{"id":31222,"date":"2026-11-05T09:00:22","date_gmt":"2026-11-05T08:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.leanthinking.it\/?p=31222"},"modified":"2026-11-05T10:21:59","modified_gmt":"2026-11-05T09:21:59","slug":"gemba-walk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.leanthinking.it\/en\/gemba-walk\/","title":{"rendered":"Gemba Walk: what it is, how to do it and what to observe"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Gemba Walk is the visit that a manager makes to the place where the work is carried out<\/strong> To observe the process, talk about it with the people involved and decide what to further explore. It works if it has a specific purpose, follows the actual flow, and concludes with agreed actions and follow-up.<\/p>\n

Production decisions are often made based on indicators, reports, and meetings. They are useful tools, but they do not always show how work actually takes place: where the waiting time accumulates, which steps take the most time, or what forces people to interrupt an activity.<\/p>\n

The Gemba Walk helps production managers and managers to bridge this gap. It consists of going to the place where the work is performed, observing the process, and talking with the people involved. The goal is to better understand what is happening on the ground and identify aspects to explore or improve.<\/p>\n

For it to be useful, the visit must have a clear purpose and follow-up. It is not enough to simply go around the department: it is necessary to know what you want to understand, observe carefully, and then review the evidence gathered.<\/p>\n

What is the Gemba Walk<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Gemba<\/em><\/a> means \u201cthe real place\u201d: the point where work takes place and value is created. In production it can be a line, a cell, or a warehouse; in other contexts it can be an office or the place where a process is managed. Going to Gemba means observing the work directly, rather than relying solely on indirect descriptions. It is the principle that Toyota calls Go and see for yourself<\/a>, \u201cgo to see it in person\u201d: verify the facts at the point where they happen, as described by the Lean Enterprise Institute<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Gemba Walk is therefore a practice of observation and listening.<\/strong> The person leading the visit tries to understand how the process is proceeding, what conditions influence it, and what difficulties people encounter.<\/p>\n

It is important to distinguish the observation of the process from the control of people. We go to the site to understand the work and its conditions<\/strong>, This is not to assess who is performing it. A difference between the standard and what happens on the field, for example, is an element to be understood: it may depend on obstacles, missing information, or operating conditions different from those expected.<\/p>\n

The Gemba Walk does not coincide with a structured audit: for specific areas, such as safety, dedicated methods exist.<\/p>\n

Before leaving: defining the purpose and the path<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Frequency and duration depend on the purpose and the process: it is useful to schedule regular and limited visits, leaving enough time to observe the work without interfering. The person responsible for the area or process should participate, possibly together with the team leader and the people involved in the observed workflow.<\/p>\n

An effective Gemba Walk begins with a precise question: What do I want to understand better?<\/strong> Without a purpose, it is easy to gather general impressions without reaching any useful observations.<\/p>\n

The visit can focus, for example, on a step in the process that seems to generate expectations, on a problem reported by the team, or on how an activity is transferred from one phase to the next. It is preferable to delimit the topic so that one can observe it carefully without trying to examine everything at once.<\/p>\n

The path also depends on the purpose. If you want to understand a flow, it can be useful to follow it from start to finish, observing the movement of materials, information, or activities. If the question concerns a specific point, you can focus on that area and the steps that precede or follow it.<\/p>\n

Before the visit, the available indicators or reports can be consulted to guide the observation. The data help formulate the initial question; it will then be the comparison with what is happening on site that will complete the picture.<\/p>\n

Finally, it is useful to choose a time when the work proceeds under normal conditions. The goal is to observe the actual process, without turning the visit into a prepared demonstration or interrupting the activity without reason.<\/p>\n

What to observe during a Gemba Walk<\/strong><\/h2>\n

During the visit, observe the facts before interpreting them. A wait or a detour can have different causes: noting what happens helps discuss it without jumping to conclusions immediately.<\/p>\n

Workflow<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Track the flow of materials, information, or activities. Where does the work stop? Are there interruptions, delays, or repeated steps? Are the activities proceeding as planned or are they accumulating at some point?<\/p>\n

Note what you see and at what stage it occurs. The goal is not to immediately assign a label to every situation, but to understand which aspects deserve further investigation.<\/p>\n

Standard and actual work<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Observe how the work is carried out and compare it with the expected standard, if available. The standard provides a reference; practical experience in the field shows how it is applied in everyday conditions.<\/p>\n

When you notice a difference, ask yourself what explains it. There could be an operational difficulty, unavailable information, or a condition different from what was expected. Understanding the context is more useful than automatically considering the difference as a person\u2019s mistake.<\/p>\n

Wait times, waste and anomalies<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Be careful of what slows down or complicates the process: waiting times, searches for materials or information, interruptions, reworkings, or accumulations. These are the (muda) waste that Lean seeks to eliminate and that often cannot be seen in aggregated data.<\/p>\n

It is not necessary to solve every problem during the visit. The Gemba Walk serves to observe and understand; the choice of priorities and the analysis of the causes may require a subsequent discussion.<\/p>\n

Safety and working conditions<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Consider whether the conditions of the area or the process require attention regarding safety. Observe this as part of the tour, without turning the visit into an audit. There is a dedicated method for safety, SMAT, described in the\u2019article about Lean Safety<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Questions to ask during the Gemba Walk<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The questions should help people describe the work, expectations, and obstacles encountered. Open, concrete statements are preferable to questions that already suggest an answer.<\/p>\n

For example:<\/p>\n