Local supply chain consultancy Bridge-Building (BB) OpEx Solutions and Kaizen Institute South Africa have joined forces to create a powerful new partnership. By combining their complementary skill sets, the two businesses can offer client companies a wider range of results-driven, process simplification and operational excellence solutions, particularly in the area of supply chain optimisation.

“It’s a win-win, not only for us both, but also for existing and potential clients,” says Mbuso Nkosi, MD of Kaizen Institute SA.

BBOpEx, headed by experienced supply chain professional Glenda Maitin, primarily specialises in improving overall business efficiencies by engaging people, and aligning systems into processes that deliver a continuous stream of value to clients.  All eliminating waste and inefficiencies in the process.

Complementary skillset

The business’s operational excellence model is structured in such a way that an integrated business execution system can be implemented.  This system effectively and seamlessly enables strategy deployment, performance management, process excellence and high-performance work teams.

Although BB Opex Solutions has a wide variety of clients, it offers key expertise in leading supply chain and operational improvement programs as well as providing project management services.

On the other hand, KAIZEN™’s methodology provides a framework that utilises continuous improvement (CI), which is applied to critical processes considered integral to the goals of the client’s business.

The company has a long history going back three decades to the publication of Masaaki Imai’s “KAIZEN™: The Key to Japan’s Competitive Success (McGraw Hill 1986).”  Since then, the word KAIZEN™ has become an everyday term used in personal, business and government circles across the globe.

In 2018, South African consulting firm SMB Connexion was appointed official representative for the Kaizen Institute in the SADC region and Kaizen Institute South Africa was born.

Real-time results

Glenda explains BBOpEx’s methodology: “We help clients achieve real-time results while learning during the process.  This empowers them to become pioneers of change in their respective industries.

“The partnership is a win-win for two broad reasons,” Nkosi says.

“Firstly in terms of specific focus areas in clients’ businesses, we have clear differentiated offerings.  Combining these skillsets adds significant synergies.  

Secondly, the two businesses tend to be niched in different market segments - Kaizen Institute SA is particularly strong in the minerals processing sector, while BBOpEx has an excellent footprint in themanufacturing and logistics sector.  In this way, we can each leverage off the other’s skills and customer base.”

It has been repeatedly said that, in the 21st century, one of the keys to success in virtually all fields, and particularly in business, is partnerships.

And this is what Mbuso Nkosi and Glenda Maitin, together with their respective companies, are seeking to do.