Four Principles, a lean management consultancy and part of Abdul Latif Jameel, has announced the winners of the region’s second Kaizen Awards.
Last year’s inaugural Kaizen Awards saw the top prize go to Sulaiman Al-Habib Medical Group. The four organizations recognized at this year’s ceremony held at Riyadh’s Faisaliah Hotel include:
• Lean Transformation Award: Tania Bottled Drinking Water Company
• Lean Transformation Runner-Up: IKEA Saudi Arabia and Bahrain
• Continuous Improvement Award: National Water Company
• Continuous Improvement Runner-Up: Abdul Latif Jameel United Finance
Four Principles established the awards last year to publicly recognize industry pioneers who have seen tangible commercial benefits in adopting the kaizen approach. As a result, the companies celebrated at the second ceremony have seen improvements in the categories of customer satisfaction, business efficiency, increased agility, reduced waste and stronger profitability, a statement said.
Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Four Principles Seif Shieshakly said: “Our goal at Four Principles is to spread the Japanese lean management philosophy in the Middle East, demonstrating that it is not merely a management toolkit, but a profound change of corporate culture — from the bottom of the organization to the very top.
“The awards tonight is only one part of that, and we will shortly be announcing further details on a new kaizen training academy in the heart of Riyadh.”
Prizes included a five-day trip to Japan for company representatives to experience firsthand how lean practices are implemented in pioneering Japanese firms.
Guest of honor Joachim Raber, global director product and licenses, Porsche Design Group, spoke about how the lean management philosophy continues to inspire and drive the strategy and operations of Porsche’s product and licenses business.
Originally developed by Toyota to transform the efficiency of its production system, kaizen principles, which lie at the heart of lean management, aim to reduce waste, improve quality, and accelerate lead times. Ultimately, the methodology can improve business-wide efficiency and deliver a corporate culture capable of delivering a smooth and adaptable workflow.
Four Principles works with businesses across Saudi Arabia and the wider region to drive better performance through the adoption of kaizen principles, in line with Saudi Vision 2030 to improve competitiveness and productivity.
Four Principles said it will soon release more details on a dedicated training academy, based in Riyadh, for Saudi public and private sectors.
