Article

How Wiremold Reinvented Itself Through Kaizen

Art Byrne shares a seminal 25-year-old article recounting how Wiremold tapped Kaizen to support a complete lean turnaround that continues to inspire and instruct people…

by Art Byrne

Article

Lean Practitioners Gather to Share Ideas that Grow the Bottom Line by Growing People’s Knowledge

We were among the nearly 2,000 lean thinkers attending the 2014 AME conference, organized around six value streams: Engaged People, Daily Improvement, Innovation, Extended Enterprise,…

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

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

Article

Dueling Methods: 8D and A3

One of the scores of questions sent in by attendees at our recent webinar on the A3 problem-solving process was what's the difference between it…

by David Verble

Article

After improving processes with help from a consultant, how do I sustain kaizen in my department? My teams are hard to motivate.

Dear Gemba Coach: How do I sustain kaizen in my department? We’ve had a consultant help us with workshops, and we did improve our processes,…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Show Respect, Psychological Safety, and Social Neuroscience

Mike Orzen and David Verble examine the meaning and lean relevance of showing respect, creating psychological safety, and the links between these two.

by Mike Orzen and David Verble

Article

Kaizen or Rework?

I recently visited a contract electronics manufacturer with a striking capacity for kaizen – the steady improvement of every step along its key value streams.…

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

I’m a six sigma black belt and have now been ask to do lean. I’m not sure where to start with my team. Any advice?

Dear Gemba Coach,I’m a six sigma black belt and have now been ask to do lean. I’m reading the literature and there’s a lot to…

by Michael Ballé

Article

What To Do When Executives Think Continuous Improvement Smells Fishy

Top executives are smart, but they don't always see the value of continuous improvement efforts. And continuous improvement professionals don't always communicate that value well…

Article

Why We Believe that Lean is More Than A Manufacturing Approach

Is Lean thinking a thing of the past from glorious manufacturing times in the late twentieth century? Or, on the other hand, is it possible…

by Lean Sensei Women

Article

Tee Up Your Continuous Improvement

Despite achieving success across all key metrics early on in their lean journey, ProMed Molded Products still experienced a lack of unity within their organization.…

eBook

Lead With Respect

In their third business novel Lead With Respect, authors Michael and Freddy Ballé reveal the true power of lean: developing people through a rigorous application of…

by Freddy Ballé and Michael Ballé

Article

Understanding the True Value of the TWI Job Instruction Training Method

In this reflection, the author contends the training approach delivers something vastly more significant than merely a faster, more effective training process.

by Chia-Chun Chung

Article

3 Go-To Ways for Creating a Culture of Continuous Improvement Anywhere

To reach a state of endless continuous improvement, executives must lead the company in making a critical leap from management-driven improvements to employee-driven improvements, says…

by Kiyoshi "Nate" Furuta

Article

Students Take the Lead in JPW Fund Internship

A hands-on, gemba-based “lean internship” gives participants broad-based lean management experience backed by professional and academic coaches.

by Patricia Panchak

Case Study

Change in Implementation Approach Opens the Door at EMCO to Greater Gains in Less Time

Many lean thinkers ask how they can accelerate the pace of a transformation or spread it to other facilities. EMCO Enterprise’s Des Moines plant has…

by Chet Marchwinski

Article

An Interview with Executive and Lean Practitioner Gary Berndt

Gary Berndt, who has led lean transformations in a variety of companies, answers questions about connecting lean efforts to strategy and financial objectives, executive behavior…

by Chet Marchwinski

Article

How Lean Thinking and Practice Helped Put Shots in Arms, Part 1: Building the Process

Does lean thinking work during a crisis? An in-depth review of its contribution to the design and management of Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center's…

by Ryan Haley, Crystal R. Tubbs and Peter Ward

Case Study

Making Lean Leaders -- Ariens Internship Program Develops Lean Management and Leadership Skills in Everyone

Besides making snow-blowers, mowers, and string trimmers, Ariens Co., of Brillion, WI, makes lean leaders. An internal lean internship program steeps factory and front-office associates…