In the six books shown at right, I answered the question of why most top leaders throughout time have resisted, rejected, or ignored progressive management. Due to the complexity of the problem, I had to analyze it from six different directions: Status, rights, and privilege Irrationality Secular spirituality Aesthetics Preconceptions Workmanship This comprehensive analysis shows […]

In today’s fast-paced world, continuous learning has become a necessity. Udemy, a leading provider of online education, embraces this principle by offering a variety of sales throughout the year, making a vast selection of courses accessible to learners worldwide. Since its inception in 2010, Udemy has dramatically expanded its course offerings, now boasting over 155,000 […]

Thanks, as always, to Ryan McCormack for this. He always shares so much good reading, listening, and viewing here! Subscribe to get these directly from Ryan via email. News, articles, books, podcasts, and videos about how to make the workplace better. Operational Excellence, Improvement, and Innovation Seeking Perfection is Back Setting “zero defect” targets for […]

If this image inspires even just one CEO to go to the genba on a regular basis, it will have been a success! 😂 Post this image to social media every year on “CEO Genba Day,” June 9th.

The other day, I was presenting at a company about “Psychological Safety as a Pre-Condition for Continuous Improvement.” It was a hybrid event and I noticed, during the Q&A period, that somebody on Teams chatted about me making a mistake. I said, “Thank you for pointing out the mistake!!” I think that’s a helpful way […]

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on […]

In the search for operational excellence, businesses are continually refining their processes to enhance efficiency and value creation. At the heart of this pursuit lies the Lean methodology, a powerful approach that emphasizes waste reduction to improve overall performance. However, recognizing and understanding the types of waste that can hinder progress is fundamental to this […]

In this episode of the People Solve Problems podcast, Jamie Flinchbaugh welcomes Rebecca Snelling, the owner of RS Consulting. The conversation focuses on the themes of collaboration, problem-solving, leadership, and the importance of a culture that supports these endeavors within the design and construction industry. Rebecca brings a wealth of experience in coaching individuals, teams, […]

“Bridging the gap between Industry 4.0 vendors & manufacturers” As an unintended consequence of my lean work I’ve spent the last 2 years advising clients on where digital manufacturing might add value. Might is the word to ponder in the previous sentence. For example, I’ll encourage a client to run an experiment to test a […]

Real life examples of lean thinking The picture at head this blog is a great way to explain Change Points (Henkaten) – an important lean principle – through real life. People serious about understanding lean and kaizen tend to embrace the world around them, by mining for examples. We’ve put out blogs ourselves about discovering […]

In this edition: The Great Consolidation (featuring the new Obstacles Fast and Slow video); The Great Rebalancing (news on books 4 & 5 and my next keynote); April’s webinar and experience/practice sessions; Leading in a Transforming Organisation; Top posts; Upcoming events The Great Consolidation On Tuesday I announced the release of Inside-out Strategy (II): Fit […]

As a lean community we’re at it again… …the lazy business of reducing a very useful habit into a stand-alone tool to package up and sell. I first came across a structured way of purposefully walking the shopfloor, with sharp eyes, 15 years ago whilst working with a Japanese automotive transplant. I’ve been coaching and teaching […]

Copy-and-paste doesn’t work in lean transformation The title of this blog was originally a line from a poem by the Spanish poet Antonio Machado. He died in 1939 so would have no idea that his poem “Traveler, your footprints” holds a key lesson for strong lean thinking (and life!). The poem (translated by Mary Berg […]

In a related blog, about the secrets of a great Team Leader start of shift brief, we ended with the following statement: “A final word on Change Points. In our opinion we can quickly give a Team Leader 3 simple skills, Change Point management being one of them” Over the years we’ve spent a lot […]

Our blog “2 lean skills your Team Leaders should have: Change Points” covered one of several simple skills that make a real difference to the life and effectiveness of a Team Leader. This blog covers another, the much underrated ability to think like a dead Italian economist. Practically speaking, how to peer out onto your manufacturing empire, big […]

In lean manufacturing there’s a lot of talk and focus on Team Leaders mastering tools like 5s, Standardised Work and the 7 Wastes. These “Kaizen skills” are really important but will be of little value if your Team Leaders haven’t got the fundamental “Control Skills” What is an effective Gemba walk: “Patrolling your Patch”? “Gemba […]

It is surprising to me that in the nine years since the book Kaizen Forever was published, nobody has asked me what the beautiful Japanese calligraphy on the cover says. A literal reading by Chihiro Nakao would be: “Continue Moonshine [to make] change [towards the] ideal. [signed] Nakao Chihiro.” Continue = 続Moonshine = 月つるつるKaizen = […]

5S ACTIVITY 1.Sort 2.Straighten 3.Shine 4.Standardise 5.Sustain Grab your 5s Checksheet Example and Free Download here In this blog we cover: What is 5 Examples of 5s before and after Why does 5s matter in manufacturing? A quick start to implementing 5s The process for a 3s blitz How long does a 3s blitz take? 5s […]

A selection of highlighted blog posts from Lean bloggers from the month of March 2024.  You can also view the previous monthly Lean Roundups here.     The Power of One Page – Pascal Dennis discusses the power one page has to enable quick effective communication when used to tell stories.   Revolving Door Leadership – Bob […]

I am surprised that in the nine years since the book Shingijutsu-Kaizen was published, nobody has asked me what “∞,” means. “∞,” was carried over from the book Kaizen Forever. It was part of the header for blank note pages 82 to 85 and was accompanied by the words “Your Infinite Possibilities.” Chihiro Nakao asked […]

Cars or Charities: Same Horse, Different Jockey I had to strain to hear this great question, and only grasped it at the third attempt. At this point, the student sunk back into her chair expectantly as my lean heart leapt. ‘The student’ being one of 120 Masters students who’d turned up to hear me speak for 45 minutes […]

Why do you need a Practical Problem Solving method? Practical Problem Solving models are often shared online BUT the pitfalls are rarely well explained. In this blog we’ll be drawing on our own painful experience gained over 25 years, working across the world with hundreds of companies to illuminate those pitfalls. Here are the top […]

Kaizen and benchmarking As the Rugby World Cup in France comes into view, we thought we’d take a look at how the elite sports of Rugby, Cycling, Cricket and, ahem, Competitive Eating use lean principles to excel. Let’s start with Eddie Jones, an international rugby coach who has taken different teams to 3 Rugby World […]

Scroll down for how to subscribe, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #501 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Marcia Daszko, a speaker, workshop facilitator, and consultant. For more than 25 years, she has passionately been speaking, consulting, and guiding executive teams in Fortune 500/private corporations, education, the U.S. Navy, and non-profits to […]

Problem Solving & Movies are two things we like at Sempai. The former we’ve been coaching for 20 years. Sometimes very well and in the early days, not so well. We’ve loved movies since schooldays and have learned many lean lessons from them. “Moneyball”for example, is packed full of lean wisdom. This blog is about […]

What is Hoshin Kanri? Hoshin Kanri, often translated as Policy Deployment or Strategy Deployment, essentially means “North Star”. These are the things you’re leading the team to achieve to improve your business. Essentially, it’s the vital few things you’ve got to do over the next year to turnaround a difficult situation or stay ahead of […]

Everyone is so busy trying to keep up, but how do you get out ahead? How do you ‘future-proof’ your career? Some skills, capabilities, and perspectives are timeless. You don’t have to be a futurist or a fortune teller to be prepared for the future. Here are 16 perspectives, including one from me, about how […]

You’re probably not as safe as you think you are! Here’s a fact that I’ve observed: Almost all lean-minded people preach SQDCP Safety first, Quality second. This fact is also true: The same group of people routinely demonstrate dubious personal safety behaviour on the gemba. I have no doubt they carry the unshakeable belief that […]

In my previous post I started to show you how Fendt uses the distance between tractors on their assembly line to manage their quite high variability. By changing the distance between parts on the line, you can adjust the takt time for each part on the assembly line, hence the name Variable Takt. But this […]

Standardised Work documents have a lot in common with children; many of us in manufacturing have got them, they can be tricky to manage, and all seem to have different names. Names like: Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) Standard Operating Instruction (SOI) Standardised Work Instruction (SWI) Standard Work Instruction (SWI) Work Instruction (WI) Operation Manual Sheet […]

Staying ahead of the curve is paramount to success in the ever-evolving retail landscape. With consumer preferences, market trends, and technology constantly shifting, retailers must adapt and innovate continuously to remain competitive. This is where the concept of continuous improvement becomes invaluable. By fostering a culture of constant improvement, retail organizations can not only meet […]

Reduce Material Costs or Reduce Labour Costs? Manufacturing cost reduction is at the centre of lean thinking. It’s by no means the whole thing but if your lean efforts aren’t guiding you to better financials, what’s the point in pursuing a lean path. Strong lean thinking positively shifts Turnover (over the longer term), Profit and […]

1988 was a significant year in the history of modern progressive management. It was the start of “The Great Divergence,” wherein Toyota’s Production System (TPS) and Kaizen were reformulated into a Western interpretation called “Lean.” This divergence led to “The Great Confusion” — Is Lean the Same as TPS? — that remains with us today, […]

Chihiro Nakao not liking what he sees on the genba. The first generation of Shingijutsu consultants, led by Yoshiki Iwata (d. 2001) and Chihiro Nakao are widely known for their expertise in kaizen consulting and helping organizations create TPS-like management systems since 1987. They are also known as “insultants” for their direct form of communication […]