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Why LeanSuite

Why LeanSuite instead of spreadsheets, homegrown tools or a big suite

Short answer

LeanSuite is one place to run improvement projects, audits, daily issues, skills and KPIs in a plant, and it runs any method (DMAIC, PDCA, A3, 8D or your own) and any project type. Spreadsheets and paper work for one team, a tool built in-house depends on the person who built it, and an ERP or MES covers orders, inventory and machines, not the improvement work around them. You can test LeanSuite on your own lines first: we set it up, and you decide at day 90.

Start a 90-day pilotCompare the options

What makes LeanSuite different

These are the points that decide it for most plants. Each one links to the page that shows it.

  • Any method, including your own

    Run DMAIC, PDCA, A3, 8D or your company's own method in the same system. The built-in A3, DMAIC and PDCA templates can be adjusted to fit your process, and each project type gets its own workflow.

    Continuous improvement software

  • Any type of project, not only kaizen

    One visual hub runs a small kaizen event, a full DMAIC project, an engineering or capital-expenditure project, or a project outside manufacturing, each through the workflow built for its type.

    One hub for every project

  • Engineering and CapEx projects through stage-gates

    Engineering and CapEx projects run through the same four stage-gates (Ideation, Feasibility, Execution and Closure), with a checklist for each stage and an auditable trail for every deliverable and approval.

    Stage-gates for engineering and CapEx

  • Improvement next to the daily work

    Issues, audits, tiered meetings, skills and training sit in the same platform. A failed audit question can become a new kaizen, and when you launch a kaizen or engineering project you see who has the skills it needs.

    How the modules connect

  • Built for the people on the floor

    Web, iOS and Android apps. Operators sign in with an employee ID, so no company email is needed, and pricing is per facility with unlimited users.

    The connected worker platform

  • A 90-day pilot at a published price

    $3,000 per facility for 90 days, with the first module live in under a week. Pricing is per facility with unlimited users.

    The pilot

From strategy to the floor

A yearly plan only works if it reaches the shift. The loop looks like this: the company's goals, the tier boards each level meets at, the daily issues raised there, the kaizen that fixes their causes, and the results that feed next year's goals.

In LeanSuite you can attach a KPI to an objective on the X-matrix, tag a kaizen project to a goal and start an A3 directly from a red KPI. The boards update live from KPI values, each level can have its own linked matrix, and there is one screen for an executive review. The other parts each have a page of their own: hoshin kanri for the goals, tiered meetings for the boards, daily issue management for the issues, kaizen and projects for the improvement work and KPI dashboards for the results.

Spreadsheets, homegrown tools, big suites and LeanSuite

Each option fits some plants. The table says when, and each comparison page goes through the detail with its sources.

When each option fits, and when LeanSuite is the better fit
OptionIt fits whenLeanSuite is the better fit whenThe detail
Spreadsheets and paperOne team or area, one person owns the file and everyone can see the board.There is more than one copy of the tracker, actions have no owner, operators cannot reach the file, or the weekly report is built by hand.LeanSuite vs spreadsheets and paper
Access, SharePoint lists or Power Apps built in-houseA development team, not one person, will own the tool for years, and the scope is small and stable.One person built it and maintains it, changes wait in their queue, operators cannot use it on the floor, or a second shift or plant wants it.LeanSuite vs homegrown software and LeanSuite vs Power Apps
A big suite (ERP, MES or an enterprise platform)You need orders, inventory, machine data or finance in the same system.The work is people and process: kaizen, audits, daily issues, skills and ideas. LeanSuite does not run orders, inventory or finance and works alongside those systems.How LeanSuite compares
Another lean or CI toolIts strengths match your biggest need. Each comparison lists where that tool fits, from public vendor information.You want any method and any project type, the shop-floor tools next to improvement work, and one flat price per facility.Best continuous improvement software

When a spreadsheet is still the right answer

We would rather you stay on a good paper process than buy a tool you will not use. Stay where you are if:

  • You have one area or a small team, one person owns the file and everyone can see the board.
  • You are still working out what to track. A sheet is faster to change than any software.
  • Nobody outside the room needs the numbers: there is no roll-up across shifts or sites, and no auditor asking for evidence.

The free templates cover most of what a small team needs. When the copies multiply and the actions go stale, that is the time to look again.

Try it on your own lines first

The 90-day pilot costs $3,000 per facility. Our team sets it up and trains your core team, your first module is live in under a week, and at day 90 you decide with your own results.

  • $3,000

    per facility for the 90-day pilot

  • Under a week

    to your first live module

  • Day 90

    you decide, with your own results

The fee covers the pilot and is separate from the annual plan, which is one flat price per facility with unlimited users. Vision AI is priced separately and is not part of the pilot. See pricing.

How to decide for your plant

Six checks you can run this week, whichever way you are leaning.

  • Count the copies

    How many versions of each tracker exist, and does anyone know which one is current?

  • Follow one action

    Take one audit finding and find out how long it stayed open and who chased it.

  • Ask who changes it

    When the process changes, who edits the tool, and how long does that take?

  • Check the floor

    Can an operator without a PC or a company email use it on their shift?

  • Check the methods

    Does it run the method you actually use, including your own, and the project types you run, such as CapEx?

  • Test it on real work

    Run one process for 90 days and compare audit completion, action close times or ideas answered with where you started.

The CI software evaluation scorecard turns these into a score you can compare across tools.

Angad Singh, Co-Founder of LeanSuite

From our co-founder

“I didn't build a software company because I love code. I built it because I hate waste.”
Angad Singh, Co-Founder, LeanSuite

What happens after you say yes

  • Onboarding

    Our team sets LeanSuite up, trains your core team online and checks in every two weeks.

    What the first days look like

  • Moving from spreadsheets and paper

    Upload your own checklist, bulk upload your people and connect the files your KPIs come from.

    How the move works

  • Support and service levels

    99.5% monthly uptime, a help desk 24 hours a day, 5 days a week, and response times by priority.

    The service terms

  • Implementation

    The five steps from assessing your needs to expanding one module at a time.

    How implementation works

Keep reading

FREE RESOURCES

Free templates and tools

Not ready for software yet? Start with these free resources.

Key terms

Lean glossary

FAQ

Questions buyers ask when they compare

  1. Spreadsheets work for one team and one owner. They stop working when several shifts or sites keep their own copies, nothing reminds owners of due dates and reports are built by hand. LeanSuite gives operators a phone app, routes findings to an owner with a due date and shows results on dashboards, and you can test it on your own lines in a 90-day pilot.

  2. Yes, and it can work when a development team will own the tool for years. The risk is one person who builds and maintains it: every change waits in their queue and nobody else can change it after they leave. LeanSuite is a finished set of modules that its own team maintains and releases updates for.

  3. No. LeanSuite doesn't run production orders, inventory or finance, and it works alongside those systems. It manages people and process work such as kaizen events, audits, skills matrices and employee suggestions.

  4. Any method. A3, DMAIC, PDCA, PDSA and just-do-it come ready to use, and you can define your own, such as 8D or a company method, with its own phases. Quality, safety, engineering, CapEx and non-manufacturing projects each get their own workflow.

  5. The 90-day pilot costs $3,000 per facility. Our team sets it up, your first module is live in under a week, and at day 90 you decide with your own results. Idea management is free for teams of 25 and under on the Starter plan.

  6. No. Vision AI is priced separately and isn't part of the facility plan or the pilot. Ask about it when you request pricing.

  7. You decide whether to move to the annual plan, based on what the pilot showed on your lines. The annual plan is one flat price per facility with unlimited users, quoted on request. You can export any module to Excel at any time.

See it on your own problem

Bring the process that hurts most. We will show you how LeanSuite handles it, or you can start a pilot and set it up with our team.

Schedule DemoStart a 90-day pilot