Shitsuke is the final stage in the 5S method, which means to sustain, thus ensuring that the company or the workplace mainly contributes to continually enhance using the previous stages embedded in 5S, maintaining the housekeeping as well as conducting an audit and so forth. Moreover, this also makes the 5S as the way of life.
This is a Japanese word, which in the first place carries wealth of cultural meaning:
• Discipline as well as training imposed upon an individual. For instance, children are taught by their own parents to brush their teeth right after every meal.
• Self-discipline. For instance, children grow into adults who brush their teeth right every after meal.
• Shared cultural self-discipline. For instance, every individual is expected to brush their teeth right every after meal.
• Personal discipline to a continually practice and improve. For instance, golfers practice putts and then drives- they do not usually play around on weekend without having practice in between.
The main responsibility for the Shitsuke is primarily shared between the workforce and the management. The manager’s duty is to remind the employees of the principles of 5S and at the same time reinforce them by means of consistent messages as well as bahaviors. For example:
• Introduce and at the same time support the certification programs and audit in order to formally ensure that new standards are supported and most of all are all implemented.
• Develop the Shitsuke procedures and then review the standards once in a while.
• Conduct inspections in order to ensure that the standards are successfully met
• Provide the needed training, storage space, replacement parts, cleaning supplies, and any other resources as needed to enable the standards to be successfully met
How to Sustain the Discipline
Since the main responsibility for Shitsuke is shared between the workforce and the management, it is imperative on the part of the management to take full responsibility for continuing to communicate the real message of 5S and for the regular inspections in order to enforce all the standards. Employees on the other hand should be accountable for doing the work and for creating the results.
For the Management:
• In Shitsuke, there is a need to set the standards as well as processes
• Introduce the audit process
• Introduce a certain certification program
• Inspect and at the same time enforce while the workforce is slowly becoming accustomed to new procedures
• Train new employees
• Provide the needed resources
The Employees:
• The process must be a boost for moral as well as mutual respect
• Make suggestion in order to enhance the process
• Help each one another by means of inspecting visually the work of each and every area
If you want to become even more responsible and productive, it is now the best time to try Lean 5S and be amazed what the result will be. With this, you will definitely have an assurance that you will become the person you really wanted to be. This will surely give you more reasons to become more motivated in everything you do, which in turn will satisfy you the most.
— Slimane Zouggari