The Hidden Threat of Kaizen Thieves in Companies
The concept of Kaizen is becoming well-known in today's corporate world. However, not all who engage in activities do so with pure intentions. Some individuals exploit the principles of Kaizen for their own gain. These individuals, known as “Kaizen thieves,” pose a hidden threat to companies, destroying the ideas of Kaizen.
Who Are Kaizen Thieves?
Kaizen thieves are individuals within an organization who exploit the Kaizen philosophy to further their agendas rather than contribute to collective progress. They occupy positions at certain levels, from mid-level employees to senior management. Their defining characteristic is their ability to disguise their self-serving motives under the pretense of promoting efficiency and continuous improvement.
I am not talking about the Yokoten (Horizontal deployment). Each Kaizen might have a minor impact. However, the business impact could become massive once you duplicate the Kaizen among multiple processes. In such cases, “copying” a Kaizen is recommended. And I am not calling Yokoten as “Kaizen thieves.” Of course, someone should not be copying from others all the time. They should have some mindset to say, “I copied your Kaizen. But I have something other in return that might help your processes.” Such collaboration and competition make an organization stronger.
Kaizen thieves often excel at blending into the organizational fabric, making it challenging to identify their true intentions. They may position themselves as leaders of Kaizen projects, controlling the narrative to ensure they receive most of the credit for successes while skillfully deflecting blame for failures. This can lead to a distorted perception of who contributes to the organization's improvement efforts.
One observed trend is that such behavior happens when the leaders do not go to the Genba. Once the leaders do not visit the Genba, there will be a competition to see who reports the activities, and the “Kaizen thief” will gain power. The leader relies on the “middlemen” to summarize the information, while the middlemen use the leader’s presence to their advantage. The continuous improvement motivation diminishes as Genba feels its effort only benefits the middlemen. In some cases, since the Genba does not want to make fancy presentations, the middlemen gain the power. All this can change if the leader goes to the Genba. Historically, this is a familiar story for many organizations.
Another situation in which Kaizen thieves appear is a complex organization.
There was an organization that had “Continuous Improvement,” “Lean,” and “Initial (of the company) Production System” departments. I was working for the production group and asked for clarification of these three corporate organizations but did not get the answer. And all three departments were asking or visiting production to get some things to report. In some cases, they reported the same Kaizens, and management started to believe some huge savings. When the management discovered that the savings were not actual, they blamed the production, not the mysterious three departments. Many left, including us, with frustration. Although the above case might be extreme, it is common to see a Kaizen thief among corporate functions. For example, a corporate quality office stole Kaizens related. Logistics made a considerable presentation on “water spider,” which they didn’t initially support. VA/VE that a plant did became the corporate office’s savings. The former resistance suddenly changed its presentation after the results came out, and Kaizen, which others did, was used as their credit.
Behaviors by Kaizen thieves often promote Genba to hide their activities. I have been to many places where they invited me to 'secret' activities. 'Don’t tell this to them.' They will always warn before they show their ideas. Although I understand their motives and have never leaked such activities, there are adverse side effects. That is, the management creates fantasies about Kaizen. They think these come easily since they only see Kaizen with excellent results. They won’t understand the failed trials and how ideas develop from trials and errors. It is an excellent protection against Kaizen thieves but not sustainable.
Protecting the hard workers who conduct Kaizen from thieves is an essential responsibility of a leader. And what is the best way to protect them? First, this is an excellent reason to go to the Genba, where ideas are generated. Those implementing it might not be excellent presenters, but that shouldn’t be a problem. Those who implement it can tell a story without PowerPoint. Showing versions 1, 2, 3, etc., is very important. Another is to simplify the organization. The less “middleman” you have, the less likely it is to cause Kaizen thieving.
But perhaps the best defense is to ask for the “sequel.” Those who really came up and struggled with the Kaizen have some experience that makes it hard to communicate. That experience becomes a learning experience that will help develop the “sequel” of the Kaizen. Unlike movies and stories, in which the quality of the sequel is unstable, the “sequel” of Kaizen will get better. Those who just stole will suffer to make a “sequel.” Of course, the “sequel” is more challenging, but after all, that is the thinking of “continuous” improvement.