Published Articles

Everyone performs work, and everyone has the opportunity to improve how that work is executed. In my last 2 columns for Industry Week, I have focused on different aspects of value, the customer, and waste elimination. I continue that theme in this month’s installment of Lessons from the Road in

In the last installment of my Industry Week column, Lessons from the Road, I talked about waste elimination. In it, I also explained that the commonly used phrase “do more with less” is often perceived about being about the “less” when I believe truly lean organizations focus on the “more.”

  My latest IndustryWeek Lessons from the Road column has been released. This month’s topic is hopefully a fresh look at an old lean topic: waste elimination. Despite the many definitions to the contrary, many of you know that my view is that lean is not “all about” waste elimination.

My latest column for Industry Week, Lessons from the Road, titled Lessons from the Road: Reducing Lead Time Changes Everything has been posted. Here is the intro:   Ever hear “get it done faster”? It comes from many sources, most importantly, customers. The most time-tested — and ineffective — means

My latest column for Industry Week, Lessons from the Road, titled Lessons from the Road: The Leader’s Role as Coach has been posted. Here is the intro:   Here are some specific opportunities to improve our daily coaching efforts. 1. Coach method versus solution. When someone comes to you describing

My latest column for Industry Week, Lessons from the Road, titled Decisions about Making Decisions has been posted. Here is the intro:   One of the most important domains within organizations that lean too infrequently injects itself is decision-making. The who, what, when and how of decision-making is ultimately one

I was recently interviewed by Bill Fox of 5 Minutes to Process Improvement Success™. His  interview entitled Did We Get the Result We Expected to Get, and If Not, Why with Jamie Flinchbaugh has been posted. Bill was great to work with, and read The  Hitchhiker’s Guide to Lean in great

Last week my IndustryWeek column titled Don’t Waste Your Metrics was released. It has generated a significant amount of discussion, as many companies find themselves in the situation of measuring far too many things, yet still not feeling like they know what is going on. I plan to build on

My latest column for Industry Week, Lessons from the Road, titled Don’t Waste Your Metrics has been posted. Here is the intro:   Most every company has metrics permeating every meeting, discussion and decision. Metrics are as ubiquitous as email and problem solving and taken for granted to an equal level.

My latest column for Industry Week, Lessons from the Road, titled Experiment Your Way to Success has been posted. Here is an excerpt:   The heart of most effective continuous improvement is experimentation. Experimentation is the mother of all learning methods. It drives learning throughout an organization based on what