Why do people call Lean efforts a journey? One of the things you will learn about Lean as you get more experienced at it is that you are never done. There are always more improvements to be made, new tools to be learned or created, and new skills to develop. Read more…
Lean faces a great deal of criticism, despite the numerous examples of its successful usage across a broad range of industries. This criticism is, in large part, justified. When I first began my writing career, I came across a disturbing figure in my research. There was limited hard data as to the effectiveness of Lean, but one of the few data points I did find said that 76% of attempts at continuous improvement failed to deliver on the initial promise…
As you research the decision to become Lean, you will undoubtedly consider the various benefits that you will get from implementing this philosophy. Knowing these positive aspects is important not only for your own decision making on whether to go down this path, but also for improving your odds of successfully getting your team on board. Once you decide to pull the trigger, you will have to sell the benefits of Lean to your team.
The decision to become Lean, or to embrace any continuous improvement philosophy for that matter, is not to be taken lightly. While the results can be incredible, about three out of every four companies do not achieve the results that they expected when they began their Lean journey.
In addition, it takes a tremendous amount of effort to change the DNA of a company. And make no mistake…
We have a complete Lean Overview module in Volume 2, but it is hard to make a decision to move forward without at least a cursory introduction to the specifics of Lean. This section is a summary of our Lean overview, and is intended to provide you with some information Read more…
Tribal knowledge is the unwritten collective wisdom of an organization. It refers to the tradition of tribes handing information down from generation to generation in the time before the written word was developed. In the same fashion, when information is not document properly, it must be passed from employee to Read more…
Creating a new corporate culture is a monumental challenge in the best of circumstances. Unfortunately, many organizations make it more difficult on themselves than it needs to be. Often these self-imposed obstacles seem trivial, but can have an oversized impact because of their repetitive nature.
The way you store information is one of these forms of barriers. As you progress on your Lean journey, you will find that there is a load of knowledge and information that you must manage effectively. You will have training materials, both internally developed and content that you have purchased. You will have loads of forms and other sorts of tools that will be used throughout the organization. You will have calendars, checklists, evaluations, audit documentation, and more. And that does not even include your process documents or best practices.
A successful continuous improvement program is built upon effective training materials, information, and tools. The forms you choose to use, the philosophies you adopt, the books you read, the slides you teach from, the videos you watch, and even the processes you copy and improve upon form the backbone of your improvement effort. Choose well, and your journey becomes much easier. Select poorly, and you can be fighting obstacles for years to come.
This section is intended to provide you with a better understanding of what is available to help you, and who will be providing you with that information.
None, though previous continuous improvement experience leads to more informed decisions when selecting providers and materials to build a training program.
Estimated Time for Section: 1-3 Days (may be longer if you review multiple providers)
Difficulty: Medium
Risk: Moderate
Materials Required
The program leader is the organization’s guide while creating a culture of continuous improvement. This person will work closely with senior management and will act their behalf when directing the organization on its journey.
This person is part project manager, part coach and mentor, part consultant, and part bulldozer. He or she is responsible for helping chart the course the organization will take, developing the skills the team will need to get there, and leading the organization down the chosen path.
POLL: How many internal CI experts/consultants should a company have?
Organizations that thrive at continuous improvement often do so because they have a staff of dedicated experts acting as guides on their Lean journeys. There are a few different flavors to how these people are assigned, though.
Isn’t Lean just for manufacturing? One of the common misperceptions about Lean is that it is effective only in a manufacturing environment. While it is true that this is where it has its roots, the principles of continuous improvement that are primarily associated with Lean manufacturing were used throughout Toyota in its Read more…
The “How You Think Links” model depicts an overview of the process that a person typically follows to progress from an event occurring, to taking action, and ultimately, to getting a result. The basic steps are: Event Interpretation Emotion Decision Action Result Most people think an emotional reaction to an Read more…