What is a Gemba Walk checklist?

A Gemba Walk checklist template is used by executives or managers when they take a tour of the work area. The main objective of a Gemba Walk is to identify problem areas in the business process and to find a solution to improve them. The method can be used to monitor one or more processes as required (e.g. customer service, costs, safety, productivity, workspace efficiency, etc.).

A Gemba Walk is an easy walk on the spot. Employees are interviewed about their tasks and observed as they are performed in order to identify potential productivity improvements. The term comes from the Japanese word "Gemba" or "Gembutsu", which means "the real place". All necessary data is collected with a Gemba-Walk questionnaire, which can also be designed as a checklist. This way nothing is forgotten and all information from conversations with employees and observations is safely documented.

This article deals with the topics:

1. The 3 elements of an effective Gemba Walk checklist

2. The 3 main questions of a Gemba Walk checklist

3. Modern technology for the Gemba Walk checklist

The 3 Elements of an Effective Gemba Walk checklist

Each Gemba Walk questionnaire follows three basic elements:

1. Look around

Go around the workplace and observe whether the processes are and whether they lead to the desired results.

2. Question why

Identify and solve challenges through active communication. You can also use techniques like the 5-Why method.

3. Show respect

Work with employees to understand the challenges of work. Determine how they can be tackled together. A Gemba Walk checklist does not focus on employee performance but on challenges.

These 3 questions belong in every Gemba Walk checklist

A Gemba Walk checklist template consists of a series of questions. There are three "magic" main questions that should be found in each template and from which further questions are derived.

1. question: What should happen?

This question concerns the standard process, which is documented, for example, with a work instruction or operating manual:

1. What should the process be?
2. Where is the process documented?
3. What are the rules?

2. question: what really happens?

This question deals with the systematic recording of problems. This can be divided into the following sub-questions to get to the core of the problem:

1. What exactly happened?
2. Where did the problem occur?
3. When did the incident occur?
4. Who was involved? Who discovered the problem?
5. What effects has the problem had?
6. Maybe make a sketch or take a photo to illustrate the problem.

3. Question: Explain!

The third question is rather an invitation: the parties involved in the process explain how, from their point of view, the problem or disturbance occurred. This explanation is recorded in writing. It is important to get to the real cause during the conversation.

Use digital technology for your Gemba Walk checklist

To fill out a Gemba Walk checklist template on site with pen and paper can be a challenge. Documenting all data in writing and then transferring it to a computer is a repetitive process and time consuming.

With Lumiform's mobile app, you can easily conduct tours with your Gemba Walk checklist, report problems in no time at all and quickly assign corrective actions to responsible colleagues. Easy communication with all team members and management allows you to improve internal processes and resolve incidents up to four times faster. Take advantage of Lumiform for your Gemba Walk:

• Digitize checklists and internal processes: The flexible form construction kit helps you convert any individual paper list into digital checklists within minutes.


• Generate real-time data via internal processes. This makes quality and security measurable and you can use the data to continuously optimize processes.


• Get an overview of everything that's going on on site.


• Reports are created automatically - this saves the complete postprocessing.


• Increase the efficiency of your internal processes: By communicating more efficiently within the team, with third parties and with management, and by reporting incidents faster, you can resolve incidents up to 4x faster than before.