Lean sometimes gets, I think, an unfair rap that it’s only a method for incremental improvement. See this article, for example: “Limits of Lean — Transformative Care Redesign Must Go Beyond Typical Lean-Based Improvements.”
I was fortunate to take a nearly two-week vacation recently, a trip that included a week in France. My wife and I had a chance to, I guess, do a number of “gemba visits” at some wineries in the Burgundy,…
A hat tip goes to Brian Buck for sharing this quote via email recently. Samuel Clemens, aka Mark Twain, was a pithy and wise man. I didn't remember this quote, but it is attributed to him. It's very appropriate for the type of work we do...
Mark's note: Today's guest post is a return visit by Gert Linthout, from Belgium. Gert and I were part of the same Lean healthcare study trip to Japan back in 2012... Once upon a time... It was some years ago, when we guided a Lean transformation project in a regional hospital. The ambition was to drastically improve...
In my first post about the on-site Kaizen learning experience at Franciscan St. Francis Health, an event I came to call “Kaizen Live,” I wrote about some of the initial presentations and discussions from Franciscan leaders. You can also see…
You might remember that I partnered with Kaizen Institute about two years ago to do their first “Lean Healthcare Study Tour” to Japan. I blogged a bit about the last trip last week. It was a great learning experience, as…
In the category of “not so new” (this blog is nine years old) and hopefully “somewhat improved,” you might notice a slightly different design today here at LeanBlog.org. The last major refresh I did to the site’s look and feel…
After the nice response to Lean Hospitals and Healthcare Kaizen, I often get asked, “So, what’s your next book going to be?” (other than the upcoming Executive Guide to Healthcare Kaizen, that is). I’ve had people suggest writing something about…
I had previously blogged about this Lean healthcare study trip to Japan, but I’m really excited that it’s coming up soon! I depart in just over a week and I’m sure the trip will give me plenty to share and…
You might remember Dr. Les Muda, the “World’s First Lean Healthcare Comedian” (arguably the only one?) from a video back in June. He has taken a break, apparently, from his comedy club tour schedule to be interviewed by Diana Davis…
Listen: Podcast #128 turns the tables a bit, as your host Mark Graban is, this time, interviewed by Dirk Dusharme and Ryan Day from the online video show “Quality Digest Live.” Thanks to Quality Digest, I’m able to share the…
Thanks to Quality Digest for publishing an article I co-authored with Gregory Jacobson, MD, a co-founder and the CEO of KaiNexus, a software startup I am working with as we go to market with web-based technology that helps initiate, manage,…
