The old way
The spreadsheet chaos
Good ideas get lost in spreadsheets and suggestion boxes. Nobody hears back, so people stop sharing.
Idea Management: Turn employee ideas into real improvements
Idea management software is a digital suggestion system: frontline teams submit ideas from a phone or shared tablet, reviewers answer every one, and the best become Kaizen projects.
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TRUSTED BY INNOVATIVE LEADERS
THE OLD WAY VS. THE LEANSUITE WAY
Is your suggestion box a black hole?
The LeanSuite way
The LeanSuite solution
Every idea is submitted, reviewed and answered in one place, and people can see what happened to theirs.
IDEA LIFECYCLE
Idea management that closes the loop
Every idea is captured, evaluated, then implemented. Nothing sits in a box unanswered.
Step 1: Capture Ideas
Let anyone submit an idea from the shop floor
Operators type or speak an idea on the mobile app, add a photo, and earn points. Lean AI can fix the wording, suggest a title or describe the photo.
Step 2: Evaluate and Prioritize
Assess and approve improvement ideas
Each idea goes to the right reviewer, who approves it, approves it with feedback, rejects it with a reason, or marks it as not a suggestion. Reviewers can add an approver or @mention a colleague for a quick opinion.
Step 3: Assign & Launch Improvement Project
Turn approved ideas into projects
Add an implementor and mark the idea complete, or initiate a Kaizen project from it, with the link to the original idea kept.
BUILT FOR THE SHOP FLOOR
Easy to submit, easy to read
No desk or company email needed.
Speak instead of typing
Operators can speak an idea into the mobile app instead of typing it.
- See how it works about QR codes and employee-ID sign-in
QR codes and employee-ID sign-in
Post a QR code to the idea form. Operators sign in with an employee ID, and a shared kiosk login can submit for someone else.
- See how it works about One-click translation
One-click translation
Reviewers can translate any idea into their own language with one click.
Waste hunts
Log each opportunity by type of waste and size, then approve the best into projects.
FOR EVERY DEPARTMENT
One idea program across safety, quality and HR
Each team acts on the ideas that serve its goals.
- Learn More about For safety teams
For safety teams
Collect hazard and near-miss ideas and fix risks before anyone gets hurt.
- Learn More about For quality teams
For quality teams
Capture ideas where defects start and lower the Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ).
- Learn More about For HR teams
For HR teams
Give everyone a voice and recognize top contributors.
ENGAGEMENT TOOLS
Keep people sharing ideas
Campaigns, points, a leaderboard and prizes keep people taking part.
Launch focused campaigns
Run a campaign on one problem, with dates and a points multiplier, to focus the floor where it matters.
Award points for every action
Set points per stage and role: for submitting, for approval and for the savings once implemented.
Gamify with a live leaderboard
A monthly leaderboard recognizes the people whose ideas are submitted and implemented.
Build a custom prize catalogue
Employees redeem points for prizes you choose. Admins set stock levels and approve each redemption.
flexibility and control
Start simple, add rigor as you grow
Start with a two-field form and add detail as your program matures. Admins choose which fields show and which are required.
Each idea opens in a side window with its labels, priority, approvers and implementors, attachments and linked documents, and an activity log of comments and changes.
LEAN AI
Let Lean AI sort the submissions
Lean AI reads each submission, so reviewers spend less time sorting and more time answering.
Automate triage
Group similar ideas automatically
Lean AI groups similar ideas and shows how alike they are, so related suggestions are reviewed together.
Get instant AI predictions
Real-Time Reporting
See what your idea program delivers
Built-in reports show the idea pipeline and what it is worth:
Employee participation rate
Total savings from implemented ideas
Average time to implement an idea
Ideas submitted by department
Ideas waiting for feedback, by manager
Submission and evaluation rates
FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Idea management software collects employee suggestions, routes each one to a reviewer and tracks it until the employee gets an answer, and through to a project if it is approved. In lean plants this is called a suggestion system or kaizen teian.
For a large team, yes. A box depends on one person reading every slip, so ideas wait and people stop submitting. Software sends each idea to the right reviewer, reminds them, and shows the employee the answer.
Employees submit ideas from the app or a shared tablet, open the form from a QR code, sign in with an employee ID and can speak their idea instead of typing it. A reviewer approves, rejects with feedback or marks each one as not a suggestion. Approved ideas are completed or become a Kaizen or A3 project in a few clicks, linked to the original idea.
Yes. Ideas are routed to reviewers by role, for example safety ideas to the EHS manager. Reviewers can add an approver or @mention a colleague for a quick opinion.
Yes. Lean AI groups similar ideas and predicts whether each submission is an idea or a complaint, its priority and its next step. It also fixes wording, suggests titles and translates ideas.
Points, campaigns with multipliers, a monthly leaderboard and a prize catalogue, where points come off when an admin approves a prize. Most of all, people see every idea answered.
Each idea can get a prioritization score from its reach, impact, confidence and ease, and admins can change the formula to match your goals.
Yes. Teams of 25 or fewer can use the Idea Management System free on the Starter plan at starter.theleansuite.com. Larger sites move to the facility plan: one flat price per facility with unlimited users.
FREE RESOURCES
Free templates and posters
Not ready for software yet? Start with these free resources.
- Idea suggestion formA one-page idea form with the supervisor's answer and points, and an idea log that tracks days to answer.
- Just Do It (JDI) card templateSix Just Do It cards per sheet for quick fixes, with the rules for what counts and a log of every card.
- Quick kaizen templateOne page for a small improvement: before and after, the cause, the countermeasure, the results and whether the standard changed.
- Waste walk checklist (TIMWOODS)32 things to look for across the eight wastes, with where and how much, and a findings log with dot votes, owners and dates.
- Employee recognition program templateDesign a recognition program on one page, then run it: points per action, prizes, budget, a points ledger, a monthly leaderboard and a fairness check by team and shift.
- Daily kaizen routine boardA team's 10 to 15 minute daily routine at the board: one problem from each person, small fixes with one owner, counted every week.
- Kaizen principles posterSix principles of continuous improvement and four steps to a first improvement.
Ready to act on the best ideas from your shop floor?
See how LeanSuite helps you build a culture of improvement and turn employee suggestions into finished projects.