An Introduction to Lean Work Design

CHAPTER 3

Process Flow

Just-in-time does not treat each process step as independent, but, rather, sees an entire system of linked processes. Construing things in this way naturally leads to a broad view, to a view oriented toward the future, to a view that seeks optimization of the whole.

—Hino (2006, p. 79)

Most work is complex enough to be subdivided into tasks performed at different stages. By linking these tasks or activities together, managers create a process to accomplish work. A process is defined as “a series of actions, changes or functions bringing about a result” (American Heritage 2007, pp. 1090–91). In operations management, a process has been defined as “… what the product experiences; it consists of a collection of operations ...