Kaizan: The evil opposite of Kaizen

Everyone in the business world is familiar with the Japanese word ‘Kaizen’ and it refers to the process of effecting continuous improvement in a business organization. The quality of the products cannot be improved in one or two steps. Every business organization must strive to introduce improvements at every stage of the production process and there will always be room for further improvement. By introducing improvements, the production process becomes easier and more profitable. The company’s profits increase and the company will have the advantage of competing with any other company in the market.

There is another word, Kaizan, which sounds similar but has a completely different meaning. It refers to the unfair practice of falsifying business records and is illegal in many countries. By manipulating the books, the company tries to deceive the authorities and the public. The only goal of the company is to make money by hook or by crook. In practice, there is no improvement in business organization and all it tries to portray is market hype.

In a competitive business world where everyone is trying to make a profit, only a few people understand what kaizen means. Therefore, it is necessary to explain kaizen tools and healthy business practices to make improvements in the production process.

The most difficult obstacle to overcome when implementing improvements is the company culture. Talking about improvements will not bring quality to the company’s products; concrete steps must be taken to change existing business practices.

Kaizen, in its true sense, is not simply about reducing the workforce and trying to create an image of a thriving company among the public. These efforts may generate some short-term benefits, but they do not improve the quality of the company’s products.

Toyota, the leading vehicle manufacturer, which does not make false and unrealistic promises to its customers, is an example of a company that takes kaizen seriously. Its mission statement simply states that the company will be fully responsible for its actions and the quality of its products.

To achieve product quality, waste must be eliminated at all levels of the production process. It includes efficiency in accounting, labor, marketing, etc. The company should aim for long-term rather than short-term goals. The business organization as a whole, from top to bottom, must be responsible for achieving continuous improvement in its production process.

Konusuke Matsushita once explained why Western companies are doomed to fail. He attributed the strict adherence to Theory X as the main reason for the failure of Western companies. Western companies exclude the working class from the decision-making process and employees are forced to work like machines. There is no unity between workers and management in Western companies. These companies will not achieve any improvement in the quality of their products.

Kaizen, on the other hand, emphasizes unity among all and mutual respect. He acknowledges the fact that the backbone of a company is its workforce. Therefore, he takes all possible means to improve the quality of the workers. To improve the quality of the products, the company must respect not only its workers but also all other people with whom the company has dealings. This is an area where Western companies fail miserably. They made lame excuses for disrespect to their employees and customers.

Any steps taken to improve the quality of services and products must be based on long-term goals. Quality improvement is only possible if all members of the company are committed to improving the quality of their products. It is the mentality of the people that has to change the most to achieve quality improvement.