Article

Is it really necessary for a sensei to act obnoxiously?

Dear Gemba Coach: Is it really necessary for a sensei to act obnoxiously?

by Michael Ballé

Article

Properly Applying Auto-Eject Isn’t Automatic

Dear Gemba Coach: I’m working on improving the design of our machines for lean manufacturing, and hear that an auto-eject feature can support this work.…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Why Is It So Hard To Sustain Lean Gains?

Dear Gemba Coach: Why is it so hard to sustain lean gains?

by Michael Ballé

Article

Visual Management – the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Visualization is a good thing. We all know that. And many of us in the Lean Community practice it, to greater or lesser degrees of…

by John Shook

Article

Orchestrating Your Product Development Process with Milestones

"Effective milestones are an important part of a company’s development process, especially in today’s era of team-based sprints and stand-ups," writes Jim Morgan. "Yet many…

by James Morgan, PhD

Article

What Experience Tells Me About How Change Happens

Dave LaHote reflects on his earliest experiences learning lean thinking and practice. "We all became increasingly better at making improvements and solving problems using simple,…

by Dave LaHote

Article

Who, or What, Is Your Company Investing In?

A frontline supervisor's stellar work resolving a significant problem prompts a question for leaders: Will you have technology work for your people or the other…

by Josh Howell

Article

Want to Be a Better Leader and Coach? Listen to Yourself

Conduct this simple two-step analysis to learn whether you’re practicing the communication behavior that encourages a culture of engagement and continuous improvement.

by Deborah McGee and David Verble

Article

Respect for People

For years I've visited companies where "respect for people" is a core element of the corporate philosophy. So I've asked managers in many companies a…

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Video

How Lean Thinking and Practice, Grounded in Purpose, Helped Drive Amazon’s Success

Marc Onetto shares his experiences in Amazon, underlining the importance of a customer-driven approach in times of heavy demand and production.

by Lean Leaper

Article

How to Develop Lean Leaders and Still Get Work Done

Three years ago the leadership team at Cardinal Health asked LEI to help them create a program specifically designed to develop lean leaders within the…

by Eric Ethington

Article

Competing with China

There are two sea changes going on in the world economy. The first is the rise of the “low cost” producers in China and the…

by Dan Jones

Article

Show Respect by Exploring Problems With Your Workers

I trust that all of us want to show respect for people, writes Jim Womack, adding: The challenge for those of us in the Lean…

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

Strategy Deployment In Action: One Executive's Perspective - Follow up Q & A

Webinar presenters David Brule and Pascal Dennis answer questions from their webinar about strategy deployment on March 12, 2009.

Article

Engineering Checklists

Dear Gemba Coach: How do I apply standardized work to product development?

by Michael Ballé

Article

Ask Art: Where Will the Biggest Resistance to Lean Come From?

Resistance to Lean will come from every part of your organization, senior management included, says Lean veteran Art Byrne. Knowing where the biggest resistance will…

by Art Byrne

Article

How do I introduce kaizen to IT?

Dear Gemba Coach: Based on your experience, what is the best strategy to introduce kaizen as social, ongoing events without start and end dates in…

by Michael Ballé

Article

No Do, No Learn

Developing new skills and capabilities at work requires regular, ongoing practice. But despite our good intentions, many of us struggle practicing new skills and behaviors.…

by Eric Ethington

Article

Book Value: What Every Manager Should Know About Training

Jeff Morrow, lean coach and faculty at Bainbridge Graduate Institute, reviews and recommends Dr. Robert Mager's 1999 book, What Every Manager Should Know About Training.…

by Jeff Morrow

Article

Testing the Lean Transformation Model in India

Dhirendra Kumar Dubey of Lean Management Institute of India (LMII) shares what he's learned about the effectiveness of the Lean Transformation Model through institute projects.