February 2017 | Gemba Academy

The Inner Game of Continuous Improvement

By Jon Miller - February 27th, 2017

Five-time Superbowl winner Tom Brady credits reading The Inner Game of Tennis by Tim Gallwey for helping him overcome anxiety and self-doubt, and to keep winning. I read the book looking for parallels and general lessons that could

GA 151 | The Obstacle Is the Way with Ron Pereira

By Jessica Bush - February 23rd, 2017

This week Ron discusses The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph by Ryan Holiday. It’s a fantastic book based on stoicism, with a particular focus on Marcus Aurelius. All lean thinkers can benefit

What’s Another Word for “Problem”?

By Jon Miller - February 20th, 2017

What’s another word for “problem”? Opportunity? Situation? How about challenge? Whenever I hear this question, it’s an indication of a cultural problem. Unlike in lean organizations, bad things follow the discov

McProcess

By Steve Kane - February 17th, 2017

I recently saw the movie “The Founder”— the story of Ray Kroc and the McDonald’s empire. The movie does a good job of illustrating what one can do with the right opportunity, enough drive, and a lot of moral flexibility. We’l

GA 150 | How to Respect Diversity with Mike Brett

By Jessica Bush - February 16th, 2017

This week’s guest is Mike Brett, a lean thinker from the UK. Ron and Mike talked about the diversity of Mike’s company, their journey with Hoshin Kanri, and a special lean card game that Mike created. An MP3 version of this

Review of Leading with Lean by Philip Holt

By Jon Miller - February 13th, 2017

Leading with Lean: an Experience-based Guide to Lean Transformation, by Philip Holt, aims to provide current or aspiring lean leaders with experience-based insights and steps to ensure that others in the organization are turned on a

Mother Nature Takes On the Lean Home

By Kevin Meyer - February 10th, 2017

A few months ago I told you how my wife and I had found a mid-century remodel project only a couple blocks away from where we currently live. We wanted to create a “lean home” – smaller with a simple layout, less st

GA 149 | How to Teach TWI with Jamie Parker

By Jessica Bush - February 9th, 2017

This week’s guest is Jamie Parker, an avid lean thinker and past podcast guest who recently participated in our first live training class. Jamie and Ron reflected back on the class, which centered around the Job Instruction co

A Pithier Name for the 8th Waste

By Jon Miller - February 6th, 2017

An article in Popular Science introduced some interesting research how to activate your brain’s ability to learn. The findings can be read as an interesting neuroscience-based argument in favor of daily stand up meetings, follow

TWI Job Instruction Course – Behind the Scenes

By Ron Pereira - February 3rd, 2017

We’re breaking new ground at Gemba Academy this week as we run our first “live” training class. Specifically, 10 students (9 after the flu took one out of commission on Tuesday) have come together here in the DFW ar

Month: February 2017