Last Updated on May 31, 2024 by Owen McGab Enaohwo
What is the best way to work? Many people struggle with maximizing the time spent doing tasks so as to remain efficient and productive. To achieve work goals, it often feels like one needs to work longer and harder, though productivity gurus espouse working smart over working hard. But in the business world, how does this happen?
Many businesses pride themselves on their relentless efforts toward continuous improvement, otherwise known as Kaizen. But the reality is, in their quest to become more efficient at work, they often overlook one key element: making standard work an integral part of their processes.
Yet, for others, the major challenge lies in figuring out how to best implement and maintain standard work.
Standard work helps make business systems and processes replicable and predictable. Without standardization, it isn’t easy to have continuous and sustainable improvement since employees tend to perform the same tasks in different ways. The result? Low quality work, inconsistent outcomes, increased uptime, increased costs, wastage, human errors, and general inefficiency.
The best-standardized work methods are those that adapt to organizational changes, allowing for continuous enhancements or adjustments as per the current need.
This article provides detailed information on what standard work is all about, its benefits, best practices and a guideline on how to apply the same to your business. It covers the following sections:
Chapter 1: Standard Work Definition
Chapter 2: The Three Elements of Standard Work
Chapter 3: Benefits of Standard Work
Chapter 4: Standard Work Best Practices
Chapter 5: How to Effectively Create Standard Work
Chapter 6: When Should You Use Standard Work?
Chapter 7: Sweeten Your Standard Work and Processes with SweetProcess
Chapter 1: Standard Work Definition
Standard work refers to detailed documentation of the current, most efficient method for each work process. It breaks down work into the sequences and components necessary for each worker to understand and correctly carry out a certain process the same way, every single time. These standards are not static but should always be open to improvements.
In simpler terms, standard work lays down the foundation for continuous improvement. Every time the standard undergoes refinement, the new standard becomes the baseline for future improvements.
Documenting standard work is crucial as it illustrates the desired elements of a company’s work processes, a lack of which causes employees to deviate from the process’ best practices. It also keeps the system replicable and predictable. As such, a glimpse into a standard work layout should enable a new hire to gain a deeper understanding of the nature of work and related processes.
Standard work is a key principle of lean manufacturing, where it relates to establishing exact procedures to make products in the simplest, safest, and most effective way. The concept has its origins in the manufacturing sector and entails laying down, communicating, adhering to, and improving standards.
How it works
Setting up standard work starts with creating, clarifying, and distributing information on the most competent way of performing a task that is currently known and executed by every employee. Once shared, every person practices this standard consistently, ensuring the task is always carried out in the most efficient way.
And since these standards are not set in stone, each employee should endeavor to improve the prevailing standard, with discoveries in new best practices shared as soon as they occur.
Chapter 2: The Three Elements of Standard Work
Standard work documentation comprises a number of elements, such as the current best practice and a clear and detailed description of each task and process. However, the three primary elements are takt time, work sequence, and standard inventory.
Let’s examine each of these elements in more detail:
Takt time
Takt time represents the rate at which a company needs to come up with or complete products or services to satisfy customer demand. In other words, it’s the heartbeat of your work processes and allows you to optimize your capacity well enough to meet demand without stocking too much inventory.
A business can improve its operations by leveraging takt time. Furthermore, by incorporating takt time into your operations, your business can benefit in several ways:
- Faster and easier identification of bottlenecks.
- Easier to pinpoint underperforming stations.
- More focus on value-added results in minimal waste.
- Once established, routine functions enable faster operators, resulting in increased output.
Work sequence
This is a step-by-step explanation of the precise actions employees need to take to carry out specific tasks within takt time. For consistent quality results, the work sequence needs to be as detailed as possible. It also needs to be set up in a way that enables each worker to perform the same job in a similar way.
With the work sequence in place, it’s pretty easy to notice when a certain task or procedure is not done accordingly.
Standard inventory
Standard inventory is also known as in-process stock. It refers to the minimum quantity of parts as well as raw materials needed to keep operations running smoothly. It also details
the exact amount of in-process inventory (including the units in machines) that should be available at the workstation.
Knowing the amount of in-process inventory is important since holding too little or too much inventory could be wasteful. Insufficient material disrupts the work sequence, while having too much inventory can result in overproduction.
Ideally, the parts between operations should be kept at a minimum though the exact number of parts will depend on the specific operations.
The above three critical elements of standardized work constitute a standard worksheet, typically developed for each operation. This worksheet should be well documented and displayed at the workstation to communicate to all the workers. It also adds an element of visual control.
Chapter 3: Benefits of Standard Work
Standard work is an indispensable requirement for operational excellence. It allows an organization to perform high-quality work and offer the best products or services at the lowest cost.
Here are some of the ways standard work can benefit your business:
Reduced operational costs
High operational costs can severely hamper an organization’s short- and long-term profitability. Using standardized work, for instance, through crafting service level agreements, can help your business utilize the same definitions between your company and its partners. Doing so can help minimize trial and error, lowering production costs considerably.
Faster and more efficient training
Standard work results in faster, simplified, and more efficient employee training and onboarding. With each task clearly defined and documented, bringing new employees up to speed is no longer a costly, arduous process. It also means that fresh employees take a much shorter period to become productive since they have written resources to help them understand and reference best practices.
Ultimately, the learning curve gets shorter, ambiguity becomes a non-issue, and results are more consistent. This is a win for both the business and the employees. Standard work reduces employee frustration with complex work procedures, eliminates sub-par performance, boosts employee retention, and results in more engaged workers.
Continuous improvement
Improvement is quicker, easier and measurable with standard work. This is because repeating a set method results in a more organized process. What’s more, improvement opportunities become more evident.
Improving a process devoid of documentation is an uphill task. So is refining a process that employees don’t understand quite well or apply with a certain measure of consistency. When this happens, workers become disengaged and instead engage in constant fault-finding and lack ownership.
But when standard work is defined and implemented, it becomes easy to analyze and spot improvement opportunities. Better yet, there is an established way to carry out the improvements to see whether they actually work.
Because the workers are involved in the construction of standard work documentation, they become invested in the efforts toward improving and measuring process results. Additionally, they are more likely to ensure the standard work reflects the most appropriate approach.
Accurate measurement also helps in identifying activities and processes that could benefit from maximizing their efficiency.
Ultimately, standard work merely documents current best practices, which leaves room for improvement. This is because the current state does not guarantee that the standard is the most efficient way to carry out the job.
Less variability
Standard work ensures that every employee performs their tasks in the best possible way. Simply put, they carry out their duties following the current best practices every time, totally eliminating guesswork or confusing procedures while minimizing errors and variability.
The problem with variability is that it affects the quality of work or output. It can lead to unpredictable outcomes, reduced quality, high costs, and failure to meet delivery timelines. Variability could also cause a rise in safety issues brought on by a lack of effective safety training or the use of unstable processes.
For example, if there is no laid-down procedure for addressing customer concerns, this can cause a lot of problems between customers and sales representatives. You wouldn’t want your sales reps using different methods to help sort customer issues.
However, if a product that had no previous issues suddenly starts failing a certain quality check, identifying the root cause is easy if your production process follows standard work. This would not be the case if there were three different employees, each using their own method to perform the work.
Better waste visibility (and waste reduction)
When workers perform their work following their whims instead of a carefully constructed standard, the result is avoidable human errors, unnecessary waste, and inconsistent results. This makes it more challenging for the accounting team to determine the costs implications of a particular process.
But with standard work, it becomes easier to calculate the price a product must go for in order to be profitable because there is better waste visibility. Again, by following specific steps, you can reduce defects that lead to product waste. (Defective products are typically discarded or sold at a huge discount.) Also, you can pinpoint exactly where the process is not running at optimum efficiency and take measures to correct it.
Quicker scaling
Since scalability focuses mainly on a business’s core functions, creating processes that facilitate streamlined operations is vital. When you standardize the core functions, you lay down the foundation for your company’s long-term success.
Standardized work makes it possible to get the same results repeatedly. Optimized consistency means there are fewer shortfalls in quality, making it easier to scale your business. For businesses with a chain of outlets, utilizing detailed process documentation helps to ensure that both product and service quality is the same. This should be the same across the board, regardless of the store a customer chooses to visit.
By applying standard work, measuring performance against a standard benchmark becomes more straightforward. Furthermore, managers can measure store operations to test their effectiveness and efficiency levels, making them better placed to predict profits and costs with more accuracy. It also enables them to identify areas that need corrective action.
Effective problem-solving
While standard work does not get rid of problems, it makes solving them easier and more effective. This minimizes work-related stress as employees spend more time doing productive work rather than correcting errors. Additionally, it enhances synergy among the employees, maximizes their efficiency, and promotes long-term profitability.
With fewer problems, inconsistencies, and errors to deal with, managers and supervisors can now focus on strategic objectives, meeting employee needs, and adding value to the business.
Enhanced innovation
It might not seem to be the case, but standard work plays a major role in promoting innovation. Standard work is merely the current best practice. It doesn’t preclude new and creative ideas for improvement. As such, standard work is dynamic, altering whenever a better way of doing things emerges.
Standardization can help you get rid of incompatible technologies that could hamper business growth. In their place, you can implement performance-enhancing technologies like customer-journey mapping to enhance customer experience.
Enhanced safety
A lack of consistent quality production systems can lead to serious implications, including posing a health and safety risk to both workers and customers. For instance, in a car manufacturing company, the manufacturer must standardize the brake installation system. Otherwise, the vehicles would pose a serious safety risk to customers.
Standardized work involves training for all workers to follow standard work processes. Everyone does what they are supposed to do, thus reducing risks and injuries. Besides, effective standard work places a high emphasis on safety by establishing safety protocols while eliminating any unsafe practices from the process.
Increased customer satisfaction
Customers are the lifeblood of your business. You need to take care of their needs, anticipate their wants and always strive to meet and even exceed their expectations. When employees work following a set standard, quality is ensured since they are able to produce consistent results, enabling them to meet customer expectations and satisfy them.
According to a study by American Express, 33% of customers will consider switching companies after a single instance of unsatisfactory customer service. In other words, a disappointing customer experience is all it takes for your favorite customer to move to the competition. It might seem like something minor, but not getting their usual frothy cappuccino can be an unfulfilling customer experience that could cause your business to lose favor. This translates to lost business.
Standardizing processes can help improve efficiency in handling customer queries or concerns, allowing you to use customized responses and increase personalization. They also help to ensure that every client gets the same attention plus quality of work.
Easier work hand-off
An ideal workflow hand-off is more than simply moving tasks or responsibilities from one employee to the next. Rather, it entails agreeing on the next steps to take, thus ensuring that business goals are met. It could also require reorienting the work or adding value to it.
Hand-offs tend to create hiccups in workflow, which could lead to inefficiencies and waste. Fortunately, standard work can help you identify inherent bottlenecks dropped hand-offs, and ensure that the correct information is passed along.
For instance, you don’t want to assign a hand-off to a single individual in the case of giving approvals. It’s better to use two or three potential recipients instead since said employee could fall sick and fail to show up for work.
Boosts productivity
Errors take time to resolve—time that could be put to more productive use. By using standard work, you can reduce the time needed to do monotonous, lengthy tasks. You might even find your team using fewer resources to complete a particular procedure, enabling you to utilize the extra time and resources to create more products.
Implementing standardized processes also helps to eliminate inter-office competition, which if not addressed can affect overall efficiency negatively.
Lastly, it can open the door to automation, where you streamline your business processes for enhanced productivity. This entails eliminating guesswork and simplifying work processes by putting in place efficient workflows.
Chapter 4: Standard Work Best Practices
As noted at the beginning of this article, many organizations find it challenging to determine the best way to implement and maintain standard work. Others do not have documented standard work. Unfortunately, by failing to have a strong baseline on which to build and measure progress, these companies set themselves up for failure as improvement will always be elusive.
Below are some standard work best practices worth emulating when documenting and implementing standardized work:
Collect accurate information
If you are the manager or supervisor leading the process of creating standard work documentation, ensure to involve the people that will carry out the actual tasks. Allow them to share their knowledge, suggestions, and experience because they are best placed to offer insights on the work to be done and why. Their participation in the process also helps instill a sense of ownership.
Defining the current state can help reveal challenges with certain processes. As such, the team should use this opportunity to explore areas that might not have been given due attention previously.
Keep reviewing aspects like operator movements and product flow
Since the standard work documented depicts the currently known best practices, it should not remain static. Keep reviewing various aspects of the work processes, such as operator movements and product flow, to ensure you always have an up-to-date current standard.
On the same note, get employees to give their input and engage in troubleshooting any existing challenges to try and discover more efficient ways to get the work done. This might mean eliminating activities that don’t add value.
Include all information in one document
Document all the information collected in a single document. This forms the standard work documentation. This document will be useful in helping employees to follow best practices and also create a foundation for the necessary training material.
Ensure the document is easy to read and understand
Document each activity or procedure in a clear and simple way that’s easy to understand. Avoid including too much detail since this will clutter the document. Focus on key activities and consider using visualizations to make the document easier to understand.
Visuals demonstrate difficult concepts, help people learn faster, and retain the knowledge for longer. Use charts, graphs, pictures, and other related displays that can help bring the standard work to life.
Ensure it is easy to access, visible, and easy to change
To ensure that every team member can access the standard work documents at any time, make them readily available and accessible. Consider using improvement management software for managing, storing, and sharing standard work documentation. Having the document within reach is essential as it makes it easier to make changes when necessary.
Update regularly since takt time can change
Once your standard work document is complete, and its implementation is underway, it might be tempting to just carry on with the current document. However, you need to allow for changes to the current process to be reflected in the standard work document; otherwise, it will become outdated and therefore useless.
On the same note, you will need to make allowances for exceptional cases, for instance, when a certain situation calls for adjusted timelines. Set up a plan to deal with such scenarios and document the ad-hoc process changes. Additionally, outline the temporary changes that will need to be effected and communicate a suitable plan to return to the standard once the situation is back to normal.
For best results, review the standard work with every process change. Also, set a regular interval for analysis of the standard work to ensure that it is applied consistently and remains top of mind for each employee.
Provide training
After documenting the process, it’s essential to provide all the workers with comprehensive training on how to follow and apply the standard. To help the team recall what they need to do, post the documentation at workstations and on the walls. You also need to monitor standard work implementation to ensure compliance and confirm its effectiveness.
Chapter 5: How to Effectively Create Standard Work
To effectively create standard work, follow the below steps:
1. Analyze your operations
Start by observing how your current operations run, analyzing factors like your work responsibilities, output, costs, revenue, and internal interactions. This exercise will also help you determine crucial aspects like your current takt time and work sequence.
2. Get input on any issues and variations
Take note of any variations, quality or safety issues, and general problems affecting your current processes as the basis for your improvements. For instance, identify whether there are workers who perform the same tasks with variable output or tasks that could benefit from being combined.
3. Develop and document the most effective way to work: the standard process
The previous two steps will help you determine the most practical and efficient work sequence. This will form your current best practice. At this juncture, you might want to consider using tools to help you optimize your procedures and work sequence. This way, you can boost your efforts at identifying non-value activities or error-proof your processes. Ultimately, you want to identify practical methods that are useful and easy for everyone to follow and apply.
4. Make the standard process visual and easy to understand
Document everything in a standard work document with all guiding instructions set out in a clear and simple format. The instructions enable operators to follow each step according to the current best practice outlined in your standardized work.
Consider using a digital format to make it easier to update the document. Digital formats are media-rich, allowing you to include videos, images, and related multimedia resources. These can allow even new employees to conduct self-guided tours through your current standardized procedures.
5. Train everyone on how it works and what to expect
Ensure to train your employees on how to apply the newly-established standard work. Make it clear that all workers need to understand the standard procedures and adhere to them at all times. This means that current employees will require re-training too since the new operator training programs will now have their basis on the standardized work.
6. Monitor and keep improving the process
Do not make the mistake of assuming that you are now done and can follow your standardized work into the foreseeable future. You need to continuously strive to improve the standard further. As noted earlier, standardized work is never without fault. Hence, you should challenge the current best practice regularly.
The good news is that upon establishing and putting standardized work into practice, you will find it much easier to point out issues. Introduce a simple method of recording deviations and noting improvements such as color charting. Following this, analyze each problem that arises and create a new standard to resolve it.
Chapter 6: When Should You Use Standard Work?
Without standardized work, workers are left to achieve a work standard by applying whatever method. This essentially means that the only way to improve is to work harder or faster. Fortunately, standard work offers a better way.
Here are instances when you should use standard work. Apply standard work when:
You have repetitive procedures
If your work procedures occur repeatedly and follow a regular process, then you might want to consider using standardized work. Such work includes machine operations, packing protocols, cleaning procedures, customer service scripts, and design processes.
You value consistency
To find out whether a process should undergo standardization, ask your employees whether a given process contains any steps that could benefit from more consistency. Doing so will make it easier to spot standardization opportunities.
You’re looking for continual improvement
The best way to use standard work is when you are looking for continual improvement. Your business can benefit from reducing the amount of time workers take to complete a given procedure, allowing you to create an effective daily schedule and predict revenues.
That said, standardization should not be carried out merely for the sake of it. If there is an issue that can be resolved by adopting standardization, then go right ahead. But the focus should be on understanding the problem first, identifying its causes, then proposing solutions. However, you should not use standard work if:
- It does not help reduce costs.
- It does not minimize waste.
- It does not lead to enhanced safety.
- It does not result in quality output.
- It does not boost staff morale.
Below are some examples showing how to apply standard work effectively in various sectors:
Manufacturing
Manufacturing companies require proper work instructions to guide their operations. These guidelines should appear in a standard work instruction sheet that’s clearly displayed at the workstations. Below are key things to note when listing down the manufacturing procedures in your standard work documentation and how to use the final document effectively:
- Simplify each step in the standard manufacturing processes.
- Determine the optimal manufacturing process.
- Get employees to buy into the process by involving them.
- Help workers visualize the instructions by using drawings, pictures, or videos.
- Include elements like quality, safety risks, and standard timings, i.e., how long a certain procedure should take to create flow.
- Train the workers on how to use the standard work.
You can see examples of standard work instruction sheets here, while below is a short video showing an example of standard work manufacturing cell:
Health
Primary care providers (PCPs) are responsible for monitoring patients’ prescribed opioids at a Veterans Affairs women’s health clinic. Unfortunately, most of the patients cannot access safety monitoring services as per national guidelines because of barriers like:
- Clinician time
- Competing clinical priorities
- Timely access to patient data
- Lack of consistent patient education
The above scenario results in the low uptake of strategies to improve opioid safety since there is no clear implementation. Enter VA internist Sarah Hall and nurse practitioner Jamie Clinton-Lont who, together with their peers, created a Primary Care Chronic Pain Program (PC-CPP) that refers patients to two annual shared medical appointments (SMAs).
Here, patients learn how to manage pain, opioid pros and cons, opioid alternatives, and risk management strategies. To standardize risk reduction strategies, the team developed standard work through a standard operating procedure algorithm to help increase adherence to guidelines and legal practice standards. The program uses a note template whereby attendance, non-adherence, and inconsistent results are reported to the referring PCP.
By implementing standard work procedures, the PC-CPP program succeeded in making pain management a lot safer for veterans through improving adherence to health guidelines and legally prescribed practice standards.
Service process
When it comes to a service environment, standard work represents the most efficient method of offering consistent services. The purpose here is for each worker to deliver high-quality services at the lowest cost.
You can incorporate standard work in your daily operations by utilizing standard operating procedures (SOPs). This is a document that describes the best way to perform a process and the activities necessary to maintain consistent work practices. It details what needs to be done, by whom, how, and the person responsible for ensuring it gets done.
Creating and applying SOPs enable standard work to be more effective. Also, they help communicate the standard to the workers. Standard work and related SOP documents contain written instructions and might include drawings, photographs, flowcharts, checklists, or other information that might be helpful in communicating the standard more clearly.
Here are some examples of service standard work documents.
Chapter 7: Sweeten Your Standard Work and Processes with SweetProcess
If you are in the market for software to document your systems, policies, and processes, look no further than SweetProcess. This unique standard work software also enables you to keep your document processes, tasks, and procedures in a single location, freeing you to focus your attention on your core role—growing your business.
For more information on what this could mean for your business, check out the below case studies:
Spark Marketer empowers employees’ confidence with SOPs
Carter Hawkins and his partner provided small- and medium-sized businesses in the home services industry with digital marketing services. While they were mildly successful, a meeting with a business consultant brought to their attention a serious operational loophole—they had no standard operating procedures (SOPs) and no idea what they were.
With no written procedures, employees relied on tribal knowledge to do things, leading to a lack of confidence in their work and a disorganized workplace. Even worse, workers who mis-performed got the sack without being shown cause since there was no way to track their performance.
Since they desired to streamline their operations, the business partners decided to adopt a system that would help them create SOPs henceforth. They started using Google Docs but soon realized they needed a more efficient system. After trying out SweetProcess, they immediately adopted the system.
What the duo liked about SweetProcess:
- Boosted employee efficiency and accountability.
- Made process documentation simpler.
- Enabled seamless employee training.
- Helped create a decentralized knowledge base.
- Enabled the business to effect change and update processes quickly.
The next step is to scale the business, and SweetProcess will be on hand to facilitate the same.
Good Nature Organic Lawn Care boosts sales and scales up by streamlining business processes
Alec McClennan, the CEO of Good Nature Organic Lawn Care, took clients’ safety pretty seriously. His company provided lawn care services using non-harmful organic products.
Alec strived to deliver great services for his clients, granting him and the team access to their property. Unfortunately, the workers lacked clarity on how to carry out their manual procedures, so they often messed up.
The lawn products require mixing and application following strict safety guidelines. The company documented the processes in a manual and shared the same with the workers. Unfortunately, the information would turn useless almost as soon as the manual got updated due to product changes or a change in the way of doing things. Besides, the revisions were time-consuming while the manual was a hassle to carry around.
Correcting employee errors cost Alec’s business, but not as much as losing his clients’ trust. The constant fire fighting also wore him down. To resolve the issue, he opted to systematize the business.
SweetProcess facilitated the turnaround the business needed. By using SweetProcess:
- Alec’s employees became easier to train and more efficient.
- He found a simpler way to systemize and document his business processes.
- The business was able to improve its processes.
- The company standardized the entire operations, facilitating the opening of new locations.
Atlantic Sapphire transfers operational knowledge between facilities by documenting its business processes
Stanley Kolosovskiy, Atlantic Sapphire’s technology process coordinator, had one key assignment: to ensure optimal business operations. Unfortunately, achieving optimal operations was a tremendous challenge as the company didn’t have an effective workflow system. Also, the current software was not user-friendly enough for use in creating standard operating procedures.
Atlantic Sapphire farms land-based salmon locally in Denmark and distributes the fish through road transportation rather than flying to reduce carbon emissions. In addition, the firm uses sustainable farming methods and strives to prevent water pollution and harmful exposure to ocean life.
As such, the company required SOPs to guide employees in executing their duties and needed the workers to adhere to the strict operational procedures. They also wanted to start salmon farming in the US and transfer operational know-how from Denmark to the new facility.
Luckily, after conducting some research, Stanely discovered SweetProcess. He found it to be a highly intuitive system that helped improve their performance, promote environmentally friendly business practices and move to the US. With SweetProcess, Stanley could now:
- Track employee activities and assign tests.
- Streamline process documentation.
- Create a decentralized knowledge base.
- Onboard employees faster and train them with ease.
- Incorporate the employees in creating the entire work process—the system is easy-to-use.
- Use the new system in both facilities.
- Allow workers to go on leave without much worry.
Do you want to achieve your business goals? SweetProcess can transform your business too. To get an idea of how the system works, sign up for the free 14-day trial—no credit card required.
Conclusion: Get the Business Transformation You Deserve
The purpose of standard work is to define, communicate and implement the most effective and efficient way to achieve high-quality work, ultimately delivering value to customers. That said, standard work doesn’t need to be a complicated approach.
Still, it should be a fundamental approach for any business keen on having stable processes. Standard work ensures this by reducing variability, eliminating unnecessary waste, improving efficiency, maintaining quality, and implementing continuous improvement.
To reap the above benefits and more, start your journey to standardized work by taking up the SweetProcess 14-day free trial offer (no credit card required). And don’t forget to download our quick checklist “From Sour to Sweet: An Impeccable Standard Work Checklist” below.
