Obeya for Powerful Visual Management
Visualization (Mieru-ka) and the Obeya Approach
📍 This program introduces Toyota’s approach to smart visual management through Mieru-ka and the Obeya method. Participants will learn practical ways to make problems, priorities, and progress visible, strengthen teamwork, and effectively manage improvement activities across the organization.
📍 Led by TAMANO Toru, Senior Consultant at Toyota Engineering Corporation, this intensive session draws on more than 50 years of Toyota-related experience in production engineering, plant management, general management, and TPS/TMS Kaizen. Participants will gain practical insights into using Obeya and visual management to solve workplace challenges, sustain daily improvement, and enhance organizational performance.
Training Curriculum
1. Corporate Management Activities and Core TMS – Understand the importance of activation management as a core element of effective workplace management and organizational improvement.
2. Visualization and Behavioral Theory – Learn how to make facts, priorities, and abnormalities easy to see, and use visible information to encourage timely action.
3. Recommended Obeya Activities – Explore the Obeya approach and learn how team-building activities can strengthen teamwork, communication, and collaboration.
4. Methodology for Improvement Activities: Utilizing the Three Basic Tools – Learn practical approaches to problem solving, defining problems using KPT, developing improvement plans through visual boards, and implementing improvement activities using task boards.
5. Promoting Daily Improvement Through Team Obeya Sessions – Learn how focused team sessions can be used to review progress, identify obstacles, establish clear ownership, and sustain continuous improvement.
6. Next Steps – Discover how cross-organizational Obeya activities can be promoted to strengthen collaboration and further enhance corporate improvement activities.
7. Conduct a Corporate Health Check to Drive Overall Improvement – Understand how a corporate health check can support the identification of improvement opportunities and drive overall organizational improvement.
Course Led By:
- TAMANO Toru– Learn directly from a Toyota veteran with 50+ years of experience in Production Engineering, Plant Management, TPS/TMS Kaizen, and organizational improvement.
- Senior Consultant at Toyota Engineering Corporation
- 50+ years of professional experience across Toyota-related production engineering, plant management, and organizational improvement.
- 25 years in Production Engineering at Toyota Motor Corporation, including production technology development, process planning, equipment planning, and electronic production engineering.
- Served as General Manager of the Electronic Production Engineering Division at Toyota Motor Corporation.
- Served in plant management roles, including General Manager of the Administrative Division at Kamigo Plant and Deputy Plant Manager.
- Served as President of GAC Toyota Engine, China, overseeing engine production, supply, and local plant management.
- Served as Plant Manager, Managing Executive Officer, and Advisor at Toyota Motor East Japan, Inc.
- Currently provides TPS/TMS Kaizen guidance and education to domestic and overseas organizations across industries including automotive, pharmaceutical, telecommunications, and IT & systems.
