Kaizen: Continuous, Incremental Improvement
Kaizen is a Japanese business philosophy that focuses on continuous, incremental improvement rather than sweeping, disruptive change. It’s built on the belief that small, consistent enhancements—whether in processes, products, or culture—compound over time into significant gains in efficiency, quality, and innovation.
Rather than relying solely on periodic overhauls or large-scale transformation projects, Kaizen embeds improvement into daily operations. Everyone, regardless of their role, is encouraged to identify inefficiencies, suggest refinements, and take ownership of implementing them. This creates a culture where improvement is not an event but a habit.
The Kaizen Cycle
In practice, Kaizen often follows a simple cycle:
- Identify an area for improvement.
- Plan a change.
- Execute the change on a small scale.
- Measure its effect.
- Standardise if successful, or adapt if not.
Why It Works
The key strength lies in its scalability: a one-minute fix that saves an hour every week is just as valuable in the philosophy as a major systems upgrade—because both are part of a continuous flow of improvement.