Can SPC Show if American Airlines Pilots are Staging a “Sick Out”? Mark Graban Sep 24, 2012 18 Blog As a frequent flyer on American Airlines and a former DFW-area resident, I pay a lot of attention to the troubled…
I Wish American Airlines Would Error Proof This on Their Website Mark Graban Jul 12, 2012 9 Blog As a frequent flyer on American Airlines, I often have five or six itineraries booked at a time. Unfortunately, the…
Moving Beyond “Be More Careful” Mark Graban Jun 19, 2012 1 Blog Last weekend, I watched a show on the Smithsonian Channel that was an interesting contrast to the CNN show I…
My Flight Attendants Coffee Kaizen: A Lean Journey in the Skies Mark Graban May 17, 2012 12 Blog As a very frequent flyer on American Airlines, I've learned not to expect much from the company and its employees…
A Lean Guy Reads the Globe and Mail – Shoelaces & Plane Crashes Mark Graban Nov 29, 2011 2 Blog I was in Canada a few weeks back and two articles from the Globe and Mail newspaper caught my eye - stories from…
The Need for Pilots (Not the flying kind) at the TSA? Mark Graban Nov 7, 2011 1 Blog My dad was flying back from Seattle last week and he noticed this at the TSA "gemba" in the airport, as he reported…
World Series Defect: Wrong Pitcher Mark Graban Oct 26, 2011 13 Blog People in healthcare know that miscommunications are a major cause of errors and patient harm. There was a strange!-->…
Checklists Promoted and Debated on “Grey’s Anatomy” Mark Graban May 17, 2011 13 Blog It's my second post about the TV show Grey's Anatomy, the first being "McDreamy" Fights the Blame Game on "Grey's…
Lessons from a Crazy Taxi Ride: Improving Processes in Unpredictable Environments Mark Graban Apr 13, 2011 19 Blog When I was leaving the recent Shingo Prize conference, last week, I had what can only be described as a taxi ride!-->…
Command-and-Control Killed this Cosmonaut? Lessons for Our Organizations… Mark Graban Mar 28, 2011 4 Blog Lean is not a "command and control" leadership and management model. The old command-and-control dynamic leads to…
An Astronaut’s Viewpoints on Systems & Patient Safety Mark Graban Mar 24, 2011 2 Blog Today, I'm sharing a brilliant Slate.com interview: "Risky Business: James Bagian "NASA astronaut turned!-->!-->!-->…
Weekend Fun: Funny Plane Picture That’s Not Really “Visual… Mark Graban Oct 3, 2010 3 Blog There's a series of airplane photos, of South Africa's Kalula Airlines, that have been going around the web,…
Mental Models: Standardized Work and Performance Measures Mark Graban Aug 22, 2010 13 Blog A few thoughts while waiting for a Sunday flight... at least it's a Sunday flight towards home. One reason…
How to Design Poor Service – Expect 100% Utilization of People or Resources Mark Graban Aug 2, 2010 30 Blog I have as many bad customer service experiences as the next guy, both in healthcare and other businesses. As I've!-->…
Simplistic Solutions Can Have Unintended Consequences Mark Graban Jun 11, 2010 0 Blog An editorial written by an American Airlines pilot in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram caught my attention ("Unintended…
A Curious Lack of Error Proofing in the Air Mark Graban Jun 5, 2010 9 Blog About a week ago, I was flying and the passenger next to me knocked his water over right into my lap. Argh! I…
Liveblogging the Quaid Patient Safety Documentary Mark Graban Apr 24, 2010 8 Blog I'm blogging notes and thoughts as I watch the Discovery Channel documentary by actor Dennis Quaid and others -- …
Guest Post: Captain Sully Talks about Lean and Healthcare Safety Naida Grunden Mar 25, 2010 7 Blog Mark's note: I am thrilled to be able to bring you this guest post from my friend and fellow lean healthcare…