The Seven Minute Miracle vol.2

I reported on the Shinkansen cleaning services previously, but today, I want to go into more detail.  I discovered the secret behind Japanese business’ “omotenashi” and “kaizen”

The “Seven Minute Miracle” refers to the Shinkansen cleaning service, which, in a very limited time, completes cleaning services efficiently and effectively. Herein lies the foundation of Japanese business!

1. Words of gratitude when throwing away trash
When I got off the train, a cleaning employee was standing at the doorway with a garbage bag.  As I put trash into the bag, she thanked     me.  I asked why she thanked me: “rather than leaving behind garbage in the train car, you helped me do my job by bringing the garbage     to me.” 

2. Customer service beyond cleaning, within limited time
I watched a cleaning employee helping a lost customer.  His cleaning time is so limited (7 minutes!) and yet, he spent several precious minutes helping someone else.

3. Use of different cloth for different places
I got the opportunity to watch the cleaning process.  I noticed she used a different cloth for windows and for the tables… the type of dirt on each is different, so specific cloths have to be used for each surface.

4. Thoroughness in cleaning

He cleaned the floor so thoroughly as not to leave a single speck of dirt or grime.  Even the carpet areas that were hard to reach, not visible, or under the seats were all cleaned with a handy vacuum cleaner.

5. Attention to detail for each seat
He checked each and every seat rest – if there was a tiny wrinkle in the seat cloth, it would be replaced with a brand new one.  Even the magazines in each chair were adjusted to the same position!

6. Kaizen with communication
With all this detail, you’d think there were cleaning manuals!  But as it turns out… “The manual has only basic things… the rest is really up to communication within the team to address how to best make our customers happy.  The kaizen (improvement) is really up to each one of us!”

Cleaning seems like such a simple task, but in fact, the employees all work together to improve upon this “Omotenashi” service… wow! Next time, we’ll discuss the origins of this Japanese service!