Jishuken
Jishuken is a lean manufacturing strategy derived from the Toyota Production System (TPS) and translates from Japanese as “self-learning” or “autonomous study groups”. This concept was developed under Taiichi Ohno and Toyota’s Operations Management Consulting Division to enhance skills, raise the level of TPS in specific areas, and increase the participation of floor or division managers to reduce bottlenecks and eliminate waste. Jishuken forms a core part of the culture of continuous self-improvement established at Toyota, alongside other concepts like kaizen and Gemba.
The core purpose of Jishuken is to facilitate intentional, self-learning through a practical, hands-on approach to improving existing procedures. The primary objective is to provide solutions and foster a culture of continuous improvement through a series of linked operations.
In practice, particularly within Toyota, Jishuken activities typically involve gathering managers on the factory floor to engage in hands-on kaizen. These activities often last from one week to several months, with supplier operation projects extending three to four months.
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The process involves several steps:
- identifying an area for improvement
- forming a team (usually 5-7 managers) including individuals from different affected departments
- assigning monitoring functions
- asking questions to gather information
- utilizing a Jishuken worksheet to track issues and solutions
- holding meetings with operators
- posting all results for review
A crucial distinction between Jishuken and kaizen is that kaizen is often considered a cultural or philosophical effort, while Jishuken is the intentional, workplace activity. THe focus is on getting team leaders and managers (from manager level up to CEO) to directly conduct kaizen activities, ensuring high-level management involvement in continuous improvement. This direct engagement helps management gain a strong operational understanding of how things work, preventing them from being disconnected from the production floor. Jishuken workshops aim to solve specific problems and ensure that only necessary changes are made, which are justified by existing issues and have a significant ability to resolve them, avoiding “change for the sake of change”.
For Jishuken to be effective, certain prerequisites are vital. The work area or department must have a clear understanding of its current situation, issues, and challenges, and must have been continuously applying kaizen over an extended period of time. Without this strong foundation of continuous improvement, an organization may not be ready for genuine Jishuken activities. Proper training for all managers involved is also essential to ensure they understand Jishuken’s principles and their required involvement, as ineffective training can be detrimental. Ultimately, Jishuken is a serious undertaking that requires significant effort and preparation, with the goal of achieving tangible results and developing people to become future TPS leaders.
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Video shared within article about a hospitality Jishuken event in the Caribbean.
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