“Team leaders, technically speaking, are hourly workers with no formal management authority who provide mentorship, support, and oversight for their [team]. Team leaders spend the majority of their time at or near the process supporting the team when discrepancies occur. For matters involving corrective action or performance issues, team leaders must defer to their group leader.” The Toyota Engagement Equation by Tracy & Ernie Richardson (McGraw Hill, 2017) p. 53.

“Team leaders are not responsible for performance reviews or disciplinary action but
are there to support and develop the team members.”   The Toyota Way 2nd Edition by Jeffrey K. Liker (McGraw Hill, 2021) p. 206

“Frontline team leaders, especially in high-volume, rapidly cycling discrete processes, should spend virtually all of their time either training workers in the process, maintaining the pace of production, monitoring standardized work or procedures in the process, or improving them.” Creating a Lean Culture, 3rd Edition  by David Mann (CRC Press, 2015), p. 13

Note from Ray: These quotes explain the “Team Leader” job as it is used at Toyota. There will be some variation on how front-line leadership is organized in different companies that practice Lean. The key is to provide workers with the level of support and development needed so they can be highly productive AND contribute to regular problem-solving and continuous improvement.