Over the past few days, I’ve received a number of clever holiday and Lean-themed videos, maps, and stories that I thought I’d share. I’m sure[…]
When you think of value stream transformation, what are the most common desired outcomes that come to mind? Shorter lead times? Higher quality? Reduced expenses?[…]
Any leader or skilled improvement professional knows that metrics are necessary to define what success looks like, measure progress toward a defined target, and assess[…]
One thing that there’s no shortage of in life is criticism about things we don’t fully understand—or haven’t experienced success with. Another thing there’s no[…]
Mike Osterling and I decided to write our latest book, Value Stream Mapping, to deepen people’s understanding about this powerful improvement methodology. In particular, we wanted[…]
One of the joys of writing a book is interacting with readers. Many authors experience forehead-thumping “duh!” moments as they hear questions and realize that they[…]
It’s difficult to say when and where the concept of “business” was borne. It’s often attributed to ancient Roman law and to British law in[…]
Friday was a deeply gratifying day. It was one of those joyful days that, as a improvement consultant/coach and change “facilitator,” makes up for those[…]
Value Stream Mapping has been released. One of the most common interview questions I’ve been getting is: Why this book? Why now? The topic may seem a[…]
In 2009, Inc. magazine listed “value-add” on its list of 15 Business Buzzwords We Don’t Want to Hear. In 2012, “value-add” was again reviled, this[…]
The holiday season is my favorite time of year for two reasons: the holidays themselves and business planning. Proper business planning requires significant reflection, an activity[…]
I’ve long been a fan of ease, which is a large reason why Lean management has always appealed to me—and why I’m such a fan[…]
The world lost one of its brightest business leaders this week, Eiji Toyoda. Fortunately, he left behind a legacy of leadership philosophies and practices that[…]
I love Twitter! I come across all kinds of tidbits that get me thinking in new directions.The key is to follow smart people. Case in[…]
One of the things that pains me the most is when I hear people saying they can’t make improvement because “Corporate” won’t allow it or[…]
Yes. It really does. Deployed properly, that is. One of the biggest problems we currently face in the Lean movement is that there are an[…]
I love learning. Especially when it’s about something I thought I understood already. Enter this gem I received in this morning’s email. This video, produced[…]
Unequivocally, YES. But…there’s more to the story. We don’t throw in the towel if we don’t have all of the preexisting conditions in place. Without[…]
As I explain the Focus chapter in The Outstanding Organization, multitasking is a fallacy—you can only perform one cognitive task at a time. What you actually[…]
When I learned The Outstanding Organization’s publication date, I groaned. The book was slated for release in July 2012, just as summer vacations were getting[…]
One of my New Year’s resolutions is to implement pull in as many places as I can. Early last year I implemented it quite successfully[…]
The New Year has always been one of my favorite holidays. Not for the revelry and good cheer, although that can be a nice element.[…]
Mike Osterling and my new book, Metrics-Based Process Mapping, appears to be striking a cord with many. Yesterday I held a webinar with the highest[…]
Businesses routinely attempt to accomplish too much and quickly lose focus when the next fire erupts or a new shiny ball appears. When I work[…]
As many of you know, I’m a passionate advocate of Lean management practices and the power of Lean in transforming organizations. So I grow weary[…]
It’s been interesting to see what people have picked up on as I’ve been promoting my new book, The Outstanding Organization. My original title was[…]
Earlier this week I learned that my blog posts weren’t being pushed to my subscribers as I thought they had. I was blogging away but[…]
One of the hazards of being a performance improvement practitioner and coach is that most of us see “opportunities for improvement” everywhere we go and[…]
“What is Lean?” may seem a strange question to be asking 15 years after the approach gained recognition in manufacturing and began its progressive spread to other industries. But[…]