Visual Management is certainly one of the characteristic traits that sets lean organizations apart from all others. The success of Visual Management is predicated on relevant and current data. To be effective, Visual Management must be embraced and utilized by leadership, management, and employees throughout the organization. I also believe that “Knowledge is Power and Wisdom is Sharing it.” For […]
Managing Visually – A word from Daniel T. Jones
Game On – Playing it Safe with Lean
Communicating a concept or methodology in a manner that doesn’t offend the current status quo is likely the biggest challenge we face as lean practitioners and consultants. In all too many instances it seems that people are open to change as long as someone else is doing the changing. To diffuse opposition and resistance to change, it is essential that everyone understands […]
Are you an Excel Hero?
Background Not too long ago, I was approached by a systems consultant to consider writing an Excel solution to create a weekly production schedule for one of his clients. The reason for using Excel will become clearer in a moment. The current process Sales representatives submit a unique Excel spreadsheet / file for each customer order. All orders are saved […]
Lean: Beyond Reach!
Almost everything I read or learned suggests that lean was never intended to be complicated. The simplest definition of lean I have read to date follows: Focus on what matters and eliminate what doesn’t This is not to suggest that lean is easy. In actual practice I find that some companies have sufficiently compounded the definition of lean to exclude […]
The Art of Deception – All Decisions are NOT Equal
As I discussed in “What did you expect? Benchmarking and Decisions – For Better or Worse” we are confronted with decisions every day. I even went so far as to suggest that an underlying benchmark is at the root of all decisions. As you will soon find out, not all decisions are equal. Most of us understand visual or optical […]
Thinking Outside of the Box
I am always intrigued to find evidence that supports the application of lean outside the realm of manufacturing. This morning I was pleasantly surprised to find an article published by Bill Wake titled “Lean Manufacturing and Software” where Bill discusses software development from a lean perspective. Even if you aren’t a programmer or software developer, the article offers some interesting […]
- Advanced Lean Manufacturing
- Eliminate Waste
- Lean Metrics
- Lean Mindset
- Theory of Constraints
- Training
Lean – A Race Against Time
Background If “Time is Money”, is it reasonable for us to consider that “Wasting Time is Wasting Money?” Whether we are discussing customer service, health care, government services, or manufacturing – waste is often identified as one of the top concerns that must be addressed and ultimately eliminated. As is often the case in most organizations, the next step is an attempt to […]
Reality Undercover
One of the few Reality TV programs I enjoy watching is Undercover Boss on CBS. This program exemplifies all the reasons why it is so important for executive leadership and senior management to keep in touch with the front lines of the company. As a lean practitioner I consider the culture of the company to be the defining difference […]
Why Twitter?
Background You may be wondering what Twitter has to do with lean or anything even related to manufacturing. While there may not be a direct correlation to Twitter, the fact that it is still relatively new gave me cause to reflect on what it means to introduce a new system or way of doing things in our organization. I’m going […]
Everyday Greatness
Long nights, extreme snow falls, and sub-zero temperatures are demotivating stressors that can negatively affect employee morale at this time of year, especially during the month of January (Blue Monday). To re-energize and motivate yourself and your teams, I recommend reading Everyday Greatness by Stephen Covey. This book is filled with numerous stories, anecdotes, and quotes that are entertaining, inspirational, […]
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