The Perspective of Well-Being for Organizations and Employees Observed on Site
  • GOOD HEALTH AND WELL-BEING
  • DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH
  • PARTNERSHIPS FOR THE GOALS

Everyone should be able to live happy and authentic lives. To help make this a reality, Toyota Motor Corporation has defined its mission as "Producing Happiness for All," and is challenging itself to create a better mobility society and community as a mobility company, in addition to car manufacturing. As part of this challenge, since 2021, researchers from the Toyota Motor Corporation Frontier Research Center, Advanced R&D and Engineering Company, Toyota Central R&D Labs., Inc., and Toyota Research Institute have established the "Emotional Well-Being Workshop" to discuss the complex questions of "What is happiness?" and "What is well-being?" from various angles*1-4.

In the 4th Emotional Well-Being Workshop, we focused on the theme of "Well-Being of People Working at Toyota" and looked at the challenges at manufacturing sites. To deepen the discussion with more concrete insights, the 5th Emotional Well-Being Workshop was held at Toyota Motor Manufacturing, West Virginia, Inc. (TMMWV) and Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Mississippi, Inc. (TMMMS). TMMWV started operations in 1998 and serves as a manufacturing base for engines and transmissions. On the other hand, TMMMS, which is dedicated to producing Corollas for the North American market, was established in 2011 and has become one of the automobile factories in the US with a relatively high percentage of female works (31% of all workers in the factory). When first established, both plants were chosen by many as exciting new employment opportunities in the region, but over the decades, changes in the industrial structure and shifting perceptions of the manufacturing industry and work-life balance have led to labor shortages.

In this workshop, about 30 participants engaged in dialogue with workers at the manufacturing site to gain first-hand insights into the initiatives and challenges related to employee well-being in the factory. Through these interactions, it became clear that leaders on the manufacturing site focus on four major points to create a better workplace:

  1. Help Toyota's employees form an accurate image of what it's like to work at Toyota
  2. Help Toyota's employees feel proud to work at Toyota
  3. Reduce anxieties about working at Toyota
  4. Reduce unreasonable burdens/workload for Toyota employees
A scene from the discussions held during the 5th EWB Workshop

  1. Help Toyota's employees form an accurate image of what it's like to work at Toyota

One reason for early turnover is the gap between expectations and reality upon starting work at a manufacturing site. Today, opportunities to disassemble and repair machines or electronic products, or to change parts and reassemble them, have become rare. For younger generations who have grown up without such experiences, it may be difficult to envision the task of carefully assembling heavy and large components using their physical senses such as sight, hearing, and touch.

Moreover, even if individuals have a correct image of working in a manufacturing site, the physical burden of the job, the sense of responsibility for the products delivered to customers, and the mental strain of maintaining concentration are aspects that can only be understood through actual experience.

To bridge this gap, various initiatives are being implemented at each factory. At TMMMS, a program called "Briefcase Training" offers a two-and-a-half-hour real-time video course designed to fill the gap in the "working image" for those who will be working at Toyota's factories. Additionally, TMMWV is collaborating with local high schools to provide workplace experiences through programs like summer school.

  1. Help Toyota's employees feel proud to work at Toyota

At TMMWV and TMMMS, various forms of employee recognition are in place to honor outstanding performance, such as a medal system, an award program called "Elevated Excellence" at TMMMS, nameplates displayed on walls to celebrate years of service, and gifting within teams. What is important here is that it's not just the recognized individuals who feel good about this; the system allows those around them to feel a sense of pride in being a part of Toyota.

For example, the medal system evaluates the abilities and knowledge of employees in Kaizen activities at the manufacturing site, and grants Bronze, Silver, and Gold ratings. Kaizen activities involve identifying and eliminating waste, inconsistent workload across teams or shifts, and unreasonable workloads in the manufacturing process, and they are a hallmark of Toyota's factories. The leaders at the site have created an environment where more members can achieve higher ratings by dedicating time and collaborating as a team. There is a culture where nearly 100% of members participate in Kaizen activities, and time is invested in acquiring and mastering new skills. These efforts foster not only individual pride among members but also a collective pride within the team.

The award plaque for years of service

  1. Reduce anxieties about working at Toyota

At Toyota, building strong relationships at the workplace is essential for collaborating with many colleagues to create a single product. However, there are times when individuals may struggle with these relationships. This is where the concept of "Mendomi" comes into play, which was also mentioned in the 4th workshop. Mendomi refers to the idea that supervisors support their subordinates and seniors guide their juniors, developing bonds similar to those in a family by being there for them in both workplace issues and life in general. During this workshop, I sensed a strong desire among factory workers to believe in the value of Mendomi and to pass it on to the next generation.

For example, Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Indiana, Inc. (TMMI) has pioneered a mentoring system. In this program, individuals volunteer to become mentors at each process and build personal relationships with younger employees (mentees) who have just started working. This initiative aims to alleviate the mentees' anxieties about work and life, thereby reducing the risk of turnover. In fact, at TMMMS, introducing this mentoring system has reportedly led to an improvement in the turnover rate. I believe this serves as a great example of how important it is to create a culture where employees engage in conversations as if they were family, rather than just colleagues.

  1. Reduce unreasonable burdens/workload for Toyota employees

At Toyota's factories, Kaizen activities are carried out continuously and regularly. Enabling this are the members of the Operations Management Development Division (OMDD) from Toyota Motor North America (TMNA), who travel to various sites as ambassadors of the Toyota Production System (TPS). These members emphasize that eliminating unreasonable workloads is the most important, followed by addressing inconsistent workload across teams or shifts, and then eliminating waste. While the removal of waste is often highlighted as part of the lean production system, the first step in Kaizen is actually to thoroughly eliminate unreasonable workloads, meaning creating a work environment that is easier for employees.

Returning to this fundamental principle, the discussions in the workshop highlighted the importance of building trust in the workplace. To eliminate unreasonable workloads, it is essential to understand how it occurs. One participant pointed out that the ability to discern changes is crucial. To discern changes, it is important to build trusting relationships with colleagues and supervisors and to view individual issues as team-wide issues. Such trust fosters a willingness to take on challenges and builds confidence among team members, which leads to more active Kaizen activities.

An example of Toyota's manufacturing site

To create a better workplace

As the leaders at the site strive to create an even better workplace, we participants have come to recognize the importance of the term "fairness." Here, I would like to share three issues related to fairness.

The first issue is reducing unreasonable workloads. Participants pointed out that identifying unreasonable workloads can be challenging. Determining whether a workload is unreasonable is relative, and one must understand the individual capacities to make that judgment. Toyota has set a goal known as "Any Member Any Process (AMAP)," which involves reviewing tasks and evaluations on the manufacturing line; however, maintaining a sense of fairness in workload among members with diverse characteristics remains a difficult challenge.

The second issue is that providing extensive support and benefits for new hires can affect the sense of fairness among long-term employees, potentially leading to dissatisfaction. It was reiterated that having a multifaceted perspective is crucial for considering the well-being of each employee.

The third issue is the difficulty of adapting to changes at the manufacturing site. In Japan, the workforce in the manufacturing sector is declining due to a decreasing population. To address this issue, there are discussions about reviewing vehicle structures and implementing automation systems, which will require employees to evolve their skills and learn new knowledge. Maintaining a sense of fairness between those who can adapt to changes and those who cannot is very important for creating a workplace environment where employees can continue to work vibrantly and ensuring productivity that allows us to deliver quality products smoothly to customers around the world.

Discussion notes from the 5th EWB Workshop
muri: unreasonable workloads, mura: inconsistent workload across teams or shifts, muda: waste

Toward the future

In addressing issues related to fairness, we believe that "Mendomi" is becoming increasingly important. Achieving a satisfactory sense of fairness for everyone is challenging, but by building a culture where we can openly and sincerely discuss our true feelings through "Mendomi," a sense of fairness can emerge. Additionally, through such activities, we believe that not only can individual well-being be realized, but also the well-being of individuals and teams/organizations can be harmonized at a higher level. One participant who embodies "Mendomi" stated, "There is no end to Kaizen, and there is no end to Mendomi," emphasizing the importance of continuously thinking about and engaging in "Mendomi" with a positive attitude.

Through the 5th workshop, I realized that "fairness" is a key concept in creating an even better workplace. As someone who conducts research that leads to the future, I intend to explore and verify the insights and hypotheses gained from this activity in various approaches, including workplace improvement and designing trustworthy AI methodologies. Please continue to look forward to the activities of the Emotional Well-Being workshop.

Contact Information (about this article)

Frontier Research Center
frc_pr@mail.toyota.co.jp

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