Case Study

Best in Healthcare Getting Better with Lean

The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN., is famous for the quality of its healthcare, but is using lean concepts to further enhance processes affecting quality,…

Article

How to Breakdown a Complex Challenge for A3 Problem-solving

At some point, every lean practitioner struggles with a problem that seems too complex to put the problem statement, analysis, and corrective actions on the…

by David Verble

Article

Kata Konfusion

Author and LEI faculty member Drew Locher explains why it is important when using the kata improvement methodology to not focus solely on key performance…

by Chet Marchwinski

Case Study

Creating the Course and Tools for a Lean Accounting System

A unit of Parker Hannifin used a financial kaizen and other lean accounting techniques to bridge the gaps between shop-floor improvements and traditional financial statements.

by Chet Marchwinski

Case Study

Toothbrush Plant Reverses Decay in Competitiveness

Faced with competition from plants in China and Mexico, Oral-B's Iowa City plant was slated for closure. But the rapid introduction of a lean system,…

by Chet Marchwinski

Article

Achieve Your Deeper Goals Through Daily Work With Hoshin Kanri

Hoshin kanri is a living process of planning, testing ideas, adapting, and learning, says Jeff Liker, in which people work towards clear targets addressing the…

by Jeffrey Liker

Case Study

Seasoned Lean Effort Avoids "Flavor-of-the-Month" Pitfall

What comes first in a lean transformation? What comes next? Where do tools like six sigma fit? Here's an overview about how Freudenberg-NOK answered these…

by Chet Marchwinski

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

How Come Toyota Veterans Don’t Use a Roadmap?

Dear Gemba Coach: Recently I spent a few months working with Toyota veterans at an automotive supplier. I was surprised at their approach. I expected…

by Michael Ballé

Case Study

How a Retailer's Distribution Center Exemplifies the Lean Precept “Respect for People,” and Reaps the Benefits

To make sure training engaged and resonated with people after previous attempts at a lean transformation faltered, LifeWay matched lean management tools and principles to…

by David Drickhamer

Article

Getting to Sustainability

Sustaining gains from kaizen thinking is one of the hardest, and certainly most misunderstood, aspects of this work. It’s misunderstood because the actual change takes…

by Ernie Richardson and Tracey Richardson

Article

Launching a Lean Transformation: An Aerospace Manufacturer’s Journey with Purpose, Process, and People 

Lean transformation at Re:Build Cutting Dynamics demonstrates the effectiveness of purpose, process, people and foreshadows a revival of U.S. manufacturing.

by Matthew Savas

Case Study

Respect for People: Making the Job Easier for Workers

How a lean mindset and practices are reining in workplace disruptions, minimizing workers’ physical aches and pains, and improving flow at Turner Construction.

by David Drickhamer

Article

Why Creating Products Customers Actually Want Requires a Great Process

80% of the cost (and hence, waste) is committed for a new product or service by the time product designs get locked-in during development. Still,…

by Matt Zayko

Article

Structured Experiments Into the Unknown

"For years we tried to find situations where we could apply lean tools," writes Linus Brodén of HP Tronic, an electronics manufacturer in Sweden. "Our…

by Linus Broden

Article

Emergency Departments Use Lean Principles in an Effort to Perfect Patient Journeys

Sixty hospital emergency departments in Michigan formed a collaborative to apply the value-stream improvement methodology to cut the length of stay for patients.

by Chet Marchwinski

Article

Is Your Improvement Project Headed Down the Road to Nowhere?

"The scientific method applied consistently [can mean] beginning a continuous improvement journey that lasts, well... forever," writes Tim Kane. Read Kane's reflections on how to…

Article

Problem Solving For Lean Continuous Improvement

What does real lean problem-solving look like? In this column, David Verble shares his experience at Toyota, revealing how the company culture bases its problem-solving…

by David Verble

Book

The Gold Mine Trilogy 4 Book Set

Save $40 when you buy this as a set! ($115 total when books are purchased separately).  

by Freddy Ballé and Michael Ballé

Article

The Faster We Go, the Behind-er We Get

Speed to market is not just about doing things faster. It’s about taking the time to do things more intentionally. Jim Morgan, former product/process development…

by James Morgan, PhD