“Team leaders are always there when managers are not. They are the ultimate caretakers of both standards and kaizen. By modeling standardized work in practice (and being able to explain it), they give other employees a reference point to depend on. By seeing and pointing out waste and leading waste reduction activities, they create the thinking space for other employees to join in and be creative. Team leaders have the essential function of making respect for people a reality within the day-to-day grind of operations.” 

The Lean Strategy by Michael Balle, Daniel Jones, Jacques Chaize, and Orest Fiume (McGraw Hill, 2017) p. 134.