Monthly Archives: October 2016
Practicing What We Preach at KaiNexus, Learning & Sharing
This week is our 2nd annual KaiNexus User Conference, in Austin... with customers and those who are about to become customers joining us for...
Emmitt Smith, An Inadvertent Lean Coach at the AME Conference?
Were there Lean ideas to be found in a tour of AT&T Stadium and an AME Conference speech by NFL great Emmitt Smith?
Celebrating & Sharing Continuous Improvement at Mary Greeley Medical Center
I really enjoyed spending the last two days at Mary Greeley Medical Center in Ames, Iowa the last two days.
On Tuesday, there was event...
Repeating the Same #Lean Mistakes Over and Over? Why?
Recently, when I posted a bit from the old 1984 NUMMI Team Member Handbook (more still to come on that), it allowed me to connect...
Podcast #266 – Karyn Ross on Lean for Service Excellence
My guest for Episode #266 of the podcast is Karyn Ross (@KRCLean4Service on Twitter), co-author of the new book (with Jeff Liker): The Toyota Way to Service Excellence: Lean Transformation in Service Organizations.
This Coffee Maker Wasn’t Error Proofed, So I Got a Lousy Cup of Coffee
When I was on vacation, my wife and I rented an apartment in Beaune, France, instead of getting a hotel room. At left is...
Toronto Cyclist Error Proofs With a “Pool Noodle” to Improve His Safety
This article from the Toronto Star caught my eye the other day:
Cyclist says his pool noodle makes Toronto streets safer for him
There was a...
Patriots’ Coach Bill Belichick : Surface Tablets :: Some Doctors : EMR Systems
I saw this article the other day on Deadspin, one of my favorite non-Lean blogs/sites.
Bill Belichick, head coach of the New England Patriots, got...
ThedaCare CEO Dean Gruner to Retire; What’s Next for ThedaCare?
A few weeks ago, I saw this announcement about Dean Gruner, MD, the second CEO to lead ThedaCare during their Lean journey:
Dr. Dean Gruner,...
What Old GM and NUMMI Documents Reveal About Lean, Kaizen, and Respect for People
TL;DR: Archival GM and NUMMI documents reveal how deeply Toyota embedded kaizen, problem-solving, and respect for people into daily work--principles that contrasted sharply with...
Real Productivity Improvement vs. Pressuring Workers; Easier vs. Suboptimizing
When I was in England on vacation recently, I saw this column in the Financial Times:
Listen to your employees and so increase their productivity
And...
Jiro Dreams of Sushi and the Kaizen Mindset: Lessons in Continuous Improvement
I watched the movie "Jiro Dreams of Sushi" for a second time. The film focuses mainly on Jiro Ono, a now 90-year old sushi chef in Tokyo who has received the rare and coveted Michelin 3-star rating for his restaurant. The film reminds me of Lean thinking, especially the drive for Kaizen, or continuous improvement.
