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Catchball Helps Us Get Past We Versus They
When employees dread going to work every day, your company loses. Read what Tracey Richardson has to say about boosting workplace morale.
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The Best Lean Post Articles 2013: Editors’ Picks
A roundup of high value-added stories you may have missed from The Lean Post in 2013, but should bookmark for a rainy (or polar vortex)…
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Recruiting Creative Ideas
Comparing GM's and Toyota's approach to suggestion systems reveals significant differences — and may help explain GM's recent poor performance.
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Making Everyone Whole
I've had a big smile on my face for much of the last month because I've had the opportunity to visit progressive organizations on three…
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The Tesla Way vs. The Toyota Way
Does Tesla offer a Way of working that can challenge TPS? Perhaps a bit more time, and the development of a complete Tesla Business System,…
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The End of the Beginning
NUMMI closes today. The GM-Toyota joint venture assembling motor vehicles in California lasted 25 years - a very long time for a joint venture -…
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More Thinking About Lean Transformation
Recently we at the Lean Enterprise Institute have started a new research project trying to answer a simple question: “What is the best way to…
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Ten Years and Counting
What do we at LEI -- and in the whole lean movement -- need to do now? This is the all-important “act” step in the…
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How Can Our Back Office Sustain Lean?
Dear Gemba Coach: The improvement program at the back office of the bank where I am a lean facilitator is slipping. For several years, we…
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Is value engineering just about cutting costs?
Dear Gemba Coach: My boss has hired a consultant to do value engineering, who has us looking for design opportunities to reduce the costs of…
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Why do you lean guys always focus on shop floor processes? The lack of clarity and focus at headquarters is far worse!
Dear Gemba Coach: Why do you lean guys always focus on shop floor processes? The lack of clarity and focus at headquarters is far worse!
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LEAN = TPS {KAIZEN + RESPECT}
Dear Gemba Coach: In the webinar, you’ve defined LEAN = KAIZEN + RESPECT. Isn’t it simplistic? Is that all there is to it? What about TPS?
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I have years of experience in operational excellence but if I were to start lean where should I start?
Dear Gemba Coach: I have years of experience in operational excellence and have always assumed that lean is just a more gemba-focused way of improving…
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How can we tell if gemba walks by our CEO are actually improving the business?
Dear Gemba Coach: We’re instituting a program of gemba walks by our CEO. How will we know if we’re progressing?
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What's the difference between model lines and kaizen events?
Dear Gemba Coach: We used to do six sigma and are new to lean. Some consultants talk to us about model lines and others about…
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My CEO has asked me to take a hard look at the lean program at our hospital – where should I start?
Dear Gemba Coach: I am ops director of a large hospital. We have been doing lean for several years now, with a lean office of…
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Lean and Financials
Dear Gemba Coach: During the webinar, you mentioned the importance of quantifying the financial impacts of lean efforts before introducing the system. This is a very…
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How do you introduce visual management into a product development facility?
Dear Gemba Coach: What steps do you start with to introduce visual management into a product development facility?
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What do you recommend -- clarify roles and responsibilities first or reengineer the process first and then define R&R?
Dear Gemba Coach: What do you recommend – clarify roles and responsibilities first or reengineer the process first and then define R&R?
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How important is it to consider differences in roles between our current project manager and a chief engineer?
Dear Gemba Coach: Management wants us to start lean in product development, but refuses to consider the difference in roles between our current project manager…
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