Former Toyota leader Mark Reich explains why Hoshin Kanri is not a top-down planning exercise, but a leadership system for aligning strategy, developing people, and managing on purpose through dialogue, PDCA, and shared ownership. Scroll down for how to subscribe,…
I wanted to share that one of my early experiments in e-book publishing is available for free on Amazon Kindle for a limited time — from now through May 25. About the Book Reflections from Lean Leaders: Transcripts from Podcast…
Today’s post is a longer and annotated version of my acceptance speech at last week’s Shingo Conference awards gala. It’s a great honor that The Mistakes That Make Us has received the 2025 Shingo Publication Award. I’d like to use…
TL;DR: Lean tools don’t fail because people resist change–they fail because people don’t feel safe. Psychological safety is the starting line for continuous improvement. Without it, huddles, Kaizen boards, and PDCA cycles become empty rituals instead of engines for learning.…
tl;dr: Toyota treats psychological safety as a core requirement for learning, innovation, and digital transformation–not a “soft” extra. A new Japanese book and firsthand insights show how safety enables stronger TPS, faster learning, and better flow. Psychological Safety as a…
I’m very excited to announce that my latest book, The Mistakes That Make Us: Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation, has been officially selected as a recipient of the Shingo Publication Award by the Shingo Institute (the home of…
TL;DR: A newly released Lean book from the Lean Enterprise Institute reinforces what Toyota, Deming, and Lean leaders have long known: psychological safety is essential for learning, problem-solving, and sustainable continuous improvement. Without it, Lean tools and training fall short.…
Scroll down for how to subscribe, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #515 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Jim Morgan, senior advisor at Lean Enterprise Institute and a board member at Adrian Steel. Jim’s most recent industry…
TL;DR: Learning from mistakes requires more than problem-solving tools — it requires psychological safety.In this Shingo Institute webinar, Mark Graban explains why fear and futility prevent people from speaking up, how Toyota and healthcare organizations respond constructively to mistakes, and…
Thank you for your continued support of LeanBlog.org in 2024! As we reach the midpoint of the year, it’s time to look back at the most popular content. From insightful articles to engaging podcasts, here’s a roundup of what resonated…
This episode of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast explores psychological safety in Lean leadership through the lens of Toyota’s culture, with insights from Mike Hoseus, former Toyota leader and co-author of Toyota Culture. We discuss how respect for people, andon…
tl;dr: Toyota’s culture treats problems as opportunities for learning–not failures to hide. Lessons from Toyota leaders show how kaizen, psychological safety, and trust enable frontline problem-solving, sustainable improvement, and long-term success. I have been really enjoying this book, released in…
