Off Topic Archives | Gemba Academy

Eight Tips for Managing Up

By Steve Kane - April 28th, 2023

Managing up is an essential skill that can help you succeed in a rapidly changing environment. As businesses and organizations continue to evolve and adapt to new challenges, it’s critical to develop strategies to effectively com

Don’t Change the Culture, Change the Cultural Inputs

By Steve Kane - August 27th, 2021

Company culture, loosely defined, is a set of shared beliefs, values, purpose, practices, behaviors, artifacts, language, goals, and attitudes within an organization. Changing culture continues to be a hot topic in the workplace. While

Reflections on a Lean Futuring Discussion

By Steve Kane - July 26th, 2019

Last week I met with a dozen Lean practitioners, leaders, consultants, and advisors for the purpose of understanding where we’re headed as both individuals and as a community. We had a very deliberate and structured discussion

Going to the Gemba with Anthony Bourdain

By Kevin Meyer - June 29th, 2018

It seems that the more places I see and experience, the bigger I realize the world to be. The more I become aware of, the more I realize how relatively little I know of it, how many places I have still to go, how much more there is to

Set Full Sail

By Steve Kane - June 22nd, 2018

Getting started with lean in an existing organization challenging on many levels. Often some of the most important steps in a lean journey are not recognized. A common place people think they start is with 5S. It’s an

Instructions Aren’t Enough

By Steve Kane - May 25th, 2018

During a recent airline emergency, cabin pressure was lost and the oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling. Passengers donned the masks, but not quite as instructed. Mobile phone videos of the incident showed many passengers wearing th

Where Do I Start with Lean?

By Steve Kane - April 27th, 2018

Where should I start with Lean? is a common question we receive at Gemba Academy. Some say starting with 5S is a must. Others favor eliminating the seven deadly wastes. Others still suggest value stream mapping. A great question

Avoid the Ambush

By Steve Kane - February 23rd, 2018

As I’m writing this, I’m attending the Toyota Kata Summit in Atlanta. The early keynotes of the conference touched on several important aspects of Lean leadership. Among them were the general topic of respect for people

Big Decisions Don’t Lead to Results

By Steve Kane - January 26th, 2018

The Big Idea January’s the month for resolutions–big decisions to make significant changes in one’s life. Celebration of the new year offers a sense of renewal and opportunity for change. While the month of Januar

Happy Thanksgiving

By Steve Kane - November 23rd, 2017

During this time of Thanksgiving we would like to express to you our sincere appreciation to each and every one of you for reading our blog, listening to our podcast, and watching our videos. Because of you, we are able to do the wor

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