Kaizen is a powerful business philosophy from Japan that focuses on continuous improvement within an organization. First established in the 1950s, Kaizen was developed by Toyota Motor Corporation and was rooted in the Japanese culture of improvement. The term Kaizen can be translated to mean ‘change for the better’ or ‘continuous improvement’, setting the goal for organizations to create an ever-evolving, successful business.

Kaizen encourages small, continual changes across all processes within an organization, from the way tasks are completed to how materials are used. These small changes can be made by anyone in the organization, from the CEO to the employees, and aim to help business efficiency and productivity, as well as improving the overall work environment.

Kaizen works to eliminate waste, or anything that doesn’t add value to the process. This can be anything from time-wasting activities, long lines, or energy draining methods. Kaizen trains and focuses on employee involvement when it comes to making processes and procedures more efficient. There is the idea that any changes or improvements should be welcomed and supported.

Kaizen focuses not just on the formal processes in an organization, but also the informal ones. Through both of these, an organization can look to make improvements that eliminate waste and enhance productivity. Further, Kaizen also looks for quality control, reducing the cost of errors, and standardizing the work environment to improve employee workflow.

Kaizen is a simple, yet effective business philosophy that centers on continuous improvement within an organization. Its roots lie in the Japanese culture of improvement and focusing on small changes over time to create the most efficient work environment. Kaizen doesn’t just look at formal processes: it also incorporates the informal ones, eliminating any waste and optimizing efficiency. This method has proven to be successful for many organizations, and by encouraging employee involvement and empowering them to make small changes regularly, Kaizen could be used to help make positive changes in any workplace.