The 2016 Toyota Kata Summit developed some interesting themes.
Even though the keynote addresses were not coordinated, one message emerged across them all.
This is about leadership development.
And by that, I don’t mean it is about further developing those in leadership positions. I mean it is about developing good thinking and leadership skills in everyone who chooses to deliberately learn. The “kata” are a structure for that learning, but learning the kata themselves is not the goal. It is a means to the end.
I know I have said this before, but now I see the beginning of a shift in the larger community, away from “kata as a problem solving tool” and toward “kata as a practice routine” for something bigger than the kata themselves.
Some Quotes and Themes
Improvement cannot be separate from management.
– Amy Mervak
This may well seem obvious. But in the vast majority of organizations, improvement is the job of the Continuous Improvement Department, or the Quality Department, or some other staff department.
If they are working on developing the improvement skills of line management, then all well and good. But if they are working directly on making improvements, then that is the problem at the root of “lack of leadership engagement.”
Intentional practice results in intentional learning.
– Amy Mervak
Put another way, without intentional practice, learning is a matter of luck. If you want your organization to actually learn a new behavior, then people and teams have to deliberately practice it until it is a habit.
What differentiates excellent organizations from their competitors is effective execution of strategy.
– Mike Rother
There is no shortage of effective models. But those models all require shifts in how people respond, especially under stress, to the unexpected.
Even in the best of times,
We want to learn something new, but we habitually follow our [existing] routines.
– Mike Rother
Our brains, and therefore we, are hard-wired to do this. And “under stress” is not the time to try to learn a new response. It has to be practiced in a space where it is safe to screw it up and learn.
This actually goes pretty deep. I have worked with a few organizations, and one in particular, where everyone adamantly agrees what changes must be made. But they don’t take active steps to get there.
Which brings us to:
40 priorities = No priorities.
Strategic priorities must be focused and formally expressed.
– Amy Mervak
It doesn’t do any good to have a Grand Vision if it is vague, or so diluted that Everything Is Important. Your job (management) is to be clear so people don’t waste their time working hard on something that doesn’t make a difference.
Although he was not present, Bill Costantino was quoted:
A long discussion is a symptom of lack of clarity on the current condition or the challenge.
– Bill Costantino
In other words, “What are we trying to accomplish here, and where are we now?” never get asked or clarified.
On Culture Change Modification
An interesting point was made about culture. Yes, we are working to shift the culture of the organization. But “change” may imply that we are changing everything. In reality, we have to consider:
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What are we choosing to keep, maintain, enhance?
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What are we choosing to alter?
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What are we choosing to let go?
If these are deliberate decisions made by the team, then there is an opportunity to make purposeful adjustments, and frame them in the context of “What are we striving for?”
So perhaps the term “culture modification” is more appropriate.
Dave Kilgore’s presentation (full disclosure: I nominated Dave as a keynote) highlighted an organizational culture as the challenge for his advance team.
And because they are focused on creating this culture, they are making tangible progress.
Brad Frank asked the audience an interesting question.
If someone brings you a problem, there are two problems. What is the second one?
-Brad Frank
I have alluded to this in previous posts. As a leader, you have to ask “Why was my organization unable to make the correct decision without coming to me?”
Every time someone has to come and ask you something, it means you are an obstacle to their success.
– Brad Frank
Dave Kilgore emphasized the same thing and uses David Marquet’s “Ladder of Leadership” model both as a way to advance the culture, as well as a way to assess the current condition by listening to people.
I wanted to get these notes up there. I’ll cover Day 2 in another post.