Welcome to The Management Brief — a weekly newsletter from the Lean Enterprise Institute delivering actionable insights, strategies, and stories on lean management. Each issue explores proven methods like hoshin kanri for strategic alignment, A3 problem-solving, and daily management that foster stability, improvement, and innovation. We aim to help you build resilient, high-performing organizations prepared for long-term success. Subscribe for free and join a community dedicated to management excellence.
Building a Resilient Business with Hoshin Kanri: A Conversation with Grand Rapids Chair CEO Geoff Miller
In this edition of The Management Brief, Mark Reich sits down with Geoff Miller, CEO of Grand Rapids Chair, to discuss his company’s lean transformation journey. Geoff shares how the adoption of hoshin kanri and A3 problem-solving has helped the company maintain strategic focus and build organizational capability. Geoff offers a candid reflection on his leadership transformation, underscoring the importance of perseverance and continuous learning, even in the face of significant disruption.
Key takeaways include:
- Hoshin Kanri enabled Grand Rapids Chair to build stability in critical daily management measures like safety, quality, and reliability.
- The catchball process for cascading strategic goals fostered alignment and buy-in across the management team.
- A3 problem-solving empowered employees across departments to tackle large, complex challenges and drive meaningful change.
- Sustaining a lean transformation requires personal commitment from leadership to model the problem-solving mindset and tools.
- Developing human capability in problem-solving is essential for realizing the full benefits of lean.
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