Transcript Lean Networking

Lean Networking
An experiment in the application of
best-in-class business practices to
network and IT management
A Lean Perspective
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Lean is a compilation of “world class
business practices” including
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The Toyota Production System,
Waste Elimination
Process/Continuous Improvement
Other quality certifications (six sigma, ISO 900x)
Traditional Lean is immediately
identifiable by these buzzwords:
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Just In Time (ジャストインタイム) (JIT)
Kanban (看板, also かんばん) (engl.: Sign, Index Card)
Muda (無駄, also ムダ) (engl.: Waste)
Heijunka (平準化) (engl.: Production Smoothing)
Andon (アンドン) (engl.: Signboard)
Poka-yoke (ポカヨケ) (engl.: fail-safing - to avoid (yokeru)
inadvertent errors (poka))
Jidoka (自働化) (engl.: Autonomation - automation with
human intelligence)
Kaizen (改善) (engl.: Continuous Improvement)
Lean Purpose
To eliminate all waste or non value added
activities from a process.
 This is not a “once over” audit but a realtime activity
 Not meant to eliminate people, but to use
them most wisely
The Essential Lean Tools have the
following outcomes
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Identifies and eliminate waste quickly and
efficiently
Increase communication at all levels of the
organization
Reduce costs, improve quality and delivery in a
safe environment
Begin improvements immediately and empower
workers to make improvements themselves
A time for Lean at Oakland
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One of Oakland’s Trustees and benefactors
endows the Pawley Institute - a lean
methodology think tank and training center
Recent Fiscal pressures in the region and state
requires rethinking funding strategies at even the
Unit level.
The expectation of network operations (24x7) with
a limited staff (8x5) requires new efficiencies
The right mix of people – the team synergy is
open to trying new approaches to daily network
operations
So … how to get Lean
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There are several “dialects”, cultural
variations, para-lean, and lean-alikes.
The textbook on Lean is written by Jeffery
Liker (U of M), “The Toyota Way” (2003)
14 Principles
from Jeffrey Liker’s “The Toyota Way”
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Base your Management decisions on a
long-term philosophy, even at the expense
of short term financial goals
Create continuous process flow to bring
problems to the surface
Use “pull” systems to avoid over-production
14 Principles Continued
Principle 4
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Level out the Load (Heijunka)
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Reduce Muri – the overburden of people and
equipment that results in safety, quality, and
performance problems (vs. sustainable pace)
Reduce Mura – or unevenness. If the workload
or the type of work fluctuates wildly from one
moment to the other, people (and machines)
never "get into the rhythm" and waste time
switching between tasks. The production stalls
and restarts all the time.
14 Principles Continued
Principle 5-7
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Build a culture of stopping to fix problems,
to get quality right the first time.
Standardized tasks: these are the
foundation for continuous improvement and
employee empowerment
Use visual control so no problems are
hidden
14 Principles Continued
Principle 8-10
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Use only reliable, thoroughly tested
technology that serves your people and
process
Grow leaders who thoroughly understand
the work, live the philosophy and teach it to
others
Develop exceptional people and teams who
follow your company's philosophy
14 Principles Continued
Principle 11-13
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Respect your extended network of partners and
suppliers by challenging them and helping them
improve
Go and see for yourself to thoroughly understand
the situation (Genchi Genbutsu)
Make decisions slowly by consensus, thoroughly
considering all options; implement decisions
rapidly
14 Principles Continued
Principle 14
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Become a learning organization through
relentless reflection (Hansei) and
continuous improvement (Kaizen)
The Experiment: Can lean principles
be applied to IT management?
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These principles were originally designed for
manufacturing but they have been ported to other
areas of business and technology, including
software and systems development, so …
Will the outcomes actually result in the positive
gains realized in other verticals: less waste,
increased communication, increased quality and
cost savings, and effective use of people?
Network vertical provides a case study
Principle 1 - Application
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Base your Management
principles on your long
term philosophy
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All information technology
initiatives are related to
the University Mission, the
strategic goals, and the
OU in 2010 initiative.
Every network component
has a strategic orientation
as it’s engine (projects are
not simply industry driven
or a person or divisional
project)
Principle 2 - Application
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Create Continuous
Process Flow to bring
problems to the
surface
(there is also a
concept of “design for
rapid changeover”)
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Projects and upgrades
happen cyclically (no
“all at once” or “forklift”
if possible … this way
problems can be
corrected on the way
Change occurs during
regularly scheduled
weekly change
management windows
Principle 3 - Application
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Use "Pull" systems to avoid
overproduction
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The network is not “overbuilt”.
Equipment is provided in an
as-needed basis, with a small
margin for growth.
The shelf time for inventory is
not more than 90 days (with
the exception of spares)
There is no active storage
space … equipment is
immediately moved to staging
and then to production
Redundancy/HA is minimized
except where absolutely
necessary or required
Principle 4 - Application
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Level out the load
(Heijunka)
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Cyclical replacement keeps
the network updated and
evergreen on an ongoing
basis. Age failures are
mitigated
Systems are designed to
operate at the mid-point or
just above of their processing
capacity.
Staff learns nuances of the
technology over the cycle
time (reduces staff training
burnout)
Principle 5 - Application
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Build a culture of stopping to
fix problems, to get quality
right the first time
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The right solution is
encouraged as a design option
(and not simply the lowest cost
or fastest implemented).
Staff are encouraged to reveal
and correct problems through
self audit
Management is friendly is
asking the question “how do
we do it right” first instead of
“how fast can it be done, how
expensive will it be”
Before and After
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After years of “The
“get it done” method
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The stop to do it right
method
Before and After
Principle 6 - Application
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Standardized tasks are the
foundation for continuous
improvement and
employee empowerment
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LEAN works because
each closet has standards.
Parts are interchangeable,
cables and cable lengths
are standard.
Staff are empowered to
make changes during the
pre-scheduled change
periods
Each staff member is an
expert in their vertical
product line
Principle 7 - Application
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Use visual control so no
problems are hidden
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The five steps in the
process:
Sort through and sort out
Set things in order and set
limits
Shine and inspect through
cleaning
Create and set standards
Educate and communicate
Step 1
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Sort Through and Sort Out
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Legacy equipment in closets that have no owner,
no purpose, and no power supply (hey … this
thing isn’t even plugged in) is eliminated
Asset inventory of every element in every closet
is taken
This increases morale and responsibility by
ensuring that every area is ordered and is an
element of pride.
Before and After
Step 2
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Set things in order and set limits
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Everything in the network closets have their place.
Every network closet is designed according to a common
standard or layout
Missing items and many problems can be solved visually
Example: Patch cable color is used to identify the
generation of networking and the category of the
connection. In a previous iteration, patch cable boot color
was used to identify length of cable.
Order and Limits
Step 3
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Shine and inspect
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There is no closet or workspace that is not visited
on a regular basis
Cleaning and pickup is part of every visit (even if
for a cross connect)
Annually, the whole team walkthrough of the
entire facility to evaluate, reorganize, and cleans
Another example …
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The last working day of December is a
departmentally mandated “clean-up, clean
out” day. This steps through each of the
previous elements.
Step 4 – Create and Set Standards
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The team has worked to standardize at every
“layer”.
The standards are practical and pragmatic (clear
descriptions are encouraged and the goal is to
make it counter-intuitive to do a task or project in
any other way)
As an example, our wiring standards moved from
a 100+ page document to a 22 page document.
Step 5 – Educate And Communicate
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Standards are not internal documents, they are linked to
University Policy and then made available to the community
Standards and policies communicated specifically to the
distributed/divisional technology through a monthly
roundtable meeting and via an Annual Retreat sponsored by
Central IT.
Annually, the central IT group holds campus awareness
events where standards and policies are communicated to
the whole campus
External groups are made aware of the standards
Principle 8 - Application
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Use only reliable,
thoroughly tested
technology that serves
your people and process
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Oakland has determined
that we don’t want to be
leading or trailing edge.
“Best” technologies are
evaluated from a variety of
different perspectives:
trade recognition, peer use
and review, RFP with
references
Principle 9 - Application
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Grow leaders who
thoroughly understand
the work, live the
philosophy and teach
it to others
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Network management
is not about the next
wire that is plugged in,
it is about how we
accomplish the goal.
The CIO is committed
to this fact
Principle 10 - Application
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Develop exceptional
people and teams who
follow your company's
philosophy
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Training is a given in
the Oakland
Environment. Each
staff member is given
training stretch goals
annually.
Teams and teamwork
are promoted above
the individual
Principle 11- Application
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Respect your
extended network of
partners and suppliers
by challenging them
and helping them
improve
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Projects at Oakland
are opportunities for
vendors to excel at
what they do. To offer
the best designs, the
best products, and the
best prices
Principle 12 - Application
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Go and see for yourself to
thoroughly understand the
situation (Genchi
Genbutsu)
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Technical staff is
encouraged not to
manage by phone. Site
visits are encouraged.
Vendors are encouraged
to visit the site.
Annually, Sr. Management
(The Division VP takes the
unit management on a
walk-around through the
office and operational
spaces.
Principle 13 - Application
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Make decisions slowly
by consensus,
thoroughly considering
all options; implement
decisions rapidly
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All perspectives are
considered and
consulted: customer,
(student, faculty, staff),
managerial, and
technical
Execution is fast to
eliminate excess
inventory and
technology aging
Principle 14 - Application
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Become a learning
organization through
relentless reflection
(Hansei) and
continuous
improvement (Kaizen)
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Every project has a
post-project review.
Cyclical upgrades and
installations allow for
continuous
improvement
Current management
understands that
mistakes are learning
opportunities
Obstacles to this type of management:
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Perception: This adds more overhead with
no value
Moore’s law: The pace of technology
change is sometimes not conducive to this
type of cyclical planning and approach.
“Its not my job”
The Result:
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Lean management is portable to technology
Oakland’s central IT group delivers projects with
little or no waste, translating to cost savings
understood by other business divisions.
The time to deliver has been vastly reduced and
internally, the network group has cut installation
times by over 50 -60%
Staff members are directly connected to the
delivery of services identified as critical to some
aspect of the University’s mission or purpose.
Sources
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The Toyota Way: 14 Management
Principles from the World’s Greatest
Manufacturer by Jeffrey Liker
The Lean Office Pocket Guide. Don
Tapping, Publisher. MCS Media