See Creativity techniques.

Operational availability (standard reading is: BEKIDOURITSU, not KADOURITSU), equal to the time a machine is on divided by the time it is engaged in value adding work

Kaizen: A Japanese term that means gradual, unending improvement by doing little things better and setting and achieving increasingly higher standards. Masaaki Imai made the term famous in his book, Kaizen: The Key to Japan’s Competitive Success.

Workplace environment promoting continuous improvement.

A person leading or facilitating continuous improvement initiatives or activities within an organization, driving Kaizen principles.

System encouraging employees to submit improvement ideas.

Group activity focused on identifying and implementing process improvements within a limited timeframe.

Visual control method using cards to check process adherence.

Kanban: A method for providing material/product to a succeeding operation by signaling the preceding operation when more material/product is needed. This “pull” type of process control employs a kanban, a card or signboard, attached to a lot of material/product in a production line signifying the delivery of a given quantity. When all of the material/product has been processed, the card/sign is returned to its source, where it becomes an order to replenish.

A visual management tool displaying tasks or work items, their status, and progress in a workflow or process.

KANBAN cycle, delivery cycle, KANBAN coefficient, frequency of deliveries after a KANBAN card is issued

Kano model: Three classes of customer requirements, as described by Noriaki Kano: satisfiers—what customers say they want; dissatisfiers—what customers expect and what results in dissatisfaction when not present; and delighters/exciters—new or unexpected features that customers do not expect.

A statistical measure assessing the agreement between two raters or observers when evaluating categorical data.

Routine and habits for continuous improvement.

Kraftfahrt Bundesamt, Flensburg. www.kba.de

A measure of agreement among multiple raters or judges when assessing the rank order of items or subjects.

A statistical measure determining the strength and direction of association between two ordinal variables.

A primary customer.

Arose as a sub area of customer marketing in the 1960s and identifies the systematic cultivation of the relationships to important customers (key accounts). Because it is often the case that a few customers make up the largest share of the revenue, it is worthwhile for companies to give special attention to their key accounts. Usually a fixed contact person is established (key account manager) who is particularly responsible for ensuring that the important customer itself is successful in its market. Key account management does not mean the sale of products to large customers. Instead, the following is called for: Supplying solutions; helping with process optimization; contributing in the development of new products and services; and contributing to the joint development of new business fields or in strategy and future planning. This is because a customer‘s importance is not necessarily in the revenue; it can also be in access to new markets (regions, groups of customers) mediated by a customer or in the development of new technologies and products enabled or facilitated by this customer. Key Account Management is particularly encountered in the consumer goods and investment goods industry.

Key performance indicator (KPI): A statistical measure of how well an organization is doing in a particular area. A KPI could measure an organization’s financial performance or how it is holding up against customer requirements.

Metrics or indicators used to evaluate and measure the performance or success of an organization, process, or activity.

Metrics or indicators used to evaluate and measure the performance or success of an organization, process, or activity.

Key process: A major system level process that supports the mission and satisfies major consumer requirements.

Key process characteristic: A process parameter that can affect safety or compliance with regulations, fit, function, performance or subsequent processing of product.

Key product characteristic: A product characteristic that can affect safety or compliance with regulations, fit, function, performance or subsequent processing of product.

Key results area: Customer requirements that are critical for the organization’s success.

Kitting: A process in which assemblers are supplied with kits—a box of parts, fittings and tools—for each task they perform. This eliminates time consuming trips from one parts bin, tool crib or supply center to another to get necessary materials.

The manner in which an organization pursues the targeted handling of theoretical and practical knowledge. As a rule, knowledge management checks which knowledge is needed in which scope for which function and then provides this knowledge in a suitable form. Knowledge can be broken down into explicit knowledge (can be expressed and passed on formally in language, words, images, etc.) and tacit knowledge (arises primarily in personal experience and is hard to put into words). Tasks comprise the definition of knowledge objectives, the organization of knowledge acquisition, promotion of the exchange of knowledge, seeing to knowledge preservation, and controlling the use of knowledge. In the newer management theory, knowledge management is increasingly seen as the promotion of the organization‘s ability to learn and in contrast, strictly hierarchical ordering and transmission of knowledge are criticized. The objective is an organization that is intelligent, that generates knowledge, and that is able to make decisions. Knowledge management is consequently less about pre structuring knowledge and more about creating an organizational culture that encourages learning in the form of creating and implementing knowledge.

Core factors comprising knowledge, skills, experience, and behaviors.

Focused or specific improvement activities within a process.

A targeted or specific improvement approach in Lean manufacturing, focusing on particular areas or aspects for enhancement.

Mixed load conveyance

Gesetz zur Kontrolle und Transparenz im Unternehmensbereich [German Corporate Sector Supervision and Transparency Act]. KonTraG went into effect on May 1, 1998 and has the objective of improving corporate governance (methods and instruments for managing and monitoring organizations) in German companies.

Standardized production capacity sheet

Intra process KANBAN

Continous flow processing

Inter process KANBAN

Key Performance Index or also Key Performance Indicator. Performance figure for determining and measuring the extent to which important objectives or critical success factors have been met.

Knowledge Process Quality Model: Model for assessing the maturity level of knowledge processes. It describes the development of the process maturity in six levels (level 0 – 5 from initial to continual improvement). Each is examined on the basis of four development paths (process organization; employee deployment and knowledge networks; acceptance and motivation; computer based support). The assessment results can be used to derive prioritized actions for knowledge management.

Kruskal Wallis test: A nonparametric test to compare three or more samples. It tests the null hypothesis that all populations have identical distribution functions against the alternative hypothesis that at least one of the samples differs only with respect to location (median), if at all. It is the analogue to the F test used in analysis of variance. While analysis of variance tests depend on the assumption that all populations under comparison are normally distributed, the Kruskal Wallis test places no such restriction on the comparison. It is a logical extension of the Wilcoxon Mann Whitney Test (see listing).

Kooperation für Transparenz und Qualität im Gesundheitswesen [cooperation for transparency and quality in the health sector] (quality standard as an industry solution for hospitals, rehabilitation centers, nursing facilities, alternative dwelling forms and doctor‘s practices). The KTQ group was established as a combination of associations at the federal level in Germany in the mid 1990s with the objective of continual quality improvement in hospitals. The KTQ model is a practice oriented method to evaluate quality and safety. It is furthermore an objective to increase transparency in the performance quality and medical performance and also to implement new quality elements. Today KTQ GmbH is an important supplier of systems to demonstrate quality management for facilities in the health sector in Germany. KTQ is also a registered trademark. Certification in accordance with the KTQ procedure is also possible. www.ktq.de

A statistical measure quantifying the degree of peakedness or flatness in the distribution of a dataset's values.

QC process chart