Article

Develop Your People Patiently Rather Than Rely on Super Taylorism

Lean starts with quality, argue the authors, who note that by worrying about and improving quality, we are also reducing both the cost of our…

Article

The End of an Era

When General Motors filed for bankruptcy yesterday it marked the end of an era. The first truly modern, manage-by-the-numbers corporation, created by Alfred Sloan in…

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

Creating Basic Stability

The lean movement's founder explains why you must achieve consistent operational availability before introducing continuous flow.

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

Embracing Standard Work in Lean Accounting: An Interview with Mark DeLuzio

How standard work catalyzes continuous improvement in lean accounting and finance -- and any other work area.

by Mike De Luca

Faculty

Tom Foco

Tom’s 30+ years of manufacturing experience began with Fortune 100 electronics firms. As a Plant Manager, Supply Chain Manager, Director of Engineering and Lean Consultant,…

Article

Want to Respect Your People? Share the Profits!

People and profit are key in any company, not just a lean one. But too often, an organization's drive for profit can cause it to…

by Orest (Orry) Fiume

Article

The Lean Bakery: A Q&A with 365's Staff

In their first interview with The Lean Post, Leo and Agus Tena, children of the authors of the new LEI book "The Lean Bakery," describe…

by Agus Tena and Leo Tena

Article

Visual Replenishment Delivers for Zingerman’s

How an online grocery business meets pandemic-related demand increases while maintaining a safe work environment.

by Karen Gaudet

Article

“Simple Ain’t Easy”

The essence of lean is simplicity, argues Orry Fiume, a theme that applies not only to great organizations, but great music and anything else important.

by Orest (Orry) Fiume

Article

Ask Art: Why Are Leaps of Faith Involved in a Lean Turnaround?

Leaps of faith are not incidental associations with a lean turnaround; they are a basic requirement, argues lean veteran Art Byrne.

by Art Byrne

Faculty

Greg Lane

Greg Lane has successfully transformed his own company along with supporting more than 100 transformations in 32 countries within diverse industries. He is a faculty member…

Article

“People who can’t change their minds can’t change anything else”

Many people argue that if lean management really was a powerful strategy, rather than an operational tactic, then more companies would be doing it, says…

by Orest (Orry) Fiume

Article

SBP Has a Helping Hand in Hurricane Harvey

Learn how SBP (formerly Saint Bernard Project) is using lean to help victims of Hurricane Harvey and other natural disasters -- plus what you can…

by Zack Rosenburg

Article

Constancy of Purpose

The first of Dr. W. Edwards Deming’s 14 Points is "create constancy of purpose for continual improvement of products and service to society." When I…

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

Lean Thinking: A Look Back and a Look Forward

The meaning of lean thinking, how lean got its name, and an example of how it improved a grinding process By LEI President Jim Womack.

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

LEI In the News: Leading Trade Journal Asks How Lean Principles Performed During the Pandemic

Lean management principles didn’t fail during the pandemic; some companies failed to execute them correctly, especially the practice of just-in-time production, as LEI Senior Coach…

by Mark Reich

Article

Reason #27 Why Your CEO Is Just Not That Into Lean

You know the value of Lean, but maybe your boss or a key member of the senior leadership team doesn't. To get more traction and…

by Brent Wahba

Video

Art of Lean on Situational Leadership, Part 3: D2-S2 and Coaching

Part two saw Art Smalley discussing Toyota, Taiichi Ohno, and more examples of situational leadership being exemplified in real-time. This time, he returns to provide…

by Art Smalley

Board of Directors

Tom Paider

Tom Paider is a technology executive for Nationwide, a Fortune 100 insurance and financial services company. In his role, Tom leads the Technology Infrastructure organization,…

Case Study

Lean Landscapers

HighGrove Partners, an Atlanta landscaping company, needed some time to figure out how to apply lean management principles. After all, each of its 300 work…