In many cases, the very effort that organizations put into eliminating waste is what destroys it.
In today's business world, managers have lost sight of what creates value for the customer and how to create it.
This is because managers tend to focus on their existing organizations and outdated definitions of value. As a result, they create more waste, or worse become more efficient at producing products nobody wants.
But that doesn’t mean that improving efficiency isn’t important. In any organization, big or small, public or private, there are always opportunities to improve efficiency. And it is the duty of the people inside the organization to identify and seize those opportunities. But improving efficiency is not the same as increasing value. The two are not interchangeable.
Managers need to start thinking about value creation in a new way. Replacing the mantra of eliminating waste with a focus on the benefit the customer receives from the product. By focusing on the benefit, businesses can ensure that they are providing their customers with a valuable product that meets their needs.
Only by making these changes will managers be able to create real value for their organizations – and for the economy as a whole.