about the return on investment of continuous improvement.

We recently learned from our customer that each improvement suggestion they received led to an average savings of $127. With hundreds of processes and thousands of workers, these suggestions amount to significant cost savings each year. Hear their story below:

Good luck getting that kind of quantifiable result from a suggestion box!

It’s a timely reminder that continuous improvement is an evolution, not a revolution. You can build the frontline of the future, one efficiency gain at a time.

Create The Frontline Of The Future

We’ve come to the end of this series. It’s been our privilege to help you start your frontline digital transformation projects.

But for many manufacturers, it’s only the beginning. 

Perhaps you have only scratched the surface of digital exploration. And here is tons of work to be done to tie frontline workers, processes, and their systems together to operate at maximum efficiency.

Dozuki is your partner in digital transformation. We have spent the last decade helping hundreds of industrial businesses across the world develop and scale their frontline digital transformation initiatives.

Contact us today if you’re ready to take your connected work company to the next level.