is a Japanese term used in business for the location where value is created, such as a factory floor, construction site, or sales floor.
In
lean manufacturing
Lean manufacturing is a methods of production, method of manufacturing goods aimed primarily at reducing times within the Operations management#Production systems, production system as well as response times from suppliers and customers. It is ...
, the most valuable ideas for improvement are thought to occur at the genba where problems are visible. Management teams may go on a gemba walk to look for opportunities to improve the practical shop floor (known as the ''genba
kaizen
is a Japanese concept in business studies which asserts that significant positive results may be achieved due the cumulative effect of many, often small (and even trivial), improvements to all aspects of a company's operations. Kaizen is put ...
''). Unlike the similar strategy of
management by walking around
The management by wandering around (MBWA), also management by walking around,"What is management by walking around (MBWA)",
BusinessDictionary.com, 2010, webpage: . refers to a style of business management which involves managers wandering aroun ...
, gemba walks are typically not done randomly, but with a clear frequency, goal, and structure.
Glenn Mazur introduced this term into
Quality Function Deployment (QFD, a quality system for new products before manufacturing has begun) to mean the customer's place of business or
lifestyle. The idea is that to be customer-driven, one must go to the customer's ''gemba'' to understand their problems and opportunities, using all one's senses to gather and process data.
Etymology
The word ''genba'' is a
Japanese term meaning "the actual place" and is used in non-business contexts to refer to
crime scenes or topical locations where TV may report. In a movie set, ''gemba'' refers to the practice of shooting a scene at the actual location rather than a studio.
Gemba walk
Toyota executive
Taiichi Ohno
was a Japanese people, Japanese industrial engineering, industrial engineer and businessman. He is considered to be the father of the Toyota Production System, which inspired Lean Manufacturing in the U.S. He devised the Muda (Japanese term)#Toyo ...
developed the gemba walk as a way for staff to stand back from day-to-day tasks and walk the floor of their workplace to identify wasteful activities. The objective of gemba walk is to understand the value stream and its problems rather than review results or make superficial comments. Along with
Genchi Genbutsu or "Go, Look, See", gemba walk is one of the 5
Lean guiding principles that should be practiced by Lean leaders on a daily basis. The gemba walk, is an activity that takes management to the front lines to look for waste and opportunities to practice ''gemba
kaizen
is a Japanese concept in business studies which asserts that significant positive results may be achieved due the cumulative effect of many, often small (and even trivial), improvements to all aspects of a company's operations. Kaizen is put ...
,'' or practical shopfloor improvement.
Variations
W. Edwards Deming
William Edwards Deming (October 14, 1900 – December 20, 1993) was an American business theorist, composer, economist, industrial engineer, management consultant, statistician, and writer. Educated initially as an electrical engineer and later ...
suggested a similar idea of looking at the system from suppliers, through the entire organization, and to customers. Deming shared the idea during a 1950 visit to Japan.
The commonly used models of production associated with lean, such as "
value-stream mapping," do not extend to include suppliers, customers, or include a feedback loop to foster continual improvement of the system.
See also
*
Genchi Genbutsu
References
{{Reflist
Quality management
Manufacturing in Japan
Japanese business terms
Toyota Production System