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1.0 Why

2.0 What

Milestones

Last Planners

3.0 How DefiningMilestones

Backwards vs Forwards

Review

Supplies

References/ Sources

Hand Off Work Planning

“IT IS MORE THAN PROBABLY

THAT THE AVERAGE MAN

COULD, WITH NO INJURY TO

HIS HEALTH, INCREASE HIS

EFFICIENCY FIFTY PERCENT” | W.alter Scott |

A collaborative presentation from over a dozen experienced Lean IPD practitioners.

© 2015 Lean Construction Institute

HANDOFFWORKPLANNING | 2

1.0 Why

Detailed planning lets the value-added work flow on a project.

Constructionprojectsaretraditionallymadeofmultiplecompaniescontractedindividuallytoonegeneralman-agingfirm. Each company typically comes to theproj-ectwithindependent–andmutuallyexclusive–goals,which often results in poor coordination, rework, andincorrectwork.

Lean/IPDprojectteamsstrivetocreateanenvironmentwheretheconstructionprocesscanmorecloselymirroraproductionenvironment.Thisisaccomplishedthroughdetailedplanningdoneby those responsible fordoingthe work. They are encouraged to have clear conver-sationsabouttheirworkandspecificallyhowtheywillhanditofftothefollow-onvalue-addingprocess.Teamsidentify and define standardwork processes and out-comes--andthenimproveuponthosepractices.UsingaPlan-Do-Check-Act(PDCA)cycleishelpfulinthisregardandallowsforcontinuousimprovement.

The central challenge of Lean/IPD is cultural change.Thisencompasseshowtheteamthinksabouttheproj-ect,theirwork,howtheybehave,howtheyinteractwiththeirfellowteammembers,managerisk,andhowthey

react toand solveproblems. Formost teammembersthesebehaviorsandpracticeswillbedifferentfromwhattheyhaveexperiencedpreviously.Mostorallof thesechanges are required to effectively execute hand-offworkplanning;once learned, theyare transferrable tomanyothercontextsoftheLean/IPDworkenvironment.ThroughtransformationalLeadership andstrongcoach-ingandFacilitation in a Big Roomenvironment,aLean/IPDteamwillstrivefortransparency,onesinglesourceof truth, Last Planner ®engagement,clearConditions of Satisfaction,and--mostimportantly--respectforpeo-pleanddeep,trust-basedrelationships.

Hand-off work planning can be used immediately toimprove the reliability of thework plan for near-termwork.Itisapracticalskillthatcanbeusedoftenthrough-outthelifeoftheproject.Hand-offworkplanningcanbeusedatleastweekly,sometimesdaily,orsometimesmultipletimesperday.ItpreparestheteamtotakeonthemoreadvancedLean/IPDconcepts likeProduction System Design.

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HANDOFFWORKPLANNING | 3

Definethemilestonebyaskingthefollowingquestions.

• Whatisamilestone?• Howwilltheteamknowwhenthemilestoneisreached?• Whatdeliverablesmustbecreatedforthismilestone?

An example of a milestone description that seems clear but is in factunclearis“buildingiswatertight.”Doesthismeanthat100%ofthebuild-ing iswatertight?Orcanitbeallofthebuildingexceptwherethemanhoistis?Isitthelastlayerofthewaterproofingorisittheentireskininaddition to thewaterproofing elements? Is itwhen thephysical instal-lationoftheworkiscompleteorisitwhentheGChasagreedthatit iscompleteorisitwhentheinspectorhasagreeditiscomplete?

Thisconversationisnotoptional.Itiscritical.Itdrivestherestofthemeet-ing. It is common–andnecessary -- touncoverdifferences,misunder-standings,anddisagreementsonthissubject.

Determinethetypeofworkneededtomeetthemilestone.

Workforwards(forwardpass)orbackwards(backwardpass).Usestickynotes. It is generallybest toworkbackwards (PullPlan) fromthemile-stone.However,muchcanbeachievedbyworkingforwardtothemile-stone,thenmovingbackwardthroughthechain.

2.0 What

Whenperforminghand-offworkplanning,projectteamsdothefollowing:

• Chooseamilestone.• Themilestoneisnear-termandhasacleardefinition.Itshouldbe

chosenbeforethemeetingisheldandcommunicatedinadvancetothemeetingparticipants.

• Ifthisisthefirsttimemanyinthegrouphavedonehand-offworkplanning,anymilestonecanbechosen,aslongasitisonethepar-ticipantsarefamiliarwith.

• Get the Last Planners®intheroom.• ALastPlannerissomeonewhohasdirectknowledgeofthework

thatisgoingtobediscussed.Heorsheeitherperformsthatworkorsupervisesthosewhodo.

• If last planners are not included – or if there are few last planners inattendance–theprojectcanbreak down.Projectteamsmustknowwhotoinvite,andmakeeveryefforttoensuretheyattend.Attendanceinpersoniskey.Lastplannerscannotattendviaphoneorvirtualmeeting.Hand-offworkplanningisanengagedmulti-di-mensionalfast-movingconversationthatisintendedtoleadtopersonalcommitmentsandagreements.

3.0 How

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HANDOFFWORKPLANNING | 4

Writethecommitmentsonstickynotes.Eachpersonshouldwritehisorherowncommitmentdescriptions(promisetoperform,Reliable Commitments). This increases accountability. There canbe resistance to commitments, butteamsmustcommit.Itisimportanttocontinuousflowoftheproject.

Makesurethecommitmentsaresequenced.Drawlinesbetweentheboxes.Makesureitisclearhowallboxesareconnectedandthereisanarrowheadatoneendofeachlineindicatingtheorderofthecommitments.

Encourageanddeterminecompletedescriptionsofwork,includingthenameoftheperson,andthedurationofthecommitment.Atthebeginning,itmaybedifficulttowritecompletedescriptionsanddetailscanbeaddedlater.Bytheendofthesession,allcommitmentsneedtobecompleteandconnectedtoallrelatedcommitments.

Readalloftheparticipantdescriptionsandconsiderthefollowing:

• Arethedescriptionsclear?• Whatisneededbeforeeachcommitmentcanbemet?• Isapieceofworkmissing?• Whatisneededtoreleasethenextcommitmenttostart?• Whatisneededtoallowthiscommitmenttostart?• Isacommitmentdoingmorethanneeded?• Isthatotherworkneedednow?Ifsowhatfollow-onworkdoesitreleasetostart?• Isthereachainofworkmissing?(Maybeitsimplysupportsamilestonenotbeingplannedoutrightnow).

Note:Thisprocesscanleadnaturallytocluster groupsbeingformedtoconsiderunknownsinthehand-offworkplan.Theteammaynothavetheexpertisetoresolvetheissuethatneedsstudybyanothergroup.Ifanissueiscomplexoroff-topic,addtheitemtoa“parkinglot”listtobeaddressedatanothersessionorbyanothergroup.

Makesurecommitmentsareassignedtopeople,notcompanies.Itisapersonwhowilldotheworkorberesponsiblefortheworkandheorsheisthepointofaccountability.

3.0 How

Ifteamdoesabackwardpass,reviewtheplanbymovingforwardstep-by-step.Re-arrangethestickynotesasneeded.Repeatuntiltheteamagreesthestepsoftheworkareinplaceandareallconnectedtothemilestone.

Whenworkingbackwardask:• Areyousureyouhavenootherconstraints?• Areyoucompletelyreleasedtostartwork?Lookfor languagepatterns

like“yesI’mcompletelyreleasedIjustneedthefinalspec”.If“finalspec”isn’tintheplan,addit.

Whenworkingforwardask:• Doesthisworkreleaseotherworktostart?Sometimestheotherwork

mightbeonapathwaynot leading toyourmilestone,but revealing itmightleadtoteamreviewanduncoverahiddenpathwaytothemile-stoneyouareworkingon.

3.0 How

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HANDOFFWORKPLANNING | 5

3.0 How

Adddurationstothecommitments.

Trytolimitdurationsofcommitments.Small-batchworkflowreadilyallowsforimprovementorcorrection.Challengeanylongdurationcommitments,especiallyifthedescriptionisshortorvague.Anidealmaximumdurationisfivedays.

Reachconsensusonthecompletedplan.

Assessthetotalduration.Determinewhetherthemilestonewillbereachedinatimelymanner.

Conduct a Plus/Delta onthemeeting.

Performexecutionfollowup.Encourageshort-cyclecorrectionsandestab-lishmentofmultipleconduitsforcommunication.

Refer to the Last Planner ® Systemforadeeperunderstandingofhowthishandoffworkplanningcanbemeasuredtodriveimprovement.Manyhavefoundthisapplicationtobenefitfromacoachorproject integratorexperi-encedingroupfacilitation.[Sutterextractre.GoodFacilitator]

OtherNeeds:Supplies/Characteristicsoftheworkspace:

• Bigwallorwhiteboard• Largestickynotesofmanycolors(usuallyonecolorpercompanyorclus-

tergroup)• Markerpensforconnectingthestickynotes• Finetipsharpiesforwritingonthestickynotes• Renderings,siteplans,sitephotographs,cardboardmodels,mechanical

layouts,floorplans,asnecessary

3.0 How

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