WK 3 – 05 DISCUSSION “Visual Management”

[Mike Hincks]

In Chapter 9 of Lean For Dummies, on pages 176-177 the authors talk about display boards. A key paragraph in that section reads: “Display boards are operational nerve centers for the organization, located where the action is. Often, they’re handmade.”

Why is it that a physical display board, appropriately located, is so much more effective than a spreadsheet with the same information?

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Thanks!

[Ryan]

For me personally I can evaluate a display board with images and such much more quickly and easily than I can read through all of the details in a spreadsheet and interpret the data. Display boards usually offer a visual "interpretation" of the data represented in a spreadsheet. Depending on the type of display board it may be easier to see what responsibility is where. So if the customer is responsible for something which is not being delivered then we can follow up with the customer often until it is delivered or determined it is no longer necessary. The example on page 177 gives the focus areas of the company, customer and team, making it easy to see how it should all work together.

[Ely Mcginty]

I am much more interested when I don't have to read line after line and when I have a visual that can give the the same amount of information if not more. A display board makes it much easier as a teacher as well so it is typically more organized and easier to find something.

[ajones]

Visual memories tend to stay with a person longer because when person looks at an object then tend to associate it with something that is personal or interesting to them. By making theses association in the brain a person is able to recall the details of the display better then reading the same information from a spreadsheet or a document. Since most people tend to only retain keywords from something they read, the amount of detail in the report that is retained is less then a chart depicting the same data.

[Chanse]

For me personally, my mind tends to absorb pronounced things, such as those on a display board, in more detail than as a document read line after line.  I believe this is how most people's minds work as well.  I think the human mind is more capable of remembering things in pictures instead of line by line so a display board makes a great tool for this.

[estolberg]

The key word in the posed question is 'physical' for a couple reasons. A spreadsheet is not always accessible. It may be stored on a server that only certain people have access to, and even then is limited to the size of a computer monitor. By making the display physical, you are able to make it much larger and accessible to everyone who passes by it daily. As most have already noted, the information might be similar on the spreadsheet, but having a graphical dashboard displaying ALL information vitals allows cross comparisons and on-the-fly analysis to occur much easier.

One could almost say that the electronic "Wall of Success" in the new building might not be as successful as the current one unless it is able to display ALL customers at once, showing the vast impact instead of highlighting a couple customers. However, MasterControl is taking a step in the right direction by having the Wall displayed in a prominent location within the company.

[David Healey]

I learn and retain information much better when I write it.  For this reason I take lots of notes.  Having a physical board in the room would be an opportunity for interaction.  The more often the board was used, the more those who were exposed to the board would learn from it.

[Chanse]

A display board is an easy tool to spot with very little effort.  After you get into a habit of doing a quick check on the display board, you do it very frequently and you're able to keep informed better.  If you used something like a spreadsheet, you'd have to make a habit of searching for the spreadsheet and checking it frequently.  This will usually take much more time and effort to check so you won't be looking at it nearly as often as you would a display board.