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Mark Graban

Lean Leadership, Psychological Safety, and Continuous Improvement

Since 2005, LeanBlog.org has shared practical insights from real-world work in healthcare, manufacturing, and beyond.

Books Keynote Speaking Coaching / Advisory Podcasts
Books by Mark Graban on Lean, Leadership, and Learning (4)

Lean Blog Interviews Podcast

Tracy O’Rourke on Vaccinations, Lean Six Sigma in Government, and More

Tracy O’Rourke on Vaccinations, Lean Six Sigma in Government, and More

ByMark Graban May 25, 2021 1647
Scroll down for video, how to subscribe, video, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #415 of the Lean Blog Interviews podcast is Tracy O'Rourke. She is the co-author of The Problem-Solver's...
Ryan Weiss on Training Within Industry (TWI), Lean Leadership, and Performance

Ryan Weiss on Training Within Industry (TWI), Lean Leadership, and Performance

ByMark Graban May 18, 2021 2031
Scroll down for video, how to subscribe, video, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #414 of the Lean Blog Interviews podcast is Ryan Weiss. He is president of his firm Effective Performance...
Why NHS Leaders Should Stop Spuddling: Samantha Riley on Making Data Count

Why NHS Leaders Should Stop Spuddling: Samantha Riley on Making Data Count

ByMark Graban May 11, 2021 3463
Scroll down for video, how to subscribe, video, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #413 of the Lean Blog Interviews podcast is Samantha Riley, the Deputy Director of Intensive Support for NHS...
Managing Supply Chain Shockwaves: Lean, Just-in-Time, and Customer Profitability with Dr. Jonathan Byrnes

Managing Supply Chain Shockwaves: Lean, Just-in-Time, and Customer Profitability with Dr. Jonathan Byrnes

ByMark Graban May 4, 2021 2429
Scroll down for video, how to subscribe, video, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #412 of the Lean Blog Interviews podcast is Dr. Jonathan Byrnes, the co-author of the new book Choose Your...

More Blog Posts

nummi-1987-report

Inside the 1987 NUMMI Management Practices Executive Summary: Why Leadership Mattered More Than Lean Tools

Mark GrabanByMark Graban January 21, 2026 2640
TL;DR: In 1987, GM accurately documented why NUMMI worked–and it wasn't tools, techniques, or discipline. This internal report reveals a management system built on trust, learning, and...
john rizzo creating value lean

Creating Value Without Command-and-Control — John Rizzo on Empowering People

Mark GrabanByMark Graban January 21, 2026 2290
lean toyota andon cord pull respect

What Ford and the UAW Really Learned from Japan: Listening, Respect, and a Better System

Mark GrabanByMark Graban January 19, 2026 1632
**Alt Text:** The image shows a large stone statue of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on the left side. The right side contains the quote: "If you can't fly, then run. if you can't run, then walk, if you can't walk, then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward." Below the quote, it says "Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr."

Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Continuous Improvement, Respect for People, and “Keep Moving Forward”

Mark GrabanByMark Graban January 19, 2026 7162
curt-cignetti-lean-six-sigma

Lean Is for Speed, Six Sigma Is for Quality? That’s a False Trade-Off.

Mark GrabanByMark Graban January 15, 2026 1683

Webinars

karen martin ask the expert webinar kainexus

Ask Karen Martin Anything on Operational Excellence: A KaiNexus Webinar

March 5, 2026
Karen Martin is one of those people I've been lucky to know and learn from for a long time. She's...
1. Professor with glasses in front of EMS 20th anniversary logo and KaiNexus logo on blue background.

Unlock the Power of Leadership: A Preview of the Electrolux Manufacturing System (EMS) Webinar

December 4, 2025
KaiNexus recently hosted a webinar I was especially looking forward to: “Unlock the Power of...
Breaking Through Cultural Friction: Respect for People and Sustainable Performance

Breaking Through Cultural Friction: Respect for People and Sustainable Performance

June 9, 2025
When organizations struggle to sustain Lean transformation, people often look first at tools...
Driving a Culture of Patient Safety: Lessons for Healthcare and Beyond

Driving a Culture of Patient Safety: Lessons for Healthcare and Beyond

April 28, 2025
Recently, I had the pleasure of moderating a webinar titled “Driving a Culture of Transforming...
Why Lean Fails Without Psychological Safety

Why Lean Fails Without Psychological Safety

April 16, 2025
TL;DR: Lean tools don't fail because people resist change–they fail because people don't feel...
Preview: Driving a Culture of Accountability – Transforming Patient Safety with KaiNexus (Webinar, April 15)

Preview: Driving a Culture of Accountability – Transforming Patient Safety with KaiNexus (Webinar, April 15)

April 8, 2025
One of the most powerful elements of continuous improvement is the ability to learn from each other...
My Upcoming Webinar on Mistake-Proofing Across Industries

My Upcoming Webinar on Mistake-Proofing Across Industries

February 3, 2025
I'm excited to be presenting this webinar on February 12th at 1 pm ET as part of the KaiNexus...
Top 5 Takeaways from my KaiNexus Webinar: Psychological Safety as a Precondition for Continuous Improvement

Top 5 Takeaways from my KaiNexus Webinar: Psychological Safety as a Precondition for Continuous Improvement

January 8, 2025
TL;DR: Psychological safety isn't optional for continuous improvement. This KaiNexus webinar...
Creating Leader Standard Work (LSW) Across a Distributed Business Model — Webinar Preview

Creating Leader Standard Work (LSW) Across a Distributed Business Model — Webinar Preview

November 7, 2024
I'm happy to be hosting and moderating this webinar that will be presented by Brent Loescher, a...
Embedding Change Management into your Continuous Improvement Initiatives – Webinar Preview

Embedding Change Management into your Continuous Improvement Initiatives – Webinar Preview

September 25, 2024
I'm happy to be hosting and moderating this webinar that will be presented by Melissa Sherman, a...
View Our “Ask Us Anything” Event on Psychological Safety and Lean

View Our “Ask Us Anything” Event on Psychological Safety and Lean

August 20, 2024
Psychological safety is often described as “feeling safe to speak up.” In Lean...
From Strategy to Execution: Webinar with Karen Friedenberg

From Strategy to Execution: Webinar with Karen Friedenberg

July 17, 2024
Are you looking to transform your business strategy into actionable results? Join us for our...

Videos

Henry Ford Health System’s TV Ad on Patient Safety

ByMark Graban July 31, 2012 Comments (3) 907
Hat tip to my dad who saw this commercial on TV back home in Detroit. It's an ad from the Henry Ford...
CBC on Lean in Saskatchewan Hospitals

CBC on Lean in Saskatchewan Hospitals

ByMark Graban July 30, 2012 Comment (1) 1009
I've been to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan before — in February. It was a very cold, snowy place, to...

Weekend Fun: GMBP’s “WIP IT”

ByMark Graban July 27, 2012 Comment (1) 839
Ah, the perks of subscribing to the GBMP's YouTube channel… this might be basically a world...

Mark Graban on YouTube

"Great idea. Why don't you run with it?" Leaders mean it as trust. To the employee, it often means a second job on top of the first. At a fireside chat in Cleveland, Tennessee, someone asked me about the employee who keeps an idea to themselves because they figure they'll be stuck doing the work. It looks like fear. I think it's futility: they've learned what usually happens next. 🔵 Why "run with it" can turn an idea into unpaid extra work 🔵 When handing someone their own idea is a real opportunity, and when it isn't 🔵 The late Kim Barnas's rule: don't assign the follow-up to the person who raised the concern 🔵 Two questions to ask before you hand an idea back My upcoming book, The Silence Tax, is about the fear and futility that keep people quiet at work. Early chapters are on Leanpub: https://leanpub.com/silence-tax #Leadership #PsychologicalSafety #ContinuousImprovement #Lean #Shorts
Why Your Employees Stop Sharing Ideas (It's Not Fear)
Do we want to be right, or help others change? This speaker reel connects psychological safety, problem-solving, and continuous improvement. I’m Mark Graban, an author, speaker, and consultant. In these keynote clips, I discuss stories from Toyota and a comparison with Ford to explore how leadership and culture shape people’s willingness to speak up. The clips cover: - Responding constructively when mistakes happen - Combining psychological safety with practical problem-solving - Modeling vulnerability and rewarding people for speaking up Planning a conference, leadership meeting, or workshop? Let’s discuss your audience and goals. Speaking topics: https://www.markgraban.com/speaking/topics/ Booking inquiries: https://www.markgraban.com/speaking/book-mark/
Mark Graban Speaker Reel | Psychological Safety & Leadership
A patient was supposed to undergo surgery for a right-sided inguinal hernia. But the incision was made on the left side. Dr. David Mayer, then a senior anesthesia resident, recalls how the operating room team moved quickly into the procedure while everyone focused on their own responsibilities. About two minutes after the incision, the attending surgeon entered the room, looked at the patient, and asked: “I thought this was a right-sided inguinal hernia?” That was the moment the team realized what had happened. In this clip from *My Favorite Mistake*, Dr. Mayer describes the wrong-site surgery that became a defining experience in his career—and helped shape his commitment to patient safety, transparency, and learning from medical errors. The larger lesson isn’t simply “be more careful.” It’s to understand how systems, communication, time pressure, teamwork, and culture can allow an error to reach a patient. Full episode: **The Surgical Mistake That Changed a Doctor’s Life: Dr. David Mayer on Honesty and Patient Safety** #PatientSafety #MedicalErrors #Healthcare #Leadership #SurgicalSafety #MyFavoriteMistake
Wrong-Site Surgery: The Mistake Discovered Mid-Procedure
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