When I teach and coach people on the “Kaizen” style of continuous improvement, I emphasize that what I’m teaching them isn’t perfect and it’s not to be carved in stone. People can continuous improve their continuous improvement process in so…
Thanks to George Friesen for pointing me toward his video about “Idea Boards” as a Kaizen methodology. Like George, I was inspired to start using this approach thanks to David Mann‘s outstanding book Creating a Lean Culture: Tools to Sustain…
I’m an invited participant in LinkedIn’s “Influencer” program, where I can essentially write articles/posts that LinkedIn users can subscribe to. I currently have over 41,000 followers there, which gives me an opportunity to spread messages about Lean, Kaizen, and leadership…
With apologies to The Beatles and Dr. John Toussaint: “Kaizen Culture” (sung to “Revolution” by The Beatles) You say you want a kaizen culture Well, you know We all want to change our work You tell me that it’s…
Here is video #8 in our series of short, simple Kaizen education videos from KaiNexus, a software startup where I am on the management team (see the whole series here). We’re also making the videos available on our YouTube Channel and our education videos playlist.…
Yesterday was an outstanding day at the Northeast Shingo Prize Conference in Worcester, Massachusetts – my first time attending and speaking at this event. It’s always great to see Bruce Hamilton (of “Toast Kaizen” fame) and the rest of the…
There are many articles written about collaborative “ideation” systems (sometimes referred as “crowdsourcing”) – web and software systems that allow ideas to bubble up from a large population of employees. I’d call these “suggestions,” per Norman Bodek’s definition that ideas…
This announcement caught my eye recently: “New site lets you tell your boss anything, anonymously.“ A startup’s website allows you to send anonymous ideas or feedback, “the modern age’s equivalent of the old suggestion box.” 2022 Update: This company seems…
Saw this in the most recent Fast Company: Is Your Manager A Creativity Killer? If the manager is something like a case study from the book The No A**hole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t,…
Ken Congdon at Healthcare Technology Online recently interviewed me for this story that’s now online: Kaizen: The Key To Lean Healthcare?. Mark Graban, lean expert and co-author of an upcoming book titled Healthcare Kaizen, often compares Kaizen to the suggestion…
There’s a funny cartoon over at ONEFTE.com about suggestions and employee ideas. The post is titled “Where good ideas go to die.” One time in a hospital, a heard a team member say that about their suggestion box. The cartoon…
It’s time for another reader question – this time, it was a question that came in via Twitter. It was right on point with things I was talking to Paul Akers about in our recent podcast (audio and video). The…