Be An Andon Referee

Have you ever considered how a soccer referee pulling a yellow or red card is like an Andon?

Players are cautioned with a yellow card when they show misconduct.  A red card from the referee means the player is sent off from the field.  While Andon is not used to show misconduct, we can repurpose this concept to pull the cards when we see errors, safety issues, or quality problems. 

• The yellow “caution” card is a fixed position stop andon.  The team can be cautioned of the issue and work to correct it before it moves to the next step. 
• The red “send off” card is a stop the line andon.  The team stops to get the issue corrected and the line doesn’t continue until it is resolved.

Toyota Culture says (paraphrased) “no SUSPECT cars ever make it to a customer”.  Team members need to feel comfortable to pull the yellow or red cards.  Everybody should act as a referee on the field.  Once all eyes are looking to help maintain quality and safety, more value will make it to the customer. 

Above photo used with permission from roger g1 

If you liked this post, then try:

• Remember To Add-On The Andon
• How To Thrive When Your Company Goes LEAN

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