Productivity

607 Articles

GA 144 | How to Apply Toyota Kata with Amy Mervak

By Jessica Bush - January 5th, 2017

This week’s guest is Amy Mervak, Chief Quality and Compliance Officer at Hospice Care of Southwest Michigan. Ron and Amy talked about Toyota Kata, and how she and her team have been able to apply it. An MP3 version of this episo

GA 143 | Embracing the Fear of Failure with Ron Pereira

By Jessica Bush - December 29th, 2016

This week is our last episode of 2016. Join Ron as he discusses failure, specifically our fear of it. Featuring an empowering message from Jocko Willink, a retired US Navy SEAL, this episode is a great way to kick off the new year. An

GA 142 | How to Engage People with Jess Orr

By Jessica Bush - December 22nd, 2016

This week’s guest is Jess Orr,  a Six Sigma Black Belt at WestRock, a large packaging company. Ron and Jess discussed Jess’s Toyota background and the importance of employee engagement. An MP3 version of this episode is a

Facing the Firing Squad

By Steve Kane - December 16th, 2016

By Steve Kane   I recently had the opportunity to watch a value stream mapping training event in an administrative process.  These types of events are enjoyable for me because I always learn something new.  The lesson learned th

GA 141 | Practicing Continuous Improvement in Japan with Zuhara Chavez

By Jessica Bush - December 15th, 2016

This week’s guest is Zuhara Chavez, an Industrial Engineer and PhD student. Zuhara is currently living in Japan, researching mapping tools and other continuous improvement concepts.  Ron and Zuhara discussed her work, what cont

GA 140 | How to Use Your Lean Skill Set in Different Settings with John Chacon

By Jessica Bush - December 8th, 2016

This week’s guest is John Chacon, Continuous Improvement Advisor at Black & Veatch and a former U.S. Marine. Ron and John discussed John’s lean journey, specifically how he has applied his skills to the different phas

GA 139 | How to Use Job Breakdowns with Kyle House

By Jessica Bush - December 1st, 2016

This week’s guest is Kyle House, a lean practitioner with a TWI background. Ron and Kyle explored the Job Breakdown aspect of Job Instruction, specifically how to use the breakdowns and why they’re helpful. An MP3 version

GA 138 | How to Use Kata to Create Service Excellence with Karyn Ross

By Jessica Bush - November 24th, 2016

This week’s guest is Karyn Ross, an author and lean practitioner who specializes in applying continuous improvement in a service context. Ron and Karyn discussed Coaching Kata, the role of creativity, her book, and much more.  

Lean Virtual Collaboration

By Steve Kane - November 18th, 2016

By Steve Kane In my previous role in the medical device manufacturing industry I was involved in Job Instruction and Job Relations.  Both were incredibly valuable to the organization.  A few months ago Gemba Academy took on the proje

GA 137 | How to Approach TWI with Roger Bilas

By Jessica Bush - November 17th, 2016

This week’s guest is Roger Bilas, a lean practitioner who specializes in TWI. Ron and Roger discussed the three components of TWI, the order they should be learned in, and more. An MP3 version of this episode is available for dow

GA 136 | How to Create Value with Michael Mindes

By Jessica Bush - November 10th, 2016

This week’s guest is Michael Mindes, Founder and CEO of Tasty Minstrel Games. Michael shared his experiences with lean thus far, and how he applies what he learns to his business. An MP3 version of this episode is available for

Two Productivity Hacks Worth Trying Today

By Ron Pereira - November 4th, 2016

Producing a weekly podcast takes a lot of work.  We have to find guests, figure out what we’ll talk about, schedule the interview, do the interview, edit the episode, write up the show notes for the episode before, finally, rele

GA 135 | Lessons Learned in the Mud with Steve Kane

By Jessica Bush - November 3rd, 2016

This week’s guest is Steve Kane, our Director of Customer Success. Steve recently participated in a Tough Mudder challenge and learned some lessons that have great applications to lean. An MP3 version of this episode is availabl

GA 134 | How to Apply Lean to Finance with Tiago Salgado

By Jessica Bush - October 27th, 2016

Today’s guest is Tiago Salgado, a lean practitioner from Portugal. Ron and Tiago talked about the intersection of lean and finance, and about Tiago’s personal lean journey. An MP3 version of this episode is available for d

GA 133 | How to Create a Visual Workplace with Dr. Gwendolyn Galsworth

By Jessica Bush - October 20th, 2016

Today’s guest is Dr. Gwendolyn Galsworth, an author and consultant who specializes in the visual workplace. Gwendolyn shared her fascinating background with us and explained the importance of visuality. This in-depth conversati

GA 132 | How to Apply Lean to Puzzle Manufacturing with Don Scott

By Jessica Bush - October 13th, 2016

Today’s guest is Don Scott of Buffalo Games, a puzzle and board game company. Don described his take on continuous improvement as well as the challenges that pertain to this unique industry. An MP3 version of this episode is

GA 131 | How to Develop a Well-Rounded Approach to Lean with Chad Vincent

By Jessica Bush - October 6th, 2016

Today’s guest is Chad Vincent, a Lean Leader with an extremely diverse background and a lot of coaching experience. Ron and Chad discussed Chad’s work applying lean in several different industries, and what he has learned

GA 130 | How to Succeed at Every Stage of Your Lean Journey with Greg Williams

By Jessica Bush - September 29th, 2016

Today’s guest is Greg Williams, Chair Elect of AME and Director of Enterprise Excellence at Aera Energy LLC. Greg shared some of the stories and valuable wisdom he’s accumulated from his impressive lean background. There i

GA 129 | How to Apply Lean to Agriculture with Jeff Duarte

By Jessica Bush - September 22nd, 2016

Today’s guest is Jeff Duarte, of Duarte Nursery. Located in Hughson, California, Ron and Jeff discussed Duarte Nursery’s lean journey and what they’ve learned so far. An MP3 version of this episode is available for do

Protect the Process

By Steve Kane - September 16th, 2016

This article is a continuation of the series based on best practices from the Gemba Academy community. Part 1: Don’t Let Perfect Get in the Way of Good Part 2: Create a Learning Path   It’s easy to get consumed with KP

GA 128 | How to Implement Lean Efforts That Last with Amanda Culver

By Jessica Bush - September 15th, 2016

Today’s guest is Amanda Culver. Amanda has over 10 years of experience with Lean and Six Sigma, especially as it applies to Pharmaceuticals. She shared a lot of valuable insight with us, including her take on why organizations

GA 127 | How to Apply Lean to Different Industries with Gary Beaudette

By Jessica Bush - September 8th, 2016

Today’s guest is Gary Beaudette, a consultant with an impressive lean background. Gary and Ron discussed Gary’s career thus far, the different industries he’s applied lean to, and more. An MP3 version of this episode

GA 126 | Scaling Lean with Ash Maurya

By Jessica Bush - September 1st, 2016

Today’s guest is Ash Maurya, an entrepreneur and author in the Lean Startup realm. Ash explained how lean applies to entrepreneurship and discussed his books, Running Lean and Scaling Lean. An MP3 version of this episode is

GA 125 | How to Introduce Lean with Dalton Prather

By Jessica Bush - August 25th, 2016

Today’s guest is Dalton Prather, a Lean Coordinator who is at the beginning of his continuous improvement journey. Dalton shared his approach to introducing lean, his goals for the future, and more. An MP3 version of this episod

GA 124 | How to Utilize People-Centric Leadership with Ron Harper

By Jessica Bush - August 18th, 2016

Today’s guest is Ron Harper, President of Cogent Power Inc and Canadian AME board member. Ron talked to us about people-centric leadership, how to transition to it from a traditional leadership approach, the obstacles you might

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