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.
I’m getting a chance to tour the NUMMI plant in Fremont CA, the joint venture between Toyota and General Motors. I’m very excited about it and will post some thoughts over the weekend. Anybody already been there and have perspectives…
AP Article Here’s one for anyone who would accuse me of only reporting good things about Toyota. They aren’t perfect, but I assume they would admit that. From today’s WSJ: Japan’s largest car maker in sales has long had a…
I was looking for some annual financial numbers for Toyota, for comparison to Ford and GM (Toyota’s annual profit is more than the “Big 3” combined). More interesting was this statement in Toyota’s most recent annual report. If you want…
Kaizen and Lean Manufacturing thoughts | Gemba Panta Rei Another good post from the Panta Rei lean blog on quality and perceptions of today’s Toyota, yesterday’s Toyota, and tomorrow’s Toyota… how Toyota says “Beat Toyota”, much as GM says it…
Toyota plant retains fastest engine making title I started my career at a GM V-8 engine plant in the mid 90’s. “Hours per Engine” was the primary metric… at least pre-lean (or really pre-“synchronous manufacturing”, as lean was a dirty…
Article Interesting concept, although I’m sure it would be a bit annoying as a driver. I can’t imagine people accepting these, even if “not paying attention” is a pretty good root cause for accidents.
Six Sigma Stigma (PDF) Here’s an article from Fast Company magazine. The author visited Toyota in Japan and asked a somewhat uninformed question: Eager to show we knew a thing or two about quality ourselves, we soft-balled our hosts with the…
Editor’s Note (2026):Nearly 20 years after this post was written, Toyota’s approach to supplier relationships remains a powerful counterexample to short-term, cost-driven thinking. In an era of fragile supply chains and recurring disruptions, the Toyota Way’s emphasis on long-term partnerships,…
Bloomberg.com: U.S.: Updated 8/11: Looks like the plant has a tentative agreement. Last post before vacation… still sounds like there could be a labor stoppage at NUMMI. I found this interesting: “While GM and Toyota own the plant equally, most…
Toyota-GM factory faces possible strike: It will be interesting to see if Toyota would ever walk away from NUMMI, even as (or because) they are building more plants of their own throughout North America.“The plant has a strong track record…
Bloomberg.com: U.S.: Comments from the Ford president: “Padilla says Toyota serves as an example of how to make winning models. “Toyota doesn’t hit home runs every time at bat,” he says during an interview in the executive dining room. “When…
AICHI VOICE (CUTTING EDGE): Ford and GM started plants in Japan in the 1920’s and many Japanese thought that it was a “fantasy” to think of building their own cars. “‘It’s not just a matter of making automobiles. We must…