The Perils of Lean RelativismEmployees must constantly reinforce their skill sets by seeing, doing, reflecting, and adjusting
Mon, 10/10/2011 - 11:59
Reflection, or hansei in Japanese, is a critical part of lean. Without purposeful reflection it is difficult to improve our value streams, processes, or ourselves. Socrates’ oft-referenced, “The unexamined life is not worth living,” rings true… Ten Common Lean LiesThose wobbly statements that undermine credibility and competency
Mon, 09/26/2011 - 15:49
Some lies you can see a mile away: “The check is in the mail.” “Your table will be ready in a few minutes.” “I didn’t say that.” “This won’t hurt a bit.” Add to this rather long list some lies of the lean variety. I’ve heard more than my fair… Do You See What I See?A lean question as valuable as “So what?”
Thu, 09/15/2011 - 12:31
I love simple questions. Specifically, I love questions that are ostensibly simple but can spur deep reflection about important stuff… and ultimately improvement.
I like the question, “So what?” Those two words seek to identify the “… Beware the HeadhuntersThey squander the wealth of productivity
Fri, 09/02/2011 - 10:33
To avoid confusion, the term “headhunter” in this article does not refer to those who take the severed head of others as some sort of trophy (that practice, as far as I know, is defunct); nor does it refer to finding, at a price, qualified… Six Leadership Habits for Effective Tiered MeetingsThese behaviors facilitate an effective meeting and engage stakeholders
Tue, 08/23/2011 - 14:23
Regular tiered meetings are a staple of any company’s lean management system. The quick stand-up meetings represent part of the daily accountability process which, when combined with leader standard work and visual controls, provide the… Undercover Hospital Sensei’s Diagnosis“Health care is broke…”
Wed, 08/03/2011 - 11:38
First, the introduction. This post was earnestly written by my friend, Jeff Fuchs. He’s the director of the Maryland World Class Consortia, a lean nonprofit assistance organization in the mid-Atlantic. He’s also president of Neovista Consulting,… Calculating Average Daily DemandNine elements to consider about this deceptively complex concept
Mon, 07/18/2011 - 15:04
Lean is largely about satisfying customer requirements. That’s nearly impossible if the lean practitioner doesn’t understand demand. In fact, misunderstand average daily demand, and the impact can be significant, including inaccurate takt times,… Line of Sight, Employee Engagement, and Daily KaizenStart with a nearsighted approach
Tue, 06/28/2011 - 05:00
Lean culture is largely defined by, or at least manifested in, engaged and empowered employees practicing voluntary kaizen. Engagement can be measured in a number of ways, but perhaps one of the most telling is the number of implemented suggestions… Lean Management Systems and Mysterious Performance MetricsDo your metrics pass the “so what” test?
Wed, 05/25/2011 - 05:30
Among other things, an effective lean management system drives process adherence and process performance. The daily accountability portion of the system includes brief tiered meetings with the stakeholders.
At the tier I level, the core meeting… “Measuring” Kaizen Event Team EffectivenessSeven points to ponder
Tue, 05/03/2011 - 16:37
Every once in awhile people will ask me to (discretely) evaluate a kaizen event team’s effectiveness. I don’t necessarily relish doing that when it is intended for the purpose of team comparisons, but it’s not an unfair request from senior…
