Effective problem solving is not about quick decisions, templates, or expert opinions—it’s about shared understanding, scientific thinking, and learning at the system level. These posts explore how leaders and teams approach real problems in complex environments, from executive decision-making to daily improvement work.
Drawing on Lean thinking, Toyota practices, healthcare, manufacturing, and knowledge work, this archive emphasizes problem-solving as a leadership capability: asking better questions, testing assumptions, and building systems that make problems visible instead of hidden.
Yesterday, our tour group had a chance to visit an outstanding factory. They manufacture gas meters and they do everything from casting aluminum, creating printed circuit boards, stamping, painting, assembly – all in a single site. It reminded me a…
The PDSA cycle (Plan, Do, Study, Adjust) is at the heart of Lean problem solving. Most of these mistakes cluster in the Plan phase, where the temptation to skip ahead is strongest. A few live in Study and Adjust, where…
TL;DR: In Lean problem solving, the hardest habit to break is jumping to solutions too early. Effective PDCA and A3 thinking require discipline in problem definition, understanding the current state, and resisting blame-driven shortcuts. Organizations that slow down to define…
Our good friend Matt May (see posts and podcasts about him here) has a new book coming out in October, The Laws of Subtraction: 6 Simple Rules For Winning In The Age Of Excess Everything, a follow-up to previous books,…
If you’re watching college football bowls or the NFL playoffs, it’s hard not to see this commercial from DirecTV. It’s not exactly the reverse of the “5 Whys” (as popularized in Lean and the Lean Startup methods), but it made…
Readers outside the U.S. might not know the UPS advertising slogan of “What Can Brown Do For You?” This often refers to the iconic brown trucks that deliver packages (and the brown uniforms of the employees). One of the challenges…
My dad was flying back from Seattle last week and he noticed this at the TSA “gemba” in the airport, as he reported in an email: The [TSA] woman’s stamp kept falling of the stand. She said they just got…
As I’ve talked to and worked with hospitals and their leaders about Kaizen, or continuous improvement, the concepts, mindsets, and methods make sense to people. They understand how Kaizen is different than the outdated and ineffective suggestion box method. A…
Today’s post is a case study submitted by Abdul N. Mansour, Director Lean & Process Improvement at Scottsdale (AZ) Healthcare. The material here and the PDF downloads are shared with his permission. This project is a noteworthy story in that…
After a week of serious topics and sometimes pointed discussion, let’s end with a funny sign… well wait, there’s a serious story behind this sign too. This is a sign from a New Zealand hospital, sent via email by a…
As a student of Dr. W. Edwards Deming’s books and teachings, I’m not a big fan of slogans and posters in the workplace. Last week, visting a hospital laboratory to do research for my upcoming book Healthcare Kaizen: Engaging Front-Line…
Mark’s note: Today’s guest post is from Dr. Mark Jaben. I first met Mark in person at Cindy Jimmerson’s Lean Healthcare West conference in Montana last year. I’m happy to publish this new guest post to follow up his previous…
