Tag: Blame

This past weekend, an old friend came down from Michigan to spend two days in the Dallas area. Amongst the activities and catching up, we...

Tomorrow, my post will be about headlines that scream about ratings for The Oscars being "down from last year" or "the lowest in X years." As I've blogged about before, I'm always skeptical of such simplistic comparisons that might mask the real underlying trend. But first, could the Academy avoid last year's embarrassing mixup?

I did manage to buy a book that was published by NUMMI to celebrate their 10th anniversary. "10 Years of Quality & Teamwork" is the title. Here is the cover and I'll share a few things that caught my attention inside. It's interesting to think through this book in the context of : Tesla (the current owners of the building - see my past blog post) Healthcare organizations

The official report is out in Hawaii after the traumatic accidental missile warning that was sent last month. An employee was fired. The leader accepted responsibility and resigned. Why are others being punished?

My guest for Episode #297 is John (JJ) Villareal, Ed.D., the superintendent of the Rockwall I.S.D. here in the Dallas area. In this podcast, we talk about the applications of Lean in education, how to move beyond what JJ calls "the behavior waste of judgment and blame," and how visiting a factory was inspiring and helpful, among other topics. Even if you don't work in education, I hope you'll be inspired by this podcast.

Saturday, you might have seen the news about a "false alarm" push alert that was sent to many iPhones and other smart phones in Hawaii. An alert was also sent out over many TV channels through the Emergency Response System. Is the response one that focuses on blame and punishment? Or is it focused on understanding how systems fail and how to improve them to prevent future recurrence? How does this all apply to your organization?

Three or four months ago, in the midst of a discussion on LinkedIn about patient safety, somebody made reference to a 1966 cover story...

Thanks to Lean Frontiers for sharing a story from Mike Hoseus on LinkedIn. Mike is, of course, co-author of the excellent book Toyota Culture: The Heart and Soul of the Toyota Way (written with Jeff Liker, who I just learned is retiring from the University of Michigan... more on that soon).

The mistakes at The Oscars were trivial and unimportant in the grand scheme of things. What are some lessons learned that apply to improving healthcare supply chains?

I posted this on LinkedIn earlier today and am re-posting as a blog post to get your thoughts... and then, as I writing this, the news about the man being forcibly removed from a United Airlines flight went viral.

Lean thinkers do their best to avoid blaming individuals for systemic problems. This lesson comes also from W. Edwards Deming who was deeply influential...

Today's Post in <50 words: Lean thinkers don't blame individuals who are in a bad system, whether that's a presenter at Oscars, a kicker in a football game, or a healthcare professional in a hospital.