In-depth conversations with leaders, authors, executives, and practitioners shaping the future of Lean, continuous improvement, and operational excellence. Hosted by Mark Graban, these interviews explore real-world leadership, systems thinking, psychological safety, and learning cultures across industries.
Browse episodes featuring CEOs, Toyota veterans, healthcare leaders, MIT researchers, and improvement thinkers sharing practical insights you can apply beyond tools and buzzwords.
Lean Blog Interviews features in-depth conversations on Lean leadership, continuous improvement, and operational excellence across healthcare, manufacturing, and knowledge work. Explore hundreds of podcast episodes with CEOs, authors, and practitioners focused on learning, systems thinking, and real-world results.
What do you do when you’ve clearly earned the win but you’re treated differently than everyone who won before you? Dr. Randal Pinkett and Dr. Jeffrey Robinson join me to talk through that question, from Randal’s refusal to share his…
My guest for Episode #379, joining me for the fifth time, is Katie Anderson, author of the newly-released book Learning to Lead, Leading to Learn: Lessons from Toyota Leader Isao Yoshino on a Lifetime of Continuous Learning. In today’s episode,…
Joining me for Episode #378 are Christopher D. Chapman, Senior Lean Transformation Coach at Chapman Lean Enterprise, and Dr. Valeria Sinclair-Chapman, a social scientist, Associate Professor, and Director of the Center for Research on Diversity and Inclusion at Purdue University. We…
My guest for Episode #377 is Ritu Ward, an experienced healthcare executive who has had success delivering quality, growth, and strategy while leading high performing teams. We have known each other for a while through Lean healthcare circles and she…
Joining me for Episode #376 of the podcast is Lauren Hisey, a continuous improvement coach and consultant at her firm, Lauren Hisey Consulting. Before becoming a consultant, Lauren worked for AT&T and Nielsen in various technical and Lean Six Sigma…
My guest for Episode #375 of the podcast is Mohamed Saleh, Ph.D. Dr. Saleh has been a practitioner in Lean & Six Sigma transformations, in both manufacturing and service sectors. Mohamed was directly mentored by one of the country’s foremost…
Joining me today for Episode #374 of the podcast are two colleagues, Brittany Wilson and Mark Valenti. The topic, as Mark and I discussed in Episode #306, is “Motivational Interviewing.” We will all be exploring this topic in the context…
Joining me today for Episode #373 of the podcast is Professor Peter Hines, author of many books including Staying Lean: Thriving, Not Just Surviving. Peter founded S A Partners in 1994 as a spin-out from his activities in running the…
My guest for Episode #372 is Karen Gaudet, author of the excellent book Steady Work, which was published by the Lean Enterprise Institute. In the interest of full disclosure, I am a former employee of LEI and they provide a…
For Episode #371, we bring the discussion back to Lean Manufacturing applications, as our guest is Marc Lushington-Murray. He currently lives in the Fort Worth, Texas area but, as you’ll discover from his accent, he was originally born and raised…
Joining me for Episode #370 is Edward Blackman, the founder and managing partner of Kelda Consulting. He has previously had Lean and process improvement-focused roles at organizations as varied as Whirlpool, Amway, and Spectrum Health. Today, we are discussing behavioral…
Joining me again for Episode #369 of the podcast is Dr. Rachel Mandel, a self-described “healthcare whisperer” and Washington D.C.-based consultant for healthcare organizations. She has her own practice and also works as a Senior Healthcare Advisor for Operational Performance…
