What Toyota Does…
"At one level, all that Toyota does is simply this: continuous improvement through people." Leading the Lean Enterprise Transformation (2nd Ed.) by George Koenigsaecker (CRC Press, 2013) p. 10
Lean Defined
"What we are really talking about with Lean is a people-driven improvement system that can improve any work process." Leading the Lean Enterprise Transformation (2nd Ed.) by George Koenigsaecker (CRC…
The Capability of Your People
"Remember, the ability of your company to be competitive and survive lies not so much in solutions themselves, but in the capability of the people in your organization to understand…
Culture is at the Root
"The toughest and most basic challenge for companies that want to learn from Toyota is how to create an aligned organization of individuals who each have the DNA of the…
Culture at the Core
"From the time Toyota first started its operation, the leaders believed that the key to success was investment in its people. Toyota culture has evolved since the company's founding and…
Continuously Improve the Value-Creating SYSTEM
I've decided to make a small improvement in my definition of LEAN: I'm changing the last word "process" to "system." My improved definition now reads: Lean is a people-centered culturewhere…
Fake Flow?
"Many companies change the physical layout of equipment and think that one-piece flow will automatically follow. But they often are creating fake flow. An example of fake flow would be…
Too Much Inventory Reduction Can Hurt
"Sustaining continuous flow also serves to surface any problem that would inhibit that flow. In essence, the creation of flow forces the correction of problems, resulting in reduced waste. We…
Discover the Weak Points and Improve
"So physically shifting from batch and queue operations…to one-piece flow without inventory almost guarantees you will encounter many more problems. So why do it? Precisely to allow the processes to…
Flow and the Pursuit of Perfection
"Connected processes force all team members to strive for perfection. [Toyota Manager] Ohno taught that lowering the 'water level' of inventory exposes problems (like rocks in the water), and you…