What is Lean?
“What is Lean?” may seem a strange question to be asking 15 years after the approach gained recognition in manufacturing and began its progressive spread to other industries. But Lean has suffered from...
View ArticleAccountability or Chaos?
New clients nearly always list “greater accountability” on their short list of performance improvement goals. Leaders cite missed project deadlines, finger pointing, and “not my problem” behavior as...
View ArticleBlogging Away…
Earlier this week I learned that my blog posts weren’t being pushed to my subscribers as I thought they had. I was blogging away but no one knew. My apologies. The bug is now fixed. Unless you saw them...
View ArticleLean is Chaos Reduction
It’s been interesting to see what people have picked up on as I’ve been promoting my new book, The Outstanding Organization. My original title was Curing Chaos. My McGraw-Hill editor at the time vetoed...
View ArticleLean vs. Six Sigma Debate (Sadly) Rages On
As many of you know, I’m a passionate advocate of Lean management practices and the power of Lean in transforming organizations. So I grow weary when I hear people characterize Lean in a way that is...
View ArticleDeveloping People: The Bane of “Training”
I frequently receive calls from prospective clients who seek “training” of some sort. The requests include Lean overviews, problem-solving workshops, value stream mapping training, and the like....
View ArticleGood Reading
One of my New Year’s resolutions is to implement pull in as many places as I can. Early last year I implemented it quite successfully in my closet (no new clothes unless something goes). My new area of...
View ArticleIs Lean Dependent on Executive Support?
Unequivocally, YES. But…there’s more to the story. We don’t throw in the towel if we don’t have all of the preexisting conditions in place. Without the support of the senior most leader (which I’ll...
View ArticleWhen “Corporate” Gets in the Way
One of the things that pains me the most is when I hear people saying they can’t make improvement because “Corporate” won’t allow it or a policy stands in the way of common sense. I recently witnessed...
View ArticleEiji Toyoda: A Consummate Leader (1913-2013)
The world lost one of its brightest business leaders this week, Eiji Toyoda. Fortunately, he left behind a legacy of leadership philosophies and practices that will continue to inspire and challenge...
View ArticleThe Problem with Fuzzy Words
Those of you who’ve read my recent book, The Outstanding Organization, know that clarity, focus, discipline, and engagement are the four core behaviors required to achieve outstanding performance....
View ArticleLean Leadership: Listening & Humility
Reprinted with permission from Karith, Flickr The holiday season is my favorite time of year for two reasons: the holidays themselves and business planning. Proper business planning requires...
View ArticleWhy Value Stream Mapping? Why Now?
My latest book, co-authored with Mike Osterling, Value Stream Mapping, has just been released! Our official book launch is the week of January 6, 2014. This topic may seem a strange one, given that...
View ArticleDecision-Making Hierarchy
As many of you know, I’m a rabid fan of clarity (along with focus, discipline, and engagement, the foundational organizational behaviors that I address in The Outstanding Organization). In many...
View ArticleLeadership: What’s Love Got to Do With It?
In 2012, I spoke at the Lean HR Summit, which is one of the many excellent annual Summits delivered by Lean Frontiers. I had heard about David Veech‘s work (@DavidVeech) at Ohio State and was eager to...
View ArticleDeveloping People: The Bane of “Training”
I frequently receive calls from prospective clients who seek “training” of some sort. The requests include Lean overviews, problem-solving workshops, value stream mapping training, and the like....
View ArticleGood Reading
One of my New Year’s resolutions is to implement pull in as many places as I can. Early last year I implemented it quite successfully in my closet (no new clothes unless something goes). My new area of...
View ArticleIs Lean Dependent on Executive Support?
Unequivocally, YES. But…there’s more to the story. We don’t throw in the towel if we don’t have all of the preexisting conditions in place. Without the support of the senior most leader (which I’ll...
View ArticleWhen “Corporate” Gets in the Way
One of the things that pains me the most is when I hear people saying they can’t make improvement because “Corporate” won’t allow it or a policy stands in the way of common sense. I recently witnessed...
View ArticleEiji Toyoda: A Consummate Leader (1913-2013)
The world lost one of its brightest business leaders this week, Eiji Toyoda. Fortunately, he left behind a legacy of leadership philosophies and practices that will continue to inspire and challenge...
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