Lean – What Is the ROI? “What is the return on investment for lean?” This question is asked frequently in our Lean Experience and Leading Lean sessions. It’s a fair question. This week I had a chance to see a great example of the ROI of lean. A little background - the company I visited this [...]
Made in America – Is U.S. Manufacturing poised for a strong comeback? Over the holidays I had the chance to catch up on some reading. One of the articles I read is really worth noting for manufacturing companies in the United Sates. The tepper Magazine from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University contains [...]
Small improvements matter. Yet, organizations often de-value them because they are small. They don't always do it intentionally. They may simple OVER-value the big improvements, through recognition and reward. Here are three important reasons to value making small improvements: 1. It's how you learn and build culture. Improvement is a muscle. Lots and lots of repetitions [...]
I was facilitating a kaizen for a team that had decided to tackle a very challenging improvement. The process was complicated. Multiple attempts had been made to improve. The problems in the process resulted in delays and downtime that cost millions across the enterprise. It was clearly a priority with a high return. The [...]
Email comes in. React. Issue gets raised at a meeting. React. Customer calls. React. What do we call it when we spend all day reacting to the events around us? FIREFIGHTING! We all do it. It's how most people spend the majority of their day. Sometimes one of the biggest values I can provide as an [...]
The most difficult lean principle and practice for an individual to embed in their thinking and for you to embed in your culture is the principle of “high agreement” or what is more commonly known as “standardization”. The principle of High Agreement is defined as “valuing a common way, or process, more than you value your [...]
Just saying the words “kaizen” or “business process improvement” conjures up the vision of making rapid process improvements that slash cycle times, dramatically reduce cost, improve the customer experience and more. It's been so exciting and gratifying to see the astonishing process improvements that with time, effort, and imagination people can achieve. I think we would [...]
On June 18 the LA Dodgers played the Colorado Rockies and won 8-0. Clayton Kershaw, the pitcher for the Dodgers, pitched an almost perfect game as measured by the Bill James Game Score. The Dodgers had one error. Let me be clear, I have not been a baseball fan. However, I seem to be finding some [...]
Lean Training is usually an integral part of the lean journey. Lean Training occurs in the beginning to introduce organizations to the basics or to align teams with a variety of backgrounds and experiences in lean. Workshops and training sessions are conducted during the lean journey to add a new way of thinking or a new [...]
How do I get engaged communication going with my team? How do I reach them? How do we get people talking without it dragging into an endless venting session? These are questions many leaders struggle with. In an effort to engage people, they open up Pandora's Box of issues and get flooded with a bunch of [...]