Visual management is the communication basis of the lean production system and is therefore a core component of the Kaizen philosophy. It consists of the following aspects:
- Information exchange: Employees share information that is directly or indirectly related to their work, thus promoting ‘independent thinking’ and initiative among employees. The information can also be used to control individual processes. For example, for a follow-up control in the sense of Kanban. If a storage area is empty, a new container must be produced, etc.
- Communication of working standards and procedures: Explicit knowledge documentation of information relevant for work.
- Visual design of workspaces and processes: Creation of an overview that allows any form of deviation from the target state to be recognised. This naturally presupposes that target states have been defined.