Confronting Problems Together
"The breakthrough thinking that Lean offers is that of better individual competence and better teamwork. This means taking responsibility when things go wrong (as they do daily) and not explaining…
No Fear of a Scolding
"Another underlying assumption is that the production workers' key role is to identify and call attention to problems even if it leads to stopping production. This requires an environment of…
Flow Brings Problems to the Surface
"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…
Welcoming Problems?!
"A Lean thinker is interested in and in a way even welcomes (if not joyfully) the appearance of interruptions, anomalies, and problems in his or her process as opportunities to…
Solving Problems at the Source
"…Toyota learned long ago that solving problems at the source saves time and money downstream. By continually surfacing problems and fixing them as they occur, you eliminate waste, productivity soars,…
Going to the “Gemba”
"Going to the gemba means observing firsthand how our products are being designed, built, used, and what problems we have. There are always problems because we are never perfect. The…