In my almost five-decade-long professional journey, I have encountered diverse management philosophies. One amazes me in its simplicity and its potential to revolutionise different aspects of life. I visited several manufacturing plants in Japan during railway training in the early nineties. I was awe-struck by the Just-in-Time management philosophy widely followed by most factories.
The materials would be delivered just in time for production or maintenance. One did not have to maintain huge inventories to meet deadlines. Everyone had accepted this as a way of life, even though the system evolved only after World War II. It was a novelty for me since we were still following the age — old practice of stocking a year’s requirement in our maintenance sheds and production units on Indian railways.
With time, I realised that the philosophy had the potential to improve efficiency across all walks of life. Passenger train running is one example. Enough slack is put in the published timetables to account for delays. Despite this, trains run late, as all of us have encountered. During my professional days with the railways, each division plotted the movement of trains on sheets of paper in the central control room. A train received late by a division would be marked on time if it managed to cross the division with the same delay. The train would also be shown to have arrived at the station once it had been received at the outer signal. There were innumerable examples of the train being held up at this signal for want of a slot before it entered the platform. The system was unconcerned about the inconvenience to the passengers. Sometimes people miss their connecting trains or flights.
The procedure probably continues, as I read in the newspapers a few years back, when a Central Government Minister travelling to Delhi was delayed at the outer signal for more than an hour. More recently, my brother-in-law and his wife spent a few hours at the platform to board an originating train.
Compare this with the trains in some Western countries, where one can precisely plan an onward journey. Enough safeguards are also incorporated to ensure the ferrying of passengers in the event of unforeseen circumstances. Airlines also put slack in their timetables.
Despite this, there are times when one is left wringing hands in despair due to inordinate delays. I recently flew from Mumbai to Delhi. We were late arriving at the airport. We reached the gate as the attendant called out for passengers to board.
We rushed in to take our seats. The aeroplane was pushed back ahead of the scheduled departure. It took some time before the flight took off, 10 minutes late. The captain’s announcement from the cockpit about the flying time of 1 hour 40 minutes was a welcome relief. It meant we would land a full 15 minutes before the arrival time. And we did that too. The pilot and the cabin crew happily patted themselves on the back by announcing an earlier arrival. We waited impatiently to get off as the aircraft took another 30 minutes to reach the parking bay.
The crew had already announced a pre-scheduled arrival, and thus, we did not receive any apologies for the delay. Recent repairs to a runway at New Delhi airport have compounded the problems. We now wait at the departing terminal or inside the aircraft, with the blame thrown at the faceless ATC at the arrival terminal. The blame game is on, with no consideration for the hapless flyer.
These are examples of two of the sectors we encounter. We could count many examples of such inconveniences we have come to accept as our lot across many other areas. I return to the simple ‘Just-in-Time’ concept. This can transform our lives in ways we cannot imagine if implemented as a way of life, not just as a management principle in the manufacturing sector.
No slack is provided. Every individual is geared to give their best all the time. Everyone owns up to their role in the system. Success is celebrated. But failure is not treated as an end. It is a beginning — a stepping stone for improvement. It may appear to be a utopian dream. Let us not forget — what we have attained today is the dream someone else saw for us.
(The writer is an electrical engineer with the Indian Railways and conducts classes in creative writing. Views are personal)