Why Visual Displays Are Valuable

Last week was brutally hectic (sorry for no posts here...) and I got back very late last night from a two-day business trip. I walked in today and in a total of about six minutes, stood and pondered the data on three visual displays we have here. After being out of touch for several days, the displays allowed me to make some rapid, well-grounded assessments about how we are doing. More importantly, it guided me in several conversations about actions we should or should not take.

This is what a visual display should do. It should allow any associate to quickly (less than three minutes) understand what is going on and if the area is under control or not. It is far simpler than most people make it out to be.

Our displays are all hand-written. They are on normal paper. They are not hooked up to a computer. They are highly visible. They are highly flexible. They are self-maintained by the folks doing the work in each group.

It felt great to be back and to stand and reflect on the effort that each display represented.

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