A New Strategy for Continuous Improvement: 10 Steps to ... (ISBN 0831133201)

Sound Concepts & Marginal Substance:
I recently read two books written by Phillip Slater. This one and Smart Inventory Solutions. In both, Slater's primary focus is on what to do and how to do it. He thinks sequentially and, in this volume, suggests ten steps to achieve lower costs while increasing operational excellence. There are no head-snapping revelations, nor does Slater claim to offer any, except when suggesting that the strategy he offers is "new." In fact, it isn't. In the Introduction, he correctly notes that "there is no magic pill for business improvement" after having identified four success factors in an exemplary situation: applying fundamental good practice processes, focusing on areas of impact, eliminating obvious waste, and keeping minds open to other and better possibilities. The format of this book allows the reader to record in designated areas within the narrative her or his responses when completing a series of exercises. For example, the "Top of Mind Notes Page" on page 39 which asks the reader to identify opportunity areas and action steps required by Housekeeping, Preventing Chaos, and Visual Management when taking Step 1 (Getting Organized). I suggest checking out Appendix A that offers an example application of the 10 steps before completing the various exercises and then review it later when uncertain about how to respond to one of the exercise components. Although this is a book that an individual can read and benefit from, its greatest value can be derived (in my opinion) only if several members of a team read it, complete the exercises, and then share their responses. The ultimate objective should be a single document that can then serve as a game plan when the team proceeds to implementation, which Slater discusses in the final chapter. (I wish the chapters had been numbered.) The material is sound and carefully organized. The exercises will permit readers to interact with the material in an orderly way. To accommodate inevitable revisions, I suggest that the exercises be completed with a #2 pencil, one with a sturdy eraser. I would have rated this book somewhat higher had Slater developed his core concepts in much greater depth (the narrative is only 129 pages in length, with generous spacing between paragraphs, followed by a glossary and three appendices) and had he included several real-world examples to illustrate some of his key points. As is, this is a hybrid volume (part manual, part workbook) that provides a basic introduction that, if and when revised for a second edition, could and should offer more substance for the cost of purchase. Those in need of broader and deeper coverage of kaizen are urged to check out Matthew E. May's The Elegant Solution: Toyota's Formula for Mastering Innovation as well as Lean Solutions: How Companies and Customers Can Create Value and Wealth Together and Lean Thinking: Banish Waste and Create Wealth in Your Corporation, Revised and Updated co-authored by James P. Womack and Daniel T. Jones, and, Michael L. George's Fast Innovation: Achieving Superior Differentiation, Speed to Market, and Increased Profitability co-authored with James Works and Kimberly Watson-Hemphill and Conquering Complexity in Your Business: How Wal-Mart, Toyota, and Other Top Companies Are Breaking Through the Ceiling on Profits and Growth co-authored with Stephen A. Wilson.

Logical Practicle and Easy to Follow:
This book sets out an approach that I found really easy to follow. The 10 steps make sense to me and the examples help bring all the points to life. The book is well written and I found the use of specific 'do' and 'don't' points really helpful. Being an ebook meant that I could print out one section at a time and read them when travelling without lugging a big book around.

A New Approach to the Old Basics:
This is one of those books that really takes you back to the fundamentals. There are no surprises here, no magic bullets that will instantly put all problems to bed, increase your profits and make everything all better. Instead here is a simplified approach that says: Remember you needed to do this. Here's why, here's how, here's a simple check list to help you through the process. And after you've done that, move on to the next step. And the next. When you read this book you are almost certainly to come up with at least one good idea which when applied help improve some aspect of your business. Perhaps you then need to read it again and see if you don't find another aspect. Perhaps you can implement his entire concept of continually reviewing your operations to find more areas to improve. To be sure there are a couple of new ideas in his approach, but they are more along the lines of restating the basics. And perhaps simply restating them helps you to identify problems you can actually fix.