lean leadership

Leading a quality revolution

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InterviewsMay 23, 2019
Sadao Nomura
INTERVIEW – A couple of weeks ago, our editor caught up with Toyota veteran Sadao Nomura. In this Q&A, he discusses quality improvement and leadership engagement.

A crazy little thing called change

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OpinionMay 21, 2019
Rose Heathcote
COLUMN – In her first column, the author reflects on the role of leadership in striking a balance between the enthusiasm for change and the need to involve everyone in a transformation.

Truly leading a transformation

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Case studiesMay 14, 2019
Carolyn Lum and Jakob Brix Danielsen
FEATURE – Philips has embarked in an ambitious development program for lean executives, which is helping the organization make substantial progress in their transformation.  

Three key business challenges lean can tackle

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FeaturesMay 7, 2019
Tomasz Koch and Remigiusz Horbal
FEATURE – Ahead of the annual lean conference of LEI Polska, the authors reflect on a recent survey they ran with their clients on the key business challenges they face.

The Sunday-night barista

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FeaturesApr 30, 2019
Karen Gaudet
FEATURE – The author looks back at her time at Starbucks Coffee Company and reflects on the role of leadership in facilitating the spread of lean thinking across the organization.

Blue-sky thinking

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In the first case, lean management is closer in meaning to the idea of “lean leadership” and entails the development of behaviors that foster continuous improvement at the front line, such as respect for people, asking questions (rather than providing answers), going to see to really understand the work and the causes of problems, and scientific problem solving. In the second instance, lean management describes the lean philosophy more in general.

In its more general meaning, lean management – or lean thinking, if you prefer – derives from the Toyota Production System and is now recognized as a superior management approach that, through continuous improvement, customer focus, teamwork and relentless people engagement, leads to great results in terms of quality, performance, delivery, and cost. The promise of lean management is to create the most value for customers using the least possible amount of resources. As an approach to running a business, it brings benefits to all parties involved, from customers to employees, suppliers to wider society.

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Case studiesApr 11, 2019
Kristian Zurek, Paweł Krawiecki and Rafał Mazur
FEATURE – Successfully engaging people and building a solid daily management system is allowing a Velux factory in Poland to fulfill its strategic goals.  

Teaching A3 skills to medical students

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FeaturesMar 26, 2019
Dr Jack Billi
FEATURE – Problem solving is a fundamental part of being a leader, which is what led this medical school in the United States to include A3 thinking in its curriculum. 

Fighting every single nugget of resistance

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Case studiesMar 5, 2019
Gediminas Skvernys, Mindaugas Gudas and Rytis Burkauskas
FEATURE – One year into its lean journey, this Lithuanian mining company is winning the hearts and minds of its people. Here, the management team reflects on how they are doing it.

Learning to ‘own it’

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InterviewsFeb 28, 2019
Lisa Ballantyne
INTERVIEW – During his recent visit to California, our editor sat down with a Senior VP from Turner Construction to discuss leadership transformation and the importance of diversity in the workplace.

How I learned to treat people like individuals

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FeaturesFeb 14, 2019
Sharon Visser
FEATURE – In this intimate, moving account, the author shares her journey of personal transformation that caused her mindset and her attitude towards employees to dramatically change.

How lean knowledge travels across a hotel chain

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InterviewsFeb 12, 2019
Cristina Aguiar Rivero, Noa Lírez Forneiro & Amalia Vidal Vázquez
INTERVIEW – Three hotel directors from the same chain in the Canary Islands give us the lowdown on the company’s strategy to facilitate the transfer of lean knowledge from one location to another.

Laying the foundations of a leaner industry

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InterviewsFeb 5, 2019
Charles Murphy
INTERVIEW – The editors of Planet Lean and Lean Post recently met with a senior executive of Turner Construction in New York City. Together, they discussed leadership development, respect for people, and the future of the industry.

Approaching problem solving more effectively

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FeaturesJan 31, 2019
Art Smalley
FEATURE – As they progress on their lean journey, organizations need to learn to adjust their stance to the type of problem they face. Introducing his new book, the author offers precious tips on problem solving.

Taking lean improvement to heart

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InterviewsJan 29, 2019
Chiong Siau Chien
INTERVIEW – This cardiac laboratory in Singapore was targeting one improvement and ended up with something different, but equally impactful for its patient flow.

The formula behind the success of Toyota

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InterviewsJan 22, 2019
Tracey and Ernie Richardson
INTERVIEW – What is the secret to Toyota’s ability to engage people in continuous improvement? Tracey and Ernie Richardson look back at their time with the company and tell us.

Pioneering lean thinking in hotels

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Case studiesJan 17, 2019
Juan Pedro Gonzalez Garcia, Marco López & Francisco Marrero
FEATURE – Dreamplace Hotels in Tenerife have been on an improvement journey for several years, but only recently did they find a way to truly become a learning organization: lean thinking.

Cooking up lean change

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InterviewsJan 10, 2019
Roberto Priolo
PROFILE – In an industry dominated by star chefs and big egos, meeting a humble leader who has made people development his battle cry is a breath of fresh air. PL interviews Legal Sea Food’s Richard Vellante.

Kgotla, a foundation for lean thinking

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FeaturesJan 3, 2019
Sharon Visser
FEATURE – Is it possible to build our lean transformation efforts on pre-existing cultural aspects we find in our societies? According to the author, it is… and it works really well.