Kaizen. The Japanese way of continuous improvement

Introduction

Process improvement, whether in manufacturing or service operations can be achieved in various ways. One approach is to introduce a large, revolutionary change that can quickly deliver the desired results. This type of approach often requires significant financial investment, major organizational changes, and sometimes firm and difficult decisions.

The second method is the gradual implementation of small changes - an evolution rather than a revolution. This approach is precisely what Kaizen represents and has become a permanent element of many quality systems, especially in industry, including the electronics, automotive, and aerospace sectors.

Origins of the Kaizen

Kaizen (改善) is a combination of two kanji characters of Chinese origin:

• Kai (改) - change
• Zen (善) - good, improvement, for the better

Kaizen therefore means change for the better or improvement. It is a core element of the philosophy of continuous improvement as understood in Japan, both in industry and beyond. The term kaizen can also be written in katakana as カイゼン and carries essentially the same meaning (although it is more commonly encountered in industrial contexts).

Kaizen is also a key element of the Toyota Production System (TPS) and the Lean Manufacturing (LM) philosophy developed on its foundation.

The Kaizen Concept

Masaaki Imai presented in his book[1] the concept of Kaizen as improvement in personal, social, and professional life. In a business context, the Kaizen is an improvement philosophy that involves everyone: from top management, through middle management, to line operators.[1]

Kaizen typically focuses on the implementation of small improvements that are low-cost and relatively easy to implement. These are small but meaningful changes. By regularly introducing minor improvements, day by day, week by week, month by month - we continuously improve the process.

The cumulative effect of these small improvements works like compound interest. After some time (for example, after a year) we will notice that the process is significantly better than it was a year earlier. For example, assume that on average one Kaizen action is implemented per week. Such an action improves process efficiency by 1% (through cost reduction, a small increase in productivity or quality, etc.). After one year, this results in process efficiency reaching 167.7%, which represents an improvement of as much as 67.7%. This is a substantial positive change that can be achieved through the systematic implementation of small 1% improvements.

Kaizen is based on a simple principle: everyone should be involved in the improvement. This includes both people working closest to the process and everyone else up to the top management level. The role of managers/management is to promote the Kaizen philosophy, implement own improvements, and actively support and execute ideas from own employees.

Sometimes the term Gemba Kaizen is used, where the word gemba (現場) means on-site location. The idea is that Kaizen activities should be carried out where improvement is truly needed (at the production line, in the warehouse, etc.) rather than in a conference room / behind a desk / in PowerPoint.

Continuous Improvement

In the Kaizen philosophy, the continuous improvement is based on two complementary elements: implementing improvements and maintaining them in daily practice:

• Implementation of an improvement. At this stage, areas for improvement are identified and specific actions are implemented, such as a modified procedure, a better working method, a change of tools, etc.
• Maintenance. After a change has been implemented, maintaining it is now very important. Observe whether the new solution is applied and it delivers the expected results. If it proves effective then it becomes the new standard of work.

The cycle then starts again. Another improvement is introduced, followed by maintenance. In this way, the organization develops step by step through the idea of continuous improvement.

Kaizen at Toyota

Toyota launched the so called "Creative Idea Suggestion System" in 1951 as a formal program for submitting Kaizen improvement ideas. This system has been in operation for over 70 years and has collected a total of approximately 50 million suggestions. In 2023, Toyota received around 810,000 suggestions, which equals 14.4 suggestions per person per year (the calculation is based on the number of technical employees at the company manufacturing plants).[2]

This example is an excellent proof of how powerful a tool Kaizen can be.

Advantages

• Low costs. Kaizen activities are most often small improvements that require minimal investment or even cost-free changes.
• Increased employee awareness. Kaizen activities frequently involve employees who are closest to the process, such as operators, team leaders, quality control, maintenance, etc.
• Good integration with management systems. Kaizen can be easily integrated with systems such as ISO 9001, IATF 16949, or AS 9100. These are process-improvement activities, making them a natural fit for the concept of continuous improvement.

Disadvantages

• Slow pace of change. In an era of rapid change driven by the development of AI, shifts in supply chains, and rising energy costs, relying solely on the Kaizen method may be too slow.
• Potentially fake activities. If Kaizen is linked to employee compensation in an inappropriate way, it may lead to the creation of unnecessary (fake) actions solely to obtain additional rewards. Such a system can actually harm the company rather than help it grow.

Summary

Kaizen is a Japanese philosophy based on continuous improvement through the regular implementation of good (Zen 善) changes (Kai 改). Kaizen works like "compound interest" - small actions performed systematically can deliver significant results over time. Without major investments, without long downtimes, and without costly transformations.

However, it is worth remembering that the market is changing very rapidly. The development of AI will significantly redefine how companies operate, and relying solely on small Kaizen improvements may be someday insufficient to remain competitive. Therefore, organizations should also focus on innovation (new technologies, AI agents, robots, etc.) and implement them effectively. Kaizen is, of course, still highly valuable, and it makes sense to combine it with other, modern solutions—including those based on artificial intelligence. So it could be smething like a Kaizen-AI :)

Ultimately.. Kaizen is an effective, low-cost and highly recommended improvement method that can be used both in business and in everyday life.