TBM Consulting Group

Operational Excellence One Point Lesson

Shift Start Up Meeting Narratives

Category: Start-Up Meetings Business: General Application Lesson: 32 Author: Ken Van Winkle

PROBLEM OR OPPORTUNITY
Shift Start Up meetings are a fundamental element for both manufacturing and support areas as
part of establishing a Lean culture in a company. That said, all too often companies either fail to
execute the process or they start them but over time they either wane in conducting them on a
regular basis or they lose their effectiveness due to not following a prescribed agenda.

COUNTERMEASURE
Develop a standard agenda for the meeting
and make sure that it is followed every time.
Set a specific time that is allotted for the
meeting so that we plan for this downtime
when calculating Takt Time.
Document a narrative for the purpose of the
shift start up so that all understand why we
do this.
Train the front line leaders so that they are
qualified to conduct the meeting. Role play
is an effective method for the training.
Have the KPO audit the meetings on a
regular basis to ensure that the purpose is
being fulfilled and that the agenda is being
followed including the time allotment.

RESULTS
Effective shift start up meetings that add value to the organization. We can expect
that a good start up meeting will keep our employees informed and engaged in the
continuous improvement process.

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TBM Consulting Group, Inc. 4400 Ben Franklin Blvd., Durham, NC 27704 P: 800.438.5535 www.tbmcg.com

Start-up Meeting
The primary reasons for conducting a start-up meeting are:
1.
2.
3.
4.

To insure the staffing is appropriate to meet the required daily demand.

To communicate the SQDC 5S performance trends.
To communicate what the primary action items are and who owns them.
To share any other pertinent information (part issues, absentee replacement,
equipment/machine issues, meetings, etc).

The first line of supervision should conduct the start-up meeting. This sends the
appropriate message to the work group as to who owns the performance of the area. The
start-up meeting is not intended to be a time to resolve issues. It is primarily a time for
one-way communication from the supervisor. All in attendance must be attentive, not
disruptive, showing respect to the leadership. Everyone has individual responsibilities in
the performance of the area, but the ownership belongs to the supervisor. The start-up
meeting should be brief, (10 minutes or less) and should be on paid time, taken out of the
total available time.
The benefits of the start-up meeting are:
1. To promote managing by performance
2. To share information that reflects the daily performance of the team
3. To convey the message that other people (support groups) are actively
involved in resolving issues that affect their area
4. To confirm attendance
5. To reinforce safety and quality and to encourage everyone to do their best

TBM Consulting Group Inc.

Performance Board Templates
Shift Start Up Meeting

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Review yesterdays performance.

Discuss the misses and celebrate the successes.
Assign/review root cause analysis.
Review improvement plans.
Discuss todays schedule/daily plan and ensure staffing in place.
Assure that 5S checklist complete from previous shift.
Safety review.