There are things about Lean you cannot learn from a book, a conference, or a consultant. I say that as someone who writes the books and gives the talks.
You learn them by standing in a place where the work is happening and seeing something that changes how you think. I've visited Japan six times . Every trip did that.
A Japanese hospital CEO describing a daily management system so embedded that nobody calls it “Lean” — it's just how they work. A ward where visual management is so natural that no one points it out. A dinner conversation with another healthcare leader who reframes a problem you've been stuck on for months.
Those moments don't happen at conferences. They happen at the gemba.
This September, I'm leading a small-group trip to Japan designed around exactly those moments. Twelve people. One week. Hospitals, manufacturers, and Toyota-trained leaders — with daily reflection sessions so you come home with more than memories.
Why Japan, and Why Now
You can learn the tools of Lean anywhere. What you can't learn from a distance is what it looks like when an entire organization has internalized the thinking — not as a program, but as a management system. Japanese hospitals that have practiced daily improvement for decades operate with a kind of calm clarity that's hard to describe and impossible to forget once you've seen it.
Reading about respect for people is one thing. Watching it function as an operating system is another.
I've made this trip enough times to know what works and what doesn't on these study tours. This is the first one I've helped design from the ground up, and I built it around the gaps I noticed in previous trips: not enough time to reflect, too many site visits crammed into too few days, and not enough facilitated conversation to connect what you're seeing to what you're dealing with back home.
Who I'm Partnering With
Dave Fitzpatrick is a Canadian who has lived and worked in Japan for decades and has deep experience organizing and facilitating Lean study tours. Reiko Kano is someone I've known since my earliest trips to Japan — she's a translator, but that undersells it. She has hands-on experience with Lean and TPS implementations in healthcare in both the U.S. and Japan. She doesn't just translate the words. She translates the thinking. They are co-founders of Zenkai Improvement Partners.
Between the three of us, you won't miss the subtleties.
What You'll See and Do
Three Japanese hospitals that are deeply practicing Lean and Kaizen — not just using the tools, but living the culture and mindset.
The founders of the “Doctors for Tomorrow” initiative, who are applying TPS to eliminate medical mistakes.
A TPS-style improvement simulation where you'll experience firsthand how scientific thinking is taught and developed — not by reading about it, but by doing it.
A TQM seminar from a lifelong Toyota quality leader on the role of SDCA alongside PDCA.
A medical device manufacturer and a high-performing factory, both demonstrating what Lean leadership looks like in daily practice.
We'll travel across Japan, starting and ending in Tokyo, covering ground between Nagoya and other key cities. All logistics, translation, and local travel are included.
And every evening, we'll debrief together. I'll facilitate reflection sessions designed to help you connect what you saw that day to the specific challenges you're facing in your own organization. This is where the real learning happens — not during the visit, but in the conversation afterward.
Who This Is For
This trip is designed for hospital executives, senior leaders, and continuous improvement leaders in healthcare who want to go beyond tools and see what a mature Lean management system actually looks like in practice.
If you've been leading improvement work for years and feel like you've hit a ceiling — or if you're early enough in your journey that seeing the destination would help you build a better roadmap — this trip is worth your time.
Twelve Spots. That's It.
I'm keeping this small on purpose. At twelve people, the group is big enough for diverse perspectives and small enough that every conversation is real. The site visits are more intimate. The reflections are more honest. And the relationships you build with other leaders in the group tend to outlast the trip itself.
Pricing
The all-inclusive cost is $9,500 per person — covering everything from arrival in Nagoya through departure from Tokyo. Site visits, facilitated sessions, meals, local travel, translation, and accommodations during the tour week.
Early bird pricing is $8,750 for the first five to sign up.
You'll need to arrange your own travel to and from Japan. Everything else is handled.
How to Join
Visit japanleantrip.com for the full itinerary and details.
Or email me directly at mark@markgraban.com if you want to talk through whether this trip is the right fit. I'm happy to get on a call to discuss.
I hope you'll consider being part of it.
Podcast About the Accelerator:
Hear Mark Graban and David Fitzpatrick discuss the future accelerator trips:
