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.
Former Toyota leader Mark Reich explains why Hoshin Kanri is not a top-down planning exercise, but a leadership system for aligning strategy, developing people, and managing on purpose through dialogue, PDCA, and shared ownership. Scroll down for how to subscribe,…
One of the most important, and most misunderstood, principles in Lean thinking is this: Lean is not a cost-cutting strategy. Lean is a people-development strategy. If your organization is using Lean as a tool to justify layoffs, you’re not practicing…
Why Lean Thinking Succeeds in Japan–Not Because of Culture, But Because of Intentional Leadership and Systems One of the most persistent myths I’ve encountered over the years goes something like this: “Well, of course they can do Lean… they’re Japanese.”…
TL;DR: In my May 2025 LinkedIn poll, psychological safety depended on the boss for nearly half of respondents. Real improvement requires leaders who respond to mistakes with curiosity, consistency, and follow-through. When someone on your team makes a mistake, what…
Do people bring you bad news early? A free two-page psychological safety checklist that turns five habits from The Mistakes That Make Us into boxes you can actually check.
TL;DR: Psychological safety doesn’t mean everyone gets their way–it means everyone gets a voice. When leaders listen, explain decisions, and show respect even in disagreement, trust grows and continuous improvement becomes possible. There’s a phrase I’ve been thinking about a…
Recently, I had the pleasure of moderating a webinar titled “Driving a Culture of Transforming Patient Safety with KaiNexus“ featuring leaders from Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Baton Rouge: Lindsey Booty, Dr. Christopher Thomas, and LeaAnn…
Thanks, as always, to Ryan McCormack for this. He always shares so much good reading, listening, and viewing here! Subscribe to get these directly from Ryan via email. News, articles, books, podcasts, and videos about how to make the workplace…
TL;DR: Lean tools don’t fail because people resist change–they fail because people don’t feel safe. Psychological safety is the starting line for continuous improvement. Without it, huddles, Kaizen boards, and PDCA cycles become empty rituals instead of engines for learning.…
What happens when a CEO treats Lean as a growth system instead of a cost-cutting program? In this episode, Bill Canady shares how he combines Lean, daily management, and the 80/20 principle to drive profitable growth, cultural alignment, and sustained…
TL;DR: Aviation’s safety culture is built on humility: pilots expect mistakes, admit them quickly, and learn without blame. Leaders in any industry can create the same psychological safety by modeling humility, encouraging people to speak up, and treating mistakes as…
Thanks, as always, to Ryan McCormack for this. He always shares so much good reading, listening, and viewing here! Subscribe to get these directly from Ryan via email. News, articles, books, podcasts, and videos about how to make the workplace…
