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.
Toyota bulks up Tundra, hoping to draw a crowd of buyers They go big, but stay lean (or they’re getting “leaner”). It’s been hard to avoid the Toyota ads while watching football, with their new full-sized trucks. Rather than patriotic…
LeanBlog Podcast #15 is a new discussion with a previous Podcast guest, Jim Huntzinger. Last time, we talked about the Lean Accounting Summit. This time, we’re talking about the renaissance of the “Training Within Industry” program. We’ll talk about the…
Mulally: Visit to Toyota wasn’t overture to competitor I don’t disagree, but isn’t it a bit shocking to hear this from the head of Ford? It sure helps that CEO Mulally comes from outside the industry, eh? “…the former Boeing…
via Shmula.com Peter’s blog has reprinted an official Toyota company history on his website. Some of the numbers are outdated, but the text of it is interesting. Toyota is still writing their history, with rumors of yet another U.S. plant…
A few articles about Toyota from the past week: Toyota boss let the customer drive (Globe and Mail) This was an interview with the outgoing President of Toyota Canada who, in typically Toyota style, focuses a lot on what the…
By Jamie Flinchbaugh One of the most underrated voices in the “lean” world is Tom Johnson. I still regularly recommend his latest book, now 6 years old, Profit Beyond Measure. It’s a little hard for some to read, but the…
NY Times: Ford and Toyota Chiefs Met in Tokyo MSNBC: Ford’s Mulally signals co-operation with Toyota In the NY Times today… apparently they fired up Mark Fields’ private jet and flew off to Japan last week to meet with Toyota…
Here’s what jumped out at me from Friday’s WSJ articles on Alan Mulally: his “war room” and his “first impressions.” (both articles require paid WSJ subscriptions, I believe). The free version of the war room article is here. In the…
By Dan Markovitz, Markovitz Consulting(Mark’s note… Dan has been a unofficial, yet very welcome, contributor to the blog for a few weeks now. We should see him posting directly soon. But for now, here is a post he sent me…
Not breaking news, but more article about Toyota’s expected leap to #1 in global auto sales in 2007. The NY Times and the International Herald Tribune both chimed in. All quotes below are from the IHT article. Toyota Motor said…
Sir Richard Branson: Making the Skies Green – Enterprise Management – MSNBC.com Thanks to blog reader Marc for sending this my way. He points out the parallel between waste elimination (a typical lean concept) and the environmental push to reduce…
Toyota poised to get GM’s top spot | The Japan Times Online: Analysts thought it might be 2006, but now 2007? “Analysts say 2007 could be the year Japan’s top automaker overtakes General Motors Corp. as the world’s top-selling carmaker.”…