The phrases “Management Tool” and “Management Philosophy” are common parlance, and you’ve probably come across them before.
However, are you indeed aware of their true meaning?
To help you better grasp each management “method,” I’ll go into more detail about a few of the most common ones. This will ensure that people are clear about what they mean when they use these terms at work.
This article is part of a multi-part series on the subject. Links to the earlier blogs:
The Difference Between Management Tools And Management Philosophies
Management Tools Vs. Management Philosophy – Lean Management
Theory of Constraints
Theory of Constraints (ToC) is a management philosophy that focuses on finding and eliminating the bottlenecks in your business. This can be done by looking at all aspects of your operation, including people, technology, and physical resources. Once you’ve identified these bottlenecks, you can then work on fixing them before moving on to other issues.
Theory of Constraints (TOC) is a framework for producing products and services that respond to customer needs. TOC emphasizes the need for all steps in the process to be aligned with each other’s objectives. This ensures that there is no wasted effort or time spent on activities that do not contribute directly to meeting customer needs. In this way, every step in a production process becomes more efficient, creates value, and meets customer requirements efficiently and effectively. Thus improving productivity and reducing costs.
Lean
Lean is a management philosophy with a set of tools. It focuses on reducing waste and improving flow, which leads to cost reduction, quality improvement, and customer satisfaction.
Lean is about implementing lean principles and lean thinking into your business, helping you achieve these goals:
- Reduce waste by eliminating unnecessary activities in the value chain (manufacturing or service)
- Improve flow by identifying opportunities for continuous improvement and Kaizen within manufacturing and service processes.
- Improve quality by eliminating defects in the manufacturing or service process, thus improving customer satisfaction.
Lean is not a “one-size-fits-all” solution. There are multiple ways to implement lean principles into your business, which means you can customize it to fit your specific needs. For example, Toyota uses the term “lean production” to describe its manufacturing system, whereas a service company might use the terms “lean operations” or “lean services” instead.
Six Sigma
Six Sigma is a management philosophy, not a tool. Six Sigma isn’t just about reducing defects and errors; it also focuses on reducing variation in processes, so everyone has an equal chance at producing high-quality results within their work area or department.
The Six Sigma process is a continuous improvement approach that focuses on reducing variation in the manufacturing process. The name “Six Sigma” comes from statistics: it represents how many standard deviations away from the mean a process has to be to qualify as a Six Sigma project.
The concept was developed by engineer Bill Smith at Motorola in 1986 and later adapted by GE, which trademarked the term “Six Sigma” in 1987. The popularization of Six Sigma began in 1995 with the publication of Michael Hammer’s book “Reengineering the Corporation,” which espoused its principles as a way to improve business processes.
Agile
Agile is a way of working, not a management tool. It’s not about projects or schedules; it’s about collaborating with your team and customers to deliver value to them. Agile focuses on delivering value to the customer, meaning you have to get out into the field and talk directly with them.
Agile project management is often an umbrella term for many frameworks, including Scrum, Kanban, and Extreme Programming (XP).
The term “agile” comes from a set of principles initially developed by the software development community. These principles help teams deliver projects effectively and on time while maintaining quality standards. Agile project management emphasizes flexibility, collaboration, and iteration over predictability.
Conclusion
Ultimately, all management philosophies are about the same thing: getting better and faster results from your team. They’re all based on a shared philosophy of how to do that. They all have their strengths and weaknesses—but in the end, it comes down to what works best for your company!
Remember: no one tool will solve every problem, so don’t let that be an excuse for not trying something new. The best way forward is experimentation with different tools until you find one that fits your organization’s culture, goals, and needs.
At Vineet Sethi Consulting, we believe that Business and People are two sides of the same coin. Our approach to transforming organizations, teams, and individuals is based on Standard Customization, stemming from the philosophy that no one size fits all.
Contact us at hello@vineetsethi.com or on our social media channels for more information.