Article

Lesson From Japan: Day Five

On this final set of shared lessons from Japan, our lean learners reflect on the spirit of kaizen and the notion of employees as assets.…

by Lean Leaper

Article

Mapping a Reading List to Lean

We humans want to see what is happening, understand how we and our colleagues best collaborate, solve problems, make good decisions, and have an insatiable…

by Jim Benson

Article

How Well Can Lean Principles Fuel New Ventures Like Tesla and Rivian?

How well do lean principles apply to the grueling challenge of launching a company—let alone launching a brand new automotive company?

by Tom Ehrenfeld

Article

Take Your Product Testing to the Extreme

Many of the principles of lean product and process development can seem counterproductive at first glance. For example, what if someone told you that the…

by Lean Leaper

Article

Product Development Lessons from a Global Pandemic

How a Lean Product & Process Development (LPPD) approach would accelerate a Covid-19 vaccine.

by James Morgan, PhD

Article

No Standard, No Problem? Not Really. It’s a Big Problem

Learn why the A3 is more than a problem-solving tool, and why it's critical to leading change.

by David Verble

Article

Using the Logic of Lean Thinking to Combat Racism, Part 1 of 2

To create new anti-racist organizations, leaders need to fully embrace the five principles of lean: value vs. waste, value stream, flow, pull, and perfection. But…

by Christopher D. Chapman

Article

Leaning Your Boss

What do top managers need to learn to be able to lead a lean transformation? I get asked this question frequently. The answer is the…

by Dan Jones

Article

Asking Questions

It is always refreshing going to the gemba – actually walking a value stream all the way through an organisation. This is where I learn…

by Dan Jones

Article

New Book, Becoming the Change, Shows that Real Organizational Change Is Personal

Learn the cause of and cure for healthcare improvements that relapse to the old ways of working. Kim Barnes, Catalysis CEO, and John Toussaint, MD,…

Article

What “Co-Learning” Across Industries Looks Like in Practice

"In April, as part of a 2-day capstone learning event for Cardinal Health, we brought the newest wave of Lean Leader graduates together to visit…

by Danielle McGuiness

Article

You Can't Kaizen Chaos

LEI coach Danielle Blais shares why she believes lean thinking means little without practice, explains the importance of stable work processes, and offers guidance on…

by Danielle McGuiness

Article

Shopping for a Sensei

We at LEI have been getting a lot of requests recently to help companies find lean expertise for harder times. Here are some simple guidelines…

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

Learning the Hard and Soft Skills of Lean Coaching

While lean is often associated with process improvement, error reduction, and greater efficiency in a wide range of numbers; most veterans argue that above all…

by Lean Leaper

Article

Maintaining Emotional Heijunka During a Pandemic

In this timely reflection, Jim Womack calls for "emotional heijunka": taking a deep breath, identifying the most important problems that must be addressed in a…

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

Japanese Cult Invades Saskatchewan Government

Lean has become a political football in the normally congenial province of Saskatchewan. Read what John Shook has to say about the matter.

Podcast

5 Guiding Principles for Tailoring a Path to Lean Transformation

Learn from top healthcare leaders who are transforming their organizations through lean thinking and practice.

by Lean Enterprise Institute

Article

GM Is Bankrupt: Does That Mean GM Managers Are Bad Managers?

John Shook discusses GM's bankruptcy and management

by John Shook

Article

The Value Stream Manager

Objectives of This Paper:The Lean Enterprise Institute receives many questions about how to select the right person to be the value-stream manager. In some cases we are getting…

by Lean Enterprise Institute

Article

The Eight Wastes of Lean

Originally there were seven wastes identified by Taiichi Ohno for the Toyota Production System. As lean evolved into the rest of the enterprise and around…

by Jean Cunningham