CLL Kaizen & Continuous Improvement Events 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What does the Japanese term 'Kaizen' literally translate to in English?
- Good change (Correct answer)
- Continuous flow
- Small steps
- Zero waste
Correct answer: Good change
Kaizen is derived from 'kai' (change) and 'zen' (good), meaning 'good change' or improvement.
Question 2: A Kaizen event (also called a Kaizen blitz) is typically how long in duration?
- 1–5 days (Correct answer)
- 2–4 weeks
- 1–3 months
- 6 months to a year
Correct answer: 1–5 days
Kaizen events are short, focused improvement activities usually lasting 3 to 5 days to rapidly address a specific process problem.
Question 3: Which PDCA phase involves testing a proposed improvement on a small scale before full deployment?
- Do (Correct answer)
- Plan
- Check
- Act
Correct answer: Do
The 'Do' phase is where the team runs a pilot or small-scale trial of the planned improvement.
Question 4: In a Kaizen event, who should ideally be included on the improvement team?
- Frontline workers, supervisors, and cross-functional members (Correct answer)
- Only senior management and engineers
- External consultants exclusively
- Finance and legal representatives only
Correct answer: Frontline workers, supervisors, and cross-functional members
Effective Kaizen teams include the people closest to the work plus support functions to ensure diverse perspectives and buy-in.
Question 5: What is the primary purpose of a pre-event preparation phase in a Kaizen event?
- Define scope, gather current-state data, and brief participants (Correct answer)
- Celebrate past improvements
- Train staff on new software tools
- Negotiate with suppliers
Correct answer: Define scope, gather current-state data, and brief participants
Pre-event preparation ensures the team has baseline data, a clear scope, and understands the problem before the improvement week begins.
Question 6: Which tool is commonly used during a Kaizen event to identify and categorize root causes of a problem?
- Fishbone (Ishikawa) diagram (Correct answer)
- Gantt chart
- Net present value analysis
- SWOT analysis
Correct answer: Fishbone (Ishikawa) diagram
The fishbone diagram visually maps potential root causes across categories such as Man, Machine, Method, and Material.
Question 7: What metric is most directly used to measure the success of a Kaizen event focused on cycle time reduction?
- Before-and-after cycle time comparison (Correct answer)
- Employee satisfaction scores
- Inventory dollar value
- Number of suppliers reduced
Correct answer: Before-and-after cycle time comparison
Comparing cycle time measurements taken before and after the event directly shows whether the improvement achieved its stated goal.
