ABSTRACT
Standardized work is the single most important system in the continuous improvement world. Like many other concepts in lean systems, standardized work is less of a tool and much more a systemic change. In a continuous improvement environment, we need disciplined people to do their work with minimal variance. Creating and enforcing standardized work helps to ensure this. We need repetitious performance because it builds individual mastery and therefore enhances self-efficacy, which empowers people to act (see Chapter 4). Repetitious performance also reveals problems in the design of the work, regardless of who is actually performing the work in a particular place.
