Article

What does “separating human work from machine work" mean?

Dear Gemba Coach: What does “separating human work from machine work” mean? How does it matter?

by Michael Ballé

Article

Glad That I Asked You

About 400 of you responded with excellent suggestions for the final "Learning Session" for the upcoming LEI Lean Transformation Summit. As you will recall, every…

by John Shook

Article

GTS⁶ + E³ = DNA (Break the Code for Standardization, Sustainability, and Kaizen)

There's no "formula" for doing Lean well, but there are principles and practices that keep you on track. Read Tracey Richardson's (memorable) advice for leading…

by Tracey Richardson

Video

The 6 Guiding Principles of Lean Product and Process Development

Learn the six guiding principles of Lean Product and Process Development and how they can help your organization accelerate the development of new products, processes,…

by James Morgan, PhD

Article

How Hoshin Kanri Aligns Your Key Organizational Systems

To build the culture and develop the complementary systems that connect your company's strategic and operational plans, consider how they must work together, like the…

by Mark Reich

Article

CI Sustainment: A Hiding Place for Complexity

"How many times has your continuous improvement solution wound up being more complex than the original problem?" muses Lynn Kelley. In her first piece for…

by Lynn Kelley

Article

Riding the Goodyear Wheel to Innovation Excellence

Norbert Majerus of Goodyear shares the Womack and Jones-inspired model that helped his company overhaul its product development operations.

Article

The Birth of Lean: How Practices, Principles, and Tools Came Together as a System

Toyota was struggling to survive when Taiichi Ohno and a handful of innovators began experimenting with methods that ultimately became the Toyota Production System. The…

Webinar

Beyond Problem-Solving: Other Facets of the A3 Process You Should Know and Practice

If you or your team think the A3 process is only a problem-solving tool, think again. “There is a lot more to the A3 management…

by David Verble

Article

Learn by Doing: Overcoming Inertia and Triggering Engagement Through Kaizen

Practicing daily kaizen powerfully drives the heart of any serious lean effort to learn and improve, a topic that will be addressed in the Virtual…

by Lean Leaper

Article

Collaborating on Improving the Product Development Process

Members of LEI's Lean Product and Process Development Learning Group share their successful strategies.

by Matthew Savas

Article

Do you use Japanese terms in your lean transformation or purposely avoid them? Why?

Recently we asked our community "Do you use Japanese terms in your lean transformation or purposely avoid them? Why?" Below is a list of all…

by Lean Enterprise Institute

Case Study

A Journey to Value Streams: Reorganizing Into Five Groups Drives Lean Improvements and Customer Responsiveness

While many plants have used value-stream thinking and practices such as current- and future-state mapping, Parker Hannifin Corporation's New Haven, IN, plant has created a…

Case Study

Lean Inroads Into Alabama Academia

Despite business’s declared need for graduates experienced with lean concepts, most colleges and universities offer only a lean module or course here and there. But…

Article

Overcoming the Challenges of Lean in Public Health

"Continuous improvement in public health has potential for optimizing quality gains in disease surveillance, public health emergency response, health promotion, policy advocacy, and research that…

by Joe Mando and Ghassan Saleh

Article

Lean Roundup: Continuous Problem-Solving

Continuing his popular Lean Roundup series, LEI Senior Editor Tom Ehrenfeld covers a key topic in lean circles that also happens to be a key…

by Tom Ehrenfeld

Article

Standardize Your Problem-Solving Approach? Why One Size Does Not Fit All

Lean management practitioners know what a powerful tool standardization is for continuously improving processes. Without standards, there can be no improvement as the old saying…

by Art Smalley

Article

Multiply the Improvers in Your Organization Every Day

Be prepared to commit the time, patience and tenacity to unleash the power of improvement your organization, says Andrew Quibell. He illustrates how to actively…

by Andrew Quibell

Webinar

Becoming the Change: New Leadership Behavior Strategies for Continuous Improvement in Healthcare

To successfully lead an organizational transformation, you and other leaders must embark on your own personal transformation. The challenge for senior executives is to move…

by Kim Barnas and John Toussaint

Article

CRIISSP: The Lean Route to a Superior Stock Market Valuation

Long-term lean thinker and investment guru Cliff Ransom shares a seven-letter acronym, CRIISSP, to help identify the key (and most valued) qualities of superior lean…

by Cliff Ransom