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. Lean IT Kaizenis 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.

 

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.

 

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

 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.

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.

 

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. 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.

 

 

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.

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 you 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.

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.

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, Kaikaku and Kakushin are three approaches within Lean which have their roots from Toyota. They work well together and have different areas of focus and magnitude of impact/risk. The table below provides differentiation and tips for their implementation.

 

	Kaizen - Kai – Change, Zen – Good	Kaikaku – Radical Change	Kakushin – Innovation
Definition	Evolutionary change for better focused on incremental improvements	Revolutionary change focused on radical improvements	Innovation, transformation, reform and renewal
Focus Area	Continual improvement of their processes	Transformation of their organizational culture	Bringing something new into existence
People	All levels including workers	Executives and top management	Top Management
Risk / Impact	Low	Medium	High
Steps / Tips / Techniques	·         5 S        o    Seiri – Sort out        o    Seition – organize        o    Seiso – shine the workplace        o    Seiketsu – standardization        o    Shitsuke – self-discipline ·         7+1 Wastes        o    Transportation        o    Inventory        o    Motion        o    Waiting        o    Over-processing        o    Over-production        o    Defects        o    Skills under-utilization	·         Look for ways to make maximum                   contribution to ideal state – “What                 would be ideal customer experience” ·         Search for opportunities for radical                 improvements ·         Apply 80-20 rule to do more with less ·         Creative problem solving ·         Challenge assumptions ·         Ask What and why questions – think             differently ·         Brainstorm creative solutions ·         Know how to sell radical ideas –                     overcome resistance ·         Think positively and act promptly ·         Follow radical improvements with                   continual improvements (Kaizen)	·         Attribute listing ·         Biomimicry ·         Brainwriting 6-3-5 ·         Challenge assumptions ·         Osborn checklist ·         Harvey cards ·         Lotus Blossom Technique ·         Redefinition ·         Reverse Brainstorming ·         Systematic Inventive Thinking ·         COCD Box ·         Force Field Analysis ·         Six Thinking Hats ·         Follow it with radical and                           incremental improvements
Eg.	·         Reduce production time by implementing 5 S ·         Usability improvement in software that’s allows people to enter data with reduced no. of values to enter	·         Introduce new lighter material for vehicle body  - reform production processes ·         Upgrade software with new technology which allows faster development, better performance and more features	·         Make simplified cars by cutting the number of parts in half ·         Extending software on multiple media allowing ease of access and seamless collaboration and eliminates duplication throughout the supply chain

 

Conclusion: All the three techniques have different role in the lean journey and allows organization to identify and implement changes at different levels and magnitude of impact. Each of them are necessary and must be run in tandem for an organization to be truly lean and successful cause by just being innovative, a company may not be successful in long run as it may lose out on efficiency nor by just being a company which is strong on efficiency sustain itself in long run as lack of innovation will allow competitors who are innovative to beat it down in market.

while reading & in search of the above terms, Found well explained answer by Mr Mike Mogharei, PMP & couldn't resist myself to share the same ! 

 

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.

It was about 40 years ago when the philosophy of Kaizen entered the western culture via automotive industry. 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, … , 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.

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.

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 you 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.

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.

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.

 

Episode 4- 080917.pdf

 

For organizations to stay competitive in today’s economy, given the era of start-up culture & globalization, it is essential for them be open to the concept of changing with the time. It is the agility and the openness for janusian thinking that will keep the organization boosted to make the best of the small gap between evolution and dissolution.

 

It is but imminent to adopt and ingrain-in three important concepts of Kaizen (Change for Better), Kaikaku (Revolutionary Change), and Kakushin (Innovation). Organizations benefit from these through continual improvement of their processes, transformation of their organizational culture, and becoming an innovative entity.

 

Though each of the Ks are the different faces of change in the organization, they collectively form the spectrum of change in the organisation. 

 

 

The representation below depicts how the spectrum of change can be progressively implemented in an organisation for improvement and growth when the 3Ks complement each other .

 

 

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

Explain the meaning of Kaizen, Kaikaku and Kakushin. How are they different from each other?

 

Kaizen – means small change or continuous improvement. It is an approach to solve problems in workplace and forms the basis of incremental continuous improvement in organization. It is based on all employees involvement.

Kaikaku – means radical change. It is often initiated by management which plans to bring in new process or new technologies in its operations or new strategies in its business. For example, entirely computerizing the transactions in a bank is a kaikaku. This requires capital investment and training of employees to make them adapt the new technology.

Kakushin – means innovation. Innovation is the wave that brings a complete change in the industry and sets you not only apart from the competition but also the leader in the industry. Kakushin which also means continuous innovation makes an organization to innovate and create new things continuously.

 

 

How do they complement each other? What would you lose if one of these was absent? 

 

Kaizen reduces the operations cost in a company and thereby improves the bottom line. The company that drives kaizen among its employees benefits by reducing its cost of operations and thereby making more profits that its competitors.

Kaikaku reduces the operations cost and improves quality. The primary difference is that Kaikaku means a massive change and hence it requires initial investment. In the long run, the company reaps benefits in multi-fold times. This requires a management with long term vision of its way of operating and future needs.

Kakushin makes you stay ahead of others as explained before. It requires a huge investment in time and money and also patience. Not all the innovations succeed in the market and hence we cannot bet on Return on Investment. But this is very essential to keep yourself updated and stay ahead in the industry or otherwise you may lose the entire business in the future. Hence it can be understood that Kakushin helps in moving up your top line.

KAIZEN	KAIKAKU	KAKUSHIN
continuous improvement	revolutionary change	innovation
Focuses on eliminating Muda (waste) by small incremental changes for the better over a period.	Focuses on a radical change (big improvement) in a limited time.	Focuses on innovation, transformation, reform and renewal.
Each Kaizen activity involves only certain parts of the production system individually, but can be extended to all processes including purchasing, logistics crossing organizational boundaries into supply chain.	Involves the entire Production system. It is more of a System Wide Kaizen and can be seen as a series of Kaizen activities completed together.	Involves implementing innovative breakthrough ideas or products and services in a completely new way which makes a complete departure from the current situation. Sometimes small improvement of current situation may not help and a different way of doing things might need to be adopted. This revolutionary reform is Kakushin. Kaizen activities could then be initiated to improve things further.
Involves all employees from the CEO to the assembly line workers and involves activities that continuously make small improvements to all functions.	Initiated by the Management as it would have a significant impact on the business.	Initiated by the Management as it would have a significant impact on the business. It might require companywide trainings and so on.
The cycle of kaizen activity can be defined as: "Plan → Do → Check → Act". (PDCA). Along with PDCA, the “5Whys?” technique is also used. This is a form of Root Cause analysis where user asks a series of five "why" questions about a failure that has occurred, basing each subsequent question on the answer to the previous. 5 is just a guiding number indicating that multiple questions need to be asked and user cannot just stop with 1 question.	KAIKAKU projects may be necessitated by new technology or market conditions and may involve introduction of: new knowledge (or) new strategies (or) new approaches (or) new production techniques (or) new equipment.	KAKUSHIN projects may be necessitated by new ideas or innovative products /services to enable/sustain business growth.
E.g. Implementing 5S, redesigning assembly line and so on	E.g. Changing to a new Raw material for a product, Introducing CNC lathe machines or robots to a production or assembly line.	E.g Introduction of a web portal for application processing removing a manual process.
What would a company lose if one of these as a concept was not utilised?
Kaizen is about continuously improving: everyday, everyone and everywhere. Many small improvements implemented with Kaizen produce faster results (accumulated over time) with less risk. Without Kaizen initiatives, a company would be unable to make such small improvements and the risk to improve would be high. Waste (Muda) would significantly increase reducing ROI and causing a drop in OEE Overall Equipment Efficiency.	Kaikaku is about making a revolutionary change to the existing situation. When Kaizen (Continuous Improvement) efforts stagnate, and do not produce necessary or expected results when compared to the efforts put in, then Management may decide for drastic improvement Project or Kaikaku.  This is also taken up as a project. Once completed this provides a new starting place for future Kaizen continuous improvement efforts. Without utilizing Kaikaku concept a company may be unable to go to the next level.	Kakushin is about making innovative changes for transformation and reforming the current situation. Without innovation, it would be very difficult for any company to sustain and grow. Innovative products, services (Value added) help a company to differentiate itself from competition and remain significancant.

 

Kaikaku projects can be of four different types: [1]

1.       Locally innovative - Capital intensive

E.g. an installation of robot automation in a factory is not new to the industry in general, but may be new to the company. The decision is strategically grounded and could mean higher costs

 

2.       Locally innovative - Operation close

E.g. the introduction of conventional methods Six Sigma or TPM may be new to the company. The direct cost is relatively small

 

3.       Radically innovative - Capital intensive

E.g. the introduction of a new and innovative production technology

 

4.       Radically innovative - Operation close

E.g. the introduction of new and innovative production solutions that are new to the industry

 

 

 [1] Yuji Yamamoto; et al. (2010). KAIKAKU An inspirational and Introduction [In Swedish]. Eskilstuna, Sweden: Malardalen University.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaikaku

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaizen

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/3-essential-ks-organizational-success-kaizen-kaikaku-mogharei-pmp

https://www.pinkelephantasia.com/kaizen-kaikaku-kakushin/

In an organization consisting of systems, the interchange of information and feedback are crucial. To attain a better state from current state, the systems need to question the status quo and try reducing/eradicating the inherent common cause variations. These are possible with constant change leading to radical breakthrough and finally discovering a new horizon.

 

All three are cyclic and follow a sequence. A learning organization needs all the three, identifying the potential area where the scope is vast and goal is aggressive.

 

Kaizen - Continuous Improvement - Regular activity improved each day, evolutionary – Eg. Exploring automation in the organization.

Kaikaku – Radical change initiative – Process reengineering , revolutionary – Eg. Robotics interface to human’s activity, as a part of bomb disposal squad, in manufacturing.

Kakushin – Innovation – Eg. Devices inserted into the human body ( for assessing the health of the host), New modes of transport ( hyperloop)

 

Regards

Nagraj Bhat

On behalf of Igniting Minds 95

Kaizen : Kaizen is the Japanese word for continuous improvement using small incremental change - Can be initiated using A3 thinking and smaller group improvement initiatives.

 

Kaikaku : This refers to a revolutionary change to the existing situation - Can be initiatied using Application Renovation workshops

 

Kakushin : It is about innovation, transformation, reform and renewal - Can be initiated using Automation workshops

The difference between these can be elaborated through a software industry example:

 

Kaizen can be equated to a minor update to a piece of software (less expensive), Kaikaku would be the upgrade of an application currently in use from a release level to a new release level (mid-level expense) & Kakushin may mean replacing a complete application with a different application (high expense)

Multiple Kaizen workshops may trigger Kaikaku initiatives which in long run may lead to Kakushin changes - By doing A3 thinking we identify small operational improvements which paves path to application renovation through new releases and upgrades, which again can later be automated end to end from operations to business

Either of them missing would lead to organization missing out on Continuous Improvement Initiaitives where Kaizen is the starting point leads to iterative Kaikaku and Kakushin.

Kaizen: Is a continuous improvement, step by step, incremental changes.

Example:-  Roads in India:

 

The roads in India are slowly improving, This we can say as Kaizen

Kaikaku: Is more of an upgradation kind of improvement or change

Example:- Demonetisation in India.

 

The old notes are taken away ( in 3months) & new ones are parallel introduced

Kakushin: Is more a re-engineering. The system is rethought or redone.

 

These three are complementing only in the angle of change as the change is common in all the three ‘K’s, Whereas according to my understanding they are different. Kaizen is slow & incremental, By Kakushin is immediate or full change at once. Kaikaku is a kind of upgradation. Kaikaku is like mean between Kaizen & Kakushin. The company loses the very important thing “Change” when these concepts are not used. Change is a must for every company.

	KaiZen	Kaikaku	kakushin
What it is?	Small incremental changes	Step Change	Innovation
Environment	Small change in current situation	Revolutionary changes in existing situation	Complete departure from Current situation
Risk Involved	Less risk	moderate Risk	High Risk
Frequency of change	High(every day)	moderate	less
Impact of Change	Less	moderate	high

Kaizen (Small change)

 

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. 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.

Kaikaku (Transformation of mind)

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.

Kakushin (Innovation)

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.

 

How are the three different from each other?

 

Since the scope of these 3 practices is different so these may not be interdependent.

 

How do they complement each other?

• We can say Kaizen is continues improvement process and Kaikaku, kakushin can be adhoc and may depend on company strategy.
• Kaikaku, Kakushin can be mega or mid size projects involving diversified teams & cost applications.
• All these concepts are more structured approach to begin cost benefit and these can be applicable based on nature of the project.

 

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

 

If company lose any one of the concepts this may lead to inefficient process and also company will not have a structured way to manage changes and incomparision to the competitors who may be using this.

Company may fall back with regards to these techniques & operations.

 

 

Regards,

Bhargavi Addagulla

 

 

 

Kaizen

Kaizen is the Japanese word for continuous improvement using small incremental changes. It means as change for the better. Kai means change, Zen means for the better. Lean Kaizen is an approach for solving problems and is the basis of incremental continual improvement in organizations. 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.

Kaikaku

Lean also includes scopes 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. 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. Also for service any change or radical change to an existing process would mean a Kaikaku.

Kakushin

The 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. 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 ensure 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 a process across the entire organization where previously various groups had different processes and applications to achieve similar goals.

 

If the above 3 lean techniques are not used in an organization - it would mean no Continual improvement prevalent in the system along with no change in way of production. This might be monotonous to the employees and might yield in defects when Employee satisfaction is at stake. Also from the org standpoint, it would refrain from seeing growth in production figures along with revenue regeneration. I am sure these simple techniques are a must o be adopted by all organization understanding the client and business requirement where the clients are always after continual improvement, radical change or minor changes resulting in business impact for the organization.

Kaizen is a continues incremental improvement that we adopt on our mundane activities. 

 

Kaikaku is a radical change that's brought in by the management.  

 

Kaizen has to be implemented to reach a target. Kaikaku needs to be implemented to achieve a goal of bigger nature. 

 

when the desired results are not achieved by Kaizen method, Kaikaku should be implemented.

 The company would remain where it is or probably go down if it does not focus on improvement.

For any organization to stay competitive and survive long, these 3 Ks are very necessary which are Kaizen ( change for better), kaikaku ( revolutionary change) and Kakushin ( innovation) . 

 

Kaizen means elimination of non value added work ( muda, 7+1 type of waste) in work processes to bring continuous improvement. It was started by Toyota around 40 years back and was later adopted rapidly by most of the industries so a need of more rapid and agile practice was felt. 

 

So Kaikaku came into picture.

 

Kaikaku is a more radical change which indicates big/ revolutionary improvements. It allows organization to implement fundamental changes in their production system mostly performed by executives and top management and involves large investment.

 

Many times, breakthrough inventions are required more than any improvements in current processes. Such kind of innovation and renewal is called Kakushin. 

 

Difference: kaizen is small change to make process better and involves little/ no investment. It can be done by anybody on shop floor.

Kaikaku is revolutionary change .I.e. a bigger change which involves fundamental changes in processes to get a more accurate result. It involves lot of investment and is implemented by executives/ management.

Kakushin is Innovation or breakthrough in products/ services which has more to do with mindset of people. It involves huge investment and risks and is implemented only by senior management/ MD / CEOs of organization

 

How they complement each other ?

For any company to succeed they first need to bring Kaizen ( small changes) in processes to bridge gap between actual and target. Once they are able to achieve the target to change their standards they need to implement Kaikaku so as to embrace with the rapid improvements and bring revolution in processes. Once they have achieved everything thing with their current processes, then there's a need to innovate in products/ services to differentiate themselves from other companies for which Kakushin is required.

 

What would a company loose if one of them is not implemented?

Kaizen is most basic step for continuous improvement, without which a company won't survive.

Kaikaku is next step  to be no. 1 organization in the industry for which revolution is required in processes and without you one can't be first choice for its customers. 

Kakushin is further next step so that your competitors can't even think of competing with you. It's innovating such that you have monopoly in your field and to differentiate oneself from others so that customers have no choice.

 

 

Explain the meaning of Kaizen, Kaikaku and Kakushin. 

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

 

Kaizen is a Japanese philiosphy aimed at looking at means and ways to keep on improving constantly.

 

Kaikaku is also a Japanese philosphy. The focus of Kaikaku is on bringing speedy and drastic changes.

 

Kakushin particularly aims at innovation so that new products can be designed and bought to market.

 

The 3 philiosphies or 3k's need to work in harmony for any organization to succeed. While Kaikaku can help address the problem then and there, Kaizen would ensure that the organization is always finding out ways and means to improve existing processes. Kakushin or innovating new products would be essential for an organization to stay on top of its competitors. Hence, all the 3 are necessary for an organization's sustainable growth and development.

How they are different from each other:-

Kaizen – Small Incremental Change

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. Under umbrella of Lean, 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 – Radical/Revolutionary Big Change

Lean also recognizes that there are moments that more radical or revolutionary change and big improvement in place of incremental continuous improvement. Kaikaku is most often initiated by management, 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. Kaikaku can be initiated by external factors, e.g. new technology or market conditions. Kaikaku can also be initiated when management see that ongoing Kaizen work is beginning to stagnate and no longer provides adequate results in relation to the effort. Kaikaku projects often result in improvements in the range of 30-50% and a new base level for continued Kaizen. Kaikaku may also be called System Kaizen. For example in IT industry, Kaikaku would be the upgrade of an application currently in use from a release level to a new release level.

Kakushin - Innovation

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. For example in IT industry 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.

How they complement each other:-

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. 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 innovation reform in our production system and that is Kakushin. From this example it very evident that to compete in the market all the three are very important and provides synergy to each other. Without the successful implementation of Kaizen, Kaikaku and Kakushin in the above example, automobile industry cannot satisfy the customer, can not compete with the fast changing market.

 

What would Company Lose if one of these as a concept not utilized:-

In absence of Kaizen company/operations cannot operate on its best possible efficiency for current design/system.

In absence of Kaikaku company cannot utilized the latest technology/systems and will fall behind and will lose the market share in long run.

In absence of Kaikashin company cannot utilized the latest technology/systems  with full effectiveness. This provides the competitive advantage with the competitors even they are using a same technology.

 

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. 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.

 

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.

 

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.

HS

Kaizen:
kaizen is define by gradual approach to ever higher standards in quality enhancement and waste reduction, through small but continual improvements.

Kaikaku:
Kaikaku is define as radical overhaul of an activity to eliminate all waste (muda in Japanese) and create greater value. 

 

Kakushin:
Kakushin literally means “innovation” or reform as in the reformists in a political party. It is different than innovation as in the current business buzzword, meaning coming up with new things to sell.

 

Difference:
I view the kaikaku as the work done as part of (for lack of a better term) a "Lean Awakening". So perhaps in a manufacturing setting it is the complete, radical change in mindset (and process) needed to go from a batch-and-queue methodology to single piece flow. The Kaizen would then become the incremental, continuous improvement that drives consistently better processes.
I have attached a simple graphic that  shows the difference between step change improvement and small continuous improvement. It might be of useful. Also shown on the graph is the result of not sustaining both step change improvement and continuous improvement. Complement each other

• Both Kaizen and Kaikaku can be applied to activities other than production.
• Define what success looks like for your operations. In manufacturing you might use delivery time, % of operation that is waste, or even defect rates. In the service industries you may use number of customers, wait times, or even employee turnover.
• Do Kaizen activity until you start hitting a glass ceiling with your improvements. This is when you start seeing diminishing returns on your improvements.
• Test your breakthrough idea thoroughly before large scale implementation with cardboard mock-ups and an iterative design process.
• Continue to Kaizen the new design.

All three concepts complement each other in a positive way to improve the process, Service, Reduce waste and reduce waiting time. 

 

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

• Serious impact on revenue, and *profitability.  
• Serious impact on operating costs, *regulatory compliance.
• Customer Satisfaction.
• Quality of the product.

Q4 - Explain the meaning of Kaizen, Kaikaku and Kakushin. 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? 

Answer:

1.       Definition, Difference & Complement:

a.       Kaizen

It 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. 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 should 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.

b.       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.

 

c.       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.

 

 

 

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

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

 

When it comes to adopting these concepts in a company; it really deppends on what problem are we solving. These concepts are elimination of non-value-added work (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, …, 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.

 

The companies will lose the chance to improve, innovate and eliminate waste through either of these concepts and the process will not efficient for delivery of a project.

 

Kaizen bring immediate changes in the process and if you need more radical changes then 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.

 

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 you 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 must renew our way of thinking and doing and become innovative. This innovation and renewal is called 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.

 

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.

 

3.       References:

https://www.pinkelephantasia.com/kaizen-kaikaku-kakushin/

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/3-essential-ks-organizational-success-kaizen-kaikaku-mogharei-pmp

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaizen

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaikaku

http://www.1000ventures.com/business_guide/mgmt_kaizen_vs_kaikaku_10c.html

 

 

Kaizen ….Continuous improvement c using small incremental changes.  Kai means change, Zen means better.

Kaikaku……a  change to the existing situation.  

Kakushin…... Some change will form a complete departure from the current situation.

 

Example :

For a business Organisation from IT perspective , someone  using Oracle ERP 11g  who has undergone through the above three stages means……

In Kaizen they  would update to Oracle 11.2 ( providing technical advantages)   and in Kaikaku  they would move to Oracle R12 ( giving major functional and technical benefits) and in Kakushin they would replace with complete SAAS cloud based ERP could be Oracle fusion or SAP cloud product, providing distinct benefits of operational expenses  and unique user experience.

 

So, for a business organisation to be successful at different stages all of these are important Kaizen, Kaikaku and Kakushin.

Case in point ,  camera and film famed company KODAK… was into Kaizen and kaikaku and changed film technology and got into new  digital cameras  ( Kaizen and Kaikaku)  and forgot Kakushin of revolutionary innovation and forgot departure from current situation and had to declare bankruptcy in 2013.

 

In Summary, for organizations to stay competitive in today’s economy, it is essential for them to adopt all these three concepts of Kaizen (Change for Better), Kaikaku (Revolutionary Change), and Kakushin (Innovation)

Kaizen(Change for Better)

Kaizen is a Japanese word that means to break apart to change or modify (Kai) to make things better (Zen). Kaizen is used to make small continuous improvements in the workplace to reduce cost, improve Quality and delivery. It is particularly suitable when the solution is simple and can be obtained using a team-based approach. Kaizen assembles small cross-functional teams aimed at improving a process or problem in a specific area. It is usually a focused 3-5 day event that relies on implementing “quick” and “do-it-now” type solutions. Kaizen focuses on eliminating the wastes in a process so that processes only add value to the customer.Kaizen is evolutionary, focused on incremental improvements.

 

Some of the 7 wastes targeted by Kaizen teams are:

• Waiting/Idle Time/Search time (look for items, wait for elements or instructions to be delivered)
• Correction (defects/re-work& scrap - doing the same job more than once)
• Transportation (excess movement of material or information)
• Overproduction (building more than required)
• Over-processing (processing more than what is required or sufficient)
• Excess Motion (excess human movements at workplace)
• Storage/warehousing (excess inventory)

Good processes bring good results. Go see for yourself to grasp the current situation. Speak with data, manage by facts. Take action to contain and correct root causes of problems. Work as a team Kaizen is everybody’s business
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Kaikaku is revolutionary, focused on radical improvements.

Kaikaku is a lean production term that means radical change, transformation, a revolution. It means radical overhaul of an activity to eliminate all waste (muda in Japanese) and create greater value. It is a rapid and radical change process.

 

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Kakushin. (Innovation)

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.

 

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How are the three different from each other?

these are 3 different concepts hence each has seprate value of it.

Kaizen(Change for Better)= change+good = improvement / continuous improvement

Kaikaku =is revolutionary change,Transformation of mind,change+revolutionary = transformation / reform / big improvement

Kakushin. (Innovation)= new+revolutionary = innovation / reform / renewal

 

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How do they complement each other?

Kaikaku and Kaizen are concepts in Japanese production philosophy that relate to each other.Kaikaku means a radical change, during a limited time, of a production system. Kaizen, on the other hand, is continuous minor changes of a certain area of a production system.Kaikaku is sought in addition to Kaizen, not in place of Kaizen.
Kakushin - that is, bigger leaps of improvements.

 

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

Continuous improvement attempts to reduce cost faster than the market and competition reduce price. Innovation adds value (price, margin, profitability) faster than adding cost, while thwarting the competition at the same time.

 

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.

Innovation is continuous renewal, that insures a healthy future for the enterprise.  Innovation is the wave that makes the biggest difference - and one that sets you apart from the competition.

These 3 pillers are very important for the success of each company hence if any one is not utilized company will lose its vision to success.

Kaizen stands for small continuous improvements. It involves everyone taking up small improvements in their methods and procedures in their day to day work. 

Kaikaku stands for radical improvements. It involves big ticket changes aka initiatives usually sponsored by someone senior in the organization.

Kakushin stands for breakthrough innovation. It can be the result of technological progress, market forces, customer demands or organizational R&D. 

 

Ideally a combination of all 3 techniques would be desirable to achieve optimal results. Kaizen is for short term results, Kaikaku for medium term results and Kakushin for long term results. 

Absence of Kaizen could lead to customer dissatisfaction as service levels will stagnate. Absence of Kaikaku could lead to loss of market share as other competing products will start eating into your share. And absence of Kakushin could wipe out the company like in the case of Kodak.

 

The 3 can complement each other very well. Consider the example of a telecom service provider. Once a big innovation is brought in (Kakushin - for e.g. 4G), small improvements (Kaizen - for e.g. adding more cell towers or harmonizing spectrum) can be made over a period of time to stabilize the service. When the need is felt for a more substantial change, Kaikaku (for e.g. video calling) can be used for taking the service to the next level. Again Kaizen can be used to stabilize the operations. This cycle of Kaikaku and Kaizen can be carried out number of times till technology or competition forces another Kakushin (this duration will be different in different industries).

Kaizen, Kaikaku and Kakushin are Japanese terminologies which are in vogue in quality circles. I will try to explain these terms with example of inspection industry in which I work.

Kaizen --> It is a Japanese word for continuous improvement. Kai means change and zen means for the better. Change for the better. Generally, it is a terminology used for continuous improvement by making small little changes. It is good in cases where employees are encouraged to look around and observe the areas of wastage in their workplace and suggest to make small changes which can help the organisation to improve by reducing the wastage. Many organisations have instituted awards for Kaizen initiatives to encourage employees. The rise of Kaizen philosophy can be attributed to Toyota. In inspection industry we conduct inspections and issue reports. Kaizen improvements are like making standard formats for the reports, having electronics methods to forward reports to our clients, equipping the inspectors with dongles to access our networks from anywhere etc. It is like implementing 5S, reducing the seven types of wastages (WORMPIT) (7 mudas).

 

Kaikaku --> Kaikaku is about making radical changes to the way we work. It is not about small changes but big fundamental changes in the way work is done. Inspection industry example for Kaikau would be to implement a few software tools for the clients to raise online inspection calls. Having mobile apps is also an example. Inspector is automatically assigned the call without human intervention. Once inspection is over the inspector can issue the report electronically from the site itself.  

 

Kakushin --> Kakushin is about Innovation. It is about completely transforming the culture or to give a product analogy, it is about having an alternative product to do the same function.

In case we introducing some new ways of performing our job innovating the product or service then we call it a Kakushin. For example in inspection industry wherein an inspector has to travel to the workshops to conduct inspections and certify products. Taking advantage of the latest trends in technology we can use google glass to conduct remote inspections or to use drones to conduct inspection in hazardous area. Such transformation of way that we provide service is Kakushin.

 

In this competitive environment, we need to employ all three Ks to optimise costs and provide a unique product or service experience to stay and be in business.

Kaizen is continues improvements in a any process. The process upgraded may not be a full-fledged process that will lead to final process. The kaizen methodology helps in continues development without modifying the complete system. Cost impact may be less

Eg: capture contact name on application form by adding an additional column to the application.

 

Kaikaku is a complete revamp of a process. This leads to complete change in system and process this may lead in time consuming and expensive. 

 

Kakushin it is about innovation, transformation, renewal or reformation, regeneration. This process again leads to expensive as this will completely be revamp in the system and process.

Eg: physical application forms that were used for filling up details has completed revamped to mobile tabs. Innovation that has changed the thinking process at present and is improving continuously.