Question from William:
We are beginning our Lean Journey, we are wondering about overwhelming our staff. We are teaching some basic principles of TPS, trying to change the culture and I have been tasked as the leader of our CI effort. I have expressed to our leaders that the journey will be long and arduous. What percentage of employee time did Toyota dedicate to training? Monthly, Annually etc.
Answer from David Meier:
William -- You are correct to be concerned about overwhelming the staff. There is much to learn on the lean journey. The best learning is done as the need arises. Go back to my last slide and you will see the learn/do cycle. This follows the Job Instruction model of teach a little, and allow the student to practice before moving on. As for percentage of time -- there are many kinds of training. Classroom training was done mainly for leaders. Team members received many kinds of "training." Job skill training depended on the person and whether we were in model change etc. A person already trained received little job training while a new hire would get quite a bit more. Also team members participated in quality circles and other activities in which they learned some skills such as leadership.
My advice is to define a need, and set a target based on the need rather than a set number of hours.
