Book Reviews Archives | Page 2 of 3

GA 310 | The Role of Motivation in Continuous Improvement with Brad Miller

By Jessica Bush - March 12th, 2020

This week’s guest is Brad Miller. Ron and Brad discussed how motivation factors into continuous improvement, and a modern motivation framework that could be useful to managers. A MP3 audio version of this episode is available for

GA 309 | Lean and Self-Development with Pete Kuehn

By Jessica Bush - March 5th, 2020

This week’s guest is Pete Kuehn. Ron and Pete discussed Pete’s lean journey, including the effect lean has had on his personal life. A MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you

GA 306 | Practicing Kindness with Karyn Ross

By Jessica Bush - February 13th, 2020

This week’s guest is Karyn Ross. Ron and Karyn talked all about practicing kindness, why it’s important, and how it’s relevant to continuous improvement. A MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download h

GA 295 | What’s New at LEI with Jean Cunningham

By Jessica Bush - November 28th, 2019

This week’s guest is Jean Cunningham. Recorded at AME Chicago, Ron and Jean discussed what’s happening at LEI, some of Jean’s book recommendations, and more. A MP3 audio version of this episode is available for downlo

GA 283 | Leveraging the Spirit of Learning with Ryan McCall

By Jessica Bush - September 5th, 2019

This week’s guest is Ryan McCall. Ryan shared some of what he’s learned so far on his lean journey and got Ron to weigh in on some of the interpersonal issues that can arise when experimenting with new lean approaches. A MP

GA 270 | The Simplicity of Lean with Philip Holt

By Jessica Bush - June 6th, 2019

This week’s guest is Philip Holt. Philip discussed the books he’s written, the concept of “mosquito leadership,” and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you

GA 264 | Repeating the Process of Learning with Dr. Jeffrey Liker

By Jessica Bush - April 25th, 2019

This week we’re sharing an incredible keynote by Dr. Jeffrey Liker that he gave at KataCon5 earlier this year. Dr. Liker shared a wealth of information regarding his background, his lean journey, and the lessons he’s learne

GA 260 | The Secret to Excellence with Oscar Roche

By Jessica Bush - March 28th, 2019

This week’s guest is Oscar Roche, Director of the TWI Institute in Australia & New Zealand. Ron and Oscar discussed the humanity of lean, the components of TWI, and more. An MP3 version of this episode is available for down

GA 248 | The Importance of Creativity with Karyn Ross

By Jessica Bush - January 3rd, 2019

This week’s guest is Karyn Ross. Ron and Karyn talked all about the power of creativity, why lean thinkers should focus on it, and how you can learn to be more creative. An MP3 version of this episode is available for download he

GA 247 | Using Lean in the U.S. Air Force with Greg Butler

By Jessica Bush - December 27th, 2018

This week’s guest is Senior Master Sergeant Greg Butler. Greg shared how he and his team use lean in the U.S. Air Force, some of the barriers to success he’s observed, and countermeasures you can use. An MP3 version of this

GA 220 | How to Ensure the Longevity of Your Lean Success with Mohamed Aref

By Jessica Bush - June 21st, 2018

This week’s guest is Mohamed Aref. Mohamed shared his lean journey with us, including his take on what makes a lean initiative stick, and what lean is like in Egypt. An MP3 version of this episode is available for download here.

GA 183 | How to Approach Lean with Michael Ballé

By Jessica Bush - October 5th, 2017

This week’s guest is Michael Ballé. Michael recently co-authored a new book, The Lean Strategy. Ron and Michael discussed the contents of the book and why the idea of lean as a strategy is so controversial. An MP3 version of th

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

Review of The Lean CEO by Jacob Stoller

By Jon Miller - October 22nd, 2015

[Full disclosure: Jon Miller was involved in proofreading and providing suggestions to the author Jacob Stoller. Jon was not compensated and has no financial interest in the book.] Most books about lean management are written by

Review of Management Lessons from Taiichi Ohno by Takehiko Harada

By Jon Miller - August 7th, 2015

I had previously read and enjoyed the Japanese version of this book by Toyota veteran Takehiko Harada. Therefore I was curious to see how its idiosyncrasies would be handled in the process of editing and presenting it to a Western aud

Five Key Change Lessons from Poor Economics by Banerjee and Duflo

By Jon Miller - July 8th, 2012

Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty by Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo is full of fact-based insights on the lives of 865 millions people living on less than $0.99, and how to improve them. The aut

Review of The Lean Startup by Eric Ries

By Jon Miller - March 27th, 2012

My experience with startups extends to starting Gemba Research, a consulting and training company which we merged last year with Kaizen Institute, Gemba Academy, an online lean training venture, and three other business selling lean-re

Success Made Humble

By Jon Miller - October 8th, 2011

The book Success Made Simple by Erik Wesner was mistitled. While it’s true there are many examples of great simplicity in the book, simple is hard. There is no Amish formula for business success per se. They are as much seeker an

Review of Total Flow Management by Euclides Coimbra

By Jon Miller - April 12th, 2011

Total Flow Management: Achieving Excellence with Kaizen and Lean Supply Chains was published in early 2009 but has been distributed only within Kaizen Institute and its customers. Now this book is available to all and will surely join

11 Lean Strategy Insights from the Mind of Art Byrne

By Jon Miller - December 2nd, 2010

Bob Emiliani’s latest book, Real Lean vol. 6 contains both controversial and though-provoking ideas about lean as it relates to politics, economics, education, leadership and management. It’s an easy read but not a light re

Review of Building a Lean Fulfillment Stream

By Jon Miller - May 24th, 2010

Building a Lean Fulfillment Stream: Rethinking Your Supply Chain and Logistics to Create Maximum Value at Minimum Cost by Robert Martichenko and Kevin von Grabe is the latest publication from the Lean Enterprise Institute. The book gui

There is No Such Thing as Sustainability

By Jon Miller - March 20th, 2010

One of the finds during my ongoing spring cleaning at the Gemba office was an article with quotes by outdoor clothing and equipment company Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, with references to his book Let My People Go Surfing: The Edu

Review of A Fine Line by Hartmut Esslinger

By Jon Miller - February 18th, 2010

On the recommendation of Matthew May, author, speaker and consultant to blue chip companies on innovation, lean and change, I read A Fine Line: How Design Strategies Are Shaping the Future of Business. Written by Hartmut Esslinger, fou

Review of “Work the System” by Sam Carpenter

By Jon Miller - January 21st, 2010

The title of Sam Carpenter’s Work the System: The Simple Mechanics of Making More and Working Less is deceiving. It sounds like another “4 hour workweek” promise-of-personal-wealth-and-happiness book of the moment. In

Review of The Lean Manager by Michael Balle and Freddy Balle

By Jon Miller - December 1st, 2009

The Lean Manager by Michael Balle and Freddy Balle is the second “lean business novel” by these authors. This novel relates the story of a factory in France threatened with closure and relocation of its business to Poland.

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