“It is not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory” is widely attributed to W. Edwards Deming. In an update to this post, I reported that Clare Crawford-Mason, who worked closely with Deming, recalled the wording as “Survival is optional. No one has to change.” That is the attribution I can offer here; it is not a page citation for the familiar version. You can hear my conversation with Crawford-Mason about Deming. My concern in … Continue reading Did Deming Really Say ‘Survival Is Not Mandatory’? A Lean Perspective