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Collaboration at a Local Level

How do you learn from other companies in your area? How can you help each other? Professional societies and their local member chapters often filled that void, but only within the narrow silo professions in which memberships are formed. Collaboration on a broader level, around topics such as performance and continuous improvement, often requires new solutions.

In comes the creation of the Michigan Lean Consortium, of which I helped to get started, which was formed for the purpose of Michigan-based companies collaborating to improve themselves and ultimately improving the state.

This has happened out of need, as Michigan is the worst economy in the United States and has been for several years. But this isn’t an automotive group – it has companies such as DTE Energy, Amway, and Blue Cross Blue Shield.

Recently the group elected its first slate of directors, pictured here, and you can read about the group in the related announcement.

Do you have a need for such a collaboration in your community? Whether you are in a small town or looking at State-wide collaboration, all it takes are some shared interests and a little elbow grease.