The Toyota Way to Service

Excellence
Year of publication: 2012
Author: Jeffrey Liker and Karyn Ross
448 pages
Link for purchase: https://amzn.to/2xiSZ4r

Published in 2016 by McGraw Hill Publishing, "The Toyota Way to

Service Excellence" quickly reached the top of the best-seller lists
in the Engineering and Management segments.
With more than 400 pages divided into 10 chapters, the
publication brings 17 essential principles for the operation of the
Toyota Production System, related to philosophy, process, people
and problem solving (what the authors call Model 4P).
To develop their ideas on each foundation, the authors make use
of real examples and practical applications of the methodology.
Throughout the summary, let's look at the main points behind
every aspect of the model - philosophy, process, people, and
problem solving.

9
Score Main ideias of the book
9 Aplicability ● The purpose of an organization should be pursued with
8 Inspiration passion and commitment, always relying on core values;
8 Innovation ● In a culture of delivering excellence to the consumer, it is
10 Impact on results important that all parts of the process increase the value
9 Structure offered to the customer;

● Level standards of work are important to maintain internal cohesion;

● Leaders need to train and implement the company culture in their commanding;
● It is important to align in a balanced way the focus on the client with the intellectual quality of the
collaborators;
● Improvement goals should be aligned with the company's overall strategy;
● Problem solving should be an opportunity to create new and better techniques;
● The 4P model - Philosophy, Process, People, Problem Solving - is the basis for the operation of the
Toyota method.

For whom is this book suitable?

This book is a must read for every professional who wants to deliver services with excellence, at all levels.
In addition, it is essential for anyone who wishes to gain more insight into the Lean philosophy, to know
how this method can be used to institute continuous improvement and focus on delivering excellence to
customers.

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 Overview of the book

Aspect 1: Philosophy

In the first aspect of the 4P model, authors address the

importance of living a philosophy within the organization.
They explain that this aspect is the foundation for excellence in
services and also for the other three aspects. Every team member has
Basically, philosophy is the notion that the company must have the responsibility to stop
about its vision of future success, allied to the way the company
the line every time they
works to achieve this. It is responsible for providing purpose
and direction to the company's efforts. see something that is out
To formulate your purpose, you can base yourself on the of standard. That's how
following questions:
we put the responsibility
● How will my organization contribute to consumers? for quality in the hands
● How can it be the one that most contributes with the clients? of our team members
● What are the core values of the company?
● What is important to the organization in relation to society?

Aspect 2: Processes

The next point addressed by the Liker 4P model are the processes. Initially, the authors point out that there
is no simple and quick solution to make processes learner within a company.
This is because processes involve the interdependence of many people and the way things are done.
They explain that the ideal process for customers is the single flow, that is, it is direct: the customer can ask
for exactly what they want and receive it immediately, in the quantity needed.
Consumers pay for added value to the product, not for other activities during the production process.
Basically, this singular flow means adding value to the product during each step.
The analysis of this aspect is divided into two parts:

Macro processes

Here, the focus is on the larger solutions that should be led by senior managers. It can be maped how the
flow of material and information travels through the processes until it reaches the consumer.
The authors define some practices to conduct the macro processes in the best way:

● To deeply understand the needs of the clients;

● Always seek the singular flow of value;
● Implement level working standards without large peaks or valleys along the flow;

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 Microprocesses

This is where the actions formulated in the design of the macro processes are carried out. In the
microprocesses the main daily contributions are realized with the continuous improvement through the
organization.
In them, challenges that arise daily are solved. From daily PDCA cycles, the company continues to
improve and remains firm in the direction of the established vision.
Suggested practices are:

● Stabilizing and continuously adapting work patterns;

● Visually manage processes, facilitating comparison and analysis;
● Build quality at every stage;
● Make use of technology to facilitate the development of people.

Aspect 3: People

In the book Everybody Matters,Bob Chapman mentions that the vast majority of businesses replies that
its employees are its most valuable asset, when in practice treat them disrespectfully.
In the Toyota Model, on the other hand, it is believed that the best way to show respect for employees is
to continually encourage them to improve.
They are continually challenged to achieve high levels of performance while being trained and mentored.
This shows its importance within the company and favors its development inside and outside the
organization.
During a transformation to a Lean company, the following practices should be followed:

● Organize people in a way that balances their level of expertise and their customer focus;
● Develop a culture of customer satisfaction within the organization;
● Integrating external partners into this culture;
● Develop skills and mentality to support this culture;
● Develop leaders as mentors of teams that are constantly evolving;
● Balance rewards.

The authors cite several times throughout the book on the importance of forming leaders who are able
to identify, motivate and contribute to the strengths of their team.

Most Business Processes Are 90% Waste and 10% Value-

Added Work

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 Aspect 4: Problem Solving

Finally, in the latter part of 4P Model, you will find problem solving, which represents continuous
organizational learning.
The main idea of this aspect is to work so that problem solving is no longer seen as a reactive practice but
rather as an inspiring way of raising the standard of excellence in that part that has deviated.
For this, it is important that the PDCA cycle techniques are understood by employees at all levels of the
company. This allows the objectives to be aligned with the company's long-term strategy.

What other authors say about it?

For Marcus Buckingham and Donald Clifton, authors of the book "Discover your Strengths", to increase the
company's productivity, the secret is to focus on the strengths of employees, instead of trying to improve
the weaknesses.

In the book "Scaling Up", the author Verne Harnish gives some tips for the pursuit of continuous
improvement, such as:

• Employee feedback should be collected constantly in order to identify obstacles and opportunities for
improvement;
• The pace of communication must be well established, making the flow of information within the
organization fast and accurate.

Finally, in "Big Dream", Cristiane Correa emphasizes the importance of maintaining a process of continuous
improvement to achieve her goals. His ideas were inspired by the opinions of the wealthiest entrepreneurs
in Brazil.
It is possible to extract excellent lessons to apply in your business journey and, thus, achieve surprising
results. In addition, seek the long-awaited financial independence.

Okay, but how can I apply this in my life?

To implement the Toyota Model principles in your reality, the authors suggest some tips:

● The quest for efficiency needs to be deeply embraced by the company's leaders;
● Every company must develop its own model, not just copy what worked out in another circumstance;
● Leaders at all levels should be trained in the process of continuous improvement;
● People who occupy the highest levels of leadership should learn by practice before they can train the
levels below;
● A chain of mentoring must be established within the organization;
● Managers should be examples of management focused on customer satisfaction;
● Any deviation in standards of excellence should be treated as an opportunity for learning and
improvement.

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