Article

Lean Startup: The Most Revolutionary Idea Since SMED?

"From my view, Lean Startup is quite simply the most revolutionary idea to advance the way business is practiced since the birth of Lean," writes…

Article

A Humble Conversation

For the past two years, John Shook and Edgar Schein have enjoyed the honor of engaging in an on-stage dialogue. The occasion? The Lean Healthcare…

by John Shook

Article

Shouldn't lean focus on solutions, rather than problems?

Dear Gemba Coach: Why is lean so focused on problem solving? Isn’t seeing everything as a problem negative? Shouldn’t we focus on solutions instead? Wouldn’t…

by Michael Ballé

Article

What is leader standard work?

Dear Gemba Coach: Is there such thing as a leader standard work, and, if so, what is it?

by Michael Ballé

Article

The Sanity of Just-in-Time

Path dependence is the worst enemy of smart resolution, argue the authors, who suggest greater "frame control" with enabling tools such as just-in-time to respect…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Why Is Failure Key to Lean Success?

Dear Gemba Coach: I am a LSS black belt working with a sensei to improve our performance. We conduct many workshops that get results, but…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Am I doing lean right? How can I tell?

Dear Gemba Coach: I’m spending a lot of time at the gemba, but how do I know if I’m doing lean right?

by Michael Ballé

Article

Am I doing PDCA correctly?

Dear Gemba Coach: How do I know if I’m doing PDCA correctly?

by Michael Ballé

Article

What would a lean transformation mean for the IT Department? What benefits would it create for the company?

Dear Gemba Coach: We’ve asked our IT department to be involved in kaizen events several times, but it is always very slow to deliver on…

by Michael Ballé

Article

If lean really is about innovation, why does so much of it seem to be about logistics?

Dear Gemba Coach: If lean really is about innovation, why does so much of it seem to be about logistics, with truck preparation areas, leveling…

by Michael Ballé

Article

I don’t get kanban -- I don’t work in production so how would it apply to one-off work?

Dear Gemba Coach: I feel that I still don’t get kanban. I don’t work in production, and I fail to see how stock replenishment would…

by Michael Ballé

Article

How do I re-size supermarkets when demand changes or to keep pace with seasonality?

Dear Gemba Coach: How do I calculate re-sizing supermarkets when demand changes or to keep pace with seasonality?

by Michael Ballé

Article

How do we deal with a command-and-control boss?

Dear Gemba Coach: Our boss always says, “It’s not my job to tell you how to do yours!” But then he tells us what to…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Why Are There So Many Points of View About What Lean Is?

Dear Gemba Coach: I’ve been interested in lean for over two years now, and can’t quite understand why after 20 years there are still so…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Standards vs. Standardization

Dear Gemba Coach: We’re often told that “there can be no kaizen without standards.” But when do you start when there are no standards? How do…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Why aren’t the laws of lean articulated?

Dear Gemba Coach: Aren’t there laws of lean, just as there are laws of physics? And why aren’t these clearly articulated yet?

by Michael Ballé

Article

Can Hospitals Reap the Deeper Benefits of Lean?

Dear Gemba Coach: As Health Systems globally wrestle with skyrocketing healthcare costs, many hospitals are jumping on the lean bandwagon, hoping this will be the…

by Michael Ballé

Article

How do we pass the baton from one lean leader to the next?

Dear Gemba Coach: What are your thoughts about ensuring that a lean transformation persists past a leader’s tenure at an organization?

by Michael Ballé

Article

Why won’t senseis ever give a straight answer?

Dear Gemba Coach: Why won’t senseis ever give a straight answer?

by Michael Ballé

Article

How Do I Convince People to Practice Lean?

Dear Gemba Coach: I have previous lean experience, and have now joined a large bureaucratic organization. I’m trying to apply the lean approach, but the management…

by Michael Ballé