Tag: Toyota

Toyota Thinking: Leadership, Systems, and Continuous Improvement

Toyota is often cited as the inspiration for Lean, but its success is rooted in leadership behaviors, management systems, and a deep commitment to learning—not tools or slogans. This archive brings together blog posts, podcasts, and reflections on Toyota’s approach to quality, continuous improvement, psychological safety, and respect for people. Many of these posts explore what leaders outside Toyota often misunderstand—and what truly matters if they hope to learn from Toyota rather than copy it.

Expanding Your Circle of Trust, Er, Learning

4
My reader survey (with prizes) is still open through Friday.   I recently stumbled across the movie Meet the Fockers  on TV recently and was...

Dr. Richard Zarbo’s Talk at the Lab Quality Confab

0
Don't forget my reader survey - share your feedback and have a chance at some great prizes. In November, I blogged about a panel at...

Japan Tour Reflections: Taking Home Lean Artifacts or Lean Thinking?

6
Reflecting more on my recent Japan tour (see previous posts) one word came up in my notes: artifacts. One dictionary definition of that term is...

#LeanStartup Conference 2012 Notes – Get Out of the Building

13
In his kickoff to the Lean Startup Conference, Eric Ries promised that there was so much content and so many speakers crammed into the...

Guest Post: The Risk of Ignoring Muri

7
Today's guest post is by author  Natalie Sayer, who was my guest for  Podcast #145.   While doing research for another project, I had the...

What Is an Andon Cord? How Toyota’s Andon System Really Works

16
TL;DR: An andon cord is not primarily a line-stopping device. At Toyota, it's a signaling system that allows workers to call for help immediately....

Highlights From My First Lean Study Trip to Japan, Day 1

3
I know many of you aren't into the whole Twitter thing, but I'm using my account (@MarkGraban) to share some photos and small batches...

Visiting the Toyota Museum in Nagoya

4
While I'm in Japan this week (read about the trip), I'm going to keep my blogging light - my aim is to share one...

A Panel of Early Lean Lab Innovators

3
This week, I was able to drop by the annual Lab Quality Confab event since it was being held in here in San Antonio....

Watching the Steve Jobs “Lost Interview,” Part 1

4
Recently, I stumbled across something that's been out for about a year, a lost video of Steve Jobs being interviewed in 1995. See this...

Why “Lean Six Sigma” Misrepresents Lean Thinking (Just Call It 5S...

26
TL;DR: Many "Lean Six Sigma" programs misrepresent Lean as a set of tools layered onto Six Sigma. Lean is not a toolbox--it's a management...

Guest Post: Kaizen and Passion

1
Mark's note: Today's guest post is from a friend of mine from The Netherlands. I had a chance to visit Marc and his hospital...
An AI that won't just give you the answer. That's what makes it useful.Free Demo -- Learn More
+ +