Challenge & Selection

Upon beginning my previous job as a warehouse manager in a freight sorting facility, the entire previous  management team had left the organization. As a result, the expertise that they had left as well, leading  us to have to develop the process from the mixed freight coming in and determining the most efficient  way to sort it and ship it out in a timely manner. I immediately began visualize the process on the  whiteboard to ensure we had the process understood and mapped out. I chose visualization because in  a process flow environment with a new team, we wanted to ensure we all had the understanding of  what data was available and to be able to add to it as required.

Application

I began the process by listing out step by step the process in a process flow, from the trucks arriving to  the sorting machine, all the way to the outbound trucks. Under each step in the process, I listed out the  available details that we had at each stage in the process. We then brought in associates to interview  and understand any additional details that we could add to the process flow.

Once I had the process flow in place, I worked with my management team to determine the possible  ways to organize the process. Using the process flow, we ensured we used as much of the data available  before the freight arrived to group the shipments in priority groups 1-10 in order of fastest turnaround  available and process the freight quickly. Using this process of prioritization, we were able to take the  facility from a 55% on time delivery rate to a 100% on time delivery rate.

Insight & Approach

What I learned from using the visualization approach and process map is that it is an extremely effective  way to implement process changes in a warehouse (process oriented) setting. When diagramming out a  process and all steps/information available, it allows for educated decisions to be made in a way that all  warehouse team members can feel included in. It allows for feedback to be received from both  management as well as associate levels and for all to be a part of the improvement processes. It also  allows for clear opportunity areas to be identified.

Since using the visualization tool, I have used it many times to implement process changes within my  sites. I truly enjoy working with teams to map out processes and work to optimize them and ensure  they’re running in a more efficient manner.

