Number 138 – Visit the Gemba and Ask Questions to Evaluate Flow

Visit the Gemba and Ask Questions to Evaluate Flow

Practitioners: tactical, integrative, and strategic

Many leaders visit the gemba believing they will find answers. Over time, I have come to believe the opposite is often true. The greatest value of the gemba is discovering how much remains to be learned.

It is easy to walk into a work area and focus on activity. People are moving. Machines are running. Information is being exchanged. Decisions are being made. Everything appears busy. Yet activity and flow are not the same thing.

Flow exists at many levels. Material flows through operations. Information flows between people and systems. Decisions flow through processes and organizations. At the strategic level, entire value streams either support or hinder the organization’s objectives. At the tactical level, materials enter a task, are transformed, and leave while information, waste, and resources move in different directions. Each level reveals a different aspect of reality.

The challenge is that no one person sees all of it. Those closest to the work often see details and obstacles invisible to leadership. Leaders may see relationships, priorities, and constraints extending beyond the local process. Both perspectives are valuable. Neither is sufficient by itself.

This Is Why Questions Matter

Questions such as What is waiting?, What prevents this from moving?, Where does it come from?, and Where does it go next? shift the conversation away from activity and toward flow. More importantly, they create dialogue around the work itself. Assumptions become visible. Different perspectives emerge. Shared understanding develops. The most effective gemba visits are not one-directional. Leaders learn from the people performing the work. Team members learn from questions that encourage them to see beyond the immediate task. Together they develop a richer understanding of the conditions influencing performance.

What Changes When Leaders Visit the Gemba

This understanding matters because it shapes decisions. Flow often reveals where decisions are needed. Materials wait. Information waits. Approvals wait. Resources wait. As leaders gain a clearer understanding of reality, they become better positioned to remove obstacles, adjust priorities, allocate resources, and improve the conditions surrounding the work.

This is one reason people should look forward to seeing leaders at the gemba. When leaders consistently help address barriers and improve working conditions, trust grows. The conversations become more honest. The learning becomes deeper. The opportunities become easier to see.

The purpose of the gemba is not simply to observe flow. The purpose is to understand reality well enough to make better decisions in support of the people doing the work and the objectives of the organization.

Leaders do not visit the gemba because they have all the answers. They visit because the work still has something to teach them.

Questions For Your Consideration

When leaders visit the gemba, are they primarily inspecting, observing, or learning?

What aspects of material, information, and decision flow are currently difficult to see?

How often do gemba discussions lead to decisions that improve conditions for the people doing the work?

Do people look forward to seeing leaders at the gemba because meaningful obstacles are consistently removed?

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