Article

How Lean is Apple?

Apple may not worship at the altar of lean, but a close look at its operations and strategy show clear resonance with established lean principles.

by Tom Ehrenfeld

Case Study

Book Clubs Help Agricultural Company Cultivate Lean Culture

Two continuous improvement leaders explain how they successfully use book clubs to spread and align understanding of lean management at a large company with multiple…

by Chet Marchwinski

Article

How Can Lean Affect Shareholder Value?

Lean can help challenge assumptions and surface opinions that ultimately improve shareholder value, argues Michael Balle.

by Michael Ballé

Article

Standardized Work is a Goal To Work Toward, Not a Tool to Implement

Standardized work can be an ugly thing in the hands of control-oriented bureaucrats and a beautiful thing when it enables creativity and continuous improvement, says…

by Jeffrey Liker

Article

The Wonder of Level Pull

Many years ago in Toyota City I first witnessed the twin concepts of level production and the smooth pull of needed items throughout a complex…

Article

Using Lean Thinking to Help Schools Get the Resources They Need at DonorsChoose.org

A fantastic example of how lean thinking and practice has moved into the nonprofit sector, DonorsChoose.org began its lean journey in 2007 when its leadership…

by Lex Schroeder

Article

“Learning from Manufacturing” Versus Learning To Think Differently

Beau Keyte talks lean thinking and practice in non-manufacturing settings. "The big challenge now isn’t to learn lean thinking the way any other company learned…

Article

Lean Publishing and Lean Solutions

Normally I walk through other people’s industries. But today let me take a brief walk through my own: publishing. You don’t have to walk far…

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

Is there a way to define standard work for senseis?

Dear Gemba Coach, I’ve been working on lean projects for years and my CEO has now asked me to act as the lean sensei for our…

by Michael Ballé

Article

The Mythical Value Stream Manager

If you want to make a serious impact in your improvements, consider shifting your focus outward to a value-stream level perspective and find someone who…

by Mike Orzen

Article

Why Lean Management Requires Humble Hubris

A lean coach reflects on the mindset and related behaviors that are the standardized work of “being the change you wish to see.”

by Jim Benson

Lexicon Term

Basic Stability

Having essential capability, availability, and flexibility in the 4Ms — manpower, machines, materials, and methods. A lack of basic stability in a process prevents improvements…

Lexicon Term

Pull Production

A method of production control in which downstream activities signal their needs to upstream activities. Pull production strives to eliminate overproduction and is one of…

Lexicon Term

Training Within Industry (TWI)

Training Within Industry (TWI) was a series of training programs developed during WWII enabling U.S. companies to hire and train huge numbers of new workers…

Article

Expanding Our Perspective on Lean Management, Part 2: Lean has its Roots in Spirituality

To explore the idea that there may be other angles for understanding lean management than business or analytical perspectives, a group of lean management practitioners…

by Joanna McGuffey and Thomas Richert

Article

It Starts Within: The Lean Journey of CI&T

The lean transformation of Brazilian tech company CI&T was unique in that it began with an implementation of hoshin kanri. In this interview from the…

by Cesar Gon and Bruno Guicardi

Article

Jishuken, Part Two: The Power of Self-Learning

Consider Jishuken to be an intensive effort to drive individuals and the organization to a higher level, says Mark Reich, noting that if done right,…

by Mark Reich

Article

A Principles-Based Approach to Changing Healthcare Management

"This year alone over 250,000 Americans will die due to medical error," writes Dr. John Toussaint. "How can so many smart people be making so…

by John Toussaint

Article

The Magnificent 7 of Lean Manufacturing

How do you establish stability on a shop floor that’s chaotic? Andrew Quibell recommends “7 manufacturing basics,” his personal selection of lean improvement tools, methodologies,…

by Andrew Quibell

Article

Key Traits and Behaviors of Great Lean Consultants

"If you want to accelerate your lean practice I highly recommend reaching out to a good lean consultant to serve as your coach, teacher, trainer,"…

by Art Byrne