What goes in a kaizen event charter?

The problem with its data, the goal from what to what by when, the scope (start, end, in and out), the boundaries the team works within, three to five metrics with a baseline and a target, the team and their roles, and the signatures. EPA's Lean in Government Starter Kit lists the same parts.

Who signs a kaizen event charter, and when?

EPA's kit has the sponsor, the team leader and the facilitator sign before or at the start, and its checklist gathers the signatures 3 weeks before the event. This template adds the process owner, who has to live with the new method.

How long is a kaizen event, and how big is the team?

The Lean Lexicon describes a kaizen workshop as commonly lasting five days; EPA gives 2 to 5 days. EPA puts teams at typically 8 to 10 people and 15 at most. A narrow scope needs fewer.

How do I check that my metric targets make sense?

Each target should be better than its baseline in the right direction, and WIP, throughput and lead time should agree by Little's Law: lead time = WIP ÷ throughput. In the example, 60 cases ÷ 60 a day gives the 1-day lead time target. The Excel does both checks.

How is this different from a team charter or a DMAIC project charter?

A team charter sets up a standing team; a DMAIC project charter covers a Six Sigma project of several months. A kaizen event charter is for one event of a few days, so it adds the boundaries the team can act within that week and the event dates.

Free template

Updated October 9, 2026

Kaizen event charter template

A kaizen event charter is the agreement the sponsor and the team sign before a kaizen event starts. It says what problem the event fixes, the goal in numbers, where the process starts and stops, what the team may decide on its own, which metrics it will move from a measured baseline to a target, who is on the team, and who signs. The US EPA's Lean in Government Starter Kit lists the same parts and has the sponsor, team leader and facilitator sign before or at the start. This template is a 3-page PDF (blank charter, a filled-in example, how to write it) and an Excel workbook that works out each metric's change and the share of the gap closed at the report-out, checks the WIP and lead time targets against each other with Little's Law, flags a charter signed late or a team member who is not free for every day, and lists what is still missing.

Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.

Page 1 of the kaizen event charter template — Problem and goalScope in and outBoundaries and risksMetrics from baseline to targetLittle's Law checkTeam and rolesSign-offWorked example

Filled-in Kaizen event charter template: a five-day event to cut lead time on packing line 2 — The same sheet filled in with the worked example (page 2 of the PDF, illustrative numbers). Open full size (opens the picture in a new tab)

When to use it

When to write a kaizen event charter

Three to six weeks before a kaizen event, when the sponsor and the facilitator agree what it is for (EPA's kit holds the scoping meeting in that window).
Before you collect the baseline data, so everyone measures the same thing the same way.
When the event needs people, downtime or money from more than one department.
On day one to brief the team, and at the report-out to compare results with the targets.

How to fill it in

1
Write the problem with its data
What is wrong today and the numbers that show it, measured before the event. "Cases wait about 2 days in packing" is a problem; "packing is slow" is not.
2
Set the goal
From what to what, by when. One process and one goal: an event lasts days, not months.
3
Draw the scope
Where the process starts and ends, what is in and what is out. The out-of-scope list stops the argument on day three.
4
Agree the boundaries
How much the team may spend without asking, how long the line may stop each day, what it may change on its own, and what needs the sponsor. Add the risks and how you will handle them.
5
Fill in the metrics
Three to five measures, each with a unit, which way is better, a baseline and a target. The Excel checks each target is better than its baseline, and that the WIP and lead time targets fit together.
6
Name the team
People who do the work every day, plus support from maintenance, quality or engineering. Check each person is free for every day of the event and that their normal job is covered.
7
Sign it
Sponsor, process owner, team leader and facilitator sign before day one, and set the report-out and 30-day follow-up dates. At the report-out, fill in the results: the Excel shows the share of each gap closed.

Charter or preparation

What the charter covers, and what it leaves to the event plan

The charter is the agreement: what the event is for and its limits. Booking rooms, ordering materials and telling the shifts belong to the preparation plan, which works from the signed charter.

Part	In the charter	Why it matters
Problem and goal	The problem with its data, and the goal from what to what by when	A goal in numbers can be checked at the report-out
Scope	Start and end points, in scope and out of scope	Stops the event growing into a project
Boundaries	Spending limit, downtime allowed, what the team may change, what needs the sponsor	The team can act during the week without waiting for approvals
Metrics	Unit, direction, baseline, target, how measured, result	The baseline has to be measured before the event to prove the result
Team	Roles, days free, whether each person's job is covered	A member who leaves on day 2 takes the know-how with them
Sign-off	Sponsor, process owner, team leader, facilitator, with dates	Signing commits the people and the time

Problem and goal
In the charter
The problem with its data, and the goal from what to what by when
Why it matters
A goal in numbers can be checked at the report-out
Scope
In the charter
Start and end points, in scope and out of scope
Why it matters
Stops the event growing into a project
Boundaries
In the charter
Spending limit, downtime allowed, what the team may change, what needs the sponsor
Why it matters
The team can act during the week without waiting for approvals
Metrics
In the charter
Unit, direction, baseline, target, how measured, result
Why it matters
The baseline has to be measured before the event to prove the result
Team
In the charter
Roles, days free, whether each person's job is covered
Why it matters
A member who leaves on day 2 takes the know-how with them
Sign-off
In the charter
Sponsor, process owner, team leader, facilitator, with dates
Why it matters
Signing commits the people and the time

A filled-in example

Illustrative, not a benchmark

An example (illustrative): a five-day event to cut lead time through packing line 2, signed 21 days before the start. The Excel Example sheets hold the same numbers.

The example event's four measures at the report-out

Lead time: 2.0 to 1.2 days (target 1.0)80%partly met
Cases waiting: 120 to 70 (target 60)83%partly met
First pass yield: 94% to 97% (target 98%)75%partly met
Walking per pallet: 420 to 180 ft (target 200)target met

Little's Law: lead time = cases waiting ÷ cases a day

The check that the WIP and lead time targets agree.

Now =120 ÷ 60= 2.0 days
Target =60 ÷ 60= 1.0 day

Every measure had a number before and a target, so the report-out is not a matter of opinion: one target met, three partly met, with the open actions on the 30-day follow-up.

Baseline over the last 10 shifts: lead time 2.0 days, 120 cases waiting, first pass yield 94%, 420 feet of walking per pallet. Targets: 1.0 day, 60 cases, 98%, 200 feet.
Little's Law check: 120 cases ÷ 60 cases a day = 2.0 days now, and 60 ÷ 60 = 1.0 day at the target, so the WIP and lead time targets agree.
Boundaries: up to $2,000 without asking and 4 hours of packing downtime a day, so trials run on the second shift. The warehouse and the product specs are out of scope.
Team: 6 in the core team (supervisor as team leader, CI engineer, two packers, a forklift driver, a maintenance technician who can give 3 of the 5 days), plus the sponsor, the process owner and a part-time quality technician.

At the report-out: lead time 1.2 days (80% of the gap closed), 70 cases waiting (83%), first pass yield 97% (75%) and 180 feet of walking per pallet (target met). One target met, three partly met, with the open actions on the 30-day follow-up.

Common mistakes

A scope that is too big
"Improve the plant" is not an event. One process, one goal, one week.
No baseline before day one
Without a measured starting point, the results cannot be proved at the report-out. EPA's checklist collects baseline data 3 weeks before.
Targets that do not fit together
Halving WIP while throughput stays the same halves lead time too. If your targets say otherwise, an assumption is hiding: write it down.
No one on the team who does the work
The people who run the process know where the waste is and have to live with the new method.
Team members who are not free
Someone pulled back to the line on day 2 leaves a gap. Check the days and arrange cover before you sign.
An absent sponsor
The sponsor clears obstacles during the week and comes to the report-out. In Farris's research on 51 events, management support predicted three of the five outcomes studied.

In LeanSuite

Use this as a Lean Studio board

The same method is one of the 30 ready-made board templates in Lean Studio, LeanSuite's whiteboard: Kaizen Event Report, summarize a kaizen event: before and after states, measured results, and the actions.

Start from the Kaizen Event Report template once the charter is agreed: before, after, results and actions on one board.
Fill the before panel from the charter and the after panel on the last day, with a Column Graph widget for before-and-after numbers.
Move the actions to a Kaizen Action Tracker board and give each an owner and a date.

Worked example · sample data

The sample report closes a changeover event on press 2. Before: an average of 42 minutes, with the die pre-heated inside the press and tools fetched from the tool room part-way through. After: 29 minutes across 12 changeovers, with the die pre-heated off-line on a stand and a changeover cart carrying every tool. Results: 13 minutes saved per changeover, and with three changeovers a day, 39 minutes of press time back each day. Three follow-up actions carry the gain: a second pre-heat stand by 30 June (T. Nguyen), the updated standard by 14 June (M. Osei), and training for the night setter by 21 June (A. Kaur). The actions moved to the kaizen action tracker, and the 30-day check was booked for the week of 7 July.

Before

Changeover on press 2: 42 min average
Die pre-heated in the press
Tools fetched from the tool room mid-changeover

After

Changeover 29 min on 12 runs
Die pre-heated off-line on a stand
Changeover cart with every tool

Results

13 min saved per changeover
3 changeovers a day: 39 min of press time back

Actions

Second pre-heat stand · T. Nguyen · 30 Jun
Update the standard · M. Osei · 14 Jun
Train the night setter · A. Kaur · 21 Jun

Open this board in LeanSuite

Kaizen Event Report is one of the 30 ready-made boards in Lean Studio, LeanSuite's whiteboard. Try LeanSuite in your browser, or run it on your own lines for 90 days.

See it in action Start a 90-day pilot

What Lean Studio is

How to run a Kaizen Event Report session

1Fill the before panel from the charter before the event starts: the problem, the baseline numbers and a photo of the area.
2Update the board each day of the event so the team sees the story forming, and so the report is written by the end of the last day, not the week after.
3Measure the after state the same way the before was measured, on the last day, and put both numbers side by side.
4List every follow-up action with an owner and a date, then move them to a kaizen action tracker for the 30-day follow-up.
5Present the report at the board in ten minutes to the sponsor and the area, and check the result again at 30 days.

Common mistakes

Before numbers estimated after the event. Measure them before, or the result cannot be trusted.
A report full of activities and no measured result.
Follow-up actions with no dates, so the gain erodes within a month.
Writing the report a week later, when the details have gone.
Not training the other shifts. An event that changed the day shift changed a third of the line.

Where it goes next in LeanSuite

The event runs as a Kaizen project: projected and actual savings, hard and soft, are recorded against plant targets, every action has an owner and a due date, and Presentation mode turns the project into slides for the review. Kaizen & Projects
Training the night setter is a skill level on the skills matrix that rises when the trainer signs off on a tablet. Competency Management

Download the template

Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.

Run this template in LeanSuite

LeanSuite manages every improvement project, from a small Kaizen event to a full DMAIC project, in one visual hub and tracks each one through to results.

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Train the team

Free kaizen training presentation (PowerPoint)

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