Do you jam pack your cubicle with so many personal items that it no longer resembles a place for work (overgrown plants, family pictures, personal nicknacks, awards, etc.)….in your defense, it probably makes you feel more like home. But this clutter can add time to your day and make you less productive because of the time you spend looking for items that are somewhere on your desk….I think ‘somewhere’ has a zip code, along with several of my missing documents.
By following a simple Japanese philosophy known as 5S, you’ll become better organized and as a result will increase your productivity….one of the many benefits of a Lean office (or cubicle). The philosophy is based on five Japanese words that begin with the letter ‘s’ and have been translated to english words that retain their original intent.
5S PHILOSOPHY
- Sort (Seri) – Go through everything in the workplace (i.e. your cubicle) and only keep what’s necessary and relevant to work….store or discard items that aren’t needed.
- Straighten (Seiton) – Assign a location for each item kept….you can create a ‘crime scene’ outline with tape indicating where each item goes, along with a label. Before you start taping, make sure the placement promotes an efficient workflow….keep items that you use frequently close by so you don’t waste time retrieving them.
- Shine (Seiso) – Keep your work area clean….that means at the end of each day, straighten up your cubicle so items are returned to their assigned location and you can begin the next workday organized.
- Standardize (Seiketsu) – Make sure everyone follows the same, standardized practices….anyone borrowing your stapler, for example, needs to be told where to place it when it’s returned.
- Sustain (Shitsuke) – Like any program, there needs to be a control in place to make sure you don’t slowly fall into your old habits of piling things in your cubicle….periodic audits work best. Assuming your company practices 5S, work with your EH&S department to integrate 5S in their office safety checks….cluttered cubicles can represent a potential tripping and fire hazards.
Watch how Kyocera’s North American Headquarters in San Diego implemented 5S in an office setting….yes, it included their cubicles!
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Good synopsis of 5S, Sandra. Instead of seeing 5S as just for the manufacturing floor, people are finally seeing it as a tool to improve administrative processes as well. I had the opportunity to see Office 5S in action last fall when I toured Fidelity Investment’s operations in Covington, KY (near Cincinnati, OH). Their incoming mail operation was particularly impressive. Your readers might be interested in the article that I wrote about what Fidelity has done in this area, “The Lean Office: Pushing the Envelope — Efficiently (http://valuechaingroup.com/sherryblog/2009/11/02/the-lean-office-achieving-paper-pushing-proficiency.html).
Thanks Sherry. It’s nice to see a large company like Fidelity apply continuous improvement tools and techniques in the mail room.