Articles
Learn more about your selected topics.
In Search of Value Stream Architects
Recently I've been spending most of my gemba time walking through value-creating processes in organizations far away from manufacturing. And…
Read article How Do We Reduce Costs with Lean?
Dear Gemba Coach: I have been asked to reduce the cost of a product by a significant amount. I believe…
Read article How Much Control Do I Need (and Need to Give Up) to Lead?
Dear Gemba Coach: I am interested in setting up a team for implementing lean. So far I have been trying…
Read article A3 Example from “Making Hospitals Work”
This is an example high-level planning A3 from the fictitious hospital in the book Making Hospitals Work. Click on the "read…
Read article You Gotta Have Wa
In July, just prior to the Major League All Star break, I introduced you to The Mental ABCs of Baseball.…
Read article Who To Move?
Dear Gemba Coach: "Kaizen Express" landed on my doormat this morning. While reading through I noticed that it states that if…
Read article
The Virginia Mason Production System: So Much Waste, So Little Time
In this 53-minute video, Marnee Iseman from Virginia Mason talks about the Virginia Mason Production System to a group at…
Watch video 5S Again and Again and Again
Dear Gemba Coach,†I've just inherited responsibility for our 5S efforts in our company. Any suggestions for how I can get…
Read article
A Lean “Teachable Moment”: Starbucks in The Wall Street Journal
John Shook discusses recent news about Starbucks and lean.
Read article
The Mind of the Lean Manager
Moving beyond lean tools to embrace lean management techniques requires a shift in mindset—one that prioritizes problem-solving, experimentation, and continuous…
Read article Toyota’s Secret: The A3 Report
The A3 report, with its logical series of boxes and graphics, looks simple in layout but the underlying thought process…
Read article The Lean Manager (Chapter 1)
The Lean ManagerChapter OneCUSTOMERS FIRST“He’s closing the plant!”Closing the plant meant losing his job. Losing his job meant losing Malancourt.…
Read article