The company’s goals are broken down and agreed upon with managers on a monthly or quarterly basis. This is how the Lean Management tool Hoshin Kanri works. Hoshin means strategy. Kanri means steering or managing.

Hoshin Kanri may seem similar to a traditional top-down strategy that has been used in companies for decades. However, Hoshin Kanri is more comprehensive – it includes a Continuous Improvement Process (KVP) and tools that contribute to its success. Hoshin Kanri often fails when Step 2 is not executed consistently and everything is handled solely at the management level, as well as when the KVP process is not rigorously applied during ongoing execution.