Tips for Lean Managers Archives | Page 9 of 22

Three Hoshin Habits for Effective Execution

By Jon Miller - July 20th, 2009

One of the people I most respect as a business leader often repeats the phrase “go slow to go fast”. There is a nearly identical Toyota way principle which states that slow and deliberate planning will speed up execution of

How do You Say “‘No problem,’ is a Problem” in Romanian?

By Jon Miller - July 9th, 2009

A friend of mine recently took a position in an electronics factory in Romania. He sent me an e-mail and the photo above. One day he came in to work to find this sign on his computer. It says “We don’t have a problem, only

The Power of U

By Jon Miller - July 8th, 2009

My Japanese teachers often spoke about making processes flow “like a single brushstroke”. It was and still is a phrase difficult to translate. Often I would mimic picking up a calligraphy brush and sweeping it in a u-shape

What is the Role of a Kaizen Promotion Officer?

By Jon Miller - June 2nd, 2009

Raghavendra asked, “What is the role of a kaizen promotion officer?” I have never been in a kaizen promotion office (KPO) but have worked with and round them for many years. At worst the KPO is a coordination, preparation,

9 Ways to Struggle at Hoshin Kanri

By Jon Miller - May 31st, 2009

Hoshin kanri is what happened when Management by Objectives met TQC. In essence it is the thorough application of the PDCA cycle to the strategy development and execution process. There are some unique aspects to hoshin kanri due to th

Leader Standard Work and Material Control

By Jon Miller - April 27th, 2009

I am taking some time off with the family this week so any posts will be short and less than fully developed. The emerging thought of the day concerns the relationship between leader standard work and material control principles of

12 Leader Standard Work Questions to Ask on the Gemba

By Jon Miller - April 6th, 2009

Many leaders have heard the buzzword, read the book, picked up a pad and pen and headed out to the gemba to go see. Leader standard work is becoming a standard component of lean implementations everywhere. In essence it has always been

Plan Do Czech Act

By Jon Miller - April 5th, 2009

If there are three things I can’t resist they are Creating lists, Teasing the possibilities out of words, and Attempting to inject levity and fun into teaching kaizen. So please forgive the punning title. The factory tours I part

Accountability for Continuous Improvement

By Jon Miller - March 16th, 2009

Last week a reader by the handle of CILean asked Gemba: I have trouble with staff who appear generally supportive of improvement projects and agree with Senior Management on proposed actions but then fail to implement agreed changes an

Porque é que esta água fria?

By Jon Miller - March 2nd, 2009

That is how the sun sets over the Amazon in the evening. But today let’s talk about how the water comes out of the shower in the morning, which is to say cold. When this happens one is faced with three choices: wait until the wat

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