T-Mobile is a major global telecommunications company. Their National Operations Centers monitor the radio towers across the United States to insure functionality of the wireless network and respond to alarms by sending out repair crews. The challenged was to implement the 3G platform across the United States with no additional manpower, while maintaining the highest level of customer service and system uptime. T-Mobile chose kaizen.

An assessment of the operation revealed that employees felt they were overworked because of the increased workload, and this affected morale. The management suspected low productivity, although no metrics were in in existence to determine this correctly. There was variation in individual methods which resulted in unpredictability in key "time to respond" and "time to resolve radio tower downtime" metrics.

A group of 100 people at the Operations Center were given basic training lean operations principles and how lean applied to knowledge work. This was followed by small group workshops in the practical problem solving 8-step method used by Toyota. 

Small group activities focused on establishing metrics and standard operating procedures, and a cross-training process in these procedures. As the proces stabilized, T-Mobile developed an internal team of lean problem solving experts to internalize and expand the practical problem solving activities.

Results

• Achieved reliable and stable time to respond to radio tower downtimes
• Productivity improved 25%
• 3G system implemented with same manpower in spite of high levels of downtime activity as a result of 3 hurricanes and two snow storms