Article

Planning the Purposeful Turnaround

The capability to repurpose, and then to redesign and retool, is critically important in these challenging times, says Josh Howell, who adds: I hope you…

by Josh Howell

Article

Why it’s Better to Focus on Value, Not Waste

Learn the benefits of shifting your focus from eliminating waste to increasing value, along with two of the best value-creating opportunities, according to LEI Senior…

by Katrina Appell, PhD

Article

Why 'Yes Chef!' Is No Longer the Answer

In order to meet the changing demands of today's restaurants, chefs must learn to evolve from old-school methods of the "brigade system" and learn to…

Article

Turn To Lean in Times of Crisis

Lean thinkers need new tools and new mindsets to face today's daunting challenges, argues Jim Womack, who shares examples of how this has sparked great…

by Lean Leaper

Article

I Don't Know What I Don't Know, But Spread the Word

In her first piece for the Post, Lesa Nichols reflects on one of her most powerful learning experiences while working as a powertrain manager at…

by Lesa Nichols

Article

How do we deal with a command-and-control boss?

Dear Gemba Coach: Our boss always says, “It’s not my job to tell you how to do yours!” But then he tells us what to…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Is "lean" now just an over-hyped word that is losing its value?

Dear Gemba Coach: I have spent the day with a group of people in the LeanIT, Agile, ITSM, IT4IT, DevOps, etc. worlds.  We were all…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Learn from the Error, Every Time

It's an awful feeling when you think everything is going just fine and then discover you've made an error. But errors are inevitable. It's what…

by Joshua Rapoza

Article

Just Trying “Stuff” Is Not A Real Experiment

"Today it seems like you can’t throw a stick of butter without hitting someone who is “running a lean experiment” on one thing or another,"…

by Brent Wahba

Article

Not So Simple: Pioneering Lean Product Development

Jean Cunningham, LEI’s executive chair, offers lessons from her time as CFO of lean management pioneer Lantech when it successfully deployed lean principles to product…

Article

Calling a Time-Out for Coaches

What's the most effective approach to coaching? Lean coaches Mark Reich and Laura Mottola share practical approaches that include methods such as invoking struggle, providing…

by Masia Goodman and Mark Reich

Article

Is momentum loss normal during a lean transformation?

Dear Gemba Coach: One of our outpatient wards reduced waiting time by 75% and got an award for their lean improvement project. But then momentum…

by Michael Ballé

Podcast

Learning to Lead, Leading to Learn: A Podcast with Katie Anderson and Isao Yoshino

Join us for this WLEI podcast with Katie Anderson and Mr. Isao Yoshino on his experiences with Toyota that formed the basis for Katie's new…

by Katie Anderson and Lean Leaper

Article

People First Leadership: A Conversation by Jim Morgan with Alan Mulally

Alan Mulally is a brilliant engineer who led historic transformations as CEO of Boeing Commercial and then Ford Motor Company. But just as important as…

by James Morgan, PhD

Article

Ask Art: Does Lean Really Work Everywhere?

There's a common misconception that Lean is "just some manufacturing thing." Read why Art Byrne believes Lean can be applied any and everywhere.

by Art Byrne

Article

The End of an Era

When General Motors filed for bankruptcy yesterday it marked the end of an era. The first truly modern, manage-by-the-numbers corporation, created by Alfred Sloan in…

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

The Cure for Bad Meeting Syndrome

"Anyone who leads a group needs the ability to design and plan a meeting," writes Alice Lee. "This isn’t just something that happens; it’s a…

by Alice Lee

Article

Why Is Failure Key to Lean Success?

Dear Gemba Coach: I am a LSS black belt working with a sensei to improve our performance. We conduct many workshops that get results, but…

by Michael Ballé

Article

Lean Thinking and Information Flow

"Most of my career has been spent on making the production floor more efficient, i.e. the delivery of a product," writes Mary Morgan. "I remember…

by Mary Morgan

Article

12 Wastes of Product & Process Development

The wastes found in manufacturing are well known and relatively visible. But as you move upstream into the very different realm of product development, wastes…

by Katrina Appell, PhD and John Drogosz, PhD