Improvement Kata Mindset

Get better at achieving goals and meeting

challenges by teaching the creative process
by Mike Rother
2013
Target
Condition

Next
Target
Condition

24.2

Current
Condition

Illustration by Dr. Lutz Engel

This document and its contents are Copyright 2013 by Mike Rother, all rights reserved
1217 Baldwin Avenue / Ann Arbor, MI 48104 USA / tel: (734) 665-5411 / mrother@umich.edu
TOYOTA KATA
Mike Rother

WHAT ID LIKE TO FOCUS ON TODAY

Visible

Less
Visible

Lean solutions (tools, techniques

and principles) to improve quality,
cost, delivery

A systematic, scientific
routine of thinking & acting
Middle managers as
teachers of that routine

I want to propose that this is

something middle managers
should spend more time on
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

BEFORE WE GET STARTED - Quick Overview

The Improvement Kata
models the scientific
creative process and
makes it operationalizable
and teachable in any
organization

The Coaching Kata is a

routine for teaching the
Improvement Kata. It relies
heavily on the Five Questions
(Coach) and the PDCA Cycles
Record (Learner)

Applies the
Teaches

the IK
Improvement Kata

Process

Coach
(Mentor)
Supervisor
or manager

Learner
(Mentee)
Responsible for
the process

The Improvement Kata + the Coaching Kata are a management

system. Its not a problem solving approach to be implemented,
but a process of scientific-skill development and mindset change.
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

Part 1

The Power of Habits

A FAMILIAR ILLUSION

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

HERES ANOTHER FAMILIAR ILLUSION

Visible
Aspect

Less
Visible
Aspect

We may know how a kanban

system works

Important and
necessary,
but...

But we dont know what will

make your kanban system work

Once we assume we know, we stop experimenting!

Which of these aspects is the Lean community teaching?
What mindset is the Lean community creating?
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

WE LIKE TO BE CERTAIN IN OUR VIEW

Thats the way our brain is wired
But once we think we know, we set a course and go, rather than
testing, learning and adapting. Thats where trouble begins.

Declarations of high confidence

mainly tell you that an individual
has constructed a coherent story
in his mind, not necessarily that
the story is true.
~ Daniel Kahneman
Thinking Fast and Slow

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

WHAT IS METACOGNITION?

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

METACOGNITION =
Thinking about how you think
i.e., analyzing your own cognitive processes

Unlike most animals,

humans have the ability
to be aware of their thinking
and can influence it.

Lets try it!

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

A QUICK EXPERIMENT
Take a moment... please cross your arms.
Then re-cross them the other way.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

QUICK EXPERIMENT
Please clasp your hands.
Then clasp them the other way.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

10

In each case, how did it feel the

second time compared to the first?

For most of us the other way feels odd.

You have to consciously think about it
and be more deliberate.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

11

OUR UNCONSCIOUS HABITS ARE FAST & POWERFUL

Our brain creates habits for efficiency; to free up capacity
for when deliberate decision making is necessary
Habits are behaviors that have been repeated regularly and
occur unconsciously. The repeated behavior develops
neural pathways in the brain, making the behavior easier to
complete. Why do this? The brain weighs only 3 pounds
but uses 20% of the bodys energy!
Unconscious thinking enables you to get through the day
by taking care of routine decisions with minimum fuss.
Unconscious thinking is fast and instinctive, while
deliberate thinking is slow and intentional.

Unconscious
Thinking

Deliberate
Thinking

The subconscious is powerful because it can process

billions of bits of information per second, while our
deliberate mind can only process a few thousand per second.
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

12

MUCH OF WHAT WE DO IS HABITUAL

Like crossing our arms, performed almost without thinking
Much of what happens in an organization is a consequence of
the habits that people in the organization have learned through
practice, whether deliberately or by happenstance.

However, a pitfall of many habits is that the past experiences

that created them do not necessarily represent future situations

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

13

What would happen if you practiced

folding your arms the other way every day?

It would become normal; something

you can do without thinking about it.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

14

SO... WE CAN CHANGE OUR AUTOPILOT

Humans have the ability to deliberately develop new habits!
Thats what the Improvement Kata & Coaching Kata are about.
We may think that all skill is innate -- that you are either
born with it or not -- but thats not 100% correct.
You can rewire your thinking and habits by deliberately
(consciously) practicing a targeted behavior pattern.
Once the pattern youre practicing enters your
unconscious it gets smoother and faster and becomes
the normal, habitual way you operate.

Deliberate
Practice
develops

Unconscious
Thinking

You can change the culture of an organization,

and even an entire society, this way.
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

15

Part 2

The Improvement Kata

WHAT IS A KATA?

A kata is a routine you practice deliberately so its pattern becomes a habit

Through practicing, the pattern of a kata

becomes second nature - done with little
conscious attention - and readily available.
Examples include riding a bicycle, driving a
car, typing. Once youve learned to drive you dont think
much about using the cars controls and can focus your
attention on the situational aspects of navigating the road.
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

16

YOUR ORGANIZATIONS CULTURE

PERPETUATES ITSELF EVERY DAY

This is automatic,
unconscious
daily practicing
Team or
Organizational
Culture
Routines
Habits
Rituals
Norms

Mike Rother

Teaches

Mindset
and
behavior

TOYOTA KATA

17

KATA CREATES NEW CULTURE

This is deliberate,
conscious
daily practicing
Practicing
specific
new
behaviors

Affects

This is automatic,
unconscious
daily practicing
Team or
Organizational
Culture
Routines
Habits
Rituals
Norms

Teaches

Mindset
and
behavior

A
T
A
K ed
Is Usre
He

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

18

HERES THE COOL THING

We now have kata -- a repeatable routine -- for teaching
and coaching this part

Visible

Less
Visible

Mike Rother

Lean solutions (tools, techniques

and principles) to improve quality,
cost, delivery

A systematic, scientific
routine of thinking & acting
Managers as teachers
of that routine

IK
CK

TOYOTA KATA

19

A DEFINITION OF MANAGEMENT
The systematic pursuit of desired conditions
by utilizing human capabilities
in a concerted way

Mike Rother

We are
here

We want
to be here
next

Current
condition

Desired
condition
Target
condition
Challenge

TOYOTA KATA

20

LEADERS & MANAGERS ARE TEACHERS, AND

THEIR ACTIONS DETERMINE COMPANY CAPABILITY
Whether consciously or not, with their everyday words
and actions all leaders and managers are teaching their
people a mindset and approach.

So it makes sense to ask: What patterns of behavior

and thought do we want our managers to be teaching
in our organization?

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

21

DELIBERATE versus AUTOMATIC TEACHING

Here the manager

is a coach who
deliberately teaches
a new way
Practicing
specific
new
behaviors

Affects

Here the manager

automatically
teaches the
prevailing culture

Team or
Organizational
Culture
Routines
Habits
Rituals
Norms

Teaches

Mindset
and
behavior

A
T
A
K ed
Is Usre
He

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

22

Practice Pattern 1: THE IMPROVEMENT KATA

This is the fundamental pattern.
The Improvement Kata is about striving toward a goal
in a systematic, scientific way.
Where do you want to go?

Then iterate
to get there

Understand
the
Direction

Grasp the
Current
Condition

Establish the
Next Target
Condition

PDCA Toward the

Target Condition
ACT

PLAN
Go
and
See

Target
Condition

CHECK

CC

TC

DO

The 5
Questions

Practicing the Improvement Kata develops mastery

of improvement, adaptiveness and innovation

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

23

ANOTHER WAY TO LOOK AT

THE IMPROVEMENT KATA

2
Current
Condition

Obstacles

Next
Target
Condition

Vision
and
Challenge

1 In consideration of a vision and challenge...

2 Grasp the current condition.
3 Define the next target condition.
4 Move toward that target condition with PDCA, which
uncovers obstacles that need to be worked on.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

24

Practice Pattern 2: THE COACHING KATA

This is a pattern for teaching the Improvement Kata
The Coaching Kata is a set of coaching routines to
practice in order to develop effective coaching habits.
It's a coaching pattern to help you teach the
Improvement Kata thinking pattern.
The Coaching Kata gives managers and supervisors a
standardized approach to facilitate Improvement Kata
skill development in daily work.

The manager / coach needs to know both

the Improvement Kata and the Coaching Kata!

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

25

THE TWO PRIMARY ROLES

IN PRACTICING & TEACHING
Team

Coaching
Kata

Improvement
Kata

Manager

Learner

(Coach or Mentor)

(Mentee)

The coachs focus is

giving procedural guidance
to develop learners
Improvement Kata skill

Mike Rother

Learners
Storyboard

Process

The learners focus is

applying the Improvement
Kata to an objective

TOYOTA KATA

26

DEVELOPING A META HABIT THROUGH PRACTICE

WHAT youre working on: The focus process provides the content.
HOW youre working: The Improvement Kata provides the form.
The content and
obstacles the
Learner works on
are situational
and will vary.

.
.
.
.
. . . .. . . .
.
Unclear
Obstacles

Current
Condition

Learner

Territory

Coaching
Cycles
5Q 5Q 5Q 5Q 5Q 5Q
5Q
5Q
5Q
5Q
5Q
5Q
5Q
with the 5
Questions

Coach

Mike Rother

Target
Condition

The Coach is teaching the Learner a scientific

way of thinking by using the same pattern of
enquiry every coaching cycle

The pattern of
thinking and
acting (the kata)
stays the same
and repeats.
This is the habit,
the HOW, the
Coach is teaching.

TOYOTA KATA

27

THE COACHS TASK: FOCUS ON THE HOW

The task is to determine whether or not the learner is practicing
within the corridor of thinking and acting specified by the
Improvement Kata, and to introduce procedural course
corrections as necessary.
When the learner gets outside the Improvement Kata corridor
the potential for learning (for increasing the learners IK skill) is
great. In this case you can either provide a procedural input
now, or allow a small failure to occur and then provide the input.

Is the
learner
practicing
here?

Corridor of
Improvement Kata
way of thinking & acting

Or here?

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

28

CORRECT PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

The learner will naturally default back to his or her
existing ways of thinking and acting.
The coach introduces corrections to ensure that
the learner practices the right pattern the right way.

Or here?

Photos from The Karate Kid, 1984

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

29

THE INTENTION IS NOT

AUDIT AND COMPLIANCE
Its this...

...not this

Teaching the learner how to play

the sytematic and scientific
continuous improvement game

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

30

ITS A SEE-COMPARE-INSTRUCT
PATTERN OF TEACHING

SEE - Try to understand how the learner is thinking

(Coach is in an observing / questioning mode)

COMPARE - Compare this to the desired pattern -- the

corridor -- specified by the Improvement Kata
(Coach is in a judging mode)

INSTRUCT - Introduce a course adjustment if necessary

(Coach is in an instructing or guiding mode)

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

31

FIVE KEY POINTS SO FAR

1. We operate on habits.
2. We can change our habits through
deliberate practice.
3. There is a pattern we can practice to
get better at meeting challenging
goals. We call it the Improvement Kata,
which has four steps.
4. The Improvement Kata is a way of
managing ourselves.
5. Middle managers are the coaches /
teachers for that pattern.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

32

Part 3

A Different Way of Managing

HOW HAVE WE BEEN MANAGING?

Leaders and managers have tended to focus on outcomes and solutions

A solution at Toyota...

...copied at a U.S. company

Focusing on outcomes is a kind of implementation orientation,

which assumes the path to the desired condition is relatively
clear. With that thinking, managements task is:

Establish targets
Maybe describe some solutions or tools
Provide incentives to get it done
Periodically check for results

Mike Rother

Management
by Results

TOYOTA KATA

33

BUT HOW WELL

DOES FOCUSING ON OUTCOMES WORK?
The Candle Problem
Find a way to attach the candle to the wall so wax will not drip on the floor

Box of
tacks

Solution

Incentive: Group B is told they will receive a cash bonus

if they solve the problem faster than the average of
persons in Group A.
Experiments by psychologists Kark Dunker and Sam Glucksberg

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

34

THE SOLUTION AND THE RESULT

Find a way to attach the candle to the wall so wax will not drip on the floor

Problem as presented

Solution

Result? The members of Group B (the group with

the incentive) take three and a half minutes longer
on average to solve the problem.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

35

ROUND TWO
Find a way to attach the candle to the wall so wax will not drip on the floor

Now four
separate
items

Problem as presented

Solution

Result? When the candle problem is presented

this simpler way, the members of Group B (the
group with the incentive) do complete the task
faster than the average in Group A.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

36

FOCUSING ON OUTCOMES WORKS

WHEN THE PATH IS CLEAR

Solution easy to see

Solution difficult to see

Behavioral scientists have shown repeatedly that extrinsic

motivators work for tasks where the path is clear, but not for
challenging problems that require creativity and adaptiveness
(ingenuity) to solve.

Challenges where the path is unclear

are increasingly common
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

37

KEY POINT
The implementation-oriented management approach
is not well suited to meeting challenges
...but we cant know in advance what
all the steps will be that will get us to
a challenging target condition.

We need to
make plans...

Predictable Zone

Learning Zone
Ob

Plan & ROI calculations

are made here

le
c
a
t
s

Operating based on what

Current
we see and think today
Knowledge

Threshold

Target
Condition

ear
l
c
n
U
ry
o
t
i
r
r
Te
We want to
be here
next

When you take steps forward you discover things that were
not apparent back when we were calculating and planning
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

38

EXAMPLE OF IMPLEMENTATION ORIENTATION

Action-Item Lists

Such lists and plans

= deciding in advance
how we will get there.
Yet the situation changes
as we move forward!
So we are not
experimenting and learning.
This is not an effective way
of tapping our ingenuity!

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

39

A DIFFERENT WAY OF MANAGING

There may be only 3 things we can
and need to know with certainty!

(1) Where we are

(2) Where we want to be next

Management
by Means

(3) By what means we should navigate the unclear

territory between here and there. The manager
focuses on development of skill / behavior patterns.

Obstacles
We are
here

plan
is
made
here

Unclear
Territory

We want
to be
here

This is a grey zone!

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

40

THE IK & CK ARE ABOUT TAPPING, MOBILIZING

& CHANNELING INGENUITY IN AN ORGANIZATION
Ingenuity = Creating a way of doing something
that we want but cannot yet do.
The challenge can be anything, big or small:
An assembly operator and team leader want to
find a way to drive screws without cross-threading
We want to operate an assembly cell with four
instead of six operators (at the same output)
We want to injection mold parts in lot sizes that
are 50% smaller
We want to develop an electric car that goes
250 miles on a single charge

KEY
POINT!

The approach is the same in each case.

The feelings of mastery that come from
overcoming obstacles are also the same.
This means everyone in an organization can
participate, which is critical for innovation.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

41

MORE KEY POINTS

1. The path forward cant be 100% predicted.
2. We tend to manage by pre-defining the
path to a goal.
3. Navigating the grey zone takes a different
way of managing.
4. With the IK and CK the manager focuses
on how a team is working.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

42

Part 4

The Role of Mindset

WHERE DO AN ORGANIZATIONS
SOLUTIONS COME FROM?

Peoples
MINDSET

Mike Rother

Peoples
BEHAVIOR
PATTERNS
or skill

Processes
Products
Services

BUSINESS
OUTCOMES

TOYOTA KATA

43

WHAT IS MINDSET?
Mindset
A subconscious, habitual
way of thinking and feeling,
learned via successes and
failures

Behavior
Patterns
Determines how we
interpret and respond
to situations

A lens through which

we view the world

Two Points:
Mindset is the basis of organizational culture
If you want to change your organizations
culture youll have to change mindsets

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

44

LETS LOOK AT TWO MINDSETS

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

45

Mindset 1: A FIXED MINDSET *

We derive a lot of our sense of security and confidence from
certainty, and tend to seek it.
The way the adult brain functions, we naturally strive to operate
in what I call a Zone of Apparent Certainty, where things are as
expected, rational, calculable, logical, familiar, risk free & certain.
With this mindset:

We expect that things will go as planned

We feel we have control and can predict

Inside your current

knowledge threshold
Implementation
Like the candle problem
with the tacks outside
the box

Mystery
Uncertainty
Apparent
Certainty

Comfort
area

And many things should be as certain as possible!

Like the beam holding up the roof, or serving the customer.
*Terminology by Carol Dweck, Mindset (Random House, 2006)

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

46

WE NATURALLY AND AUTOMATICALLY DO IT,

BUT TRYING TO MAKE EVERYTHING
CERTAIN IS DANGEROUS

Here are three reasons...

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

47

#1: WHAT IS AHEAD OF US

SIMPLY ISNT CERTAIN
We can see only part way down the path to any challenging goal
Cant see all
the way there

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

48

 Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

49

#2: THE SPECIAL CAPABILITIES OF OUR BRAIN

GET ENGAGED WHEN WE DONT KNOW
Our human capability to learn is often latent; it has to be activated

fMRI brain scan

of a person in a

Predictable
Situation

fMRI brain scan

of a person in a

Challenging
Situation

This brain is
coasting on
memory it already
has (which uses
less energy)

This brain is
actively engaged
in wiring new
circuits (which
uses more energy)

fMRI Scans of brain activity by Dr. Gerald Hther

Presented at Production Systems 2009 Conference, Munich, May 2009

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

50

#3: UNEXPECTED RESULTS HELP YOU PROGRESS

The scientific approach: When a result is as-predicted it
confirms something you already thought. When a result is
different than predicted you are about to learn something new.

Confirmed

Prediction

Error

Strengthens
current thinking.
Like re-walking a
path in the snow.
Surprise. Potential
for new knowledge,
learning & discovery.

Prediction confirmation keeps you in place. Prediction error

leads you out of your assumptions and forces exploration.
This is because prediction error reveals a knowledge threshold.
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

51

A THRESHOLD OF KNOWLEDGE
IS A LEARNING EDGE
To reach new levels
of performance a
knowledge threshold
has to be there

Two points about knowledge thresholds:

1) You have to acknowledge them to see them.
2) You see further by experimenting, not conjecture.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

52

Mindset 2: AN ADAPTIVE MINDSET

With this mindset you learn to operate in two zones simultaneously:
The Zone of Apparent Certainty + the Zone of Uncertainty
In the Zone of Uncertainty:
There is a dilemma: We want to make the best possible plan,
but the optimum path will only be known in hindsight
There are unanticipated obstacles
You acquire/increase your knowledge as you go

Inside your current

knowledge threshold

Mystery
Uncertainty

Outside your current

knowledge threshold
Learning Zone
Ingenuity Discovery
Like the candle problem
with the tacks in the box

Mike Rother

Apparent
Certainty

Expanded
comfort
area

TOYOTA KATA

53

Part 5

Changing Our Mindset

HOW DO YOU CHANGE OR DEVELOP MINDSET?

(and the organizational culture)

e
r
He t
i
w
o
h
s
k
r
wo

Psychology and brain research: Mindset can be changed.

Our thinking and skills are more transformable than we
thought. The brain has plasticity.
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

54

MINDSET = NEURAL PATHWAYS OR CIRCUITS

The human brain is estimated to contain 80-100 billion neurons,
and thousands of synapses per neuron. Clusters of neurons
form circuits within the brain, which underlie perception and
thought.
For communication between neurons to take place, an
electrical impulse travels down an axon to a synapse, or gap,
where transmission occurs.
Dendrites (receiver)
Cell
Body
Axon (sender)

80,000,000,000 neurons X 10,000 synapses = 800,000,000,000,000 Connections

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

55

MINDSET IS PHYSIOLOGICAL!
The synaptic gap is what allows plasticity. The way neurons
function equips us for learning new patterns and habits.
Both the strength of connection between neurons (ease of
impulse transmission) and the number of connections
increase with use. Whatever you focus on and practice with associated emotions - weaves a habit or pattern into
your thinking. (Emotion helps determine what to imprint.)

Neurons that fire

together wire together.

Untrained
Synapse
High resistance

Trained
Synapse
Low resistance

- Carla Shatz

Every time you do

something, you are
more likely to do it
again.
- Alvaro Pascual-Leone

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

56

YOUR BRAIN IS TRYING TO CONSERVE ENERGY

The 3-pound brain consumes 20% of the bodys energy
Because untrained synapses require more energy to fire and
maintain, the brain prefers to use already-trained synapses.
Untrained
Trained
Synapse
Synapse
Uses more energy Uses less energy

Yellow
Zone

Innovating

Green
Zone

Implementing

The brain learns to

prefer whatever we
focus on repeatedly.
As this information grows
stronger through repetition it
becomes wired in the brain and
solidifies thinking and behaviors.
Due to these preferred pathways
in the brain, youre led by your
brain to use them again and
again, which strengthens them
even more. This is how your
organization's culture
perpetuates itself.

You have to see this to understand why we think and act

the way we do, and what it will take to make change happen
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

57

SO ORGANIZATIONS ARE FACED

WITH A DILEMMA
(A) Our brain favors existing neural pathways (comfort area)
We naturally and reflexively prefer routine, familiar activity in the
apparent certainty zone. It uses existing neural circuits, which
require less energy. Our brain likes to focus on familiar patterns.
(B) Meeting challenges - improving and adapting - means building
new neural pathways (learning area)
Its impossible to remove uncertainty from the process of
improvement, adaptation and creation. The way forward lies
outside our current knowledge threshold, and pursuing it
activates new neural circuits that initially consume more energy.

Obstacles

We are
here

Unclear
Territory

We want
to be
here

How do we get more comfortable & skillful

with this uncertainty zone?!
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

58

A SOLUTION TO THE DILEMMA

How can we be creative and effective in dynamic conditions
if we tend to automatically apply old solutions to new situations?
The trick is to develop well-worn mental circuits not for solutions,
but for a means of developing solutions along uncertain paths.
This is like training in sports: To prepare for contests with
unpredictable solutions, the focus of the training is not solutions,
but practicing how to play.
People can
handle
uncertainty,
work iteratively,
adjust and
adapt...
...if they have
practiced and
mastered a way
of doing that.

Thats exactly what the Improvement Kata is

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

59

MORE KEY POINTS

1. Mindset is the basis of our behavior and
an organizations culture.
2. Our mindset can be changed!
3. A task in improvement, adaptation and
innovation is to develop habitual mental
circuits that are effective for navigating
grey zones... by practicing a scientific
routine like the Improvement Kata every
day under coaching guidance.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

60

Part 6

Conclusion

THE IMPROVEMENT KATA GIVES US SOMETHING

TO HANG ON TO IN THE UNCERTAINTY ZONE
Its a kind of security blanket for the unpredictable zone

The Improvement Kata gives us a way of having more

confidence while navigating unclear territory. Ive never done
that before, but I know how to figure it out and find the way. It
helps us experience uncertainty more as an opportunity.
Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

61

INCREASING YOUR ORGANIZATIONS CAPABILITY

Practicing the Improvement Kata = expanding peoples comfort zone
The more people in an organization
who get to higher skill levels with the
Improvement Kata pattern:
Comfort The more challenges the organization
can take on
area
The bigger the challenges it can take on
The more knowledge it can build
The faster it can move ahead

Mystery
Uncertainty
Apparent
Certainty

Target
Condition

Next
Target
Condition

Current
Condition
Illustration by Dr. Lutz Engel

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

62

ONE CONCLUSION IS BECOMING CLEAR

Were not going to be successful by copying Toyotas solutions

We should be copying how

Toyota develops solutions.
(Which is a universal, not
Toyota-specific, sciencebased approach.)
The Improvement Kata and
Coaching Kata are practice
routines for teaching and
transferring that approach.

Once you develop proficiency with the Improvement Kata

and Coaching Kata you can evolve them into kata that suit
your organization.

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

63

ANOTHER CONCLUSION
If we only periodically conduct training events or only
episodically work on improvement -- and the rest of the time
its business as usual -- then according to neuroscience
what were actually teaching is business as usual.

If we want a Lean revolution, then we need to

shift emphasis from staff-led, episodic
improvement efforts, to daily efforts led by
middle managers.
A slice of each day should be focused on
iterating toward the next target condition by
applying & coaching your improvement kata.

Mike Rother

The Workday

TOYOTA KATA

64

WHERE DO YOU & YOUR TEAM WANT TO BE NEXT?

What challenges are you trying to meet,
and what kata for getting there are you practicing?

Obstacles
We are
here

Mike Rother

Unclear
Territory

We want
to be
here

TOYOTA KATA

65

SOME NEXT STEPS

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

66

Visit the
Toyota Kata Website

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

67

And also visit the...

Website!

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

68

WHAT YOU WILL FIND THERE

Short introduction to TK
Videos
Events & Training Programs
Materials: Book, Slides, IK
Handbook, 5-Question Card,
The Kata Code
Links to other TK resources
and International TK Websites

Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

69

 Mike Rother

TOYOTA KATA

70