ROI Case File No.307 | 'TransLog's Invisible Time Thieves'

Chapter 1: The Maze of Paperwork—8 Hours Daily, Work Generating No Value

The week after resolving PeriTech's 5F incident, a consultation arrived from Saitama regarding a logistics company's clerical efficiency. Episode 307 of Volume 25 "The Pursuit of Certainty" tells the story of visualizing invisible waste and reclaiming valuable work.

"Detective, our clerical staff are buried in mountains of paperwork daily. Delivery slips, invoices, payment confirmation, customer response... Working from morning to night yet feeling 'nothing's progressing.' Overtime averages 60 hours monthly. Even so, work doesn't finish."

Akira Sasaki, administrative manager at TransLog Inc., originally from Kawaguchi, visited 221B Baker Street with an exhausted expression. In his hands were photos of piled documents and, in stark contrast, a blank project proposal titled "Business Efficiency Project."

"We provide mid-size truck logistics services in Saitama. Collection and delivery for companies in the Kanto region. 42 drivers. And 12 clerical staff."

TransLog's Clerical Work Chaos: - Establishment: 2005 (Truck logistics) - Annual Revenue: ¥1.8 billion - Employees: 54 (42 drivers, 12 clerical) - Daily Deliveries: Average 180 - Clerical Work Time: Average 25 min per delivery - Monthly Overtime: Clerical staff average 60 hours - Customer Response Time: Daily average 1.5 hours (phone/email) - Problem: "Busy yet nothing's progressing"

Deep confusion filled Sasaki's voice.

"Six months ago, we launched an internal 'Business Efficiency Project.' Purpose: Reduce clerical workload. However, we don't know where to start. Everything seems important, can't prioritize."

A Clerical Staff Member's Typical Day:

8:30-9:00 AM (30 min): - Email check: 50 emails (5 important) - Phone response: 3 calls

9:00 AM-12:00 PM (3 hours): - Organize previous day's delivery slips: 80 - Manual Excel entry of slips - Driver handwriting hard to read, confirmation time-consuming - Same information duplicated in 3 Excel files

12:00-1:00 PM (1 hour): - Lunch break

1:00-3:00 PM (2 hours): - Invoice creation: 25 - Copy & paste from Excel - Manual entry into invoice template - PDF and email to customers - Record sending in separate Excel

3:00-5:00 PM (2 hours): - Payment confirmation: 30 - Check payments on bank website - Manual reconciliation with invoices - Manual Excel entry of payment complete flag - Send reminder emails to unpaid customers

5:00-6:30 PM (1.5 hours): - Customer response: Phone/email - "Please tell me delivery status" - "Please resend invoice" - "Error in slip content"

6:30-7:30 PM (1 hour, overtime): - Process remaining work - Prepare for next day

Total: 9 hours (including 1 hour overtime)

Sasaki sighed deeply.

"Staff work from morning to night. But feel like doing 'wasteful work.' However, can't see what the waste is."

Chapter 2: The Illusion of Busyness—Moving But Not Progressing

"Mr. Sasaki, what 'value' do clerical staff's jobs provide to customers?"

To my question, Sasaki answered.

"Value? Let's see... Issuing accurate invoices, confirming payments, answering customer inquiries... I suppose?"

Current Recognition (Vague): - Job Value: "Accurate billing" "Payment confirmation" "Customer response" - Problem: Can't distinguish what's value and what's waste

I explained the importance of waste visualization.

"Busyness and value are separate. LEAN—Lean production method. Philosophy Toyota created to eliminate waste. See through 7 types of waste, leaving only valuable work. That's true efficiency."

⬜️ ChatGPT | Catalyst of Vision

"Don't boast of busyness. With LEAN, expose waste. Moving and progressing are different"

🟧 Claude | Alchemist of Stories

"Mountains of paperwork are mountains of waste. Leave only value streams, discard the rest"

🟦 Gemini | Compass of Reason

"LEAN is waste elimination technique. See through 7 wastes, create value streams"

The three members began analysis. Gemini developed the "LEAN's 7 Wastes" on the whiteboard.

LEAN's 7 Wastes: 1. Waste of Overproduction: Making more than necessary 2. Waste of Waiting: Waiting time 3. Waste of Transportation: Unnecessary movement 4. Waste of Processing: Excessive processing 5. Waste of Inventory: Excess inventory 6. Waste of Motion: Wasteful actions 7. Waste of Defects/Rework: Redoing

"Mr. Sasaki, let's diagnose TransLog's clerical work by LEAN's 7 wastes."

Chapter 3: Dissecting Waste—Of 9 Daily Hours, How Many Hours Are Value?

Phase 1: Field Observation (2 weeks)

Thoroughly observed clerical staff work for 2 weeks.

Observation Target: - All 12 clerical staff - Observed each person's work for 1 day - Recorded work content in 5-minute units

Phase 2: Discovery of 7 Wastes

Waste 1: Overproduction

Discovery Case: "Entering delivery slips into 3 different Excel files"

• File 1: Driver-specific delivery records
• File 2: Customer-specific delivery records
• File 3: Monthly summary delivery records

Entering same information 3 times

Waste Scale: - 1 slip entry: 5 min - Duplicate entry: 3 times → 15 min - Actually needed time: 5 min (once only) - Waste: 10 min/slip × 180 slips/day = 1,800 min/day (30 hours/day)

Waste 2: Waiting

Discovery Case: "Wait for driver handwritten slips to arrive before creating invoices"

• Drivers return in evening
• Submit slips at 5 PM
• But invoices created next morning
• Waiting time: About 16 hours (evening to next morning)

Waste Scale: - Invoice creation delayed 1 day - Customer billing delayed - Payment also delayed 1 week

Waste 3: Transportation

Discovery Case: "Printer on opposite side of office"

• Every invoice printout, walk 20m
• 25 round trips daily
• Travel distance: 1,000m/day × 12 staff = 12km/day

Waste 4: Processing (Overquality)

Discovery Case: "Print invoices and also create PDFs"

• 90% of customers prefer PDF receipt
• However, print paper invoices for all
• Printed paper simply filed (rarely reviewed)

Waste Scale: - Print time: 2 min/invoice × 25 invoices = 50 min/day - Print cost: ¥180K annually

Waste 5: Inventory

Discovery Case: "Storing 5 years of slips on paper"

• Storage space: Occupies 30% of office
• Reference frequency: About once yearly
• Legal retention period: 7 years (electronic storage allowed)

Waste 6: Motion

Discovery Case: "Repeatedly copy & paste from Excel to Excel"

• Delivery slip Excel → Invoice Excel
• Manual copy & paste
• 20 copies per invoice
• Copy-paste time: 3 min/invoice × 25 invoices = 75 min/day

Waste 7: Defects/Rework

Discovery Case: "Can't read driver handwriting, make confirmation calls"

• Handwriting styles hard to read
• Daily average 8 confirmation calls to drivers
• Confirmation time: 5 min/call × 8 calls = 40 min/day

Additionally: "Customer complaint: 'Invoice content wrong'"

• Manual entry errors: Monthly average 12
• Correction work: 30 min/case × 12 cases = 360 min/month

Phase 3: Quantifying Waste (1 week)

Converted 7 wastes to time.

Waste Time Daily (12 Clerical Staff Total):

Shocking Fact: 60% of clerical staff work hours were waste.

Sasaki was speechless.

"Working 9 hours daily, 5.4 hours is waste...? Valuable work is only 3.6 hours...?"

Chapter 4: Reconstructing Flow—Eliminate Waste, Leave Only Value

Phase 4: LEAN Improvement Measure Design (3 weeks)

Designed improvement measures to eliminate 7 wastes.

Improvement 1: Overproduction Waste → Data Integration

Before: - Enter same information in 3 different Excels

After: - Introduce integrated database (cloud) - 1 entry, automatic reflection in all forms - Investment: ¥30K monthly (12 users)

Effect: - Zero duplicate entry - Reduced time: 30 hours/day → 0 hours

Improvement 2: Waiting Waste → Real-time Entry

Before: - Drivers submit paper slips in evening - Clerical staff enter next day

After: - Distribute smartphone app to drivers - Enter on-site at delivery completion - Clerical staff can confirm in real-time - Investment: Smartphone app development ¥2M + monthly operation ¥50K

Effect: - Zero waiting - Invoice creation 1 day earlier → Payment 1 week earlier

Improvement 3: Transportation Waste → Layout Change

Before: - Printer 20m away

After: - Place printers within 3m of each desk - Investment: Printer relocation cost ¥100K

Effect: - Travel distance: 12km/day → 0.7km/day (94% reduction)

Improvement 4: Processing Waste → Eliminate Paper

Before: - Print invoices on paper + create PDF

After: - PDF invoices only (paper also possible per customer preference) - Ensure legal effect with digital signature

Effect: - Print time: 50 min/day → 5 min/day (90% reduction) - Print cost: ¥180K annually → ¥20K annually

Improvement 5: Inventory Waste → Electronic Storage

Before: - Store 5 years of slips on paper (30% of office)

After: - Scan all slips for electronic storage - Discard paper - Investment: Outsource scanning ¥500K

Effect: - Storage space: 30% → 0% (use office spaciously)

Improvement 6: Motion Waste → Automation

Before: - Manual copy-paste from Excel to Excel

After: - Automatic invoice generation from database - Zero copy-paste work

Effect: - Copy-paste time: 75 min/day → 0 min

Improvement 7: Defects/Rework Waste → Prevent Entry Errors

Before: - Driver handwriting → Can't read → Confirmation call

After: - Smartphone app entry → No handwriting - Address/item name are selection-based (prevent entry errors)

Effect: - Confirmation calls: 8 calls/day → 0 calls - Invoice errors: 12 cases/month → 1 case/month (92% reduction)

Phase 5: Implement Improvements (3 months)

Total Investment: - Smartphone app development: ¥2M - Cloud database: ¥30K monthly - Other (layout change etc.): ¥600K - Total: ¥2.6M + ¥80K monthly

Phase 6: Results After 3 Months

Dramatic Work Hour Reduction:

Before: - Total work hours: 108 hours/day (12 staff × 9 hours) - Of which waste: 65 hours (60%) - Overtime: 720 hours/month (12 staff × 60 hours)

After: - Total work hours: 62 hours/day (12 staff × 5.2 hours) - Of which waste: 5 hours (8%) - Overtime: 48 hours/month (12 staff × 4 hours, 92% reduction)

Clerical Staff Changes:

Staff A's Voice: "Before, I worked overtime daily. But I didn't understand why I was busy. Now, work is clear. Can spend time on valuable work called 'customer response'"

Staff B's Voice: "Duplicate entry eliminated, stress reduced. Entering same information 3 times was truly wasteful"

Business Results After 6 Months:

Customer Satisfaction Improvement: - Invoice issuance 1 day earlier → Customer payment processing smoother - Invoice errors 92% reduced → Complaints decreased - Phone/email response time increased → "More attentive than before"

Financial Effects: - Overtime cost reduction: ¥1.2M monthly (¥14.4M annually) - Payment cycle shortened: 1 week earlier → Cash flow improvement - Investment recovery period: 2.7 months

Organizational Change: - Clerical staff: 12 → 9 (natural attrition + reassignment) - Reassigned 3 to sales support - New customer acquisition: Annual +15 companies

Chapter 5: Detective's Diagnosis—Eyes That See Through Waste Change Organizations

That night, I contemplated LEAN's essence.

TransLog's clerical staff worked from morning to night. However, 60% of that work time was waste.

Duplicate entry, waiting time, unnecessary movement, excessive printing, manual copy-paste, confirmation calls, rework... 7 wastes stole their time.

However, by visualizing and eliminating waste with LEAN, work hours were reduced 43%. And the reduced time was directed toward valuable work called customer response.

"Busyness isn't virtue. Only work generating value has meaning. LEAN exposes waste and leaves value."

The next case will also depict the moment LEAN eliminates waste.

"Just moving, not progressing. With LEAN, expose the 7 wastes. Leave only value streams, discard the rest"—From the Detective's Notes

Related Files