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.
TL;DR: A true culture of learning doesn’t fear mistakes–it learns from them. Drawing inspiration from Toyota’s mindset, this post explores how psychological safety and problem-solving discipline are essential to preventing repeated errors and building continuous improvement into the DNA of…
Thanks as always to Ryan McCormack for this… there’s always so much good reading, listening, and viewing shared here by him! Subscribe to get these directly from Ryan via email. News, articles, books, podcasts, and videos about how to make…
This post is built around excerpts from the book The Mistakes That Make Us: Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation. Read more about Toyota, including stories and key lessons learned in the book. Download a free preview of the book…
This post is built around excerpts from the book The Mistakes That Make Us: Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation. Read more about Toyota, including stories and key lessons learned in the book. Download a free preview Today, we explore…
Wolfgang Puck practices Lean and Kaizen without calling it that–by developing people, learning from mistakes, focusing on customers, and improving every day. This post shows why continuous improvement is a leadership mindset, not a manufacturing technique. The GE Lean Mindset…
TL;DR: Gemba and genba are the same Japanese word (現場), meaning “the actual place.” Japanese speakers, including native speakers and bilingual Lean professionals who’ve lived in Japan, all confirm: it’s a romanization difference, not a meaning difference. The Lean world…
tl;dr: In a riveting discussion, Ford CEO Jim Farley and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi delve into Lean principles, cultural shifts, and operational challenges. From crisis management to employee respect, discover how these transportation industry leaders are transforming their companies. A…
Scroll down for how to subscribe, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #484 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Keith Ingels, who previously joined us in Episode 390. He’s the RLM Manager of Solutions & Support Centers —…
Joining us for Episode #476 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Ken Pilone, who has more than 30 years’ experience in Organization Development in government, retail, automotive, distribution, and aerospace. He recently retired from Providence Health & Services, working…
This week’s episode of the “My Favorite Mistake” podcast features Mike Kaeding, the CEO of a company, Norhart, that designs, builds, and rents apartments. They are transforming the way this is done by incorporating technologies and techniques that have revolutionized…
I am saddened to hear of the death of Ritsuo Shingo (1947-2023), as announced by the Shingo Institute. He was the son of Shigeo Shingo, for whom the Shingo Prize and Shingo Institute were named. I want to express my…
Scroll down for how to subscribe, transcript, and more Joining us for Episode #472 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Mit Vyas, managing director for Gemba Automation. He started his career at Toyota and worked for other large corporations.…
