Think outside the box – Lenovo

What expectations did you have when Lenovo started implementing the End-to-End (E2E)?

This project, like all the actions we perform at Lenovo, has the main task of keeping the customer at the center of our operations. Specifically, in this case of the E2E project, our target was to increase our customers’ satisfaction with better lead times and deliveries – from order confirmation to the product delivery date.

Have these expectations been met? Do you have examples of this?

Yes, our expectations were met. We were able to map all the areas involved in this project, which gave us more than 100 improvement opportunities, 21 quick wins and 18 projects. Our customer experience metrics (Net Promotor Score – NPS) and customer satisfaction have significantly improved.

What positive effects surprised you the most?

There were several positive results from this project. In particular, I would note the internal popularity of the Lean six Sigma concept that reaches beyond the manufacturing environment, which has always used this method. Expanding this to areas, such as sales, supply chain and sales operations, has brought us to another level.

Where or for what topics did you have to engage directly to “break down barriers or paradigms” in the pursuit of desired improvement?

The methodology used for this project has given the teams the ability to review processes and overcome obstacles for any potential hurdle. It is the leadership’s task to challenge the teams to think outside the box, facilitate the implementation of improvements and define aggressive targets.

What are the next steps? How will Lenovo be in the short and long term with regards to digitization?

One of our main goals is to continue to apply Lean Six Sigma in the administrative environment, as we still see many opportunities to apply this method that has been optimizing and standardizing our operations.
In the short term, we intend to initiate and implement both large-scale automation projects such as digitization and Internet of Things projects to optimize the visibility of critical company data and its monitoring.
In the long term, we must enhance these digitization processes using artificial intelligence in critical decision-making to be able to predict and alert potential problem situations. We will also try to unite the physical and virtual environment (Digital Twin) in order to acquire the ability to simulate design, production, supply chain, etc., before implementing it in the physical world.