Toyota Owes Grandpa Ford

Earlier this month the Lean Insider attempted to answer the question Which Lean Book is Right for My Boss? These folks ought to have the answer, since Productivity Press has published the lion’s share of important books on what we call Lean manufacturing today.
I have my favorite books on Lean, and I look forward to finding new books that will make it into this personal top 5 list. But who needs to read five books? If we would just implement 80% of what is in any one of these books we would far more good than getting a PhD in all things Lean.
Alan Mullaly is a CEO of a big American firm who is making his managers read books on Lean these days. The company is Ford Motor Company and the book is The Machine that Changed the World, according to word on the street.
Last month Mullaly made a surprise visit to Toyota in Japan, then both sides denied rumors of a tie-up. Today Toyota’s chief Watanabe told the Nikkei Business Daily that Toyota would be open to some type of alliance with Ford, if only Ford asked. That is potentially big news for the automotive world. But it is not surprising.
Ford and Toyota are soul mates in a way. The leaders at Toyota owe something to Grandpa Ford. The people that are at the helm of Toyota today got where they were because they studied works like Henry Ford’s Today and Tomorrow and took his sage advice. Here is a sampling from that book, sequenced as a Lean implementation guide:
1. First, create a plan (32)
2. Strive for simplicity (p. 13)
3. Make cleanliness a must in all areas (p. 60)
4. Constantly perform experiments (p. 17)
5. Measure work scientifically and work to make things take less time (p. 81)
6. Put people and tools in the sequence operation to minimize travel (p. 80)
7. Use standardization to strengthen processes and to drive out waste (p. 49)
8. Mistake proof designs (p. 67)
9. Automate those process that you can (p. 90)
10. Create opportunities for people to think (p. 248-250)
This is Henry Ford circa 1926, folks. It’s spooky.
Do just eight of these things. If safety, quality, delivery and cost have not gotten significantly better for you as a result, I will gladly stop by and give you another 10 ideas for you to try. And I’ll probably just get them out of Henry Ford’s book.

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