The Lean Shop does not exist because of cutting costs.  It exists as a result of proven best practices. Sometime you have to spend money to save money.  This Lean bulletin is about determining both the most effective and the most efficient way to perform a task.

The axiom behind “You don’t know what you don’t know” is the same as for “If you are not measuring it, you’re are not managing it”.  There is value in knowing that a vehicle is in pre-loss condition and safe for the vehicle owner to drive.  But how do you know that these criteria are met?  Just guessing will cost you both time and money

On way to understand the best way to do a job is to experiment.  This is as simple as challenging your assumptions.  One approach is to use the Comeback Repair Log in our bulletin a couple of week ago.  Select one of the entries and ask what assumptions may have resulted in the vehicle not being repaired correctly.  Then investigate to find the root cause and correct it.

It isn’t enough to admit that a mistake or bad assumption was made. You have to begin measuring the process and managing based on the results. Once you know a problem exists, you are compelled to correct it and monitor the process to prevent it from happening again.

Here are the take aways:

• Challenge your assumptions.
• Evaluate the root causes in your Comeback Repair Log.
• Once corrective action is taken, measure the process to see that the process is truly fixed and stays that way.