“We work on the head and the heart.”

Jeff Kaas, Owner and President

Head

Before following a new methodology or implementing Kaizen (or other continuous improvement methods), it is important to ask ourselves, “Is this true?” There are many messages floating around that can confuse our knowledge and understanding of the truth. We know what it feels like to spin around in circles as we try to identify who to listen to and what is true. Due to this struggle in our early stages, we now help edit and simplify the principles so others can make more informed decisions.

Heart

Each person and organization has their own set of beliefs and values which guide us forward. As you start to piece together your understanding of Kaizen and continuous improvement principles, it is important to identify if they align with your professional and personal values. We urge our guests to ask themselves, “Is this simply a business problem, or a moral problem?” The most sustainable and successful stories of transformational change occur when those with the most authority in the organization feel the weight and conviction associated with wasting time, talent, and resources. More importantly, these leaders must realize waste is hurting those around them: their families, colleagues, and employees.

Hands

Often in lean transformation, human nature tends to push us to start with action instead of forming knowledge and checking our values first. When we work with guests, we do not start with action because we know that until the head and heart are ready, the hands should not move forward. Once understanding and conviction are realized, we will help you lay out a plan that helps you develop techniques and behaviors necessary for successful implementation. Come spend time within our four walls and observe our constant battle to take the things we have learned, align them with what we say we believe, and to practice change in our daily lives.

Why a Waste Tour?

Reducing waste starts when a leadership team decides waste is a problem and they want to do something about it. Our goal is to work with your leadership team to help your business or organization cultivate a culture of change. Once your leadership team understands waste and knows it’s both a business and a moral problem, the fun part begins. Change has to start with you.

We needed help when we started—and 20 years later, we’re here to share what we’ve learned. Our promise is to help your team understand waste, and learn how to adopt continuous improvement as a culture.

Tours & Workshops

Photo of a Zoom Call

kaas pass

Kaas pass is a “season pass” subscription for unlimited access to all of our live virtual experiences. We focus on training the head and the heart while unlocking Continuous Improvement (CI) leaders to be able to focus on applying the principles in their context. Ideal for leaders and teams in organizations who have a desire to move from “tools” based lean to a culture of improvement.

Learning in flow fits our world-view; we provide ongoing, bits of information for you to pull when you need it. This offers organizations ongoing learning experiences; designed for organizations who want to scale up Continuous Improvement (CI) within their organization. We know that when organizations move toward Truth, Bit, and Pull they always see improvements that we have a hard time predicting or explaining. But at a bare minimum, we expect our pass holders to experience 30% improvements on:

  • Quality
  • Cost
  • Lead time
  • Learning
  • Innovation
  • And ultimately, Joy at work


Waste Tour

A Kaas Waste Tour is a 4 hour introduction to Kaizen, also known as lean thinking, and continuous improvement. We want to help you answer the question, “Why should I bother learning about this?”

Our method includes conversations with a variety of Kaas team members, in-depth training on the 7 wastes, and an intro to the improvement tools we use. You will experience team training, team cleaning, visual management tools, and kaizen problem solving. The day ends with 30 minutes of Q & A with Kaas leadership.


Field Day

Ideal for leaders and teams in organizations who have a desire to move from “tools” based lean to a culture of improvement. The Field Day is an 8 hour team building day. The first half of the day is an advanced waste tour followed by an afternoon of “hands on” simulations.

The day will end with an application discussion with Kaas leadership. Guests will have the opportunity to see how visual management and daily habits create information “flow” and how these tools create the freedoms to innovate and serve our clients. Simulations are designed for guests to be able to feel the difference between good and bad work methods.


Boot Camp

This is a 3 day immersion experience. Boot camps are an intensive, team-building experience that will allow the group to “live” for a few days inside an organization that struggles daily to stay true to its values.

Boot campers will experience the best and the worst of our company and have an opportunity to see how our team has had success and failures along the way from the people who experience both. Specifically, guests should learn how to apply Truth, Bit and Pull in their work to transform their organization and the lives they touch.

On-site Consultation

By visiting your facility, we can bring fresh eyes, backed by our own experiences and tools, which can shed some insight and help your team avoid the pitfalls that we have encountered.