Implementing hoshin kanri with software

Amplon interactive X matrix software providing a clear and easy-to-understand visualization of the X matrix

Why hoshin kanri software - we already have Excel

Hoshin Kanri provides a powerful methodology for strategic planning and management, helping organizations align their objectives with their vision and mission while ensuring all employees work toward those objectives. Implementing Hoshin Kanri software can kickstart or enhance an organization’s Hoshin Kanri processes and improve transparency.

Many organizations use Excel or similar office tools to document Hoshin Kanri materials, but these solutions often have limitations that can hinder successful implementation. Hoshin Kanri is about sharing information across the organization to increase engagement, aligning everyone toward common objectives, and creating an efficient, harmonized management process.

Critical handicaps of office software (e.g. Excel) in hoshin kanri

  1. Storing documents in SharePoint may seem simple, but managing documents and version control long-term is challenging in larger organizations. Sharing documents openly with many employees requires significant effort for access control and may result in needing separate PDF versions.
  2. Alignment, or catchball, often happens manually by comparing documents side-by-side, making horizontal alignment with support functions difficult. Managing projects that overlap many departments often requires separate software.
  3. Manual data updates for daily, weekly, and monthly management can become overwhelming.
  4. Organizations often underestimate training needs. Standard office software requires the development of organization-specific templates and training for all employees.

Why hoshin kanri software

1. Transparency across the organization

Amplon’s Hoshin Kanri software, offers access rights, enabling users to view or edit materials as needed. The X matrix visualizes each department’s strategies, increasing transparency and engagement by providing viewing rights to many employees

Users don’t need to worry about data storage, as all changes are saved to the database automatically. Those with editor rights can update materials and progress frequently, ensuring KPIs and project progress are always up-to-date, and employees stay fully aware of the situation.

Amplon's customer ABB Logo

We’ve been using the Amplon X-matrix tool for our 500-person organization over the past two years. It has significantly enhanced clarity. Now, we have an easily accessible clear view for everyone of our long-term goals, annual objectives, and development topics both at the organizational level and within each activity.

While we’ve only scratched the surface of its functionality and potential, the tool’s intuitive interface, speed, and ease of use have been impressive. One of its standout features is the natural periodic check-ins it encourages, prompting our management team to engage in thorough discussions regularly.

Moreover, the Amplon team’s responsiveness and support have been outstanding. Overall, Amplon X-matrix has been an invaluable asset for our organization.

Ari Hyvärinen

ABB Drives Oy

2. Quick alignment

A primary benefit of Amplon is that it helps organizations quickly align efforts across departments and levels, eliminating the need to compare Excel files manually.

Management can easily monitor alignment progress, fostering collaboration and improving communication and teamwork throughout the organization.

Benefits of Hoshin Kanri software, showcasing the ability to visually compare multiple X matrices side-by-side for improved and faster alignment.
Data from the X matrix is visualized clearly side-by-side.

Additionally, Hoshin Kanri software can foster collaboration across departments and levels of the organization. This helps employee engagement with the organization goal, including among multiple teams, ensuring that everyone is working towards the same objectives enhancing the probability of successful deployment of agreed strategies.

3. Real-time dashboard for instant overview

As business grows, organizations need agility in executing strategic projects. Agility means continuously updating the strategic project portfolio and tracking progress, which integrated project portfolio management in Amplon simplifies. The software also streamlines daily, weekly, and monthly management by making updates immediately available to everyone. This improves the management process’s maturity quickly.

Another key benefit of Amplon’s Hoshin Kanri software is providing real-time data and analytics on resource allocation and risk management. This helps organizations make informed decisions, operating more efficiently and ensuring the effective use of their resources.

4. Implementation

Implementing the Hoshin Kanri method can be time-consuming if an organization’s is new to the methodology or if setting tangible, measurable objectives is new. Amplon’s AI-assisted coach helps managers increase the quality of strategic objectives faster, reducing implementation time by up to 50%. Implementing Hoshin Kanri software can be a straightforward process, with modern SaaS and cloud-based solutions taking just a few hours to set up.

Off-the-shelf Hoshin Kanri software offers instant access to proven templates, improving data quality immediately. Amplon’s focus on usability allows users to work efficiently with the X matrix, free from the limitations of Excel. One CEO said, “It took me less than an hour to formulate a group strategy in Amplon.” The software’s intuitive design helps users focus on strategy content, not software functionality.

Customer case

Watch the podcast video by Vaasa University researcher Ausrine Silenskyte to hear Foamit Group experience implementing Hoshin Kanri with Amplon.

Play Video about Amplon is hoshin kanri software that contains a digital X matrix for strategy visualization.

Amplon is hoshin kanri software

Amplon applies Hoshin Kanri principles to engage all employees and visualizes strategy through a digitalized X matrix.

With Amplon, companies can design bottom-up strategies and adapt the software to their culture and processes. Amplon makes it easy to share common development projects and activities, ensuring focus throughout the organization.

Real-time strategy monitoring through dashboards enables immediate responses to deviations. Its ease of use lets teams focus on strategy, not on navigating software features.

Kickstart your hoshin kanri journey with Amplon or take your existing hoshin kanri process to a next level

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What if your organization were perfectly aligned to execute its strategy? Amplon makes the alignment easy.