Below is a research paper from a former graduate student, Michael Dauphinais, examining the need for and value of maturity assessments that are used to evaluate the “leanness” of organizations. It also examines managers’ response to maturity assessments. It concludes: “Once an organization is mature enough to be able to perform a maturity assessment, its […]

My latest book, The Mistakes That Make Us: Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation, is turning one year old! Join me, along with my co-host Elisabeth Swan, for what we hope will be an engaging, insightful, and fun discussion about learning from mistakes. We’ll be joined by special surprise guests who will share their […]

On Forbes: Why More Employees Should Learn Hanlon’s Razor Hanlon’s Razor isn’t part of any company’s new employee orientation, but maybe it should be. It can make you a more effective employee and also make the organization better, especially in tricky situations. But before I explain further, we should probably delve into what Hanlon’s Razor […]

As a former university professor and now emeritus professor, one of my job requirements was to do research in my fields of interest, write papers, and submit the papers for review and eventual publication in peer-reviewed academic and practitioner journals. I have loved doing research and writing from my days as an undergraduate student, where […]

My Grand Tour of German Automotive continues now with plants from Mercedes-Benz (also known as Daimler). I visited a total of four plants from Mercedes-Benz, including all three automotive final assembly plants Sindelfingen, Bremen, and Rastatt. I also had a tour at their quite good Daimler truck plant in Wörth, the largest heavy-duty truck plant […]

By Pascal Dennis (bio) “The two most important days in your life are the day you are born, and the day you know why.” Craig Forman Great piece on the Power of Purpose. Nothing beats it – not talent, courage or luck. Talent & courage, exercised in the wrong direction, are aimless. (At worst, they […]

For my Facebook fans you already know about this great feature. But for those of you that are not connected to A Lean Journey on Facebook or Twitter I post daily a feature I call Lean Tips.  It is meant to be advice, things I learned from experience, and some knowledge tidbits about Lean to […]

Psychological Safety means everybody gets their say, but it doesn’t mean you get your way. Psychological Safety is an individual’s belief, feeling, or perception that it’s safe for them to speak up in a situation. When people are rewarded for speaking candidly, that leads to rigorous debate and better decisions. Psychological Safety doesn’t mean freedom […]

I’m very happy to be participating in Jared Thatcher‘s “Global Lean Summit” event this September in Indiana. I’ll be there to network and learn, which includes time visiting a Toyota Material Handling factory. I’ll be speaking and facilitating: Learn more and register The post I’ll Be Speaking, Learning, and Facilitating at the Global Lean Summit […]

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 this episode of “People Solve Problems,” Jamie Flinchbaugh hosts Frank L. Douglas, CEO of Safe Haven Dialogues. Frank brings a wealth of experience as a former Executive Vice President and Board Member of Aventis, now Sanofi, and shares insights from his storied career in the pharmaceutical industry and beyond. Currently, Frank leads Safe Haven […]

Register Now We’re excited to announce another edition of our popular “Ask Us Anything!” webinar series featuring the dynamic KaiNexus Lean Strategy team. Mark your calendars for June 20 from 2:00 – 3:00 ET for an hour of engaging and informative discussion. I’ll be your host and moderator. Meet the Presenters: What to Expect This […]

Hindsight is 20/20. The term “hindsight is 20/20” is often used to describe the phenomenon of being able to see things more clearly after they have happened. This phrase is derived from the idea that our vision is usually better when looking backward than forwards. Despite many believing we should always look forward instead of […]

My fourth book, Organizing Conversations: Preparing Groups to Take on Adaptive Challenges is now out, and it’s time to spill the beans on why a relatively short book took me so long. It wasn’t because I was working on book five at the time (hard as it was, I resisted that urge), but because my […]

Scroll down for how to subscribe, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #508 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Mike Hoseus, Executive Director of the Center for Quality People and Organizations and President of Lean Culture Enterprises. He supports organizations in their lean journey, focusing on leadership and cultural aspects of the lean […]

July 2024 will mark the 30th year that I have been involved with the Toyota production system and Lean. It started with my participation in genma kaizen led by Shingijutsu kaizen consultants. From there it led to the practice of TPS and the Toyota Way (TPS/TW). It also led to the exploration of Lean production […]

I’m thrilled to announce that my fourth book, Organizing Conversations: Preparing Groups to Take on Adaptive Challenges is out on Kindle. Fingers crossed, the print version will be out in time for Friday’s monthly roundup. [Update: it was ] This shortish book (at a little over 100 pages and a shade under 30,000 words, half the […]

I’m excited to share my breakout session at the Michigan Lean Consortium Annual Conference! In this session, I dive into the critical role of Psychological Safety as a Foundation for Continuous Improvement. We explore how fostering an environment where team members feel safe to share ideas, take risks, and learn from mistakes can drive remarkable […]

On Forbes: 14 Executive Skills Middle Managers Need To Become Senior Leaders While leaders at all levels need effective communication skills to succeed, the required interpersonal competencies can vary significantly between the C-suite and middle management. Generally speaking, lower-level managers are often more involved in direct, task-specific interactions with employees, whereas executives need to master […]

The last plant of BMW I visited in Germany was in Spandau, Berlin. This was different from BMW Munich and Leipzig. For one, it makes motorbikes, not cars. But its performance was also not as stellar as the best of (German) benchmark plants Leipzig and Munich. But despite some issues, it still performed on an […]

Poka-yoke or mistake-proofing is the use of process design features to facilitate correct actions, prevent simple errors, or mitigate the negative impact of errors. It is essentially used to make the process easier. To assess how effective your solution is, you must look at three factors: the power of the mistake-proofing solution, whether it can be overridden, and […]

This month marks 13 years of my formal association with KaiNexus. I’ve been around longer than our mascot, Ofie, seen below. As I often say, I’ve always had a part-time role, but also have a FULL belief in the mission, the team, the product, and our customers’ purpose. Thanks to Gregory Jacobson and Matthew Paliulis […]

Why was Taiichi Ohno so interested in getting material and information to flow, and why is it still important to do so today? Achieving material and information flow would allow Toyota to more closely synchronize supply with customer demand, in addition to the quality and lead-time reduction benefits. Ohno-san was also concerned about how overproduction […]

Of the few hundred thousand people worldwide who have bonded with Lean management over the last 36 years, the vast majority surely are disappointed, to greater or lesser extents, due to misaligned expectations. Lean professionals’ cause, at first, seemed both righteous and straightforward. And they probably thought that the logic and sensibility of Lean management […]

Equipment reliability is paramount in today’s competitive manufacturing environment. Preventive maintenance (PM) is a proactive approach to ensuring machinery operates efficiently and minimizes unplanned downtime. By adopting a robust PM program, companies can extend the lifespan of their equipment, reduce costly repairs, and maintain consistent production quality. Key Benefits of Preventive Maintenance Extended Equipment Lifespan: […]

In today’s challenging economic climate, cutting maintenance costs has become imperative for many asset-intensive industries. Maintenance budgets often account for 20% to 40% of the total annual budget, making them prime targets for cost reduction. Here’s how you can strategically reduce maintenance costs without compromising on quality and efficiency. Understanding Maintenance Costs Maintenance costs are […]

Are you considering a career in project management? This comprehensive guide will help you navigate the essential skills, career paths, education options, and certification processes needed to excel in this dynamic field. Essential Skills for Project Managers Project management demands a blend of soft and hard skills: Soft Skills: Leadership: Inspiring and guiding teams. Delegation: […]

In his latest article in Quality Digest, Don Wheeler celebrates the 100th anniversary of Shewhart’s control charts. He describes the use of these charts for process control as follows: “A baseline period is used to compute limits that define what a predictable process is likely to produce, and then these limits are used with additional […]

Quality management is essential for ensuring the efficiency and reliability of processes across various industries. Understanding and applying the right quality tools can significantly improve the achievement of optimal results. Let’s explore some key quality tools instrumental in process improvement and product quality assurance, along with examples for each. Acceptance Sampling Plan This tool helps […]

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 […]

Operational excellence is the continuous pursuit of improvement in an organization’s processes and systems to achieve efficiency, effectiveness, and agility. It involves streamlining operations, reducing waste, optimizing resources, and enhancing productivity to deliver high-quality products or services at lower costs and faster speeds. The impact of operational excellence on business growth is profound. By improving […]

We often see the phrase “People are our most important asset” on conference room walls, in company policies, annual reports, and frequently repeated by many so-called leaders. But can they prove it where it really counts—on their financial statements? Unfortunately, traditional GAAP and IFRS accounting make this very difficult. Many assets have clearly defined financial […]

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 Toyota admits to cheating on vehicle testing Toyota has […]

The Big Picture: In the Lean community and beyond, some people mistakenly equate “psychological safety” with being comfortable all the time. This misconception can undermine the true essence of psychological safety in the workplace. What Psychological Safety Really Means Psychological safety is not about constant comfort or shielding managers from discomfort. Synthesizing a few definitions […]