Letter from the Editor

June 2009

Trends debuted as a quarterly magazine in July 1998 with the goal of telling the story behind the numbers in Minnesota’s economy.

The publication turned out to be a pretty good idea that has attracted a loyal following over the years. Trends has never strayed from its mission of analyzing Minnesota’s labor market, industries and economy.

As for coming out on a quarterly basis, well, let’s say the magazine’s record has been a little spottier in that regard.

So, it was with a bit of trepidation that six of us who regularly work on Trends gathered in a meeting room at DEED in February for a weeklong Kaizen event designed to put the magazine on a more reliable schedule. What is Kaizen, you ask? Believe me, some of us were wondering the same thing.

Kaizen, it turns out, is a lean work process that has been used in the auto industry and other manufacturing settings for years to improve efficiency and eliminate waste. But can the same concept work in state government? That was the thinking when Kaizen began in January 2008 as a part of the governor’s Drive to Excellence program.

Since then, more than 50 Kaizen events have been held to streamline various state government activities, from hiring people to issuing contracts. The goal of the Trends event was to figure out a way to put out the magazine on a consistent three-month schedule, despite competing work demands and deadlines.

We spent four days talking, planning and plotting. We asked what if and why not, and what works and what doesn’t. We even took time for some fun, learning how to draw pigs, evaluate our personality types and write haiku.

By the end of the week, using enough Post-it Notes to keep 3M profitable for years, we had analyzed every step that goes into creating Trends and made recommendations for improvements. Those ideas included eliminating unnecessary steps, developing a strict editorial and production schedule, setting aside dedicated time for working on the magazine and bringing graphics people into the process earlier.

Were we successful? I’m generally cautious about making predictions, but we published this issue right on schedule and are already working on the next one. I learned how to write a pretty good haiku, too.

Monte Hanson
Editor