Visual Management

How to transform data into continuous

improvement.
Introduction
The human brain processes visual information 60,000 times faster than text.
Visuals are also more powerful than what we hear. When people hear
information, they're likely to remember only 10% of that information three
days later. However, if a relevant image is paired with that same information,
people retained 65% of the information three days later. If you think about how
you move through the world, you won’t be surprised that 90% of all the
information that goes to your brain is visual, and 93% of all human
communication is visual.

Organizations dedicated to continuous improvement can take advantage of this

reality and use visual management to engage staff, provide insight into
essential information, and help ensure that improvement projects are moving
forward as planned. With today’s technology, it is possible to introduce an
improvement management system that makes visualization easy and accessible
for every employee.

This ebook will address the benefits of visual management, its practical
application in business, and the technology that brings it to life.
Table of
Contents
Chapter 1
How Visual Management
Spreads Improvement

Chapter 2
Everyday Examples of Visual
Management

Chapter 3
Lean Visual Tools

Chapter 4
The Essential Features of
Visual Management Software

Chapter5
7 Signs Your Organization
Needs Visual Management

Chapter 6
8 Benefits of Digital Huddle
Boards
Chapter 1
How Visual Management
Spreads Improvement
Visualization helps managers and team members feel closer to improvement
work. It is one thing to read about work being done to improve the
organization; it is quite another to see forward progress.
Why do organizations that leverage visual management tools complete more
improvement projects, involve more people, and get more impact?
Visualization increases engagement. Here’s how.

People Stay Connected

These days, many teams are distributed across multiple locations. Remote work
is becoming more common, and folks do a lot of work outside of traditional
business hours. A digital platform for visualizing improvement projects and
results ensures that people stay connected to the work and each other no
matter what time it is or where they happen to be. Whenever someone needs
information about the state of a project or process, it’s available on any device.

Visualization Increases
Engagement

Marketers know this. Website

pages with images and video get
95% more views than their
counterparts with only text.
People like engaging with images;
if your improvement platform is
visual, they will interact with it
more often. When employees can
instantly understand the impact
that improvement work has on
the organization, they become
highly motivated to invest effort
and be emotionally attached to
success.
Leaders Become Enablers
One of the most effective ways to spread improvement is for leaders to help
remove roadblocks and marshal resources for improvement efforts proactively.
Visual management makes it possible for leaders at every level to recognize
stalled progress and act quickly to help. Not only are there practical benefits to
this type of leadership, but it also helps underscore the importance of
improvement within the company’s culture.

Meetings Are More Effective

A digital visual management platform changes the focus of meetings from
updates and explanations to an opportunity for strategic planning and
problem-solving. The areas that need focus are immediately apparent to
everyone involved so that you can get right to the most important topics.
Huddle boards are a popular way to organize meetings. With a virtual system,
you get all of the advantages of a huddle board and involve people who are not
in the room.
Constancy Increases Collaboration
When the same visualization tools are used across the organization, you create
a common way of addressing problems, accessing processes, and documenting
results. This shared experience for all employees makes it easier to collaborate
across department or team boundaries. That’s essential because those
touchpoints between groups are often where the biggest opportunities for
improvement can be found.

Problems Become Apparent

In a culture of continuous improvement, problems are never ignored or swept
under the rug. We want problems to be highly visible so that they can be
addressed quickly and at the source. Control charts are a great example of this.
It is difficult to ignore an out of control process when it right in front of your
face.

Success Builds on Itself

Perhaps the most effective way to
expand improvement culture and
activities within an organization is to
have some big wins. For all of the
reasons above, you are more likely to
implement successful changes if you
leverage visualization. That success
will, in turn, lead to more success.
Improvement culture really is the gift
that keeps on giving.
Chapter 2
Everyday Examples of Visual
Management
When we write about visual management, we are usually talking about
sophisticated quality management tools like Kanban, huddle boards, and the
dashboards available in the KaiNexus application.

These are all incredibly valuable visual management applications in the

workplace, but visual management is actually all around you. Understanding
these everyday examples of visualization may help you apply the same
principles more thoughtfully at work.
Share Information
This is the most basic application of visual management. Think of an
Open/Closed sign on a business. You know right away whether to come on in. A
simple bulletin board with tacked up notices is another example. Perhaps the
most widely used approach is color-coding. Everyone knows that green means
go, yellow means use caution, and red means stop. Because the meaning of
these colors is so widely understood, they are used well beyond traffic lights.
We’ve seen dozens of spreadsheets with on track projects, happy clients, and
approved projects all in green. It works because it’s like a language that
everyone can understand immediately.

Communicate Standards
There’s an exercise used by many Lean teachers in which participants are given
precise instructions on how to draw a pig. Everyone has the exact same
instructions, so the pigs should all look alike, right? Nope. Even given detailed
text descriptions, people interpret the steps differently, and no standard is
achieved. You’ll get far more consistent results by showing people what the
final pig looks like. Images can be used in all sorts of ways to make sure that
everyone understands what it looks like when the standard is achieved,
whether the standard is related to a product, an organized workspace, a
properly completed form, or almost anything else.
Enforce Standards
Sometimes visual management can be used to make it more difficult to ignore
the standard than to comply. Templates for Word and PowerPoint documents
are examples of this type of visual management. We notice this a lot in
databases. For example, you might have a drop-down select field for “State,”
rather than a text field so that you don’t end up with hundreds of states
because Texas, Tx, and TX are all represented.

Bring Attention to Irregularities

This is one you probably see a lot. Your phone flashes at you when the battery
is low. There’s a light on your dashboard when your car is running too hot. Your
fridge probably has a light that lets you know when the water filter needs to be
replaced. There are non-electronic examples as well. If you have a pegboard in
your garage with a hook for every tool and an outline of that tool’s shape
drawn on the board, you know right away when someone didn’t put your
hammer away.

React to Irregularities

Of course, we believe that when

irregularities occur, the right course
of action is to figure out the root
cause and solve the problem, but
sometimes a, “Caution, Wet Floor,”
sign really comes in handy. Detour
signs for road work, monitors for
patient vital signs, and the buttons
that have replaced andon cords on
many factory floors are all examples.
Chapter 3
Lean Visual Tools
The Lean business leverages several powerful tools for management and improvement.
You don’t have to be all in on Lean to take advantage of them. Any organization striving for
continuous improvement can benefit.
Process Control Charts
Process control charts (sometimes called
“process behavior charts”) are graphs
that plot out process data or
management data (outputs) in a time-
ordered sequence. They typically include
a center line, a 3-sigma upper control
limit, and a 3-sigma lower control limit.
There might be 1- or 2-sigma limits
drawn in, as well. The center line
represents the process mean or average
(and sometimes the median).

Organizations that practice continuous quality improvement use control charts

to provide a common language for talking about process performance and
behavior, make informed decisions about which processes to leave alone and
which to target for improvement, limit the need for inspection and determine
process capacity based on past performance and trends. They also create the
baseline for future improvements.

Kanban
Kanban is a Lean visualization technique designed to manage and improve
workflow. This approach uses visual ques to balance demand with available
capacity and remove system-level bottlenecks. Work items are represented
visually to give participants a view of progress and process, from start to finish -
usually via a Kanban board. Work is pulled through the process as capacity
permits, rather than work being pushed into the process when requested.
If a workflow is visualized and work in progress is limited, any interruption in
flow can be identified, targeted, and resolved before a backlog forms or grows
too large. This is important in any industry, as backlogs tie up investment,
create prioritization conflicts, and increase the distance to customer value.
Huddle Boards
Huddle boards serve the important purpose of visualizing the progress
of improvement projects. At specified intervals, teams gather to
discuss positive change opportunities and work together to remove
any impediments to improvement. Huddle boards visualize work,
promote team collaboration, and place a focus on improvement.

Gemba Walks
Gemba walks are a favorite Lean visual “KaiNexus aligns daily improvement
with corporate measures by helping
management technique, but they can our staff understand our goals and
be used by any leader to become more see how their daily work helps us
connected with the people and achieve them.”
process they manage. During a Gemba - Kettering Health Network
walk, the manager visits the place
where work is done to observe, show
respect to the employees, and
potentially identify opportunities for
improvement.
By visiting the place where work is
done (Gemba means “the real place,”
in Japanese), leaders gain valuable
insight into the flow of value through
the organization and often uncover
opportunities for improvement and
learn new ways to support employees.
The approach is a collaborative one,
with employees providing details
about what is done and why.
5S
5S is a workplace organization method that uses a list of five Japanese words
which have been translated into English as "Sort", "Set In order", "Shine",
"Standardize" and "Sustain". The five words that start with S describe how to
organize a workspace for efficiency and effectiveness by identifying and storing
the items used, maintaining the area and objects, and sustaining the new order.
5S is also known as "visual control, visual workplace, or visual factory.“

It is not just about housekeeping, but concentrating on reducing waste, based

on maintaining the standards and the discipline required to manage the
organization - all achieved by upholding and showing respect for the
workplace. When a workplace is well ordered, it becomes easy to recognize
when something is missing or out of place.

A3 Problem Solving
Toyota first used the A3 problem-solving methodology in the 1960s and it was
later embraced by proponents of Total Quality Management, Six Sigma, Lean,
and other systematic approaches to continuous improvement. “A3” references
a European paper size about the same size as an American 11-inch by 17-inch
tabloid-sized paper. Using the A3 method, teams create a one-page
improvement project report. By limiting the report to one page, teams are
forced to be concise and thoughtful about including only relevant information.
This makes the report easy to digest.
X-Matrices
The X-matrix addresses one of the most vital and challenging responsibilities of
leaders, strategy deployment. The X-matrix makes the strategy visible. It includes
four quadrants (made up by the cross in the X). The lower quadrant holds the
key goals to be achieved over the next three to five years. The left has the
annual objectives. Annual improvement opportunities and priorities are located
in the top quadrant. The right quadrant contains the metrics to measure and the
targets to improve. To the right of the X, ownership is assigned. Icons at the
intersection of items show how they are related to each other.

The X-matrix is a favorite visual management software feature because it helps

communicate the broader strategy and ensure that priorities are aligned.
Chapter 4

The Essential Features of

Visual Management Software
If you want to get more improvement projects completed and gain better
insight into how your team is working to cause positive change, visual
management software is the way to go.

As with any category of technology, not all solutions are the same. We
recommend looking for a visual management platform that will support your
needs today and in the future. Making the right choice, in the beginning, is
critical. Here are some of the features you can expect from the best solutions.
Task Load and Activity Level View

Organizations that ho get the most out of visual project management are those
that believe that improvement is everyone’s job, that ideas for improvement
can come from every employee, and that engagement in improvement is part
of how individual success is measured. Therefore, it is important that your
project management platform has an easy way to visualize each employee's
task load and activity level. That way, managers can make sure that the load is
spread smartly across all team members and that everyone is contributing.

Calendar View
This is a simple yet essential
requirement. Users should be able to
see upcoming tasks and meetings in
calendar form so that conflicts can be
avoided, and due dates aren’t missed.
Ideally, users can alter the calendar
display to show: dates associated with
an improvement that the employee has
submitted, including review and
completion dates, scheduled projects,
and assigned tasks.

Users should be able to adjust the view

to include items by the day, week, or
month and they should be able to click
on any item to drill down and get more
detail.
Kanban View
A Kanban board is a visualization
tool that helps people understand
the flow of their improvement work.
Visual project management
software with a Kanban View lets
you quickly check on your work's
progress. The Kanban View breaks
down a list of items by status - each
column contains all the relevant
items of a particular status. For
example, columns might be titled,
“Planned,” “In Progress,” “Overdue,”
and “Complete.

Team Dashboards Configurable Views and Boards

Improvement is a team sport, so People won’t adopt any software
your visual project management tool that doesn’t provide value to
solution should have configurable them. That’s why the solution must
dashboards that display tasks and be configurable so that each person
activities related to any given gets the information in a format that
“team.” makes sense for their role and
responsibilities. Everyone should
A team may consist of people in the
have access to the information they
same functional area that regularly
need, no matter what time it is or
work together and are managed by
the same person, or it may be made where they are located.
up of a cross-functional group
It is an excellent idea to choose a
working on a particular project or
solution that has apps for Android
group of initiatives. Either way, each
and iOS, so it is always available on
member should have a simple way
to keep track of each element's whatever device your team
progress. members prefer.
Chapter 5
7 Signs Your Organization Needs
Visual Management
Leaders have a lot to juggle when making decisions about what investments
are most important for the organization. They must consider the need of all
stakeholders, and there are often competing priorities. We talk to leaders all
the time who think that their organization might benefit from visual
management software but aren’t quite certain if the time is right to make the
investment.

Here are some signs that indicate it’s time to act.

Progress Toward Strategic Objectives is Slow or Non-existent
Hopefully, your organization has been through a strategy deployment exercise
like Hoshin Kanri to determine your most essential goals in the next three to
five years. If you find that progress is not being made, it probably isn’t because
your team isn’t working hard; it’s far more likely that they just aren’t working
on the right things.

Visual management, especially when done digitally, gives leaders insight into
which projects are in progress across the entire organization. They can make
sure that the work being done aligns with the strategy and that the most
important items are given top priority.

Improvement Projects are Complex

To-do lists are sufficient for simple jobs, but if you have improvement projects
that consist of multiple processes, more than one team, and an array of
individual items to complete, a simple list won’t suffice. The beauty of visual
task management is that it makes it easy to digest complex information. It only
takes one second, for example, for an employee to understand how their
efforts fit into a larger whole. Task prerequisites and dependencies are easy to
identify, and milestones stand out.
Work in Progress is Often Stalled
If you have many projects that get off the ground, but never make it to the
finish line, visual task management is probably right for you. It helps to identify
where the roadblocks are happening and potentially even find challenges that
are hampering more than one project.

Capacity for Work is Not Well Understood

Ideally, every part of the organization will be working at capacity, but not
overburdened. This is almost impossible to achieve if the state of work in each
function is not documented visually for everyone to see. Instead of pushing
work blindly into team members’ queues, tasks can be assigned with a better
understanding of capacity. This not only reduces the likelihood of process
blockages, it also improves collaboration and communication.

The Organization is Distributed

If your team works from multiple
locations or includes remote
workers, digital visual task
management is even more essential.
Distributed teams can be successful,
but the distance creates challenges,
no matter how dedicated and
capable the team members. An
online management tool, such as a
Kanban Board, helps everyone feel
connected to the work.
Meetings are Inefficient
If meetings have become more about updates and “bringing everyone up to
speed” than solving problems and discussing ideas for improvement, visual task
management can help. With a single version of the current state of work,
there’s no need for endless review and repetition. Everyone knows what’s
happening because it’s on the board. Start your meetings with meaningful
discussion, not a recap.

It Takes a Long Time for New Employees to Become Effective

Navigating a new organization is a challenge even for the brightest new-hires.
Our clients have found that introducing visual task management makes bringing
new folks up to speed more efficiently. That’s because it makes it easy to
understand how they fit into the bigger picture. It helps explain what everyone
is working on and why, and it gives managers an effective tool for recognizing
the contributions of new players on the team.

If these challenges sound familiar, it is time to give visual management

software serious consideration.
Chapter 6
8 Benefits of Digital Huddle Boards
Huddle boards are an effective visual management technique frequently used
in conjunction with a daily huddle or stand up meetings. Everyone gathers
around the board to chat about the top priorities for the day. Daily incremental
improvement plans are discussed and evaluated.

The idea has a ton of merit, but a physical board hanging on the wall has some
severe limitations. That’s why there is a move away from physical boards to
software-based management. Cloud-based technology makes it easy and cost-
effective for organizations of all types to enjoy the advantages of digitizing their
huddle boards. Here are a few big ones.
Digital Huddle Boards are Leaders Can Interact with
Perfect for Remote Workers Multiple Boards
Keeping remote workers engaged in
improvement has suddenly become For people who manage more than
one team, digital huddle boards are
a top priority as millions of
a gift. Because the boards are
Americans are under Stay at Home
online, leaders can check on every
orders. Physical huddle boards are
useless if everyone is working from team's engagement and activity
without going from place to place.
home.
Role-based access means that
everyone has the information they
Digital huddle boards, on the other
need all in one unified platform.
hand, are useful regardless of who is
working from where. You can have
your daily huddle meeting via video
chat or conference call, and The History of Improvement
everyone can have access to the Work is Captured
same information. Collaboration is
no longer tied to proximity. With a physical board hanging on the
wall, you get a snapshot of what is
happening right now. That’s great, but
the history of past improvement work
is not available. When you move
your board into the cloud, you begin
to create a repository of knowledge.

All of the documents,

conversations, and other
information bout each project are
collected and available for future
review. In this way, your team gets
smarter with each improvement.
Cross-functional Collaboration
is Easier
Huddle boards are usually used and
managed by functional areas, but
often improvement work requires
the efforts of people from more
than one department. Digital huddle
boards make working across
functional boundaries much more
efficient. They also help the
improvement mindset and culture
spread by making information about
successful projects available to
everyone in the organization.

Success Can Be Broadcast Goals and Strategy are Aligned

Organizations that get the most Improvement work should not
from a culture of improvement happen in a vacuum. It should be
share success far and wide. One of tied to the overall strategic goals
the best ways to get more and objectives of the organization. It
engagement from team members is is often said that everyone should
to recognize and apricate those that be working toward “True North.”
contribute to positive change. Digital Digital huddle boards can be used to
huddle board solutions have achieve this tight alignment by
improvement broadcasting cascading goals down from the
capabilities that make recognition corporate level to each individual
easy and a natural part of each person.
improvement cycle.
Notifications and Alerts Accelerate Improvement
Physical huddle boards have many of the same disadvantages as spreadsheets
when it comes to improvement work. They are passive holders of information,
but neither does anything to spur engagement actively. Digital huddle boards
are different. The best ones include workflow features that alert people with
email notifications when action is required. Managers know when deadlines
are missed, or new opportunities for improvement have been submitted. Your
team has a lot going on, so these little reminders can make all of the difference.

Impact is Calculated
Many improvements create an immediate short-term impact that is apparent
to everyone involved. However, some develop gains over the long term.
Physical huddle boards aren’t designed to capture the effect of improvement,
but software can do exactly that. The ability to calculate the impact of
improvement is crucial when it comes to securing the resources to do even
more of it.

Of course, not all digital huddle boards are the same. When looking for a
solution, be sure that it can deliver on all of these benefits. If you do, you’ll see
better results and more engagement in no time.
About KaiNexus
Features
KaiNexus is the ultimate cloud-based SaaS
platform that supports continuous • Top-Down & Bottom-Up Improvement
improvement. KaiNexus helps you execute • Strategy Deployment
and manage your improvement program • Multiple User Types Available
throughout the entire improvement journey. • Visual Management
• Impact, Activity & Engagement Reports
From daily improvement on the front lines to • Intuitive Charts and Data Tracking
rapid improvement events, Lean projects, and • Smart Notifications
strategy deployment, KaiNexus gives your • Email Submission
people a single place and a standard method • Configurable Improvements & Projects
for capturing improvements. From there, it • Class & Certification Tracking
pushes each idea through to completion. • Cross-Functional Team Collaboration

Support

• Dedicated Account Manager

• Onboarding Configuration & Support
• Email & Phone Customer Support
• Online Support Documentation
• Video Training

Technology
• Data Encryption
• SSL
• iOS and Android App
• iPad and Android Tablet Enabled

Organizations of all sizes in all industries in every stage of the improvement journey use
KaiNexus. Their unifying commonality is that they recognize that continuous improvement is
vital to the success of their organizations and that like with all other complex businesses
processes, they need a platform from which to manage it. They work to engage their entire
organization in improvement and value the ideas and opinions of their front-line workers. Our
customers strive to develop the methodologies and leadership behaviors critical to developing
an improvement culture and understand that they need a software to support those elements.

If this sounds like you, KaiNexus would be a good fit for your organization. Contact us to learn
more.