Carlos Villela’s blog lixo.org has a great story about simple solutions. I really have no idea if it is true or not – indeed, a couple of the details don’t hang together. On the other hand, I have seen for myself the kind of thinking that is described in this story. Link to full story: [...]
Chapter 3 of The Toyota Way to Lean Leadership is titled “Coach and Develop Others.” Where in Chapter 2 the authors were outlining the individual leader’s responsibility for self-development, now they are describing the environment and the process of supporting and focusing that drive. Rather than just outline the chapter, I want to dig into some [...]
Mike Rother and Bill Costantino have shared a presentation titled “Toyota Kata Unified Field Theory.” I think it nicely packages a number of concepts in an easy-to-understand flow. I want to expand on a couple of points but first listen to the presentation. (Yes, it has a sound track, to be sure to hit the “Play” [...]
A common topic of discussion in many companies is how to document and share what has been learned as they improve their processes. The most common approach is some kind of database (either online or on paper) that documents the various “best practices” solutions to various problems. They might, for example, show the before and [...]
One of the paradoxes of TPS is the inherent distaste for ambiguity. A TPS practitioner doesn’t like to leave things to hope and chance that someone will work it out. What makes this a paradox is that we simply can not see accurately more than a few steps ahead. The world just has too many [...]
“Resistance to change” is a common theme of discussion among practitioners on various online forums, as well as in emails I get from readers. One thing I see fairly often is that a practitioner will be suggesting a visual control or a specific application of a “lean tool” as a “better way” in the process [...]
I was in a conversation today and we ended up boiling 5S down to three key points: You have everything you need. You need everything you have. You can see everything clearly belongs where it is. Of course at the next level, these statements are the standards you are continuously checking against. Presumably we have [...]
I am in another 3P type of event this week. One of the cool things is how the act of physical simulation, even a crude one, drives out ideas and insights. Limitations are challenged, possibilities are expanded.
3P – the Production Preparation Process – is often used to develop a complete “reboot” of a process. The term kaikaku is often applied. Like many of the lean tools, subtle points sometimes get lost in rote application. Here are a couple of thoughts from some experience: Developing and Exploring Target Conditions One of the obvious [...]
A key point of Mike Rother’s book Toyota Kata is that the organization develops a very deep core-competency in problem solving. In order to develop competency at anything, there must first be a standard to strive for. What I am realizing is the precise method used doesn’t matter nearly as much as having a method [...]