Understanding Hoshin Kanri

The top five articles on the topic from the Lean Post
showcase the power of this strategy deployment practice.
Table of Contents
The Cascade of Hoshin Page 3

by Jim Womack

A recent gemba walk at a Toyota plant reveals how the company operationalizes
its hoshin plan — in this case, to win the auto industry’s transition to Mobility 2.0,
what Toyota President Akio Toyoda calls a “once-in-a-century disruption.”

How Hoshin Kanri Aligns Your Key Organizational Systems Page 7

by Mark Reich

To build the culture and develop the complementary systems that connect
your company’s strategic and operational plans, consider how they must work
together, like the human body’s skeletal (hoshin) and muscular (continuous
improvement) systems.

Building the Mindset and Skillset to Improve Page 9

from the Board Room to the Classroom
by Dr. Pat Greco

A school district superintendent describes how lean thinking and

practice transformed a failing district into a nationally recognized model
of continuous improvement.

How the Hoshin Kanri Process Coupled with Coaching Page 12

Drives Lean Transformation, Part 1
by Laura Mottola

A veteran coach shares a few intangible truths you’ll need to know to execute an
organizational transformation using hoshin kanri.

How the Hoshin Kanri Process Coupled with Coaching Page 14

Drives Lean Transformation, Part 2
by Laura Mottola

Discover how a coach can help leaders execute a successful organizational

transformation using the hoshin kanri process.
Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

The Cascade of Hoshin planning at Toyota, which has developed the management
mechanisms necessary to translate high-level hoshin plans
A recent gemba walk at a Toyota plant reveals how the company into sustainable results on the front lines. Let me describe
operationalizes its hoshin plan — in this case, to win the auto what I’ve seen.
industry’s transition to Mobility 2.0, what Toyota President
Akio Toyoda calls a “once-in-a-century disruption.” “Toyota has developed the
By James Womack
management mechanisms
necessary to translate
F or many years, I have watched organizations attempt
to implement hoshin planning (strategy deployment, if high-level hoshin plans to
you prefer). First, they pick a few big issues important to the sustainable results on the
long-term success of the organization — a leap in quality,
a dramatic drop in costs, a reduction in lead time to better
front lines.”
meet customer demand, a fundamental rethink of the type
Toyota President Akio Toyoda and the senior leadership
of value the organization creates for customers. And then,
team have decided that the simultaneous emergence of
they try to deploy initiatives to address these issues down
autonomy, alternative energy, shared assets, and hyper-
through the levels of the organization. But even when they
connectivity is collectively creating a “once-in-a-century
limit the initiatives to a small, manageable number, they
disruption” in the auto industry as it transitions to a mobility
rarely succeed.
industry, commonly termed Mobility 2.0. (Whether this
What starts with the loud voice of the CEO at the is true or not is a separate question, although every other
top becomes a faint whisper by the time it reaches the legacy car company has reached the same conclusion. My
organization’s front lines, where value of whatever point here is about the successful deployment of hoshin, not
description is created and where improvement becomes the validity of the hoshin vision.) And recently, Toyota has
real. At this level, managers are mostly absorbed with daily had to add an extra dimension to the challenge: uncertainty
chaos, with no workable method for addressing hoshin about global trading rules, which might require substantial
objectives even when they are clearly stated and prioritized relocation of existing production, with loss of revenue and
for that level. increased costs.

Because many things are changing at once and the right

How Toyota Cascades Hoshin
path to follow for each dimension of the Mobility 2.0
Recently, I had the opportunity to closely observe hoshin
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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

challenge (plus the changing rules of trade) is impossible a companion operational hoshin of “create the financial
to know, Toyota is responding by extending its principles resources to support the respond-to-disruption hoshin.”
of concurrent engineering with set-based design from This cascading of the strategic hoshin to an operational
individual vehicles to whole mobility systems. For example, hoshin at the value-creating front lines provides the critical
it is experimenting with: means to a vital strategic end — that’s hoshin done right.
• Level 4 autonomy, where vehicles drive themselves, and
Guardian, a system that leaves driving to the driver but “So the primary strategic
prevents the driver from making dangerous mistakes. hoshin of “address the once-
• Electric vehicles with pioneering solid-state batteries in-a-century-disruption of the
and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.
automotive industry” needs
• Partnerships with ride-hailing firms and logistics firms
like Uber and Amazon and experiments with Toyota a companion operational
fleets of shared, autonomous vehicles (to be showcased hoshin of “create the financial
at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics).
resources to support the
• Toyota Connected for connectivity between vehicles,
passengers, and their environment and partnerships
respond-to-disruption hoshin.”
with other connectivity providers.
The specific means were recently visible to me on the shop
And, perhaps most interesting, they’ve initiated a major floor at Toyota Kyushu’s Miyata assembly plant on the
push to apply Toyota Production System (TPS) principles southern Japanese island of Kyushu. (This plant assembles
to the development of the enormous software packages Lexus vehicles.) The hoshin objective that came down to
needed for each of these innovations. the plant for this year is a target to substantially reduce costs
Many of these experiments may fail. And, even if a number while accommodating a richer model mix while reducing
of the concepts prove worthy of widespread adoption, takt time to meet increased demand (with substantially
Toyota must expend massive sums now for lengthy no capex) while sustaining assembly quality at the current
experiments to determine which work best while defending level, which is reported by J.D. Power and Associates to be
its current employees, always a core Toyota principle. the highest in the world.
So the primary strategic hoshin of “address the once-in- To be clear: This objective means increasing the production
a-century-disruption of the automotive industry” needs rate with no capital spending while sustaining world-best

What is Hoshin Kanri?

Also known as Strategy or Policy Deployment,
Hoshin Kanri is a management process that
aligns — both vertically and horizontally — an
organization’s functions and activities with its
strategic objectives. A specific plan — typically
annual — is developed with precise goals, actions,
timelines, responsibilities, and measures.

from the Lean Lexicon 5th Edition

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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

quality and reducing the number of workers required on

the line (more on that in a moment). Thus, it will save Andon
money that will be used for experiments with Mobility
2.0. And these experiments will permit Toyota to survive
and defend jobs in the long run. Wow. This is big. And it’s
complicated. How exactly to do this?

Understanding the
Background for the ‘How’
The Miyata plant has a very mature lean production system A visual management tool that highlights
that has created basic stability: the production line runs the status of operations in an area at a single
more than 98% of the time, with about 1,000 Andon pulls glance and that signals whenever
per day in final assembly. Almost all of these are addressed an abnormality occurs.
by team leaders within takt time to steadily produce good
vehicles with very little rework. This stability means, in
turn, that managers are not bogged down in fire-fighting Takt Time
and have time available to think about improvements in the
context of hoshin targets.

The plant is facing a labor shortage that is certain to

become more severe every year as the Japanese population
falls steadily due to the very low birth rate and the country’s
unwillingness to depend on guest workers. So eliminating
jobs on the line while defending the current workforce
is both necessary and easily addressed by not hiring
replacements for retirees.

Finally, the stable workforce — including the frontline

production associates — has been trained for many years in
troubleshooting (to keep production going with short-term
The available production time divided by
countermeasures), problem-solving (to eliminate repeat
customer demand.
problems), kaizen (to raise the production standard), and
For example, if a widget factory operates
Jishuken (to learn by doing). The latter is a special type
480 minutes per day and customers demand
of hands-on, learn-by-doing kaizen workshop designed to
240 widgets per day, takt time is two minutes.
develop the skills — especially Toyota Production System
Similarly, if customers want two new
and problem-solving skills — of associates within an entire
products per month, takt time is two weeks.
production activity, e.g., a value stream, production line,
The purpose of takt time is to precisely match
or department, over an extended period (perhaps three
production with demand. It provides the
months). The goal of any jishuken is to learn by doing and
heartbeat of a lean production system.
improving an area of operations. In the context of hoshin,
managers lead their associates in rethinking and solving
problems in every aspect of their work as they strive to
achieve their hoshin goal. from the Lean Lexicon 5th Edition

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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

Now let me introduce the Jishuken team I recently met,

working on one portion of the Miyata final assembly line Karakuri
— one of many similar teams on every portion of the line The use of simple mechanical devices, such
and in other areas across the plant. The group leader and as pulleys and counterweights, to improve
the four direct-report team leaders for this portion of the processes and conveyance systems while
line had worked for three months to redesign every job prohibiting the use of hydraulics, robotics, and
and improve many pieces of equipment using Karakuri electricity. The lean usage of the term derives
principles. (See Matt Savas’ Lean Post, Developing People from Karakuri puppets, traditional Japanese
Not Robots Through Karakuri.) Their objective was to mechanized puppets.
achieve their clearly stated hoshin goal.
Jishuken
(I would love to provide the particulars — the substantial
reduction in takt time, the minimal capital spend, the A type of hands-on, learn-by-doing kaizen
positive consequences for quality, all of which were very workshop directed by management and
impressive. And I also would love to provide photos of the designed to develop the skills — especially
many ingenious Karakuri devices built by the team. But I Toyota Production System and problem-
was at Miyata as a guest to learn, not as a journalist to share solving skills — of associates within an entire
the details of their detailed business plans with the world.) production activity, e.g., a value stream,
production line, or department, over an
An explanation of what they had done made a nice extended period (perhaps three months).
presentation in a team room. But the Jishuken team’s work The goal of any jishuken is to learn by doing
really came alive when I visited their portion of the line while improving an area of operations. The
to see in detail what they had done. I have never observed term “jishuken” translated to English means
detailed kaizen at this level of intensity (on a production “self-learning.”
process that was already one of the best in the world).
More impressive to me, it was conducted by the front two
levels of line management — team leaders and the group
leader rather than staff experts — in collaboration with the Is this cost-reduction effort, enabling an extraordinary range
twenty or so production associates, with an amazing level of experiments, enough for a massive legacy company to
of engagement. They could hardly stop talking about what survive a once-in-a-century disruption? Or is the perceived
they had achieved and showing the ingenious, low-cost disruption a misunderstanding of the situation, a mirage?
tools, fixtures, and materials presentation devices they had Who knows. What I do know is that the methods I saw at
built and installed. Miyata for deploying hoshin down to the front lines offer
an important lesson for all of us in the Lean Community as
These types of efforts have been underway at Toyota facilities we try to cascade our own hoshin plans down to the point
across the world for several years as the company continues of value creation where they become truly useful. n
to build its war chest for the challenge of disruption. (See
CEO Akio Toyoda’s comments accompanying the release of
this year’s financial results on May 9. They are a remarkably
sober and focused discussion of Toyota’s circumstances
and hoshin plans despite its record sales, earnings, and
cash balance.)

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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

How Hoshin Kanri But, what a satisfying week for all. Why do I say this?

1. Everyone involved (up to the CEO) acknowledged

Aligns Your Key the problem and was willing to speak openly about

Organizational Systems solving it.

2. We all spent one morning deeply analyzing the current

To build the culture and develop the complementary systems that
process for strategic planning and thinking about ways
connect your company’s strategic and operational plans, consider
to improve the process.
how they must work together, like the human body’s skeletal
(hoshin) and muscular (continuous improvement) systems. 3. The group agreed that they need to start by aligning
supply chain processes first (starting with self-reflection)
by Mark Reich
before fully engaging other groups like HR or

R ecently I spent a week at a prominent organization in Product Development.

the Midwest embroiled in an intense discussion about
strategy with 45 of their supply chain group’s executives. How did they come to this conclusion?
I’ve been working with this company for a while now.
The topic was hoshin, commonly known as “strategy (or
It’s taken a couple of years of focused effort to develop a
policy) deployment,” a process that aligns — both vertically
culture of lean thinking on the shop floor where people
and horizontally — an organization’s functions and activities
can bring issues to light, openly discuss problems, and work
with its strategic objectives. Our focus was on how these
with their team members to tackle them. And, as expected,
executives could work together to strengthen alignment
as we’ve piloted and implemented standardized work and
across the organization. Everyone agreed that they
problem-solving, the problems have begun to come to
currently do not align corporate goals within their function
the surface.
or across functions (like HR or Product Development).
For example, operators struggled to assemble the outer
How did this misalignment happen? Like so many,
case of the product due to fitting issues caused by the
executives in this organization are measured against
original design. The company realized that the work of all
their department or function’s own unique goals, not the
(management, engineering, HR) must focus on how to make
organization’s. These misplaced performance measures
the process better for the operator. You make life better
result in conflicting priorities, which stifle the organization’s
for operators by actively engaging them in improving their
ability to create value for the customer.

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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

work and, in so doing, giving them a chance to improve the

work of the organization. Gemba Walk
A management practice for grasping the current
How do you build a continuous situation through direct observation and inquiry
improvement culture? before taking action.
First, you need some level of top management
Gemba means “actual place” in Japanese. Lean
engagement and drive. In this case, the CEO recognized
Thinkers use it to mean the place where value is
the organizational alignment issues and felt the urgent created. Japanese companies often supplement
competitive business need to improve operations through gemba with the related term “genchi gembutsu”
continuous improvement. — essentially “go and see” — to stress the
importance of empiricism.
Next, work with your team members to think about what
goals, objectives, and problem-solving opportunities the Because value flows horizontally across
organization needs to align around. Aligning to what companies to customers, a productive way to
problems? You find out what problems to solve by going take a gemba walk is to follow a single product
to the gemba. The work on the shop floor brings to light family or product design or customer-facing
the problems that are getting in the way of the real value- process from start to finish across departments,
added work. functions, and organizations, according James
Womack, author of Gemba Walks, and founder
Think of hoshin kanri’s (strategy deployment) relationship of the Lean Enterprise Institute.
to the organization like the musculoskeletal system’s
He recommends gathering everyone who
is to the human body. The body needs a strong skeletal
touches the process being studied to walk
structure, just as an organization needs a hoshin or plan
together while discussing purpose (what
to hold it together. But a body can’t move effectively if problem does this process solve for the
its muscles (continuous improvement) are not kept active customer), process (how does it actually work),
and developed. and people (are they engaged in creating,
sustaining, and improving the process). Thus,
When you don’t use or move muscles, they atrophy, and
a gemba walk becomes a way to understand
the body becomes weak, not adaptive, and uncompetitive.
work, lead, and learn.
Also, individual muscles can’t move independently; to be
effective — to make purposeful movement — they must
connect to something, the skeleton, which provides a
common purpose that, in turn, helps them work in concert
with other muscles. In this way, continuous improvement
(muscles) and hoshin (skeleton) complement each
other when practiced correctly, strengthening the
organization (body).

What happened with the organization I visited in the

Midwest? They saw a huge benefit to “exposing” their
misalignment. So, as a next step, we’ll organize similar
events and discussions in other functions to create a shared
awareness horizontally across the organization. n

from the Lean Lexicon 5th Edition

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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

Building the Mindset Board was committed to shifting outcomes, improving

culture, building stronger operating systems, and regaining

and Skillset to Improve community trust. My improvement background was a

match for the Board. Shared passion kicked off the SDMF
from the Board Room journey.

to the Classroom “… for the first few years, we

A school district superintendent describes how lean thinking and stopped buying stuff, stopped
practice transformed a failing district into a nationally recognized chasing isolated efforts.
model of continuous improvement.
Instead, we focused our people
By Pat Greco
on what mattered most to
I n 2018, the Carnegie Foundation recognized the School
District of Menomonee Falls (SDMF), located on the
northwest side of Milwaukee, as a Spotlight Organization
success.”
Improvers know building the mindset and skillset of
— a model in continuous improvement. Ten years earlier, improvement is not an “initiative.” Instead, this work places
Milwaukee Magazine ranked it as underperforming and the daily work of our human systems as the highest priority
high spending. I had joined as superintendent in 2011 and, and is a critical investment in achieving and sustaining
within my first few days on the job, our high school received results. So, for the first few years, we stopped buying stuff,
a second notice as a “school in need of improvement.” As a stopped chasing isolated efforts. Instead, we focused our
result, state funding was reduced by $600 per student. people on what mattered most to success.
Community faith was shaken. Some students performed Dollars saved were reinvested to unleash the capability of
well, yet we struggled to engage all students to high levels our people at every level. The Principles of Organizational
of success. Suspension rates were seven times higher Excellence and Evidence-Based Leadership framework
than the state average. Student participation in advanced (Studer Education) served as our systemic “backbone”
coursework was low and failed to represent our student to align our goals, work behaviors, and core processes.
demographics. Yet, our spending levels were among the It was critical to be crystal clear on what our community
highest in the state. We had good teachers and leaders and we valued and develop our people aligned to those
working in a system full of hidden barriers. The School values. We focused on engaging each member, creating an

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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

army of improvers. Refined processes defined our “always department. A simple protocol of four questions, when
actions,” increasing the likelihood of follow-through. executed well, is exceptionally powerful:
Refined performance management goals tied together 1. What is working well?
tools for self-reflection and criteria for feedback helping
2. What barriers are getting in your way; do you have the
people succeed. Hardwiring grew as we removed barriers
resources needed to do your job well?
and reduced complexity. Clarity with support was key.
When performance varies, we seek to learn from bright 3. What ideas do you have for improvement?
spots and refine core processes. Resources (accelerators) 4. Who has been particularly helpful to you that I can
are better leveraged based on feedback, performance data, thank on your behalf?
and process refinement, ultimately reducing costs and
Leaders rounded with their team members but were not
preventing exhaustion in people.
evaluative. Rounding is about listening deeply to serve
people better, connect beyond their jobs, celebrate what is
working well, and remove barriers.

Finding Strategies to Improve

Educational Outcomes
Deming and the Lean Community influenced my thinking,
followed by decades of cross-industry learning from health
care and industry improvement. My learning was far from
Our improvement coaches, Dr. Janet Pilcher and Dr. Robin efficient. I’ve spent decades cobbling together lessons
Largue from Studer Education, worked with our entire learned across fields to make sense of the translations to
leadership team five to six times a year to frame, deploy, education. School systems are filled with dedicated, skilled,
and hardwire our 45-day learning cycles. In addition, we student-centered professionals who are critical to student
worked to build an improvement cadence, implement learning, but that’s not enough. School districts, typically
cascaded balanced scorecards, and develop our leaders the largest employers in most communities, are wickedly
so they could develop their people. As a result, all of our challenging systems. It was critical to avoid the trap of
leaders engaged. overly complicating the improvement journey. Education
is littered with organizationally heavy, complicated
initiatives that exhaust people, waste resources, and create
limited outcomes. The investment in the improvement and
organizational excellence coaching was critical to shifting
culture and improving outcomes for students and staff.

We scaffolded the plan-do-study-act (PDSA) process to

students and staff. Students and teachers explicitly defined
shared missions, standards of work, and how to support
and learn together. Learning goals and curricular standards
were rewritten in student-friendly language. Students are
now actively engaged in the learning and improvement
cycles. Beginning in kindergarten, students understand
the targets, set individual learning goals, and monitor their
We worked at every level of our system to listen deeply growth. Students provide feedback on what is working for
to our people to “see our system at work.” We deployed their learning, share barriers, and work with their teachers
“leader rounding” twice a year with every member in every every 10 to 15 days to determine the supports they need.

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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

Staff members were skilled, from the classroom to the

boardroom. The Board has adopted policies to sustain
continuous improvement as the way to do business.
Staff at every level now live the mindset and skillset of
improvement. They are empowered to initiate change
based on the complexity of the challenge. Within their
direct work, all staff are encouraged to problem-solve,
improve processes, and communicate their improvements.
“Just do it.” If the solution is clear but the project to
solve it complex, we deploy a project team with a project
charter, milestones, communication systems, and tools. If
the solution is unknown yet straightforward, we deploy
Plan, Do, Check, Act
the PDSA process. If the problem is complex, impacts
many people, and the solution unknown, the improvement Also known as plan-do-study-act (PDSA).
team follows the define-measure-analyze-improve-control
An improvement cycle based on the scientific
(DMAIC) process.
method of proposing a change in a process,
implementing the change, measuring the
results, and taking appropriate action (see
illustration). It also is known as the Deming
Cycle or Deming Wheel after W. Edwards
Deming, who introduced the concept in Japan
in the 1950s.

The PDCA cycle has four stages:

• Plan: Determine goals for a process and

needed changes to achieve them.

• Do: Implement the changes.

Public schools are critical to improving life chances for
• Check: Evaluate the results in terms
90% of our nation’s students. Our daily efforts create a
of performance.
pipeline or roadblock to college, career, and life readiness.
Our big aims? • Act: Standardize and stabilize the change or
• All students transition successfully to their college and begin the cycle again, depending on the results.
careers aspirations. from the Lean Lexicon 5th Edition

• All students and families feel they belong in our

buried hassles and obstacles to solve problems and improve
schools; all students and staff members continue to
outcomes. n
learn and grow.
• All students, families, and staff identify SDMF as the About the Author: Pat Greco, PhD, Director of Thought
place where they choose to learn and work. Leadership, Studer Education. Pat, a recognized leader,
consultant, presenter, executive coach, and mentor, has served 38
Our journey? We are a fundamentally different organization. years in public education, most recently as a superintendent in the
Results matter, but our human systems require leaders School District of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin.
to engage and listen deeply to uncover and eliminate the

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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

How the Hoshin Kanri kanri (strategy deployment) process, combined with
effective coaching, offers companies a way to confront and

Process Coupled with overcome this challenge; it can be the catalyst for achieving
sustainable organizational transformation.
Coaching Drives Lean
Understand the Context
Transformation, Part 1 Before we delve into the synergies generated by combining
A veteran coach shares a few intangible truths you’ll need to know strategy deployment and executive coaching, context
to execute an organizational transformation using hoshin kanri. is required. The honor of becoming a coach to senior
leaders (or anyone else, as a matter of fact) is earned with
By Laura Mottola humility and hard work, regardless of where you sit inside
or outside the organization. First comes the recognition

O rganizational transformation is first and foremost a

process of personal growth by leaders, which requires
reflection, self-awareness, and humility. Before expecting
that we know very little, if nothing at all, and the desire to
learn what we do not know drives us to study intensely and
experiment relentlessly to test our hypotheses. Trials will
such a dramatic change at the team or organizational level,
inevitably come with errors, and we must be willing to bear
leaders must deeply reflect on the company’s current state
those scars, not hide them. The courage to venture into
and desired future. This reflection inevitably invokes a
uncharted territory is our ticket to earned respect and the
struggle within every leader, which catalyzes their desire
invitation to coach others through their journey.
for change, activating the pull needed to take the necessary
steps toward that new vision. Now comes the matter of leading an organization through
a lean transformation and understanding senior leadership’s
To enlist the active participation of peers and team
role in steering and participating in a hoshin process.
members, leaders must, above all, gain their trust before
helping them to see uncomfortable truths — to stoke the
Overcome the Fear of Change
very same struggle within each team member so that they,
too, feel the urgent need to change. I am no psychologist — a recovering engineer, at best
— but I have learned, the hard way, indeed, that without
None of this is easy. Getting to the point where the need intrinsic motivation, there is no catalyst for change, no
for change is accepted and prompts a coordinated response way to overcome our inherent resistance to change. This
(aka “change management”) has been and continues to resistance doesn’t arise from a fear of change itself; it stems
be a stumbling block in countless situations. The hoshin from our fear of the unknown of what lies ahead. Even the
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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

worst situation ccan become comfortable compared to an process. In my journey as a lean practitioner, I have had
alternative that may be worse. the privilege of supporting executives who are leading a
cultural transformation in their respective organizations
The process of hoshin kanri demystifies such uncertainty
using lean thinking as a platform for change. Fortunately,
by providing a structured way to walk the path while it is
they all recognized that developing people is the key to
being co-created. The approach brings everyone together
transformation. As significantly, they understood that
to design (plan), experiment (do), adjust (check), and act the
it is their responsibility to guide and support their team
way forward using the plan, do, check, act (PDCA) process.
members in their personal growth.
It can be an exciting and frightening experience at once,
Not all leaders have experience or education about how to
and I cannot downplay the fact that hoshin kanri — or
coach team members. Most likely, they are accustomed to
any process to effect transformational change — is an
telling their direct reports what to do, sometimes instructing
emotionally charged process of co-creation, fraught with
how. The hoshin kanri process provides an opportunity to
obstacles and challenges. Hence, executive coaching is vital
jointly develop a strategy-to-execution roadmap, aligning
to support leaders who are engaged in facilitating hoshin
and adjusting along the way, even when it means “we’ll
kanri. These leaders need guidance as they move through
figure this out together.”
this challenging process to help them effectively coach
their team members and, in many cases, teach them how Inevitably, most people I have coached struggled with the
to coach others. mechanics of the practice routine (the Kata) and the time
and effort it takes to master this new skill. Their desire to
“The process of hoshin kanri attain significant sustainable change is constantly strained
by the need to show tangible short-term results. The reflex
demystifies such uncertainty to use tactics that served them well in the past is hard to
by providing a structured way control, let alone overcome.

to walk the path while it is Trust that the hoshin process will yield transformational
being co-created.” change if we successfully engage the leaders and, in
turn, most of their team members through coaching and
The coaching provides leaders with a mirror to reflect collaborative work. The energy level generated is palpable,
upon their effectiveness as enablers of the hoshin kanri and progress accelerates as people begin to feel their
transformation process. Effective executive coaching voice heard, the purpose is clearly articulated, and shared
heightens leaders’ awareness and understanding of what understanding is achieved.
is happening in the moment. It reminds them of their
Finally, staying the course during the difficult initial phases
own struggle and how their coach helped them overcome
of the hoshin kanri process is paramount, making executive
the challenges — and thus, how they can help their team
coaching even more critical during this time to reinforce
members overcome theirs.
the positive signs and inspire confidence in the exercise’s
intent and validity. Ongoing executive and team member
Develop People
coaching ensures the organization sustains initial gains and
Coaching within the hoshin process supports the leader establishes a cadence of continuous improvement. n
in conducting a hoshin and coaching others in the

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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

How the Hoshin Kanri and seek a different way to look at the company and shape
its future in a changing environment, hoshin kanri offers a

Process Coupled with collaborative way to think deeply about the situation, build
on common ground, and forge a path forward.
Coaching Drives Lean
Make it Personal through Practice
Transformation, Part 2 Lean transformation of an enterprise requires that all
Discover how a coach can help leaders execute a successful people, at all levels, learn to solve problems collaboratively.
organizational transformation using the hoshin kanri process. Executive teams engaged in a hoshin kanri process lead
the organization by example, demonstrating the process
By Laura Mottola required to build capability. We know that in learning a
new skill, there is no substitute for practice. When the team

W hile hoshin kanri is a process that provides a structured

way to implement change in an organization,
coaching strengthens that process by helping leaders
members see their leaders “walking the talk,” they become
more willing to follow the process. Through this consistent
practice, both leaders and team members build intrinsic
and team members adopt the mindset and practices that
motivation. Coaching reinforces this need to practice the
ensure success.
process, which, in turn, makes the process personal and
Seemingly easy to understand but challenging to achieve, ensures it inspires a move to action from within.
here are five areas where a coach will help leaders execute a
successful organizational transformation. “Lean transformation of
Learn from, Don’t Denigrate, the Past an enterprise requires that
There are many ways to tackle a strategic planning process­ all people, at all levels,
— each is valid for a specific business context. Indeed, the learn to solve problems
approach that was used in the past had its time and purpose.
We must learn from that previous process and build on it, collaboratively.”
not discredit it. The hoshin kanri process provides a way
to use the knowledge gained from earlier attempts as a Build Trust through Facts
platform upon which to build the next iteration. When we Building trust requires the courage to have honest, open
are dissatisfied with the current state (for whatever reason) communications. Generating a certain level of discomfort

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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

is necessary to shift the conversation to the crux of the how much you need to learn and commit to doing the
matter, exposing sore points and eliciting uneasiness with hard work and experimentation.
the status quo without assigning blame. Relying on the • Recognize the fear of change for what it is, the fear of
cold–heartedness of facts to make problems visible allows the unknown, and how to face it and help others do so,
for an honest, dispassionate analysis of the situation, which, as well.
in turn, enables teams to reach a consensus.
• Trust that enhancing your team members’ skills
Balance Dissatisfaction with Inspiration and abilities is the key to achieving organizational
success, and learn how to facilitate their personal and
The leader facilitating the hoshin kanri process is continually
professional growth.
walking a thin line between creating dissatisfaction with the
current situation and offering a healthy dose of inspiration • Realize the fundamental differences between the
with a vision of the future. Facilitators of every step in the process that led to the current state and how to leverage
process must enable the team members to passionately that knowledge to achieve the desired future state.
engage so it doesn’t become stale, lifeless. They must • Understand that learning by doing is essential to build
remind the group to “go hard on the system, but soft deep understanding through shared experience.
on people.” • Appreciate how focusing on facts builds trust and learn
A leader’s role is to support the team in balancing analysis, how to shift the conversation back to the facts, reflect,
discovery, ideation, and consensus-building. The coach’s and share back with the team.
role is to support the executive to improve self-awareness • Acknowledge the difficulties of staying the course,
and reflection. learn how to embrace the process, and commit to
self-development. n
Deploy Strategy, Coach at All Levels
Hoshin kanri is a strategy deployment process that links the Coaching
company True North with execution plans at all levels of the
Helping others develop the problem-solving
organization. Naturally, there is a need for coaching lower
capability required for implementing lean tools
levels through the functional deployment of the corporate
and principles and building a company culture
hoshin in succeeding iterations of collaborative discovery.
of continuous performance improvement.
By extending coaching throughout the organization,
the experience and knowledge gained during the hoshin In lean management, the coach avoids telling
process are passed on to others via learning by doing. A coachees what to do because it robs them of
process brings the hoshin to life and makes it relevant and the opportunity to think the problem through
appealing to all people involved. Clarity of purpose and for themselves; it deprives them of ownership
what needs to happen is achieved in cycles of refinement. of the problem; and the coach realizes he or she
seldom knows as much about the situation as
Coach for Personal Growth the problem owner.
If transformation comes through personal growth, then
The coach’s role is to use open questioning to
the coaching that supports hoshin kanri should focus on
help the coachee become more aware of what
helping leaders become teachers and coaches who are
he or she knows and needs to know. The coach
committed to both self-development and the development
prompts the person being coached to consider
of others. Among the most important coaching points are
if his or her ideas and impressions are based on
the following:
fact.
• Understand the importance of humility and hard work,
from the Lean Lexicon 5th Edition
and how to be comfortable realizing and admitting

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Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

Faculty Highlight
James (Jim) Womack, PhD
Founder and Senior Advisor, Lean Enterprise Institute
Widely considered the father of the lean movement, Jim has been talking and
publishing about creating value through continuous innovation around deep
customer understanding for many years. In the late eighties, he and Dan Jones
led the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s International Motor Vehicle
Research Program (IMVP), which introduced the term “lean” to describe Toyota’s
revolutionary management system.

Based on that research, Jim coauthored The Machine That Changed the World
(1990), Lean Thinking (1996), Lean Solutions (2005), and Seeing the Whole Value
Stream (2011).

In addition, he founded the Lean Enterprise Institute, a nonprofit research,

education, publishing, and conferencing company. Jim’s leadership of LEI
inspired efforts to establish lean institutes worldwide, which ultimately grew into
the Lean Global Network.

He received a doctoral degree in political science from MIT, a master’s degree in

transportation systems from Harvard, and a bachelor’s degree in political science
from the University of Chicago.

Laura Mottola
Director of Digital Transformation, BBA Group
Coach, Lean Enterprise Institute
A seasoned professional mining engineer and business leader with over 25
years of global experience across industries, Laura is recognized globally as a
leader in Lean Mining®, operational excellence, and lean transformation in the
natural resource sector. She’s devoted her career to integrating lean and systems
thinking, circular economy, and other concepts to develop multidisciplinary
approaches and strategies to solving complex problems, increasing productivity,
and improving social and environmental responsibility and teamwork in
organizations,

Laura cofounded the Lean Institute Canada and is the founder of the Lean
Mining® Institute and Flow Partners, Inc., which is now part of the BBA Group,
a Canadian engineering consulting firm. She holds a Master of Engineering in
Mining Automation from McGill University.

16
Lean Enterprise Institute Understanding Hoshin Kanri

Faculty Highlight
Mark Reich
Senior Coach, Lean Enterprise Institute
With 23 years of experience at Toyota, Mark brings a practitioner point-of-view
and a roll-up-your-sleeves approach to his coaching, working with executives
at their gemba. As LEI’s chief engineer, strategy, Mark leads the development
of new learning experiences that enhance executives’ lean knowledge and
capabilities while advancing the lean thinking and practice body of knowledge.
Before joining LEI, he was the general manager of the Toyota Production
System Support Center. While there, Mark directly implemented the Toyota
Production System or managed its implementation in various industries,
including automotive, food, furniture, healthcare, nonprofit, and others.

Mark started his career at Toyota, where he served seven years as assistant
general manager of the corporate strategy division. He also managed and
implemented Toyota’s North American strategic (hoshin) process, designed
jointly with Toyota’s Japan headquarters.

17
 Continue Your Learning
The Lean Enterprise Institute (LEI) offers a wide range of
learning resources, all with the practical knowledge you need
to sustain a lean transformation:

Learning Materials
Our plain-language books, workbooks, leadership guides,
and training materials reflect the essence of lean thinking—
doing. They draw on years of research and real-world
experiences from lean transformations in manufacturing and
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Education
Faculty members with extensive implementation experience
teach you actual applications with the case studies, worksheets,
formulas, and methodologies you need for implementation.
Select from courses that address technical topics, culture
change, coaching, senior management’s roles, and
much more.

Events
Every March, the Lean Summit explores the latest lean
concepts and case studies, presented by executives and
implementers. Other events focus on an issue or industry,
such as starting a lean transformation or implementing lean
in healthcare. Check lean.org for details and to get first
notice of these limited-attendance events.

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