While Gemba walks benefit any type of industry, the hard part is the implementation stage. The benefits can only be maximised when a Gemba walk is done effectively. We have combined the following useful tips for you to do Gemba walks the right way:

1. Plan your Gemba Walk:
   Just like going into war, swords must be sharpened as it is preparing for the Gemba Walk. Before anything else, a clear goal or purpose for each walk must be set: sales process, time waste and safety. You don’t have to cover everything in one step and you can sometimes set up an objective for the walk: productivity or safety; keep checking the checklist of specific items to check, but don’t forget that the checklist is meant to point out factors you didn’t think of.
2. Frequency: How often Gemba Walks are done:
   How often you do Gemba Walks depends on your industry, type of work, size of your organisation and your goals and objectives. For example, in a shop floor operating an automobile manufacturing plant, supervisors may do daily Gemba Walks across different areas of the shop floor to keep a regular check on operations. Ultimately, it’s up to the leader to decide on how often to do Gemba Walks.
3. Inform your workers:
   As a general rule of thumb, inform your frontline workers about the Gemba Walk beforehand to avoid misunderstandings or job security concerns. Inform them when the walk will take place and the objectives behind it. Educate the team members that the goal is to improve processes and make their jobs easier, and that will make them more comfortable and open during the walk.
4. Follow your value stream:
   Understand the flow of value through your organisation—what do you produce and how? Start where the value creation begins, like the start of a production line or the intake of a new job and follow the process through to the end. That path will reveal many opportunities for improvement, especially at handoff points between teams or where bottlenecks occur.
5. Document and note:
   Take detailed notes during the Gemba Walk and don’t just rely on your memory. Documenting helps you to stay focused and prevent premature conclusions and these notes are for later reflection and planning without bias.
6. Review and share:
   After the walk, compile your observations into action items and discuss them with your team. Sharing your findings and asking for input shows you respect their experience and helps to refine the improvements. This follow-up is for transparency and to show Gemba Walks is a team effort, not just for compliance.
7. Consistency is key in your Gemba Walks, so each walk must be focused on and observations must be comparable across different sessions. As a result, a standardised Gemba Walk checklist for each session comes to life.

Here is an Gemba Walk below to help you get started, and more Gemba Walk Examples can be found here.