All posts from Mark Graban’s LeanBlog.org, including podcasts, announcements, articles, and more.
TL;DR: Lean healthcare succeeds when it’s built on respect for people and continuous improvement–not tools alone. Sustainable results come from developing people, fixing systems, and creating cultures of trust where everyone can contribute to better care. Back in 2018, I…
tl;dr: Seventeen years after Lean Hospitals, the core lessons still hold: Lean healthcare isn’t about tools–it’s about systems thinking, respect for people, psychological safety, and daily improvement. It’s hard to believe, but it’s been almost 17 years since the first…
Your organization already has a mistake policy–it just might not be the one you think it is. Most companies say they support learning and continuous improvement. But here’s the real test: What actually happens when someone makes a mistake? No,…
TL;DR: Red metrics aren’t “good,” but they shouldn’t trigger blame or panic either. The real problem isn’t red–it’s leaders getting mad instead of curious. Improvement starts with better questions, not better colors. In recent years, I’ve noticed a growing trend–one…
TL;DR: Lean only works when people feel safe to speak up. Toyota shows that psychological safety isn’t a “soft” concept–it’s created through consistent leadership behaviors that treat problems and mistakes as signals for learning, not reasons for blame. When I…
This edition of Ryan McCormack’s Operational Excellence Mixtape reflects on the systems, leadership, and mindsets required for lasting improvement. From honoring Dr. Lucian Leape’s foundational work on patient safety and system-based thinking, to lessons from GE Aerospace’s Lean transformation, productivity…
I recently had an annual wellness exam through a hospital system’s primary care group. Everything went well and I had a good experience. Even though I can’t help thinking about opportunities for improvement, I wasn’t itching to provide any feedback.…
In Episode #530 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast, I’m joined by Ken Segel of Value Capture to discuss what it really takes to build a comprehensive Lean healthcare operating system, starting with safety. Scroll down for how to subscribe,…
It’s hard to believe it’s been two years since my Shingo Award-winning book, The Mistakes That Make Us: Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation, was published. What started as a podcast–My Favorite Mistake–grew into a book grounded in one powerful…
TL;DR: Medical mistakes are usually system failures–not individual failures. By asking “why did this happen?” instead of “who caused it?”, healthcare organizations can strengthen psychological safety, fix broken processes, and prevent harm before it happens again. Why Medical Mistakes Are…
When was the last time a leader in your organization openly said, “I was wrong”? It’s not a common occurrence in many workplaces. And that’s a missed opportunity. Admitting a mistake might seem risky–especially for someone in a position of…
TL;DR: I learned SQDC the hard way at GM–first under cost- and throughput-obsessed leadership, then from a NUMMI-trained plant manager who showed me why safety and quality must come first if you want performance (and cost) to truly improve. Two…