What kind of executive are you?
FEATURE – Lean provides everyone with a framework to learn continuously and do an ever-better job. Without this understanding, an executive will not be able to steer the organization in the right direction.
common lean mistakes
Embracing the kaizen spirit
FEATURE – When we emphasize systems and roles but fail to encourage and support kaizen, we cannot expect to tap into the full potential of Lean Thinking as a cognitive revolution.
It’s the pebble in our shoe that wears us down
FEATURE – We assume that what holds our transformations back is the lack of high-price resources, but more often than not it is the simplest of items.
The power of process
FEATURE – The introduction of a new process can be disruptive to an organization’s improvement efforts. But what if the process were designed to be lean from the start?
Software vs visual management
FEATURE – We often spend a great deal of time and effort trying to fit our organizations into a box instead of building a box that fits our organization, says Sharon Visser.
10 obstacles to a lean transformation
FEATURE – Hansei is a powerful tool that helps us understand Lean Thinking and advance on our journey. The author shares the lessons he learned from the struggles Halfway Toyota encountered during its years-long transformation.
Gemba walks: the common pitfalls
FEATURE – The author discusses the most common mistakes leaders make during gemba walks and the things they need to keep in mind to make the most of this important management practice.
Avoiding the most common mistakes with VSM
THE NAKED GEMBA – Value stream mapping is a fundamental tool in any lean transformation. The author takes us the most common mistakes companies make using it, so that you can avoid the pitfalls.
When a top exec becomes the lean manager
OPINION – What happens when a senior executive jumps the fence and finds himself having to drive the very same change he was asking others to create?
Boaz Tamir on why success does not come down to chance
OPINION – The rise and fall of organizations does not depend on chance or bad luck. It generally stems from a fundamentally flawed strategic approach that fails to define a purpose, alienates workers and ignores customers.
Identify objectives and issues before starting a new venture
COLUMN – With many of us about to leave for our summer vacations, the importance of planning (a holiday just like a business venture) could not be clearer. But objectives and potential problems should be identified before setting off.
What foils our ability to apply effective daily management
WOMACK'S YOKOTEN – Effective daily management is still hard to achieve for most organizations. But until line managers start tackling problems first hand as they emerge, rather than deferring and delegating them, basic stability will remain a mirage.
The Wells Fargo scandal teaches us lean must be nurtured
OPINION – The latest banking scandal had us all wonder whether Wells Fargo has lost its way. But how does a pioneering bank that once had lean at its heart betray its core values so profoundly?
The importance of transparency: lessons from a food scandal
OPINION – When do our mistake become an ominous sign that we are giving up on our customers and people? Following the salmonella contamination in cereals in Israel, the author reflects on business purpose and the importance of transparency.
Five lean practitioners answer the same question #5
ONE QUESTION, FIVE ANSWERS – With this month’s question we try to understand what lean idea or principle our interviewees would have liked to learn sooner or better in their journey. So, heads up… You might be in a similar situation.
Our universities are not teaching lean, and that’s a problem
CALL TO ARMS – Despite the spread of lean principles across the world, only a handful of universities have included the methodology in their programs. This article is a call-to-arms telling us why we have an obligation towards future generations.
The story of a lean transformation failure
FEATURE – Too often we tend to focus on trying to replicate success, rather than analyze failure. Yet, learning from mistakes is a fundamental principle in lean. This account of a transformation gone south offers an insightful critique of lean.
Five lean practitioners answer the same question #1
FEATURE – For this new monthly article, we will be asking five lean practitioners the same question and share their answers with you. We started by asking them about their biggest lean mistake.