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Frontiers of Lean
It is eighteen years since the first western firm, Danaher in the USA, began its lean journey guided by disciples…
Read article The Truth Lies in the Lies of Fiction
Twenty years ago, while flying to a final vacation before the onset of children, I found myself reading Eli Goldratt's The…
Read article The Problem with Creative Work and Creative Management
Categorizing the existing steps is a great way to start lean thinking, and it’s pretty easy in a factory environment…
Read article The Dramatic Spread of Lean Thinking
Without question, lean thinking was born in the factory. Then lean thinking spread to logistics, to tie supplier production tightly…
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Linking Lean Thinking to the Classroom
As team members sat down to discuss hiring a new production employee, the conversation gradually centered on the need to…
View case study Lean Consumption
"Lean Consumption" is the lead article in the March 2005 issue of the Harvard Business Review. It previews the breakthrough…
Read article Lean Leadership
On my gemba walks I often get comments and questions about leadership. “We can’t seem to get anywhere because we…
Read article The State of Lean 2005
As we enter the New Year, I find my attention turning from the history of lean (as described last month)…
Read article Lean Beyond Production
Read how Lean Thinkers, using the same lean tools that worked in production, now are making improvements and benefits off…
Read article Toothbrush Plant Reverses Decay in Competitiveness
Faced with competition from plants in China and Mexico, Oral-B's Iowa City plant was slated for closure. But the rapid…
View case study A Lean Walk Through History
Most of us don’t realize that we are heirs to a remarkably long struggle in human history to see beyond…
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Lean Information Management
Recently I was walking through a manufacturing operation and found myself wondering about the principles of lean information management, in…
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