In a story that is nothing short of flabbergasting, GE has discovered kaizen.
After meteorically rising and falling as the best managed company in the world driven by Jack Welch's 'maximizing shareholder value NOW' philosophy - to one requiring billions of tax payers' bailout money - the champions of using Six Sigma to rationalize outsourcing everything including over 100,000 American jobs - from "outsourcing 70% of everything and 70% of that outside the USA and 70% of that to India" - to recommitting to manufacturing while trying to sell off many of their manufacturing assets but finding no interested buyers - to this.
Thirty years after everyone else, GE has discovered lean and is taking the first baby steps toward lean manufacturing 101.
“ 'Toyota is 50 years ahead of us,' said GE's Rich Calvaruso, whose title is now 'Lean Leader.' 'It is a new approach,' for GE, he said. 'We are on a long journey.' ”
Not only is Toyota '30 years ahead of you, Rich, the average mom and pop machine shop around the corner from you in Louisville is 25 years ahead of you.
The boys running GE have been so tunnel visioned on Wall Street for the last 40 years they still call it "Japanese efficiency".
" 'The business is shifting … to one that starts with the most efficient way to manufacture the product as possible,' GE spokeswoman Kim Freeman said" What did it start with before Kim? But then we know the answer to that - the one with the lowest labor cost - quality, waste, cycle times and value creation be damned ... the cornerstones of 'maximize shareholder' value thinking.
Don't get me wrong. I am glad to see that GE is thinking about joining the party. A couple of kaizen events is a pretty lame start, but at least they have finally figured out what everyone in manufacturing has known for decades. They sound like a bunch of teenagers who have learned about sex for the first time - and think they invented it.
"It will be interesting to see where GE is going with this and what it will do for them," said a Detroit consultant by the name of Aaron Bragman. I agree. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if in ten years or so they find themselves on the leading edge of lean and invent ideas like kanbans and value streams.
**************************************************************************************
Late addition: Here is a Lean 101 video GE has put out concerning their lean effort at Appliance Park