Hanoi (VNA) - Experts from the Japan Productivity Centre and theVietnam National Productivity Institute have over the past two years supported12 companies in the north to improve their employee satisfaction and workplaceenvironment to increase productivity.

This is part of the project for “Improvement of employeesatisfaction and work environment”, funded by the Japan InternationalCooperation Agency (JICA) from May 2016 to April 2018.

The project, also known as the WISE Project, has helpedcompanies identify factors that hinder their productivity and develop solutionsto common industry problems.

Almost all the Vietnamese companies, especially small-scaleenterprises, are considered to be seriously lacking in practical consultingskills and human resources that could improve business and workers’ welfare.

Under the project, companies are instructed to apply the5S - a workplace organisation method that uses a list offive Japanese words: seiri, seiton, seiso, seiketsu, and shitsuke. Theirtranslations from Japanese are “sort”, “set in order”, “shine”, “standardise”and “sustain”, respectively.

The list describes how to organise a work space forefficiency and effectiveness by identifying and storing the items used,maintaining the area and items and sustaining the new order. Thedecision-making process usually comes from a dialogue on standardisation, whichbuilds an understanding among employees of how to work.

Do Van Dung, deputy director of Yamaguchi Vietnam, majorproducer of auxiliary mechanic, lab equipment and factory supplies, said beforejoining the WISE Project, the flow of product lines in the company was noteffective.

He said the company had no standard, no specific regulations,no training policy, no check-sheet for machine maintenance and no periodicmaintenance plan.

He also admitted that previously, communication to staff atthe company was not good.

But this changed with the WISE Project, Dung said.

The company restructured and redesigned the flow of products(for example, raw material, completed product, quality test) so that distancesbetween the stages of production were narrowed, helping save time and labour,and increasing connectivity.

Yamaguchi worker Ha Thi Linh said after learning about andpractising the 5S method, workers put office equipment in an orderly manner andthe work place became cleaner and brighter.

Tran Dinh Trung, a worker of ALS Cargo Terminal at AviationLogistic, another participant in the WISE Project, said there were visiblechanges after the project’s implementation. With a clean working environment,everything is easier to find, thanks to 5S, he said.

“For build-up work, I do not have to wait for a forklift orfor material as much as before. Jobs are assigned clearly. This has helpedincrease productivity,” Trung said.

Le Thi Thu Huong, Administrative and Human Resources Directorat ALS, said one of the causes of Vietnam’s low productivity was thatVietnamese workers carried out tasks quickly but not carefully and meticulously.

Other causes included unreasonable work organisation, lack offunding for updated technology and a training system relying heavily on theoryinstead of practical skills.

Once the problems were solved, productivity increased, whichalso led to better income for employees, Huong said, adding if the employeeswere satisfied with the working environment and income, they would be with thecompany for further growth.

Kobayashi Ryutaro, a senior representative of JICA Vietnam Office,said: “Improvement in the work environment and increasing labour satisfactionare very important for Vietnamese enterprises, which are facing limitations interms of capital, technology and human resources. I do believe that in nearfuture, Vietnamese enterprises will receive high-quality support andconsultation by ‘made-in-Vietnam’ experts.”-VNA