Putting Lean into Orbit
Last January Jim Womack sent an e-letter to the Lean community titled “Beyond Lean” [1], meaning that it was time for the Lean community to move beyond its benchmark company, Toyota. Perhaps so, but...
View ArticleBetter to Improve than Be Offended
Since 1998 I have authored or co-authored eight books and over two dozen journal papers on Lean management. My focus from the outset was critical aspects of Lean management that others had neglected or...
View ArticleWoollard's Eighteen Principles of Flow Production
Frank G. Woollard, the long-forgotten 1920s British pioneer of flow production, made many unique contributions including the establishment of 18 principles of flow production. Woollard recognized that...
View ArticleProgressive Management – 100 Years Of Criticism
Progressive management, commonly known as Lean management* post-1987, has been the subject of severe criticism for over 100 years by everyone imaginable – workers, managers, suppliers, unions,...
View ArticleWhere are the Lean Economists?
Believe it or not, the Lean community could actually use some help from economists, the very same people who largely failed to notice asset bubbles that led to the Great Recession (2007-2009) and who...
View ArticleFair Business is Moral Business
Zero-sum (win-lose) outcomes, in which one party gains at the expense of another, are common in business, due in part to competitive pressures, time constraints, poor business school education, and...
View ArticleMeaningless Victory
These pioneers of progressive management – Frederick Taylor, Frank Woollard, and Taiichi Ohno – have taught us much. But we have not learned all the lessons that we can from them. Far from it. In fact,...
View ArticleThe Middle Manager Problem
It is common to hear senior managers say that the company’s Lean transformation efforts have been slowed by middle managers. They usually attribute this to resistance to Lean or a fear of change....
View ArticleThe Human Case for Lean
Over the decades, many people have tried to make the business case for Lean in an attempt to gain senior management support. They typically start with arguments based on removing waste or improving...
View ArticleImagination and Creativity
Like many others, I found my first experiences with Lean management to be personally liberating and the most fun I ever had at work. We were finally able to think “outside the box” as managers had for...
View Article
