Redesign of a Production Dashboard under Consideration of Lean and Performance Management Aspects - A case study

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this master thesis is to test the applicability of the dashboard development procedure by Vilarinho, Lopes and Sousa (2017) in the application case of a single case study for a redesign of a production dashboard. In doing so a practical new dashboard layout shall be reached, which considers the needs of all dashboard users.

Design/methodology/approach – This thesis was conducted in the form of a case study, which allows studying the phenomenon in a realistic setting. The thesis follows the dashboard development procedure as it is instructed. As part of the procedure, semi-structured interviews were conducted, according to Kaiser (2021), within the case company. Beforehand a literature review on dashboards and related topics such as performance, shop floor and visual management was performed to base the layout on the latest scientific knowledge.

Findings – The dashboard development procedure is applicable for SMEs independent of the industry. The strength is based on the intended leaving out of specifying exact measurements or solutions but instead, offering a comprehensible framework. The procedure is also suitable for a redesign process as the difference between a design from a scratch and a redesign is marginal. The thesis presents the suggested layout, realised in the case study. It was found that the most important guideline for practitioners designing a dashboard is the close consideration of the prerequisites and the culture of the company and the alignment with the company’s strategy.

Research limitations/implications – The research is limited by the execution as a single case study. Furthermore, the case study was only conducted with one department of the company and due to time limitations, the last step is not included. Nevertheless, the study confirms the suitability of the dashboard development procedure for another industry and enhances the model's validity by another case study. Still, the model needs more case studies to reach legitimate validity.

Originality/value – The thesis aims to enrich the model of Vilarinho, Lopes and Sousa by adding a further case study to enhance the validity of their work. It emphasises the importance of finding a customised solution, which meets the reality of the company.

Keywords – Dashboard Development Procedure – Dashboard – Continuous Improvement –
Performance Management – Shop Floor Management – Lean Management – Visual
management

Popular Abstract

The purpose of this master thesis is to test the applicability of the dashboard development procedure by Vilarinho, Lopes and Sousa (2017) in the application case of a single case study at Nolato MediTor AB for a redesign of a production dashboard. The thesis follows the dashboard development procedure as it is instructed. As part of the procedure, semi-structured interviews were conducted.


Dashboards are a common management tool, that often is applied in the context of the Lean Philosophy, as it combines different Lean approaches, such as performance, shop floor and visual management. The purpose of a dashboard is to display the most important information at glance. In the literature, the topic of Dashboards is only covered to a limited extent. For SMEs, the prerequisites to implement advanced dashboards are often not given. This thesis focuses on the question: How to approach a design/redesign process of a dashboard? Which aspects need to be considered to find a company-specific solution? How to decide the content of a dashboard? This aspect of the dashboard is barely covered in the literature, except for the paper “Developing dashboards for SMEs to improve performance of productive” by Vilarinho, Lopes and Sousa from the year 2017. The authors develop a procedure, which addresses the realities of SMEs and can be applied independently of the industry.

THE CASE STUDY
This thesis was conducted with the department Produktsystem of Nolato MediTor AB in Torekov, Sweden. The case study format allowed paying attention to the special surrounding and considering all relevant aspects, which are given in an organizational surrounding. Vilarinho, Lopes and Sousa designed a development procedure for dashboards (DDP), which is tailored for the application within SMEs and has a generalist approach. The procedure is based on the product development process by Pahl and Beitz from 2007, which is widely accepted in research and by practitioners. As Pahl and Beitz also Vilarinho, Lopes and Sousa take over the outline of four main steps. The steps are clear and follow a logical sequence of information acquisition over result structuring to develop an individual concept. The steps contain sub-steps to provide better guidance for practitioners, who want to apply the procedure. Still, some explanations are given but enough freedom is left to apply the model in a manner, which allows users to adapt to the characteristics of any organization. In this case study, most data was gained by semi-structured interviews and observations. The layout was designed under consideration of current knowledge of visual management. The academic contribution of enriching the methodology by another case is limited by the fixed time of the thesis. Following, only the first three steps could be conducted. The final step of the implementation and improvement will be the responsibility of the case company.

FINDINGS
The process of dashboard designing is important to achieve a sustainable dashboard, which presents meaningful content supporting a company’s strategy, culture and processes. The dashboard development procedure by Vilarinho, Lopes and Sousa offers a first attempt at closing the gap in designing dashboards. Throughout the application, all steps given by Vilarinho, Sousa and Lopes were perceived as intuitive and logical. The model gives a framework to consider all important factors of the development process. Under the given limitation of only performing steps one to three, it can be assumed that a satisfying solution can be developed with the DDP. The new design of the dashboards for Nolato MediTor AB takes the needs of all stakeholders into consideration and pays attention to aspects of visual management, lean management, and important principles of dashboards. To sustain the purposeful use of the dashboard a continuous follow-up of the contents and technical solution is required.

• author: Arnold, Constanze Elisabeth
• supervisor: Christina Windmark; Gavelin Patrik
• organization: Production and Materials Engineering
• course: MMTM05 20221
• year: 2022
• type: H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
• subject: Technology and Engineering
• keywords: Dashboard Development Procedure – Dashboard – Continuous Improvement – Performance Management – Shop Floor Management – Lean Management – Visual management
• report number: LUTMDN/(TMMV-5339)/1-48/2022
• language: English
• id: 9098239
• date added to LUP: 2022-08-25 16:05:38
• date last changed: 2022-08-25 16:05:38