Gemba

Genba (現場, also <a href="/facts/Romanization_of_Japanese/7JdM0cAy">romanized</a> as gemba) is a term used in business for the location where value is created, such as a factory floor, construction site, or sales floor.
In <a href="/facts/Lean_manufacturing/XgQk595B">lean manufacturing</a>, the most valuable ideas for improvement are thought to occur at the genba where problems are visible. Management teams may go on a gemba walk to look for opportunities to improve the practical shop floor (known as the genba <a href="/facts/Kaizen/xFvBM9kk">kaizen</a>). Unlike the similar strategy of <a href="/facts/Management_by_walking_around/P3uE5dKE">management by walking around</a>, gemba walks are typically not done randomly, but with a clear frequency, goal, and structure.
Glenn Mazur introduced this term into <a href="/facts/Quality_function_deployment/mTLM0yuj">Quality Function Deployment</a> (QFD, a quality system for new products where manufacturing has not begun) to mean the customer's place of business or <a href="/facts/Lifestyle_(sociology)/XVb7A8lN">lifestyle</a>. The idea is that to be customer-driven, one must go to the customer's gemba to understand his problems and opportunities, using all one's senses to gather and process data.

Gemba open-in-new

Gemba