All posts from Mark Graban’s LeanBlog.org, including podcasts, announcements, articles, and more.
Normally, I like interviewing other people, through my podcast series (and this recent blog post with a hospital leader telling her story of putting patient safety first). Sometimes, the tables get turned and I’m the one being interviewed. Check out…
I do my best to “practice what I preach” in terms of Lean and Kaizen principles and spirit. No, I don’t have tape outlines around the items on my home office desk (which would be, at best, a superficial copying…
In yesterday’s blog post (“Safety is always our top priority” – From lip service to daily practice?“), I challenged hospital leaders to back up the “happy talk” with real action and stories about putting safety first. It’s easier said than…
It’s really easy to make statements like “patient safety is our top priority.” That same statement can be applied to hospital staff, as well. Or, it should. But the “happy talk” (as Pascal Dennis calls it) isn’t always followed up…
Mark’s note: Today’s post is written by Michael Lombard — you can find him on Twitter or read his blog “Hospital Kaizen” here. This post introduces some topics that he’ll explore in a free webinar I’ll be hosting for KaiNexus on…
tl;dr: In many organizations, “accountability” is code for blame and punishment. Lean leadership redefines accountability as improving systems, clarifying expectations, and helping people succeed rather than singling them out for failure. “Accountability” is a word that’s easy to throw around…
Returning to the podcast after his first appearance in Episode #188 is Daniel T. Jones, founder and chairman of the UK-based Lean Enterprise Academy. You can find him on Twitter now as @DanielJonesLean. Dan collaborated with Jim Womack on the books The…
Back in 2011, I wrote this homage to In-N-Out Burger. Their food is awesome, they treat managers and employees with respect, and they pay attention to details. One such example is the simple error proofing of their trashcans, as I wrote…
It’s a pretty common facilitation technique to do a “plus / delta” discussion at the end of a meeting, exercise, etc. In the plus column go the things that went well, were enjoyable, were helpful, and should repeated. The “deltas”…
This article caught my attention the other day: “Philly VA employees ask for golf shirts in suggestion box for improving veteran care.“ I hesitate to throw stones, but there are some very predictable dynamics involved here… and I will provide…
Valentine’s Day isn’t just about flowers and chocolate. It’s about flow.It’s about respect.It’s about asking “Why?” five times. If you’ve ever said “gemba,” “poka-yoke,” or “stop the line” with a straight face, this post is for you. Welcome to Lean…
A few years ago when the racy book 50 Shades of Grey was popular, I created a few parody images. I never published them, probably because the book was fairly controversial. But, now that the movie version is being released today,…
