Lexicon Term

Change Agent

The leader of a lean conversion who has the willpower and drive to initiate fundamental change and make it stick. The change agent—who often comes…

eBook

The Work of Management

Jim Lancaster tells an inspiring and practical business story in his new book, The Work of Management. It’s a close-up, candid look at Lancaster’s personal…

by Jim Lancaster

Article

Change Your “Pet” Problem Solving Method

Got problems with your problem-solving method? This interview by LEI's Chet Marchwinski with Four Types of Problems author Art Smalley shares advice on how you…

by Art Smalley

Article

Ask Art: People are Nervous about Too Much Change, Can I Lead Lean Incrementally?

Resistance to change is a classic part of lean transformation, and it's not uncommon to see efforts to skirt around that resistance. Art Byrne was…

by Art Byrne

Podcast

26. On the Job: A conversation with Dr. Lynn Kelley about sustaining change at Union Pacific

Dr. Lynn Kelley was hired by Union Pacific to lead the introduction of the “UP Way” company-wide. The UP Way at that time consisted of…

by Lean Enterprise Institute

News

200,000 Preventable Deaths: It’s Time for Fundamental Change

The news reports that an estimated 200,000 people will die from preventable medical mistakes this year is a sad and telling statement on the abundant…

Article

From Port to Plate: How Legal Sea Foods Is Improving Through Lean

Legal Sea Foods is working with LEI to help launch a movement to change everything about the way traditional restaurants work. Legal, a family business…

by Lean Leaper

Article

What Experience Tells Me About How Change Happens

Dave LaHote reflects on his earliest experiences learning lean thinking and practice. "We all became increasingly better at making improvements and solving problems using simple,…

by Dave LaHote

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changer_in_strange_land

Article

Your Value Stream Map Looks a Little Different...

If you think there’s a different way of applying a tool, ask, “Are we changing the tool to prevent us from changing the organization, or…

by Aaron Hunt

Article

Getting to Sustainability

Sustaining gains from kaizen thinking is one of the hardest, and certainly most misunderstood, aspects of this work. It’s misunderstood because the actual change takes…

by Ernie Richardson and Tracey Richardson

Article

Kaizen Power

In his latest piece for the Post, Michael Ballé explains why "humble 100x1% is better than 1x100% kaizen." This kind of kaizen impacts the bottom…

by Michael Ballé

Article

How can I tell if people “get” lean thinking; what signs should I look for?

Dear Gemba Coach: I’ve been training teams to do lean, intensively at first, and with paced-out coaching later. How do I know if they “get…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Growing from a Tactical Practitioner to a Strategic Thinker

One helpful way to move from being a tactical leader to a strategic one is to suggest that a better alternative exists and put people…

by Andrew Quibell

Article

Are You Training People to Think or to Follow a Checklist?

"Without attention to why continuous improvement is important, the purpose behind [PDCA], when tools should be used, and when to apply ideas," Erin Urban writes,…

by Erin Urban

Article

The Truth Lies in the Lies of Fiction

Twenty years ago, while flying to a final vacation before the onset of children, I found myself reading Eli Goldratt's The Goal. It was a great…

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Case Study

Lean + Circular Principals = a New True North for Manufacturer

SunPower's lean journey resembled most others until it defined a new mission, a new True North. The mission statement changed from the business-like “install 10…

by Doug Bartholomew

Video

Ask Art: What is the Walk of Shame, and Why Is It Effective?

Take your team on a walk of shame, urges lean veteran Art Byrne. He suggests that you have some fun with it, but ask serious…

by Art Byrne

Case Study

For Athletic Shoe Company, the Soul of Lean Management Is Problem Solving

When it began a lean transformation in 2003, New Balance, the only athletic shoe manufacturer that still makes some products in the U.S., focused on…

by Chet Marchwinski

Article

How Lean Changes You as a Leader

Few business leaders in the world have applied lean strategy as successfully as has Art Byrne, former CEO of The Wiremold Company  -- and none…

by Art Byrne