The concept of "Just in Time" (JIT) management, although not a new one, is increasingly gaining traction among top-tier corporations. As the influential management thought leader Peter Drucker once astutely noted, "Efficiency is doing things right; effectiveness is doing the right things." In the context of modern strategic management, JIT is a perfect embodiment of both efficiency and effectiveness.
The Essence of Just in Time
Originally rooted in the lean manufacturing philosophy of the Toyota Production System, JIT has evolved into a wider management concept. Its core principle involves producing or obtaining goods and services exactly when needed, from the manufacturing floor to the managerial decision-making process. By implementing JIT approaches, companies can vastly improve Operational Excellence and drive significant benefits in areas such as cost efficiency, process optimization, and Risk Management.
Practical Application of Just in Time
When applying JIT in an enterprise setting, two key factors come into play: inventory management and process design. Corporations need to fine-tune their processes to ensure minimal lag between raw material intake and product output. Similarly, excess inventory—whether physical product or abstract like unused research data—should be minimized. To achieve this, organizations should:
Ensure seamless supplier communication and coordination thereby enabling demand-responsive procurement.
Optimize production processes to minimize both input and output buffers.
Elevate Quality Management standards to eliminate the need for storing defectives and rework, a direct byproduct of JIT.
Strategic Benefits
JIT is not a mere cost-cutting gimmick. It offers corporations a strategic edge by enabling them to respond quickly to environmental changes, thereby providing a unique selling proposition in a crowded marketplace. It further enhances operational flexibility and acts as a lever for Strategic Planning. Some specific benefits it catalyzes include:
Cost efficiency: By requiring inventory only when needed, JIT prevents unnecessary storage, handling, and obsolescence costs.
Quality improvement: JIT mandates production optimization, directly influencing product quality and end-user satisfaction.
Enhanced agility: With processes designed to minimize lag and eliminate wastage, organizations can respond faster to market changes, making them more agile and competitive.
Adopting Just in Time in Digital Transformation
In the era of Digital Transformation, corporations can extend JIT principles to their digitization efforts. Companies can reduce "digital inventory," such as dormant data that doesn't add value to decision-making or operations. They can also streamline IT and software development processes for better velocity and efficiency. Here, the use of agile methodologies or DevOps could be seen as a JIT approach within the digital workspace.
Risks and Mitigations
Like any strategy, JIT isn't devoid of risks. It exposes companies to possible supply chain disruptions and demand variability. To mitigate these risks, meticulous Risk Management is critical. Robust contingency planning, close supplier partnerships, capacity cushions, and an agile organizational culture can help offset potential challenges.
The Road Ahead
As global business dynamics continue to evolve, the need for JIT is higher than ever. Advanced technologies like AI and machine learning can further bolster JIT strategies, enabling real-time data analysis and decision-making, and business leaders need to keep pace. As the father of modern management theory, Peter Drucker, would likely concur, doing the right things at the right times might be one of the most efficient and effective strategies a corporation can adopt.
CUSTOMER TESTIMONIALS
"Flevy.com has proven to be an invaluable resource library to our Independent Management Consultancy, supporting and enabling us to better serve our enterprise clients.
The value derived from our [FlevyPro] subscription in terms of the business it has helped to gain far exceeds the investment made, making a subscription a no-brainer for any growing consultancy – or in-house strategy team."
– Dean Carlton, Chief Transformation Officer, Global Village Transformations Pty Ltd.
"As a consultant requiring up to date and professional material that will be of value and use to my clients, I find Flevy a very reliable resource.
The variety and quality of material available through Flevy offers a very useful and commanding source for information. Using Flevy saves me time, enhances my expertise and ends up being a good decision."
– Dennis Gershowitz, Principal at DG Associates
"I have found Flevy to be an amazing resource and library of useful presentations for lean sigma, change management and so many other topics. This has reduced the time I need to spend on preparing for my performance consultation. The library is easily accessible and updates are regularly provided. A wealth of great information."
– Cynthia Howard RN, PhD, Executive Coach at Ei Leadership
"I have used FlevyPro for several business applications. It is a great complement to working with expensive consultants. The quality and effectiveness of the tools are of the highest standards."
– Moritz Bernhoerster, Global Sourcing Director at Fortune 500
"If you are looking for great resources to save time with your business presentations, Flevy is truly a value-added resource. Flevy has done all the work for you and we will continue to utilize Flevy as a source to extract up-to-date information and data for our virtual and onsite presentations!"
– Debbi Saffo, President at The NiKhar Group
"I like your product. I'm frequently designing PowerPoint presentations for my company and your product has given me so many great ideas on the use of charts, layouts, tools, and frameworks. I really think the templates are a valuable asset to the job."
– Roberto Fuentes Martinez, Senior Executive Director at Technology Transformation Advisory
"As a small business owner, the resource material available from FlevyPro has proven to be invaluable. The ability to search for material on demand based our project events and client requirements was great for me and proved very beneficial to my clients. Importantly, being able to easily edit and tailor the material for specific purposes helped us to make presentations, knowledge sharing, and toolkit development, which formed part of the overall program collateral. While FlevyPro contains resource material that any consultancy, project or delivery firm must have, it is an essential part of a small firm or independent consultant's toolbox."
– Michael Duff, Managing Director at Change Strategy (UK)
"[Flevy] produces some great work that has been/continues to be of immense help not only to myself, but as I seek to provide professional services to my clients, it give me a large "tool box" of resources that are critical to provide them with the quality of service and outcomes they are expecting."
– Royston Knowles, Executive with 50+ Years of Board Level Experience
SELECT CUSTOMERS
Since 2012, we have provided best practices to over 10,000 businesses and organizations of all sizes across the world—in over 130 countries.
Below is just a very small sample of our customer base.
Did you know?
The average daily rate of a McKinsey consultant is $6,625 (not including expenses). The average price of a Flevy document is $65.
Download our free compilation of 50+ Strategy & Transformation slides and templates. Frameworks include McKinsey 7-S Strategy Model, Balanced Scorecard, Disruptive Innovation, BCG Experience Curve, and many more.
Download our free compilation of 50+ Strategy & Transformation slides and templates. Frameworks include McKinsey 7-S Strategy Model, Balanced Scorecard, Disruptive Innovation, BCG Experience Curve, and many more.