Popular Posts
GE Aerospace’s Greenville Plant Proves Larry Culp’s “Safety First” Wasn’t Just Talk An Insulin Error Killed a Hospital Patient. How Does Every Other Hospital Learn From It? “Most People Wouldn’t”: Fear, Gratitude, and Reporting Medical Errors Larry Culp on Success Theater, Embracing Red, and the GE Turnaround What If Every Hospital Learned From Every Other Hospital’s Safety Incidents? Four Patients Got the Wrong Drug in Nashville. Ask a Better Question. Toyota Doesn’t Call It Lean? Its Own Websites Say Otherwise Ten Psychological Safety Outcomes, and What They Do and Don’t Prove The Independent Double Check and the Risk of Human Error
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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

The Lean CEO: Why Culture and Leadership Matter More Than Tools (With Jacob Stoller)

The Lean CEO: Why Culture and Leadership Matter More Than Tools (With Jacob Stoller)

ByMark Graban April 8, 2015 3622
In this podcast episode, Jacob Stoller shares insights from interviewing CEOs across industries and explains why Lean succeeds or fails based less on tools and more on culture, leadership humility...
Bob Wachter on The Digital Doctor, Patient Safety, and Lean in Healthcare

Bob Wachter on The Digital Doctor, Patient Safety, and Lean in Healthcare

ByMark Graban March 29, 2015 2414
My guest for episode #220 is somebody I've wanted to interview for a long time, Dr. Robert Wachter, one of the leading voices in the modern patient safety movement. He's most recently author of a...
Podcast #219 – Interview With Tristan Kromer on #LeanStartup Coaching

Podcast #219 – Interview With Tristan Kromer on #LeanStartup Coaching

ByMark Graban March 24, 2015 1362
Joining me for episode #219 is Tristan Kromer, a professional “Lean Startup” coach who works with startups around the world and volunteers for the non-profit Lean Startup Circle. In this...
Baldrige, Lean, and Healthcare Quality: Karen Kiel-Rosser of Mary Greeley Medical Center

Baldrige, Lean, and Healthcare Quality: Karen Kiel-Rosser of Mary Greeley Medical Center

ByMark Graban March 16, 2015 2099
My guest for episode #218 is Karen Kiel-Rosser, Vice President/Quality Improvement Officer at Mary Greeley Medical Center in Iowa. You might remember Karen from a recent post where she told a great...

More Blog Posts

MLB runs per game trend line on baseball stadium background.

Stop Comparing MLB Stats Year to Year: A Better Way to See Real Trends

Mark GrabanByMark Graban July 15, 2024 8198
Two-Year Comparisons in Major League Baseball Stats: A Strikeout, not a Homer tl;dr summary: Year-to-year MLB stat comparisons are misleading. Using long-term data and Process Behavior Charts shows...

Lean Whiskey #47: Decriminalizing Medical Errors, Mouse Jiggling, and New (to us) Bourbons

Mark GrabanByMark Graban July 12, 2024 4768

Ryan McCormack’s Operational Excellence Mixtape: July 12, 2024

Ryan McCormackByRyan McCormack July 12, 2024 5514

What People Know But Won’t Say: The Hidden Cost of Low Psychological Safety

Mark GrabanByMark Graban July 11, 2024 2672
The image is a promotional cover for the Lean Blog Interviews podcast, Episode 510. It features a teal background with rays emanating from the center. The title "MISTAKES & LEAN" is prominently displayed in bold, black letters with a white outline. The episode number "Episode 510" is written below the title. On the right side, there is a photo of Karen Martin, smiling and looking towards the camera. In the top left corner, there is a smaller image of Mark Graban with the text "Lean Blog Interviews" and his name, "Mark Graban."

Karen Martin on the Power of Mistake Proofing in Lean Management

Mark GrabanByMark Graban July 10, 2024 4873

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

“Factory” – A New Situation “Comedy”

ByMark Graban June 30, 2008 Comment (0) 765
Full Episode: Premiere Episode – SPIKE I saw an ad for this the other day, I don't really have...

Jamie Flinchbaugh Video: Daily Improvement

ByMark Graban June 29, 2008 Comment (0) 804
Everybody Everyday: Managing for Daily Improvement The link above is an online video presentation by...

Video Clip — Mike Micklewright as Dr. Deming

ByMark Graban June 18, 2008 Comments (3) 848
You might remember my podcast with Mike Micklewright, “What Would Deming Say?“ Here is a...

Mark Graban on YouTube

The silence tax is what an organization pays when people stop speaking candidly. It never appears as a line on the financial statements, which is exactly what makes it dangerous. In this clip I explain how the cost compounds. A quality problem nobody mentions gets past the process and reaches a customer. An issue nobody raises while it is small grows into an expensive one. The spending is real even though nothing on the P&L is labeled "silence." I also reference survey research estimating that poor management costs the U.S. economy more than $500 billion a year through turnover and lost productivity. That is a gut feeling on my part, but I suspect the estimate is low, since most organizations are paying some version of the silence tax right now. Watch the full interview: https://youtu.be/b4Z9RdjgTp8 🔵 What the silence tax is 🔵 Why it stays invisible to leaders 🔵 How small unspoken problems become costly ones 🔵 What poor management is estimated to cost the U.S. economy More on psychological safety and Lean leadership: https://www.leanblog.org
The Silence Tax: The Hidden Cost of People Not Speaking Up
Michael Chaleff spent his first week as a restaurant magician learning that things go wrong constantly in that job. Then a stranger said four words that took away his ability to speak for the first time in his adult life. 🔵 The line that stopped him cold 🔵 What actually happened next 🔵 Why he still remembers the shame decades later 🔵 The rule he built from that year: the sin isn't the mistake, it's what you do after Full episode: https://youtu.be/aHY6w449NZs
"I Don't Have Hands"
Is the "nice boss era" over? I joined Chris and Amy on KMOX in St. Louis to talk about tough bosses, why employees stay quiet, and what that silence costs. What we covered: - The difference between demanding and cruel, and why "kind" beats "nice" - Why the pendulum swings with the job market, and why both extremes backfire - Two kinds of bad boss: people promoted for the wrong reasons with no leadership training, and founders who never learn to ask - Why futility, not fear, is the most common reason people keep quiet - How to test the waters with one small, fact-based concern instead of a sweeping complaint - Whether it is safe to go to HR - The silence tax: a real cost that never appears on the financial statements 0:00 A bad boss bit, courtesy of Chris and Amy 0:57 Demanding versus cruel: a false trade-off 2:07 Is the nice boss era over? The pendulum and the job market 3:55 How common are cruel managers? 4:39 Two categories of bad boss 6:26 Fear versus futility 7:49 What to do when you cannot leave yet 8:34 Testing the waters with a small, specific issue 9:39 Can you trust HR? 13:06 What the silence tax is and what it costs 14:26 Setting goals without blaming people My next book, The Silence Tax: How Lean Leaders Can Drive Out Fear and Futility, is coming in early 2027. https://thesilencetaxbook.com/ Blog: https://www.leanblog.org Speaking and books: https://www.markgraban.com Podcast: My Favorite Mistake https://myfavoritemistakepodcast.com/
Is the Nice Boss Era Over? Fear, Futility, and the Silence Tax
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