Month: September 2019

11 Articles

More Gems from Gemba-focused Executive VP Kawai

By Jon Miller - September 30th, 2019

In a blog post last year, we described how gemba-focused Toyota Executive VP Kawai spends a typical day at work. In a series of interviews in IT Media, a Japanese online business magazine he continues to drop gems. He was asked about

A Place to Find a Better Way

By Steve Kane - September 27th, 2019

I spent the first part of this week in Riverside, California at the Global Lean Leadership Summit hosted by Rick Eglin of Fireblast Global and Angel Sanchez of Phenix Technology.  The second part of the week I was in Ann Arbor, Mich

GA 286 | Lean and Robotic Process Automation with Saif Arshad

By Jessica Bush - September 26th, 2019

This week’s guest is Saif Arshad. Saif works for S&P Global, and he shared how they use lean thinking to improve their processes. A MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you’l

Applying Lean Principles to a Business Planning Meeting

By Jon Miller - September 23rd, 2019

This past week my business partners Kevin Meyer, Ron Pereira and I met face to face over a span of two days. The purpose was long-term business planning, near-term goal-setting and prioritization of supporting projects. The three of us

GA 285 | Learning Four Languages in One Year with Scott Young

By Jessica Bush - September 19th, 2019

This week’s guest is Ultralearning author Scott Young. Ron and Scott discussed the concept of ultralearning, and how Scott has used its principles to accomplish some truly impressive goals. A MP3 audio version of this episode is

How to Be an Effective Change Leader

By Jon Miller - September 16th, 2019

A Knowledge @ Wharton article titled How to be an Effective Organizational Maverick is worthwhile reading continuous improvement leaders, lean managers, change agents or anyone refusing to accept the status quo as the best or only way

Mistakes

Oh, the Mistakes I’ve Made…

By Kevin Meyer - September 13th, 2019

Lately we’ve witnessed what happens when leaders don’t have the emotional intelligence to admit to even the smallest and most originally inconsequential mistakes.  This has caused me to reflect on some of mine over the pas

GA 284 | Continuous Improvement in the Fast Food Industry with David Reid

By Jessica Bush - September 12th, 2019

This week’s guest is David Reid. David is a Principal Team Leader at Chick-fil-A, and he shared some of the many ways they’ve incorporated lean into their day-to-day operations.  A MP3 audio version of this episode is avai

The Best Indicator of Success with Lean

By Jon Miller - September 9th, 2019

This past week I had the opportunity to walk the gemba of several companies. They ranged from large to small, public to private, across manufacturing and service. Each has been committed to Lean management for more than twenty years. T

What is Sensorial Management?

By Ron Pereira - September 6th, 2019

A few weeks ago my colleagues and I visited the Lighthouse for the Blind in Seattle, Washington.  Here’s what I shared on LinkedIn a few days after the visit. I’m still processing what my colleagues and I experienced two d

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