Organizational culture isn’t what leaders say—it’s what people experience every day based on management behaviors, systems, and priorities. This archive brings together blog posts, podcasts, and reflections on culture through a Lean lens, exploring how leadership decisions shape trust, psychological safety, learning, and performance. Many of these posts draw on lessons from Deming, Toyota, healthcare, and real organizations to show that culture is not a program to roll out, but an outcome leaders create—intentionally or not.
With a heavy heart, I’d like to honor and remember David Mann, a noted author in the #Lean Management community, who passed away on the 26th. You can read his obituary here. David’s outstanding book, Creating a Lean Culture was in its 3rd…
Wolfgang Puck practices Lean and Kaizen without calling it that–by developing people, learning from mistakes, focusing on customers, and improving every day. This post shows why continuous improvement is a leadership mindset, not a manufacturing technique. The GE Lean Mindset…
Thanks as always to Ryan McCormack for this… there’s always so much good reading, listening, and viewing shared here by him! Subscribe to get these directly from Ryan via email. Insights about improvement, innovation, and leadership… Operational Excellence, Improvement, and…
Scroll down for how to subscribe, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #489 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Ward Vuillemot, a seasoned C-suite executive with over six years of leading fully remotely while building technology organizations from…
Thanks as always to Ryan McCormack for this… there’s always so much good reading, listening, and viewing shared here by him! Subscribe to get these directly from Ryan via email. Insights about improvement, innovation, and leadership… Operational Excellence, Improvement, and…
tl;dr summary: In this exploration into the complexities of failure and learning, I draw from a range of entrepreneurs to debunk myths and advocate for a more nuanced understanding. The key takeaway is that failure is only harmful if we…
Scroll down for how to subscribe, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #488 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is D. Lynn Kelley, Ph.D. She is the author, with John Shook (who has been a guest here many times),…
tl;dr: In a riveting discussion, Ford CEO Jim Farley and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi delve into Lean principles, cultural shifts, and operational challenges. From crisis management to employee respect, discover how these transportation industry leaders are transforming their companies. A…
Scroll down for how to subscribe, transcript, and more My guests for Episode #487 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast are two Lean leaders from GE Aerospace. They are Samantha Ruehle, Lean Operations Leader, Lean Transformation Team and Greg Pothoff,…
Thanks as always to Ryan McCormack for this… there’s always so much good reading, listening, and viewing shared here by him! Subscribe to get these directly from Ryan via email. Insights about improvement, innovation, and leadership… Operational Excellence, Improvement, and…
Scroll down for how to subscribe, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #486 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Mike Kaeding, the CEO of Norhart. They design, build, and rent apartments. They are transforming the way this is…
Leaders and organizations have a choice: 1) cultivate a culture of fear and punishment or 2) a culture of learning and innovation. That choice significantly affects happiness and performance at all levels within the organization. A culture of fear and…
