Tag: Kaizen
Fear and Futility: Two Barriers to Improvement (and How Leaders Can...
Have you ever seen a problem at work but decided not to say anything? Maybe you were worried about the reaction (fear). Or maybe...
Lean Lessons from Japan: Mindsets, Culture, and the Challenge of Speaking...
This article is based on my recent Catalysis webinar, "Lean Lessons from Japan: Mindsets, Culture, and the Challenge of Speaking Up." The session was...
Ryan McCormack’s Operational Excellence Mixtape: August 22, 2025
Thanks, as always, to Ryan McCormack for this. He always shares so much good reading, listening, and viewing here! Subscribe to get these directly...
Kaizen Alone Isn’t Enough: Why Leaders Must Fix the System for...
One of the most persistent misunderstandings I see about Lean is the belief that if you "just get everyone doing Kaizen," performance will steadily...
Einstein’s Favorite Mistake — and What It Teaches Us About Lean...
Albert Einstein -- the mind who redefined physics -- once called something he did "the biggest blunder of my life."
When he completed his general...
What Visiting Japan Taught Me About Lean Leadership and Healthcare Culture
This October, I'll be returning to Japan for another Lean healthcare study trip--my seventh time overall and my fifth healthcare-focused visit.
With each visit, I...
Kaiteki: The Japanese Philosophy Behind Motivated Employees and Lean Success
During my most recent visit to Japan (as part of a tour hosted by Katie Anderson), we spent time in several remarkable organizations where...
From Chaos to Clarity: How a Health System CEO Used Process...
"Every month, we're buried in data--and yet somehow, we're still arguing over whether there's actually a problem."
That was the problem statement shared with me...
Ryan McCormack’s Operational Excellence Mixtape: April 18, 2025
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 Game Film to Gemba: How Chick-fil-A Studies the Work (and...
If you've ever waited in a long Chick-fil-A drive-through line, chances are it was the most pleasant traffic jam you've experienced. Efficient, polite, and...
Ryan McCormack’s Operational Excellence Mixtape: February 21, 2025
Thanks, as always, to Ryan McCormack for this. He always shares so much good reading, listening, and viewing here! Subscribe to get these directly...
Commemorating Martin Luther King Jr. Day — Keep Moving Forward
Let's commemorate today's national holiday for Dr. King with a look back at my post from 2012:
A Lean Lesson from Dr. Martin Luther King,...