McCallums Group has long been an advocate for minimising waste – now the business is also applying that to minimising wasted time.

After six months with Venture Southland’s Lean Management Programme, McCallums Group has identified processes and areas for change, to maximise efficiencies and increase productivity throughout the organisation.

The course assisted businesses to identify areas of potential change using a lean management system focussing on both processes and the environment, with the aim of introducing standard operational practices to ensure efficient and safe ways of working. 

In the past the programme has been shown to increase the average productivity of businesses by 25% across their operations, with some reporting productivity increases as high as 70%.

McCallums Group’s Apparelmaster Customer Service Manager Jaime McNaught said the programme helped the organisation identify areas where it could minimise downtime and improve productivity.

“Some of it was as simple as being organised; making sure the right equipment was readily available for a job so that staff don’t have to go back and forth,” she said.

“For us, it was about processes and ensuring we are making the most of our time as well as ensuring our work environment enables productivity. It was also about standardising processes, so that everyone is doing the same thing.”

Jaime said while changes had been subtle, the programme had already had a positive impact on the business.

“It was not only about improving efficiencies for us, but a great chance to network with other Southland businesses going through the same process,” she said.