Q4 - Explain the meaning of Kaizen, Kaikaku and Kakushin (The three approaches used in Lean Implementation). How are the three different from each other? How do they complement each other? What would a company lose if one of these as a concept was not utilised? 

 

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Kaizen – Kaizen is the Japanese word for continuous improvement using small incremental changes. Kai means change, Zen means for the better. Kaizen refers to activities that continuously improve all functions and involve all employees from the top management to all the employees.

 

Kaikaku – Kaikaku is the Japanese word for "radical change". Kaikaku is concerned with making fundamental and radical changes to a business.

 

Kakushin – Kakushin literally means “innovation” or reform. It is about innovation, transformation, reform and renewal.

 

 

	Kaizen	Kaikaku	Kakushin
How are they different from each other	When applied to the workplace, Kaizen means continuous improvement involving everyone, managers and workers alike, every day and everywhere, providing structure to process improvement. Kaizen is about continuously improving: everyday, everyone and everywhere.	This refers to a revolutionary change to the existing situation. An existing process being changed. Automation of certain work reports. Introduction to new & innovative production technology.	This will form a complete departure from the current situation. Replacing a complete application with a new one with new technology. Moving from conventional stoarge to Cloud for data.
How do they complement each other	Relatively small area of improvements can be done through Kaizen when there is a new change or a new innovation.	A drastic or complete change in process should be made once there is a new innovation or a new product.	Existing prcoess or smaller area of improvements change  post new technology or innovation.
What would you lose if one of these was absent	Many small improvements implemented with Kaizen produce faster results with less risk. Minor updates can help & allow drastic change in a technology for better service. Without Kaizen these small areas & regular improvements will not be possible.	It is important to stay up-to date & change accordingly with the new age technology. Kaizen will help understand the drawback & help in direct change. Without Kaikaku important change in the process post & update wont be possible.	It is important for an organization to stay up-to date with new technology. Standardizing a process for the entire organization where previously various groups had different processes will achieve similar goals & would be helpful for the company in terms of cost & manpower.

 

 

Kaizen

Kaizen stands for continuous improvement using small incremental changes. Kai means change, Zen means for the better (change for better). Kaizen is an approach for solving problems and forms the basis of incremental continual improvement in organizations. Kaizen is about continuously improving: everyday, everyone and everywhere providing structure to process improvement. Many small improvements implemented with Kaizen produce faster results with less risk. Kaizen has been implemented with various industries like Retail, Healthcare, IT through streamlining of processes and elimination of non – value added work, be it through Muda / 7+ types of waste method.              

 

Kaikaku

But there are moments that more radical and emphasising on changes at organisation level in large scale through wide range activities majorly invested by top management . For example, automation in industries like, introduction of conveyor belts in production lines, robotics in entire process lines minimising manual interference.step change is necessary. This type of change is known as Kaikaku (a revolutionary change to the existing situation), can also be termed as upgraded version of Kaizen

 

Kakushin

Here some change will form a complete departure from the current situation leading to Kakushin (Innovation), it is about innovation, transformation, reform and renewal. For example, fully automates the registration of orders, the submission of invoices and the generation of a picking order at order fulfilment. This kind of change will entail the disappearance of many roles and functions within a business. Both from technological and business process perspectives, this example represent a complete departure from the current way of working.

 

Conclusion

Thus, for a organization to succeed in providing a sustainable high quality product or services need to apply all the three concepts in their organisation, lack of any of these would deprive the growth and sustainability in long term. Also if applied any one of these would not be effective for organisational goals leading to growth because these three concepts are interdependent and up-gradation of each in the sequence Kaizen, Kaikaku, Kakushin.company

Kaizen continuous improvement using small incremental changes.

Kaikaku is more radical then Kaizen. We can say that large radical incremental changes

Kakushin is about major shift, it about innovation.

 

My personal analogy for these 3 Lean Methodologies: kaizen is like Staircase, kaikaku is like escalator (Has Incremental Steps like staircase but automated like lift) and kakushin is like lift. Other example, Currently we are using software for Data Analysis (MS Excel 2010) and daily we are putting efforts that how we can do data analysis in better way using same software, this is kaizen.A new Vesion of same software (MS Excel 2013) with better Data Analysis Capabilities is example of kaikaku.Suppose through innovation we were able to formed totally new software having  excellent capabilities then previous software  like MYSQL.

 

Important thing here is to note that- no approarch is better than other , its totally depend upon many factors and available resources.You might thing that MYSQL is way better than MS Excel but you have to take care about training, change management efforts and there is possiblity that you organization dont like advanced features or capabilities for data analysis.

Kaizen refers to small improvements in work place. Most popular methodology for Kaizen is Quality circles or Small Group Activities.

 

Kaikaku refers to a larger revolutionary change. it could be an enterprise wide ranging project, that brings in a large savings or improvement to the process or product.

 

Kakushin refers to an innovative change of a higher order than the above. it could be a total newly conceptualized product.

 

As explained above, each of the three terms refer to change, but at significantly different order of change and usually carried out  by different levels of employees. They are connected to one another in the sense that to have the innovative spirit evolved in the organization, it is important to have the thinking process at all levels. At any stage, Kaizen may be encouraged and driven in the organization and it applies to all employees at all levels. Kaikaku could be a good BlackBelt type of project that brings a major process change, and could be impactful enterprise wide. While Kaizen would apply basic tools like the 7 QC tools, Kaikaku projects would need more advanced tools for data analysis and process analysis. Kakushin calls for " out of the box" thinking and could lead to discovering new product or disruptive game changers.

 

What would a company lose if any one of them is not practiced? Absence of Kaizen will leave process to stagnate and erode competitiveness. More important, it will deprive the employees from using their brains to improve their own work place and could leave them demotivated. Absence of Kaikaku will deprive the organization from opportunities of simplifying processes, such as lean application, major Quality improvements and customer value adds. it may also be noted that the absence of Kaizen and Kaikaku could potentially leave the company unprepared for Kakushin. Kakushin leads the organization towards being an industry leader and radically changing its market position.

Kaizen	Kaikaku	Kakushin
Continuous improvement everyday, everyone and everywhere	Revolutionary change to existing situation	Innovation – creating new
Small incremental changes	Radical change	Complete departure from current situation by innovation and transformation
Eg: Reducing production time, implementing 5 S	Eg: Introducing a new improved part in place of heavy part in machinery	Eg: Innovating new system in place of old system

 

These are 3 essential K’s for organizational success: Kaizen, Kaikaku, Kakushin. The concepts of Kaizen, Kaikaku, and Kakushin is the right solution for any organization who wants to deliver a sustainable high-quality product or service and to ensure a steady growth in the market.

Kaizen is a Japanese word for continuous improvement where Kai means change and Zen means for the better. For example a minor update to a piece of software

 

Kaikaku refers to radical change to the existing situation. For example upgrade of an application currently in use from a release level to a new release level

 

Kakushin refers to a complete departure from the current situation. It is about innovation, transformation, reform and renewal. For example replacing a complete application with a different application that supports the process in a completely different way. This kind of change will entail disappearance of many roles and functions within a business

Meaning of Kaizen, Kaikaku & Kakushin -

 

Kaizen (Change for better) – Japanese business Philosophy of Continuous improvement of working practices, personal efficiency,etc. In business it refers to all activities that continuously improve all functions & involve all employee from CEO to workers. It aims to eliminate waste.

 

Kaikaku (Revolutionary change) – It is a Japanese word for “Radical Change”. It is concerned in making fundamental & radical changes to a production system. It is initiated by management since the change will significantly impact business

 

Kakushin (Innovation) – It means innovation or reform.

·         Kaizen - change+good = improvement/ continuous improvement.

·         Kaikaku – change + revolutionary = transformation / reform / big improvement

·         Kakushin – new + revolutionary = innovation / reform / renewal

 

Kaikaku can also be implemented when management sees that kaizen work is no longer providing adequate results. And Kakushin is implemented when a complete new product is innovated or an existing product is reformed for betterment of business.

 

How does all 3 complement each other -

It is essential for organisations to adopt all the three important concepts (Kaizen, Kaikaku & Kakushi) to benefit from these through continual improvement of processes, transformation of organizational culture & becoming an innovative entity.

 

What would Company lose if any of these concept is not utilised?

In conclusion if any of this concept is not utilised then it might not be able to deliver a high quality product or service. Also it would effect a steady growth of an organization’s growth in the global market.

Kaizen
Continuous improvement using small incremental changes. Low risk activity.

 

Kaikaku
Radical changes in the existing system. Big improvement. Medium risk.

 

Kakushin
Innovation, it changes the complete system. High risk and high gain activity.

 

All the three tools are required for the long term survival of an organisation, because after a certain period of time just incremental improvements are not sufficient, we need to have radical changes and innovation to ensure the survival of an organisation in the long run.

Kaizen :  It is a combination of two Japanese words , kai and zen . Kai means “Change” and Zen means “for the better” resulting in the meaning as “Change for the better”. It refers to any continuous improvement done in workplace, using small incremental changes

Kaikaku:  It is the Japanese  term for ‘ radical change’ . It talks about the fundamental cum radical changes that we make to the system, in which we are working

Kakushin:  In Japanese it means ‘Innovation’ .  It talks about the fact that changes done in the system (that we work upon) can sometimes lead to a paradigm shift in the working of the system such that that we need to realign our thinking to be more innovative

 

S.No	Kaizen	Kaikaku	Kakushin
1	Focuses on elimination of waste (Muda), Productivity improvement and Over hard working of employees (Muri ) with small continuous improvements	Focuses on radical or revolutionary changes with big improvements	Focuses on Breakthrough ideas /products /services
2	Cultural change is slowly  imbibed into the working DNA of the employees .	Cultural change happens explicitly and drastically changes	Cultural change happens consciously due to focused thinking
3	Participation(involving in the activity) of all workers normally happens as kaizen activities deals with process kaizen  (Individual workstands)and flow kaizen(material and information)	Not necessarily all workers need to be involved	Not necessarily all workers need to be involved

 

How do they complement each other ?

Kaizen is the base . Its the building block on top of which Kaikaku and Kakushin can be done. 

Objective is to remove any non-value adding work by doing a kaizen and then see what needs to be done.   When too many Kaizen activities are not yielding any results , then we go got Kaikaku. This is akin to DMAIC and DMADV. If we think that DMAIC is not going to work, then no point in trying to improve the existing process.  So we opt for DMADV as we think old process cannot be improved. Same way, we move to Kaikaku and hence that becomes a radical shift in our approach (again think of DMADV for analogy).   Now this is done . What next ?  What if we find a better way to optimise our benefits . Our system then should be in a transformed state with our thought process realigned with innovative approach.  So Kakushin comes into picture . This is akin to DMAODV in Six Sigma parlour.  

Conclusion:All the three are a must so that an organisation can stay competitive in the market.

 

What would a company lose if one of these as a concept was not utilised? 

Case 1: If Kaizen not utilised:

 

If thats the case, it would be like building a house without a strong base.  Kaizen helps in setting up individual standards and also helps in eliminating waste/non-value added activities.  Also it helps in controlling the over work of employees. By not having Kaizen, the disadvantages would be

 

a). Impact of other two type of improvements may not be effective as still the processes would be weak because non-value added activities would be present because those 2 improvement types may not have addressed this aspect

 

b). Kaikaku and Kakushin focus on system improvements primarily and will not focus on individual standards unlike Kaizen .  As a result, employee focus would be missing

c). Employee morale may go down as cultural challenge is thrusted upon and as there is no Kaizen which speaks about Muri .  Employee might spend long hours to adapt to the cultural changes brought by other 2 types of improvement

 Case 2: If Kaikaku not utilised:

 

1.       1. Potentially it could happen that small changes might keep on happening eternally for ages with not much impact

         2.  Management/Key stakeholders may not be able to take decisions on issues/problems

 

Case 3: If  Kakushin not utilised:

 

1.       1. The Organisation will not be competitive in its business

2.       2.  Difficult to grow in niche market

         3.  Business growth and hence revenue will be stagnated
 

         4.  Morale of top management will go down

 

Example for Kaizen, Kaikaku, Kakushin:

Assuming we are in a primitive age of  IT , explaining the concepts of Kaizen, Kaikaku and Kakushin

Problem Statement	Before Kaizen	Kaizen	Results
Often multiple developers working on same code/functionality creates instability and also delays deployment of files	Code written by one developer is inadvertently overwritten by another.  This happens at times on the delivery date creating customer escalation	Have a Version Control System which will alleviate the problems	Version control eliminates overwriting. Latest code is always used for delivery and right file is deployed eliminating customer escalation

 

Now Version control available . Next issue.

Problem Statement	Before Kaikaku	Kaikaku	Results
As more than one developer working on same file and multiple files, changes need to be frequently deployed in the code repository which is not happening	Due to time pressure , code deployed in the code repository throws error while testing the application  . Tester would not be able to test in such a case	Do a Continuous Integration (CI). Have an Integration Server which can seamlessly integrate all codes and provide a build (compilation of the code –ready for consumption by the users)  and also intimate whether build is failed or passed	Tester and Developer can get notification about the success or failure state. It makes easy for testers to test

 

In today’s environment , Time to Market is the key. So the sooner we make the changes , the faster we should deploy it in the production environment . Else business would be lost.

 Now as we frequently make changes and deploy it in our local environment and test the application, do we have the capacity to deploy those changes in real time(production environment?)  

Problem Statement	Before Kakushin	Kakushin	Results
As frequent changes are done to the code and tested in local environment , it becomes difficult to deploy the changes everytime in production as the environments are different and we need to make changes in various places including code so that northing gets broken in production	Takes 2 days of effort to do the manual changes .   Also the stress in doing these changes (staying at office for long hrs) takes its toll on the health of the individual .   More SMEs required to do this job since its for more than 1 day	Automate the deployment part	Avoids manual effort for deploying the changes   1 SME who knows automation is alone required   If automation sequence is done properly, no mental stress or boredom will happen

 

 

 

Kaizen : its something that we focus to improve the process continuously in innovative ways. Example. In pilot project we forms small groups that involve senior, freshers, lead. After  some days we see the results that a particular group has been achieved something new and expertise in some specific part of process. Here group trying their best in every aspect to achieve the goal and keep on doing something innovative to make their Team best one and trying to make consistency.

 

Another example is conducting regular ideation program where team will be involved. With the help of brainstorming program will get process improvement ideas at regular intervals to identify and  overcome process gaps.

 

How these 3 differs:

Kaizen focus on complete organization. Where as kaikaku focus on specific department of organization which can be a part of cost cutting area and we can decrease investment for that department. And now kakushin focus on remodeling within department.

 

How 3 interrelated:

For organizations to stay competitive in today’s economy, it is essential for them to adopt and ingrain-in three important concepts of Kaizen (Change for Better), Kaikaku (Revolutionary Change), and Kakushin (Innovation). Organizations do benefit from these through continual improvement of their processes, transformation of their organizational culture, and becoming an innovative entity.

 

Kaizen that encourages incremental continuous improvement, in the last decade, has spread out among other service oriented industries, i.e. Healthcare, IT, Retail, … , where the need for a more rapid and agile methodology was felt. It was realized as a necessity to be able to deliver products and services to the customer quicker, while maintaining the high quality and lower cost.

 

Kaikaku is Radical Change, where emphasis is on revolutionary change and big improvements. It allows organizations to reform and transform their culture and work habits into greatness via implementation of fundamental changes in the existing production systems. It is a large-scale and wide-ranging activity that is initiated and invested in by the executives and top management.

 

However, there are times that new revolutionary and breakthrough ideas, products, or services are desired and needed and thus we have to renew our way of thinking and doing and become innovative. This innovation and renewal is called Kakushin.

 

In conclusion, effectively applying these three essential concepts of Kaizen, Kaikaku, and Kakushin is the right solution for any organization who wants to deliver a sustainable high quality product or service and to ensure a steady growth in the global market which is really required in these competitive world.

 

Otherwise organisation will not sustainable , will fall under poor quality, also reputation loss etc.

 

1)KAIZEN: kaizen is the Japanese terminology for continuous improvement. ItItis the way to make things better and improve the existing method.

Eg. In an automotive sector scrap metal parts litters around the machine, which requires more time to clean now by installing a magnetic stip it will be easier to clean the machine.  This just improved the method of working. Anyone from an organisation can involve in KAIZEN.

 

2)KAIKAKU: this can be said as the next level for Kaizen. It brings a revolutionary change to an organisation. 

Eg. In an existing production system to improve the process , efficiency and productivity ,lean manufacturing implementation is a Kaikaku or by installing new press machines or automation works which drastically improves the cycle time is a KAIKAKU. Here top management and mangerial involvement is required since more commercial input is required.

 

3)KAKUSHIN: kakushin is nothing but thinking in a more innovative way. Innovative idea implementation which will give the existing method a whole new improved method. A total reformation is expected in KAKUSHIN. 

Eg. In automotive sector installation of common lines for all vehicle manufacturing in a single go. Redesigning auto parts and make use of lesser weight vehicle body to increase the output of the vehicle is nothing but Kakushin.

Here top management involvement is required.

 

Difference and complement 

All these Kaizen, Kaikaku, and Kakushin are interlinked. Kaizen is the basic of all. Kaikaku is the second level of kaizen. Where commercial involvement is more. Kakushin is the third level where the whole reformation of Kaizen and kaikaku takes place. Here a lot more commercial involvement is required.

Benifit to organisation 

In an organisation implementing only kaizen will improve the basic requirement. There will be progress in work but it may not reach the desired goal. At this stage implementing Kaikaku will bring a revolutionary change more output can be expected. Now the improvement  process should not stop otherwise at some point the market value and competition may increase and it will be hard to cope up with. So implementing KAKUSHIN will add to the boost it will bring more innovative ideas and a total reformation will take place only for better future.

Kaizen:

It's made up of two characters in Japanese: kai which means 'change' and zen which means ‘good’.

So Kaizen means “Change for Better”.

 

Kaizen is used to make small continuous improvements in the workplace so as to improve quality, productivity, delivery, safety & workplace culture and thereby reducing the cost. One of the most notable features of kaizen is that big results come from many small changes with everyone involved in making improvements.

 

Kaikaku

It’s made up of two characters in Japanese: kai which means 'change' and Kaku means ‘to transform or expel’. So Kaikaku (改革), means ‘radical change’.

Unlike Kaizen, which is continuous improvement / incremental minor change, Kaikaku means radical change or a great reform to the system normally in the form of project. It allows organizations to reform and transform their culture and work habits

Kaikaku is most often initiated by management (top down approach), since the change as such and the result will significantly impact business. Kaikaku is about introducing new knowledge, new strategies, new approaches, new production techniques or new equipment.

10 Commandments of Kaikaku

1. Throw out the traditional concept of manufacturing methods.
2. Think of how the new method will work; not how it won't work.
3. Don't accept excuses. Totally deny the status quo.
4. Don't seek perfection. A 50% implementation rate is fine as long as it is done on the spot.
5. Correct mistakes the moment they are found.
6. Don't spend money on Kaikaku.
7. Problems give you a chance to use your brains.
8. Ask 'Why' five times."
9. Ten person's ideas are better than one person's knowledge.
10. Kaikaku knows no limits.

Kakushin

It’s a Japanese term which means “Innovation”

Kakushin means an innovation & renewal that will form the complete departure from the existing situation. There are times that new revolutionary and breakthrough ideas, products, or services are desired and needed and thus we have to renew our way of thinking and doing and become innovative. That’s where Kakushin comes in picture.

 

Kaizen	Kaikaku	Kakushin
means “Change for Better”.	means “radical change”.	means “Innovation”
is used to make small continuous improvements in the workplace so as to improve quality, productivity, delivery, safety & workplace culture and thereby reducing the cost	, Kaikaku means radical change or a great reform to the system normally in the form of project. Kaikaku is about introducing new knowledge, new strategies, new approaches, new production techniques or new equipment	Kakushin means an innovation & renewal that will form the complete departure from the existing situation
Example, Re-designing of assembly line, implementing 5S	Example, Introducing Robots  for welding of chasis or in Paint shop	Example, Revolutionizing car design by reducing the number of parts which will make mfg. simple & less time consuming

 

Kaizen, Kaikaku & Kakushin  are the “three faces of change” any organization need to implement at appropriate stages of busyness cycle if wants to deliver a sustainable high quality product or service and to ensure a steady growth in the global market.

 

Kaizen is essential to ensure employee involvement & empowerment, and make the existing processes more efficient thereby making organization more competitive and profitable

To address the requirement of being able to implement changes more rapidly the concept of Kaikaku was born.

Kakkushin is introduced so that organization can mould itself as per changing market requirements by introducing innovative product, services, processes.

All these concepts need to be implemented together in the organization to maintain its relevance to the customer & stakeholdrs.

Kaizen

Kaizen is the Japanese word for continuous improvement using small incremental changes. It translates as change for the better. Kai means change, Zen means for the better. Kaizen is an approach for solving problems and forms the basis of incremental continual improvement in organizations. A problem is a difficulty that has to be resolved or dealt with. When applied to the workplace, Kaizen means continuous improvement involving everyone, managers and workers alike, every day and everywhere, providing structure to process improvement. Kaizen is about continuously improving: everyday, everyone and everywhere. Many small improvements implemented with Kaizen produce faster results with less risk.

Kaikaku

Lean also recognizes that there are moments where more radical, step change is necessary. This type of change is known as Kaikaku. This refers to a revolutionary change to the existing situation. Following the software example, Kaikaku would be the upgrade of an application currently in use from a release level to a new release level. Software providers will often substantially change both the technical basis of the software and its functionality. For both IT and the user community, this means a large step change.

Kakushin

A third type of improvement known within Lean is Kakushin. The idea here is that some change will form a complete departure from the current situation. It is about innovation, transformation, reform and renewal. Again, in our software example, this may mean replacing a complete application with a different application that supports the process in a completely different way, for example a web-based application that fully automates the registration of orders, the submission of invoices and the generation of a picking order at order fulfilment. This kind of change will entail the disappearance of many roles and functions within a business. Both from technological and business process perspectives, this example represents a complete departure from the current way of working. Another example of Kakushin is where the organization standardizes a process and supporting software across the entire organization where previously various groups had different processes and applications to achieve similar goals.

 

Kaizen is an incremental improvement while Kaikaku and Kakushin are radical improvement tools used in Lean management.

 

They would complement each other by helping to use principles of each other in a already adopted Lean tool based on the business requirement, lets say after kaikaku is adopted for a process change Kaizen principles can be applied further to bring in incremental changes within Kaikaku changes that are already brought about.

 

The organization would be under loss if any of these Lean tools are not utilized as holistically the above tools would improve the organization to perform better when compared to its baseline performance dashboards.

Kaizen

Kaizen is the Japanese word for continuous improvement using small incremental changes. It translates as change for the better. Kai means change, Zen means for the better. Kaizen is an approach for solving problems and forms the basis of incremental continual improvement in organizations. A problem is a difficulty that has to be resolved or dealt with. When applied to the workplace, Kaizen means continuous improvement involving everyone, managers and workers alike, every day and everywhere, providing structure to process improvement. Kaizen is about continuously improving: everyday, everyone and everywhere. Many small improvements implemented with Kaizen produce faster results with less risk.

Kaikaku

Lean also recognizes that there are moments where more radical, step change is necessary. This type of change is known as Kaikaku. This refers to a revolutionary change to the existing situation. Following the software example, Kaikaku would be the upgrade of an application currently in use from a release level to a new release level. Software providers will often substantially change both the technical basis of the software and its functionality. For both IT and the user community, this means a large step change.

Kakushin

A third type of improvement known within Lean is Kakushin. The idea here is that some change will form a complete departure from the current situation. It is about innovation, transformation, reform and renewal. Again, in our software example, this may mean replacing a complete application with a different application that supports the process in a completely different way, for example a web-based application that fully automates the registration of orders, the submission of invoices and the generation of a picking order at order fulfilment. This kind of change will entail the disappearance of many roles and functions within a business. Both from technological and business process perspectives, this example represents a complete departure from the current way of working. Another example of Kakushin is where the organization standardizes a process and supporting software across the entire organization where previously various groups had different processes and applications to achieve similar goals.

 

Kaizen is an incremental improvement while Kaikaku and Kakushin are radical improvement tools used in Lean management.

 

They would complement each other by helping to use principles of each other in a already adopted Lean tool based on the business requirement, lets say after kaikaku is adopted for a process change Kaizen principles can be applied further to bring in incremental changes within Kaikaku changes that are already brought about.

 

The organization would be under loss if any of these Lean tools are not utilized as holistically the above tools would improve the organization to perform better when compared to its baseline performance dashboards.

	Kaizen	Kaikaku	Kakushin
Explain the meaning	Kaizen is evolutionary, focussed on incrmental improvements. Minor update in a piece of software can be equated to Kaizen.	Kaikaku is revolutionary, focussed on radical improvements. Following the software example, Kaikaku would be the upgrade of an application currently in use from a release level to a new release level. Software providers will often substantially change both the technical basis of the software and its functionality. For both IT and the user community, this means a large step change.	Kakushin is improvement through innovation and renewal. Again, in our software example, this may mean replacing a complete application with a different application that supports the process in a completely different way, for example a web-based application that fully automates the registration of orders, the submission of invoices and the generation of a picking order at order fulfilment.
How are they three different from each other?	These are minor and continual improvements Lean initiatives or events with cumulative planning and execution timelines of hours to weeks • Smaller project scope • Small to medium staff and resource allocation • Quicker results with small, individual contributions to the bottom line of the organization or value stream • Tactical	These are large scale and wide ranging improvements A lean initiative or event with a planning timeline of weeks to months and an execution timeline of hours to weeks (value stream dependent) • Larger project scope • Medium to large staff and resource allocation • Results realized more slowly but with larger, concurrent, multiple contributions to the bottom line of the organization or value stream • Strategic	These are revolutionary improvements and breakthroughs
How do they complement each other?	Organizations get benefit from these through continual improvement of their processes, transformation of their organizational culture, and becoming an innovative entity. Effectively applying these three essential concepts of Kaizen, Kaikaku, and Kakushin is the right solution for any organization which wants to deliver a sustainable high quality product or service and ensure a steady growth in the global market.
What would a company lose if one of these as a concept was not utilised?	All these three concepts are essential for the success of an organisation. Depending upon bussiness requirement , all these three are crtical and  utilized. Not doing kaizen keep the organisation from benefits of small incrmental improvements thereby keeping organisation away from the major benefits in efficiency, safety, as well as employee and customer satisfaction. Kaikaku encompasses more activities and addresses systemic waste.When executed well, Kaikaku creates a momentum that transforms the entire “value stream” of material, information, people, and actions required to bring a product from concept to launch to delivery. Kakushin renews way of thinking in the organisation . When followed leads to new revolutionary and breakthrough ideas, products or services.

 

Kaizen is the culture of small improvement on the floor by any individual in the organization, this build the culture of improvement mindset.

Kaikaku is about a radical change in the business, focussed on implementation on new technology, new strategies, primariy influenced from change in industry.

Kakushin is about complete change in existing system across organization, related to transformational change.

Each of these complement each other by creating a focus based on need of the hour. Kaizen is the building block for system, which creates atmosphere which appreciates importance of each individual's involvement in making small improvement on the ground that build culture of imporvement.

Kaikaku becomes handy to align to the pace of the industry to make sure that the organization is not left behind in the fast paced environment. It helps to inherit best practices in the industry.

Kakushin help to remove the status quo and refresh the system with those things that are relevant and adds more value to the organization at any point of tiem.

Without improvement culture, created by Kaizen, its difficult to inherit Kaikaku or Kakushin. Without Kaikaku and Kakushin its difficult to improve and be competetive in industry. Kakushin responds to the need of organization and what works good for organization.

Kaizen, Kaikaku Kakushin are the 3K of used in the Quality world to denote the degree of change and is closely associated with Lean . While all three originates from Japanese philosophy it means..

 

Kai(change) zen(better), changing for better and it involves making small, evolutionary and continuous improvement  in specific areas, functions, departments, applications for the betterment of the production. One of the key component is 5S (sort, set-in-order, sanitation, standardise, sustain). 

 

Kai(change) kaku(balance) is associated with revolutionary and radical change. Since this involves a significant change in the employee activities dealing in production it involves the management and also the methodology adopted is via assignment or projects headed by a Project Manager. Since the outcome of such radical change measures between 30%-50% there are meticulous steps taken to ensure smooth transition. This current initiative as the method of learning in my opinion comes under Kaikaku.

 

Kakushin is all about making the innovation which involved making an entire product change and this involves Top Executive and Top Management. In this some of the functions or department could be cut out of they are redundant or a liability to the efficiency/cost/production of the product. 

All these 3K compliment each other in an organization by making small continuous improvement and transforming their brand, culture by being innovative.  This way they cut a way ahead of competitors and survive.

For organizations to stay competitive in today’s economy, it is essential for them to adopt and ingrain-in three important concepts of Kaizen (Change for Better), Kaikaku (Revolutionary Change), and Kakushin (Innovation). Organizations do benefit from these through continual improvement of their processes, transformation of their organizational culture, and becoming an innovative entity.

Kaizen:

It was about 40 years ago when the philosophy of Kaizen entered the western culture via automotive industry. Kaizen is the Japanese word for continuous improvement using small incremental changes. It translates as change for the better. Kai means change, Zen means for the better.  It basically pointed out the fact that by elimination of non-value added work (Muda / 7+1 types of waste) in the work processes, companies will become more efficient and as a result be more profitable and competitive. This great philosophy of Kaizen that encourages incremental continuous improvement, in the last decade, has spread out among other service oriented industries, i.e. Healthcare, IT, Retail,etc. where the need for a more rapid and agile methodology was felt. It was realized as a necessity to be able to deliver products and services to the customer quicker, while maintaining the high quality and lower cost.

Lean IT Kaizen is an approach for solving problems and forms the basis of incremental continual improvement in organizations. A problem is a difficulty that has to be resolved or dealt with. When applied  to the workplace, Kaizen means continuous improvement involving everyone, managers and workers alike, every day and everywhere, providing structure to process improvement. Kaizen is about continuously improving: everyday, everyone and everywhere. Many small improvements implemented with Kaizen produce faster results with less risk. In IT terms, we can equate this to a minor update to a piece of software.

 

Toyota Motor Corporation, who made Kaizen philosophy famous, has also started questioning how Kaizen could be improved upon to address the requirement of being able to implement changes more rapidly. And to respond to it, the concept of Kaikaku was born.

Kaikaku:

Lean also recognizes that there are moments that more radical, step change is necessary. This type of change is known as Kaikaku. This refers to a revolutionary change to the existing situation. Following the software example, Kaikaku would be the upgrade of an application currently in use from a release level to a new release level. Software providers will often substantially change both the technical basis of the software and its functionality. For both IT and the user community, this means a large step change.

Kaikaku is Radical Change, where emphasis is on revolutionary change and big improvements. It allows organizations to reform and transform their culture and work habits into greatness via implementation of fundamental changes in the existing production systems. It is a large-scale and wide-ranging activity that is initiated and invested in by the executives and top management.

 

To clarify this more, let’s look at different scenarios in an automotive manufacturing plant. When we perform projects to reduce the production time, implement 5S, or redesign the assembly line, we are implementing Kaizen. On the other hand, when we introduce a new lighter material to be used for the vehicle’s body or install robots to weld, press, or paint the vehicle, we are applying Kaikaku.

 

So far we have explored making either small incremental improvement changes to better the production processes (Kaizen) or big revolutionary changes to reform existing production systems (Kaikaku). However, there are times that new revolutionary and breakthrough ideas, products, or services are desired and needed and thus we have to renew our way of thinking and doing and become innovative. This innovation and renewal is called Kakushin.

Kakushin:

The concept of Kakushin was mentioned by former President of Toyota, Mr. Katsuaki Watanabe; during interviews with Wall Street Journal and Harvard Business Review in 2007 as a Radical Innovation. He elaborated this concept by saying that if we could make simplified cars by cutting the number of parts in half and design more flexible production lines to manufacture many different car models rapidly, then we had made a new revolutionary reform in our production system and that is Kakushin.

 

A third type of improvement known within Lean is Kakushin. The idea here is that some change will form a complete departure from the current situation. It is about innovation, transformation, reform and renewal. Again, in software example, this may mean replacing a complete application with a different application that support the process in a completely different way, for example a web-based application that fully automates the registration of orders, the submission of invoices and the generation of a picking order at order fulfilment. This kind of change will entail the disappearance of many roles and functions within a business. Both from technological and business process perspectives, this example represents a complete departure from the current way of working. Another example of Kakushin is where the organization standardizes a process and supporting software across the entire organization where previously various groups had different processes and applications to achieve similar goals.

 

In conclusion, effectively applying these three essential concepts of Kaizen, Kaikaku, and Kakushin is the right solution for any organization who wants to deliver a sustainable high quality product or service and to ensure a steady growth in the global market.

Kaizen:

Kaizen is the Japanese word for continuous improvement using small incremental changes. Kai means change, Zen means for the better. When applied to the workplace, Kaizen means continuous improvement involving everyone, managers and workers alike, every day and everywhere, providing structure to process improvement. Lean IT Kaizen is an approach for solving problems and forms the basis of incremental continual improvement in organizations. A problem is a difficulty that has to be resolved or dealt with. Kaizen is about continuously improving: everyday, everyone and everywhere. Many small improvements implemented with Kaizen produce faster results with less risk.

 

Kaikaku:

Lean also recognizes that there are moments that more radical, step change is necessary. This type of change is known as Kaikaku. This refers to a revolutionary change to the existing situation. Daily/Hourly recording of machine data, Kaikaku would be the upgrade of an application currently in use from a manually recording to automatic recording after certain set time.

 

Kakushin:

A third type of improvement known within Lean is Kakushin. The idea here is that some change will form a complete departure from the current situation. It is about innovation, transformation, reform and renewal. Again manually recording system with automatic recording system with storing memory and can retrieved as an when required. Also highlighting with alarm and indication if crosses control limit values. This kind of change will entail the disappearance of many roles and functions within a business. Both from technological and business process perspectives, this example represents a complete departure from the current way of working.

 

If any of these is not utilised in a company the operating cost of the company will remain same with no change in the process. Also the profit margin will deteriorate with the inflation as process remains same without any improvement.

 

 Please do find attached Kaizen,Kaikaku & kakushin reply.

 

Lean concept.docx

	KAIZEN	KAIKAKU	KAKUSHIN
MEANING DIFFERENCE COMPLIMENT EACH OTHER	1.Change for Better 2.Incremental Continual Improvement of Processes 3. Achieved by elimination of non value added work (Muda/7+1 types of waste) resulting in profitability and competitiveness. For e.g. In Healthcare where more agile methodology is needed with high quality and low cost. Examples: IT minor update to a piece of software	1.Revolutionary Change 2.Transformation of Organizational Culture 3. Big improvements that allows the organization to reform and transform their culture and work habits by altering their existing production system. It’s a large scale and wide ranging activity executed by top management. Examples: IT and community center change in technical basis of the software and functionality	1. Innovation 2. To becoming an innovative entity. 3. When new revolutionary breakthrough ideas are needed so we renew our mind in new direction and thoughts which is more innovative and productive so that we deliver sustainable good quality product to ensure a steady growth of an organization. Examples: An organization standardizes process and supporting software across the entire organization where previous groups had different processes and applications to achieve the same.

Methodology	English translation/ Other name	Description	People involved/ where it is initiated	Loss if a company does not utilize this methodology
Kaizen	1. Improvement for better 2. Continual Improvement	1. Small incremental changes to eliminate 8 wastes in process. 2. Target is to eliminate non value added activities from process. 3. It does not require capital	1. Ideas are generally initiated by shop floor people and implemented by cross functional team of shop floor people.	1. When process/machines becomes old , due to wear and tear of machines, variation in the process increases  and it's efficiency goes down kaizens helps in improving efficiency. 2. Also as the cost of raw material increases. and we keep on making with the product at same price/process , company will lose their profit margin. 3. If we don't implement kaizens. we can lose a good culture of people involvement in creative problem solving. keeping shop floor people busy in improving is very important, because if we don't do that brains will become idle and ideal mind is devil's workshop
Kaikaku	1. Reform 2. Radical Change	1. In Kaikaku target is do a radical change. 2. Generally these radical changes are done in a short period of time. 3. Most of the time implementing these changes requires capital.	1. Kaikaku is generally initiated by external factors. 2. When the improvements from kaizens are no longer giving benefits compared to efforts required. 3. Generally Managers implement KaiKaku	1. There are many competitors in market; sometimes to be able stand strong against those competitors, need arises to drastically change our process. otherwise we may lose market share
Kakushin	1. Innovation 2.Radical Innovation	1. Kakushin deals with innovation in product, services. 2. This initiatives need substantial amount of  resources in terms of capital and manpower. 3. Main target is to developed a new product or service which is very different from their current product or service. 4. Mainly it is Futuristic approach	1. Kakushin is initiated by external factors 2. Also based on companies topline strategies. Of how they want to grow in which market 3. Generally management implements this	1. Each product has a life cycle, if we don't initiate innovating something than eventually our product will die. 2. Also to grab the potential market for a product/ service which does not exist we need to adopt kakushin.

Three important concepts - Kaizen (Change for Better), Kaikaku (Revolutionary Change), and Kakushin (Innovation).

 

Kaizen: pointed out the fact that by elimination of non-value added work (Muda / 7+1 types of waste) in the work processes, companies will become more efficient and as a result be more profitable and competitive. Making small incremental improvement changes to better the production processes.

 

Meanwhile, Toyota Motor Corporation, who made Kaizen philosophy famous, has also started questioning how Kaizen could be improved upon to address the requirement of being able to implement changes more rapidly. And to respond to it, the concept of Kaikaku was born.

 

Kaikaku is Radical Change, where emphasis is on revolutionary change and big improvements. It allows organizations to reform and transform their culture and work habits into greatness via implementation of fundamental changes in the existing production systems. It is a large-scale and wide-ranging activity that is initiated and invested in by the executives and top management. 

 

However, there are times that new revolutionary and breakthrough ideas, products, or services are desired and needed and thus we have to renew our way of thinking and doing and become innovative. This innovation and renewal is called Kakushin.

 

Kakushin :The concept of Kakushin was mentioned by former President of Toyota, Mr. Katsuaki Watanabe; during interviews with Wall Street Journal and Harvard Business Review in 2007 as a Radical Innovation. He elaborated this concept by saying that if we could make simplified cars by cutting the number of parts in half and design more flexible production lines to manufacture many different car models rapidly, then we had made a new revolutionary reform in our production system and that is Kakushin.

 

Organizations do benefit from these three concepts through continual improvement of their processes, transformation of their organizational culture, and becoming an innovative entity.

Kaizen:

ZEN (GOOD (FOR THE BETTER)) + KAI (CHANGE) = CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT

Kaizen – Change for Good / Better

 

Kaizen are SMALL improvements carried out (IMPLEMENTED) by individuals on their day-to-day activities to make their life simpler and easier. Kaizen is typically continuous, incremental improvement of an activity to create more value with less waste. The process of making incremental, ongoing changes continually and not as a single event.

 

Kaizen is about the changing of the method of work without hassles, without spending money and using the wisdom to make work easy, safe and fast. Kaizen usually focusses on reduction / elimination of waste and implementation of 5S.

 

Kaikaku:

KAI (CHANGE) + KAKU (REVOLUTIONARY) = TRANSFORMATION / BIG IMPROVEMENT

Kaikaku is revolutionary, focused on breakthrough rapid and radical improvements. While both Kaizen and Kaikaku can be applied to production, Kaikaku goes beyond production to break the existing paradigm and create a breakthrough using a new system or model.

 

Kaikaku was a discrete effort that had a definite time period with specific targets to be achieved at the end of the period. Therefore, Kaikaku was typically seen as a large project or an initiative. A Kaikaku initiative often contained smaller projects conducted at different points of time during the overall initiative. The time frames of the Kaikaku initiatives ranged from a few months to a few years.  On the other hand, Kaizen is normally seen as a continuous effort, which indicates the embedded nature of the practice in a never-ending journey towards quality and efficiency.

 

 

Kakushin:

KAKU (REVOLUTIONARY) + SHIN (NEW) = INNOVATION / REFORM / RENEWAL

Kakushin is all about innovation, transformation, reform and renewal. The idea here is that some change will form a complete transformation from the current scenario. An example of Kakushin is where the organization standardizes a process and supporting software across the entire organization where previously various groups had different processes and applications to achieve similar goals.

 

How the above three does complement each other?

Kaikaku is necessary to break paradigms and elevate the awareness of people to a higher level of understanding.  When approaching a problem situation, it might require radical improvement to start with (Kaikaku), and then be continuously improved (kaizen). Whereas Kakushin is all about innovation complemented with revolutionary changes in the system. I perceive that all the three goes hand in hand in order to achieve their respective objectives.