Obeya, a Japanese concept, represents a physical space used by cross-functional teams to collaborate, visualize work, and make decisions. It aims to promote transparency, collaboration, and problem-solving. Obeya incorporates visual boards, metrics, and improvement actions, and finds use cases in project management, daily stand-ups, and problem-solving sessions. The roles of team members, facilitator, and leadership play a crucial role in the Obeya process.
The primary purpose of Obeya is to create a space where teams can:
Collaborate: Obeya breaks down silos by bringing cross-functional teams together. It fosters open communication and collaboration among team members.
Align: Teams use Obeya to ensure that everyone is on the same page regarding project status, goals, and priorities. It serves as a visual representation of the organization’s objectives.
Problem-Solve: Obeya facilitates the identification of challenges and provides a platform for generating actionable solutions. It encourages a proactive approach to problem-solving.
Principles of Obeya:
Obeya operates on several core principles, including:
Transparency: Obeya emphasizes the importance of sharing information openly. Visual boards and data displays ensure that everyone has access to real-time information.
Collaboration: Cross-functional teams collaborate in the Obeya space, promoting diverse perspectives and a holistic approach to decision-making.
Problem-Solving Culture: Obeya fosters a culture where problems are not swept under the rug but are addressed proactively. It encourages teams to seek root causes and implement solutions.
Components of Obeya:
Obeya spaces typically incorporate the following components:
Visual Boards: These boards display critical information such as work progress, key performance indicators (KPIs), improvement actions, and project milestones. Visual boards provide a snapshot of the current status and performance.
Metrics and KPIs: Obeya relies on data-driven decision-making. Metrics and KPIs are prominently displayed, allowing teams to track performance and identify areas for improvement.
Information Radiators: Data is visualized in a way that is easy to understand and interpret. Information radiators ensure that everyone in the room has access to relevant and up-to-date information.
Improvement Actions: Actionable steps to address identified issues are prominently displayed. This component drives a culture of continuous improvement.
Use Cases for Obeya:
Obeya finds application in various scenarios, including:
Project Management: Obeya helps project teams track milestones, dependencies, and risks. It provides a centralized space for project-related discussions and decisions.
Daily Stand-ups: Teams conducting daily stand-up meetings benefit from the visibility and transparency that Obeya offers. Real-time updates and issue resolution are facilitated.
Problem-Solving: When tackling complex problems or conducting root cause analysis, Obeya serves as an ideal environment for cross-functional teams to collaborate and develop solutions.
Roles in Obeya:
Several key roles contribute to the effectiveness of Obeya:
Team Members: Team members actively participate in Obeya activities. They share updates, collaborate on solutions, and contribute to the collaborative environment.
Facilitator: A facilitator ensures that Obeya meetings run smoothly. They encourage participation, manage discussions, and keep the sessions focused.
Leadership: Leadership plays a crucial role in providing support, allocating resources, and setting the direction for the teams working in Obeya. They help align the activities with the organization’s strategic goals.
Examples
Product Development Obeya:
Scenario: A company is developing a complex product with multiple teams working on different aspects, such as design, engineering, and testing.
Obeya Application: The organization sets up an Obeya room where representatives from each team gather regularly. Visual boards display the product development progress, issues, and dependencies. This collaborative space allows teams to identify bottlenecks, align their efforts, and make swift decisions. It fosters cross-functional collaboration and accelerates product development.
Healthcare Operations Obeya:
Scenario: A hospital aims to improve patient flow and reduce emergency room wait times.
Obeya Application: An Obeya space is established with visual boards showing patient admission and discharge processes, ER capacity, and key performance metrics. Cross-functional teams, including doctors, nurses, and administrators, meet regularly to review data and identify areas for improvement. This approach enhances patient care, reduces wait times, and streamlines hospital operations.
Lean Manufacturing Obeya:
Scenario: A manufacturing facility seeks to optimize production processes and reduce defects.
Obeya Application: The organization implements Obeya in its production area. Visual boards display production schedules, quality metrics, and continuous improvement initiatives. Cross-functional teams consisting of operators, quality inspectors, and engineers meet daily to review performance and address issues promptly. This approach leads to improved product quality, reduced defects, and increased production efficiency.
Software Development Obeya:
Scenario: A software development company wants to enhance its agile development processes.
Obeya Application: An Obeya room is established with visual boards displaying sprint backlogs, user stories, and defect tracking. Scrum teams, product owners, and developers meet regularly for sprint planning, daily stand-ups, and sprint reviews. This collaborative space fosters transparency, quick decision-making, and alignment of development efforts, resulting in faster delivery of high-quality software.
Retail Merchandising Obeya:
Scenario: A retail chain aims to optimize its merchandising and inventory management strategies.
Obeya Application: The organization sets up an Obeya space where visual boards showcase sales data, inventory levels, and merchandising plans. Cross-functional teams, including merchandisers, store managers, and supply chain professionals, meet regularly to analyze data, adjust inventory levels, and plan merchandising strategies. This approach improves inventory turnover, reduces stockouts, and enhances overall retail performance.
Construction Project Obeya:
Scenario: A construction company is executing a complex building project with multiple subcontractors.
Obeya Application: An Obeya room is established to track project progress, subcontractor schedules, safety metrics, and quality standards. Regular meetings involving project managers, subcontractors, and safety officers ensure alignment and quick issue resolution. This collaborative space enhances safety, quality, and on-time project delivery.
Key Highlights of Obeya – Collaborative Space for Decision-Making:
Concept and Purpose: Obeya, a Japanese term meaning “big room,” signifies a dedicated physical space where cross-functional teams collaborate, visualize work, and make well-informed decisions.
Principles: Obeya is built upon principles of transparency, collaboration, and fostering a problem-solving culture within organizations.
Components:
Visual Boards: Display progress, key performance indicators (KPIs), improvement actions, and project milestones for clear understanding.
Metrics and KPIs: Track metrics to identify areas for continuous improvement and align efforts.
Information Radiators: Use visual aids to display data that aids comprehension and decision-making.
Improvement Actions: Showcase actionable steps to address identified challenges.
Use Cases:
Project Management: Obeya aids in tracking project milestones, dependencies, and potential risks.
Daily Stand-ups: It facilitates real-time updates and seamless communication among team members.
Problem-Solving: Obeya supports root cause analysis and the generation of actionable insights for problem resolution.
Roles:
Team Members: Active contributors who share updates, insights, and work collaboratively on solutions.
Facilitator: Ensures smooth meetings and encourages participation, ensuring the effective use of the Obeya space.
Leadership: Provides support, allocates resources, and offers strategic direction to teams utilizing Obeya.
Framework
Description
When to Apply
Obeya (Lean)
Obeya, Japanese for “big room” or “war room,” is a physical or virtual workspace used in Lean management to facilitate collaboration, communication, and decision-making among cross-functional teams. It fosters transparency, alignment, and problem-solving by bringing stakeholders together in a dedicated space.
– When implementing Lean principles and practices to improve organizational performance.
Kaizen (Continuous Improvement)
Kaizen is a philosophy and methodology focused on continuous improvement, emphasizing small, incremental changes to processes, products, or services. It encourages employee involvement, innovation, and problem-solving to drive organizational excellence over time.
– When seeking to foster a culture of continuous improvement and innovation within an organization.
5S Methodology
5S is a workplace organization methodology consisting of five principles: Sort, Set in Order, Shine, Standardize, and Sustain. It aims to improve efficiency, safety, and morale by organizing the workplace, eliminating waste, and standardizing processes.
– When organizing workspaces, improving workflow efficiency, and promoting safety and cleanliness in the workplace.
Value Stream Mapping (VSM)
Value Stream Mapping is a visual tool used to analyze and improve the flow of materials and information required to deliver a product or service to customers. It identifies value-adding and non-value-adding activities, bottlenecks, and opportunities for process optimization.
– When identifying opportunities for process improvement, reducing lead times, and eliminating waste in production or service delivery processes.
PDCA Cycle (Plan-Do-Check-Act)
The PDCA Cycle is a four-step problem-solving and continuous improvement methodology: Plan (identify a problem and plan a solution), Do (implement the plan), Check (evaluate results and compare to objectives), and Act (make adjustments and standardize improvements).
– When addressing problems, implementing solutions, and continuously improving processes, products, or services.
Kanban System
The Kanban System is a visual workflow management method used to visualize work, limit work in progress (WIP), and optimize the flow of work through the system. It helps teams prioritize tasks, identify bottlenecks, and maintain a steady pace of work.
– When managing workflow, reducing lead times, and improving productivity in manufacturing, software development, or service delivery processes.
Gemba Walk
Gemba Walk is a Lean management practice where leaders go to the “gemba,” or the place where work is done, to observe operations, engage with employees, and gain insights into process inefficiencies and opportunities for improvement.
– When leaders need to understand actual working conditions, identify waste, and support continuous improvement efforts at the frontline level.
Andon System
The Andon System is a visual management tool used to signal problems or abnormalities in production processes immediately. It allows operators to stop the production line, notify supervisors, and address issues promptly to prevent defects or disruptions.
– When ensuring quick response to production issues, reducing defects, and promoting a culture of continuous improvement and problem-solving in manufacturing environments.
Heijunka (Production Leveling)
Heijunka is a Lean manufacturing technique used to level the production schedule and maintain a consistent flow of work. It involves smoothing out demand fluctuations, balancing production across different product lines or time periods, and reducing inventory and overproduction.
– When aiming to reduce production variability, minimize lead times, and improve resource utilization in manufacturing environments with fluctuating demand.
Jidoka (Autonomation)
Jidoka is a Lean manufacturing principle that empowers workers to stop the production process immediately upon detecting defects or abnormalities. It emphasizes built-in quality, error prevention, and continuous improvement to ensure customer satisfaction.
– When prioritizing quality, preventing defects, and empowering frontline workers to take ownership of product quality and process improvement in manufacturing settings.
AIOps is the application of artificial intelligence to IT operations. It has become particularly useful for modern IT management in hybridized, distributed, and dynamic environments. AIOps has become a key operational component of modern digital-based organizations, built around software and algorithms.
Agile started as a lightweight development method compared to heavyweight software development, which is the core paradigm of the previous decades of software development. By 2001 the Manifesto for Agile Software Development was born as a set of principles that defined the new paradigm for software development as a continuous iteration. This would also influence the way of doing business.
Agile Program Management is a means of managing, planning, and coordinating interrelated work in such a way that value delivery is emphasized for all key stakeholders. Agile Program Management (AgilePgM) is a disciplined yet flexible agile approach to managing transformational change within an organization.
Agile project management (APM) is a strategy that breaks large projects into smaller, more manageable tasks. In the APM methodology, each project is completed in small sections – often referred to as iterations. Each iteration is completed according to its project life cycle, beginning with the initial design and progressing to testing and then quality assurance.
Agile Modeling (AM) is a methodology for modeling and documenting software-based systems. Agile Modeling is critical to the rapid and continuous delivery of software. It is a collection of values, principles, and practices that guide effective, lightweight software modeling.
Agile Business Analysis (AgileBA) is certification in the form of guidance and training for business analysts seeking to work in agile environments. To support this shift, AgileBA also helps the business analyst relate Agile projects to a wider organizational mission or strategy. To ensure that analysts have the necessary skills and expertise, AgileBA certification was developed.
Agile leadership is the embodiment of agile manifesto principles by a manager or management team. Agile leadership impacts two important levels of a business. The structural level defines the roles, responsibilities, and key performance indicators. The behavioral level describes the actions leaders exhibit to others based on agile principles.
The andon system alerts managerial, maintenance, or other staff of a production process problem. The alert itself can be activated manually with a button or pull cord, but it can also be activated automatically by production equipment. Most Andon boards utilize three colored lights similar to a traffic signal: green (no errors), yellow or amber (problem identified, or quality check needed), and red (production stopped due to unidentified issue).
Bimodal Portfolio Management (BimodalPfM) helps an organization manage both agile and traditional portfolios concurrently. Bimodal Portfolio Management – sometimes referred to as bimodal development – was coined by research and advisory company Gartner. The firm argued that many agile organizations still needed to run some aspects of their operations using traditional delivery models.
Business innovation is about creating new opportunities for an organization to reinvent its core offerings, revenue streams, and enhance the value proposition for existing or new customers, thus renewing its whole business model. Business innovation springs by understanding the structure of the market, thus adapting or anticipating those changes.
Business modelinnovation is about increasing the success of an organization with existing products and technologies by crafting a compelling value proposition able to propel a new business model to scale up customers and create a lasting competitive advantage. And it all starts by mastering the key customers.
A consumer brand company like Procter & Gamble (P&G) defines “Constructive Disruption” as: a willingness to change, adapt, and create new trends and technologies that will shape our industry for the future. According to P&G, it moves around four pillars: lean innovation, brand building, supply chain, and digitalization & data analytics.
That is a process that requires a continuous feedback loop to develop a valuable product and build a viable business model. Continuous innovation is a mindset where products and services are designed and delivered to tune them around the customers’ problem and not the technical solution of its founders.
A design sprint is a proven five-day process where critical business questions are answered through speedy design and prototyping, focusing on the end-user. A design sprint starts with a weekly challenge that should finish with a prototype, test at the end, and therefore a lesson learned to be iterated.
Tim Brown, Executive Chair of IDEO, defined design thinking as “a human-centered approach to innovation that draws from the designer’s toolkit to integrate the needs of people, the possibilities of technology, and the requirements for business success.” Therefore, desirability, feasibility, and viability are balanced to solve critical problems.
DevOps refers to a series of practices performed to perform automated software development processes. It is a conjugation of the term “development” and “operations” to emphasize how functions integrate across IT teams. DevOps strategies promote seamless building, testing, and deployment of products. It aims to bridge a gap between development and operations teams to streamline the development altogether.
Product discovery is a critical part of agile methodologies, as its aim is to ensure that products customers love are built. Product discovery involves learning through a raft of methods, including design thinking, lean start-up, and A/B testing to name a few. Dual Track Agile is an agile methodology containing two separate tracks: the “discovery” track and the “delivery” track.
eXtreme Programming was developed in the late 1990s by Ken Beck, Ron Jeffries, and Ward Cunningham. During this time, the trio was working on the Chrysler Comprehensive Compensation System (C3) to help manage the company payroll system. eXtreme Programming (XP) is a software development methodology. It is designed to improve software quality and the ability of software to adapt to changing customer needs.
Feature-Driven Development is a pragmatic software process that is client and architecture-centric. Feature-Driven Development (FDD) is an agile software development model that organizes workflow according to which features need to be developed next.
A Gemba Walk is a fundamental component of lean management. It describes the personal observation of work to learn more about it. Gemba is a Japanese word that loosely translates as “the real place”, or in business, “the place where value is created”. The Gemba Walk as a concept was created by Taiichi Ohno, the father of the Toyota Production System of lean manufacturing. Ohno wanted to encourage management executives to leave their offices and see where the real work happened. This, he hoped, would build relationships between employees with vastly different skillsets and build trust.
GIST Planning is a relatively easy and lightweight agile approach to product planning that favors autonomous working. GIST Planning is a lean and agile methodology that was created by former Google product manager Itamar Gilad. GIST Planning seeks to address this situation by creating lightweight plans that are responsive and adaptable to change. GIST Planning also improves team velocity, autonomy, and alignment by reducing the pervasive influence of management. It consists of four blocks: goals, ideas, step-projects, and tasks.
The ICE Scoring Model is an agile methodology that prioritizes features using data according to three components: impact, confidence, and ease of implementation. The ICE Scoring Model was initially created by author and growth expert Sean Ellis to help companies expand. Today, the model is broadly used to prioritize projects, features, initiatives, and rollouts. It is ideally suited for early-stage product development where there is a continuous flow of ideas and momentum must be maintained.
An innovation funnel is a tool or process ensuring only the best ideas are executed. In a metaphorical sense, the funnel screens innovative ideas for viability so that only the best products, processes, or business models are launched to the market. An innovation funnel provides a framework for the screening and testing of innovative ideas for viability.
According to how well defined is the problem and how well defined the domain, we have four main types of innovations: basic research (problem and domain or not well defined); breakthrough innovation (domain is not well defined, the problem is well defined); sustaining innovation (both problem and domain are well defined); and disruptive innovation (domain is well defined, the problem is not well defined).
The innovation loop is a methodology/framework derived from the Bell Labs, which produced innovation at scale throughout the 20th century. They learned how to leverage a hybrid innovation management model based on science, invention, engineering, and manufacturing at scale. By leveraging individual genius, creativity, and small/large groups.
The Agile methodology has been primarily thought of for software development (and other business disciplines have also adopted it). Lean thinking is a process improvement technique where teams prioritize the value streams to improve it continuously. Both methodologies look at the customer as the key driver to improvement and waste reduction. Both methodologies look at improvement as something continuous.
A startup company is a high-tech business that tries to build a scalable business model in tech-driven industries. A startup company usually follows a lean methodology, where continuous innovation, driven by built-in viral loops is the rule. Thus, driving growth and building network effects as a consequence of this strategy.
As pointed out by Eric Ries, a minimum viable product is that version of a new product which allows a team to collect the maximum amount of validated learning about customers with the least effort through a cycle of build, measure, learn; that is the foundation of the lean startup methodology.
Kanban is a lean manufacturing framework first developed by Toyota in the late 1940s. The Kanban framework is a means of visualizing work as it moves through identifying potential bottlenecks. It does that through a process called just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing to optimize engineering processes, speed up manufacturing products, and improve the go-to-market strategy.
Jidoka was first used in 1896 by Sakichi Toyoda, who invented a textile loom that would stop automatically when it encountered a defective thread. Jidoka is a Japanese term used in lean manufacturing. The term describes a scenario where machines cease operating without human intervention when a problem or defect is discovered.
The PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle was first proposed by American physicist and engineer Walter A. Shewhart in the 1920s. The PDCA cycle is a continuous process and product improvement method and an essential component of the lean manufacturing philosophy.
RAD was first introduced by author and consultant James Martin in 1991. Martin recognized and then took advantage of the endless malleability of software in designing development models. Rapid Application Development (RAD) is a methodology focusing on delivering rapidly through continuous feedback and frequent iterations.
Retrospective analyses are held after a project to determine what worked well and what did not. They are also conducted at the end of an iteration in Agile project management. Agile practitioners call these meetings retrospectives or retros. They are an effective way to check the pulse of a project team, reflect on the work performed to date, and reach a consensus on how to tackle the next sprint cycle. These are the five stages of a retrospective analysis for effective Agile project management: set the stage, gather the data, generate insights, decide on the next steps, and close the retrospective.
Scaled Agile Lean Development (ScALeD) helps businesses discover a balanced approach to agile transition and scaling questions. The ScALed approach helps businesses successfully respond to change. Inspired by a combination of lean and agile values, ScALed is practitioner-based and can be completed through various agile frameworks and practices.
The SMED (single minute exchange of die) method is a lean production framework to reduce waste and increase production efficiency. The SMED method is a framework for reducing the time associated with completing an equipment changeover.
The Spotify Model is an autonomous approach to scaling agile, focusing on culture communication, accountability, and quality. The Spotify model was first recognized in 2012 after Henrik Kniberg, and Anders Ivarsson released a white paper detailing how streaming company Spotify approached agility. Therefore, the Spotify model represents an evolution of agile.
As the name suggests, TDD is a test-driven technique for delivering high-quality software rapidly and sustainably. It is an iterative approach based on the idea that a failing test should be written before any code for a feature or function is written. Test-Driven Development (TDD) is an approach to software development that relies on very short development cycles.
Timeboxing is a simple yet powerful time-management technique for improving productivity. Timeboxing describes the process of proactively scheduling a block of time to spend on a task in the future. It was first described by author James Martin in a book about agile software development.
Scrum is a methodology co-created by Ken Schwaber and Jeff Sutherland for effective team collaboration on complex products. Scrum was primarily thought for software development projects to deliver new software capability every 2-4 weeks. It is a sub-group of agile also used in project management to improve startups’ productivity.
Scrumban is a project management framework that is a hybrid of two popular agile methodologies: Scrum and Kanban. Scrumban is a popular approach to helping businesses focus on the right strategic tasks while simultaneously strengthening their processes.
Scrum anti-patterns describe any attractive, easy-to-implement solution that ultimately makes a problem worse. Therefore, these are the practice not to follow to prevent issues from emerging. Some classic examples of scrum anti-patterns comprise absent product owners, pre-assigned tickets (making individuals work in isolation), and discounting retrospectives (where review meetings are not useful to really make improvements).
Scrum at Scale (Scrum@Scale) is a framework that Scrum teams use to address complex problems and deliver high-value products. Scrum at Scale was created through a joint venture between the Scrum Alliance and Scrum Inc. The joint venture was overseen by Jeff Sutherland, a co-creator of Scrum and one of the principal authors of the Agile Manifesto.
Six Sigma is a data-driven approach and methodology for eliminating errors or defects in a product, service, or process. Six Sigma was developed by Motorola as a management approach based on quality fundamentals in the early 1980s. A decade later, it was popularized by General Electric who estimated that the methodology saved them $12 billion in the first five years of operation.
Stretch objectives describe any task an agile team plans to complete without expressly committing to do so. Teams incorporate stretch objectives during a Sprint or Program Increment (PI) as part of Scaled Agile. They are used when the agile team is unsure of its capacity to attain an objective. Therefore, stretch objectives are instead outcomes that, while extremely desirable, are not the difference between the success or failure of each sprint.
The Toyota Production System (TPS) is an early form of lean manufacturing created by auto-manufacturer Toyota. Created by the Toyota Motor Corporation in the 1940s and 50s, the Toyota Production System seeks to manufacture vehicles ordered by customers most quickly and efficiently possible.
The Total Quality Management (TQM) framework is a technique based on the premise that employees continuously work on their ability to provide value to customers. Importantly, the word “total” means that all employees are involved in the process – regardless of whether they work in development, production, or fulfillment.
The waterfall model was first described by Herbert D. Benington in 1956 during a presentation about the software used in radar imaging during the Cold War. Since there were no knowledge-based, creative software development strategies at the time, the waterfall method became standard practice. The waterfall model is a linear and sequential project management framework.
Gennaro is the creator of FourWeekMBA, which reached about four million business people, comprising C-level executives, investors, analysts, product managers, and aspiring digital entrepreneurs in 2022 alone | He is also Director of Sales for a high-tech scaleup in the AI Industry | In 2012, Gennaro earned an International MBA with emphasis on Corporate Finance and Business Strategy.
