TRAINING WITHIN INDUSTRY

Training Within Industry is a leadership development program designed specifically for front-line leaders operating within an industrial setting. Its tried-and-true approach has a long history of success.

The Training Within Industry Service (TWI) was established in 1940 to help with the increased production needed to support the Allied Forces during World War II. The three programs, known as the “J” programs, had a major positive impact on manufacturing output in the U.S. during the war.

In its short 5-year existence, TWI was implemented in over 600 companies that, on average, experienced a 60% improvement in productivity. The “J” programs are:

Each “J” focuses on the relationship between supervisors (anyone who directs others' actions) and employees. After the war, the programs began to wind down in the U.S. It was recognized that Japan needed support in rebuilding their industrial infrastructure. The programs developed by the TWI Service were deployed to help them accomplish the goal.

REDISCOVERY

After the war, TWI faded from use in the U.S. For the past ten years, organizations have rediscovered TWI as a foundation for creating operational excellence and transforming their culture. KPC thinks we’ve played a small part in TWI’s resurgence. We have helped many of our clients take operational excellence to the next level by introducing TWI into their organizations using our dynamic hands-on learning and practice program. For many organizations, the results are:

A safer and more productive workplace
Higher levels of cooperation and positive employee relations
Reduced process variation through standardized training
Reduction in job learning curves
Effective problem-solving at the shop floor level

OUR APPROACH

Organizations often implement TWI piecemeal, implementing only one or two J programs (Job Instruction is the most popular). This is due to a misunderstanding of the underlying intent of TWI. Training Within Industry is a system, and the J programs are designed to reinforce each other. It is the intersection and interaction of the J programs that ultimately ensure the success of TWI. Adding to the misunderstanding is that TWI was a 'wartime' intervention, and due to that sense of urgency, many of the soft skills required in the present-day workplace are not addressed.

At KPC, we recognize the power of TWI as a cultural change system and the need to enhance the original system with the people skill competencies needed to be effective in today's workplace. Our holistic approach to TWI implementation ensures sustainable results.

What does it [TWI] have to do with modern manufacturing techniques? The answer is everything. For those who have heard of lean manufacturing, Japanese management methods, and kaizen, TWI may well be the ground zero of these modern manufacturing philosophies that have developed into the most promising methods in industry today."

‘The Roots of Lean’, Jim Huntzinger