Lean Whiskey

Lean Whiskey Podcast

About the Podcast

Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh are two guys with a lot in common: Lean, writing books, speaking, consulting… and a love of good whiskey. Like the Car Talk guys, they both went to MIT… but Lean isn’t rocket science. Let’s hope they can hold their liquor, because they’re not holding back on sharing their opinions… it’s time for Lean Whiskey… Lean talk with a fun spirit!

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Lean Whiskey Episode 44

Episode 44: “New Year’s Resolutions, just not Dry January. Boeing makes one too”  In Episode 44, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh get back together for this first episode of 2024. Since we’re not doing Dry January, we go right into the whiskey first by talking about old bottles including one

Lean Whiskey Episode 43

In Episode 43, Jamie Flinchbaugh and Mark Graban begin by talking about each of our interviews regarding the new book by Steve Spear and Gene Kim, Wiring the Winning Organization. Mark interviewed Steve and Gene for the LeanBlog podcast, and Jamie interviewed Steve for a forthcoming episode of People Solve

Lean Whiskey Episode 42

In Episode 42, Jamie Flinchbaugh visits Mark Graban and they get to record an episode in-person. This was the origin of the show – getting together in-person, enjoying whiskey, and talking about lean stuff. The last episode we did an experiment that was inconclusive – sometimes that’s how it goes.

Lean Whiskey Episode 41

Episode 41: “Should lean be forced?”  In Episode 41, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh try a couple of experiments, in the spirit of continuous improvement. You’ll first notice that we moved the whiskey talk to the end. The hypothesis here is that some people don’t want to hear the whiskey

Lean Whiskey Episode 40

Episode 40: “New Riff, a new book, and exploring lessons from examples of pivots”  In Episode 40, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh get back together after their in-person visit where they enjoyed the origins of this podcast: talking about lean stuff while enjoying some whiskey. We get to celebrate the

Lean Whiskey Episode 39

Episode 39: Does Starbucks’ CEO Serving Coffee and Uber’s CEO Shuttling Passengers Do Any Good? In Episode 39, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh toast the completion of Mark’s new book, The Mistakes That Make Us: Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation. We also acknowledge Jamie’s forthcoming podcast based on

Lean Whiskey Episode 38

Episode 38: “A Toast to the U.S. Micro Whiskey of the Year, and the Need to Recommit to Patient Safety”  What do you do when you are chosen as Jim Murray’s US Micro Whiskey of the Year? You pop in to join Mark and Jamie on Lean Whiskey to talk

Lean Whiskey Episode 37

Episode 37: “I’ll have a half-caff no-whip soy-milk chestnut praline latte…to-go” In Episode 37, we wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays with some new (to us) holiday cocktails. Mark tries the Bourbon Flip, and Jamie makes a Hot Buttered Bourbon. Neither will likely be in our regular rotation

Lean Whiskey Episode 36

Episode 36: “Guest Chris Kauzmann, and Design Thinking’s Relationship to Lean Thinking”  In Episode 36, Jamie Flinchbaugh is joined by Chris Kauzmann, Adjunct Faculty, and Innovator in Residence at Lehigh University. Chris, a self-described “bottom shelf” whiskey drinker, joins Jamie to sample some Nikka Coffee Malt Whiskey and Blue Run

Lean Whiskey Episode 35

Episode 35: “We’re tired, but not tired of whiskey. A Gemba walk will pick us up.”    In Episode 35, Mark is recently back from his Scotland Gemba visit. He isn’t tired from jet lag, or from whiskey, but nevertheless, Mark and Jamie both end up complaining about being tired.

Lean Whiskey Episode 34

Episode 34: “Crazy Ideas, From Shipping Flowers to Crab Whiskey” In Episode 34, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh begin by belatedly celebrating the 3rd birthday of Lean Whiskey. No, this wasn’t a pandemic-launched podcast, although if we hadn’t started it yet it probably would have become one. We also learn

Lean Whiskey Episode 33

Episode 33: “Back to Normal, and New Firsts”  In Episode 33, we recognize some of the back to normal which includes Mark heading out on the road to do consulting again. That brings Mark close enough to Jamie for a new first: an in-person recording of Lean Whiskey. Mark Graban

Lean Whiskey Episode #32

Episode 32: “Employee Engagement Beyond Buying Them Pizza, or Bourbon”  In Episode 32, Jamie Flinchbaugh and Mark Graban have a first…comparing two similar whiskeys from the same distiller. In this case, family-owned Willett and their Willett Pot Still Reserve bourbon and the Johnny Drum bourbon. We definitely both have our

Lean Whiskey Episode #31

Episode 31: “End a Year, End a Bottle; Start a Year, Start a Bottle”  In Episode 31, Mark and Jamie discuss the routines and practices of wrapping up a year and kicking off a new year. In that spirit, we either finish a bottle of whiskey or start a new

Lean Whiskey Episode #30

Episode 30: “Celebrating 30 Episodes, Writing Books, and Great Whiskey” In Episode 30, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh find things to celebrate, starting with the fact that we have hit 30 episodes. In that time, we’ve had 14 guests or co-hosts and tasted 56 different whiskeys (not counting the gin

Lean Whiskey Episode #29

Episode 29: “Yellow Cards, Coffee Cocktails, and a Barrel Down the Drain”  In Episode 29, it’s been a little while since Mark and Jamie got together for Lean Whiskey. We catch up on what’s new, which includes Mark’s new certification with distinction with the WSET Level 2 Spirits certification, and

Lean Whiskey Episode #28

Episode 28: “Mistakes make us better, and make whiskey necessary”  In Episode 28, Mark and Jamie begin by having our spouses pour mystery whiskeys for us. We don’t know what they are when we start drinking them. Mark’s wife at least joins him occasionally in a dram, but Jamie’s wife

Lean Whiskey Episode #27

Episode 27: “Lean Coffee: Pour Over Edition”  In Episode 27, Mark and Jamie switch things up a bit with a morning recording of the show. While we could have just started our whiskey early, instead we decided to switch to a beverage that shares much of the same culture, craft,

Lean Whiskey Episode #26

Episode26: The accidental St. Patrick’s Day celebration, and exploring new CEO appointments Carol Tomé, Rosalind Brewer, and Jane Fraser   In Episode 26, we accidentally celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with some Irish whiskey, lightly mourn some NCAA March Madness losses, and Jamie Flinchbaugh and Mark Graban welcome guest co-host Adam

Lean Whiskey Episode #25

Episode25: Peaty Scotch, Working from Home, and Misunderstood Lean phrases In Episode 25, Jamie and Mark welcome a guest to our show, Jim Benson.  Jim has been a long-time collaborator of Mark’s and certainly enjoys a dram or two of whiskey. We begin by getting the backstory on Jim’s Twitter

Lean Whiskey Episode #24

Episode 24: “Homemade whiskey cream and vaccination (not to be mixed up)” In Episode 24, Mark and Jamie return to a familiar format, just the two of them chatting over some whiskey. In this episode, they decide to make homemade whiskey cream (more popularly known as Irish cream or just

Lean Whiskey Episode #23

Episode 23: “Finishing 2020 with everything from Kentucky Bourbon to Eggnog, with some Kata on top” Show Notes  In Episode 23, Mark and Jamie return to finish out 2020, this time joined by Kentucky native Deondra Wardelle, so naturally, Kentucky bourbon is our whiskey category of choice. Bourbons selected include

Lean Whiskey Episode #21

Episode 21: “What is the point of lean during a rare pandemic?”   In Episode 21, Mark and Jamie return to our regular casual format of open discussion over a drink, this time joined by Tom Ehrenfeld, well known to the lean community for his writing and editorial work with

Lean Whiskey Episode #20

Episode 20: “Live from the Colorado Lean Network Summit”  In Episode 20, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh join the Colorado Lean Summit live and host a virtual happy hour while discussing the first couple days of the event’s proceedings. Joining us as co-hosts are CLN members Jen House (also a

Lean Whiskey Episode #18

In Episode 18, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh return to our tried and true format of “just the two of us”, although that won’t last long as Mark will soon have a guest co-host and then we will record an episode live as part of the Colorado Lean Network Summit.

Lean Whiskey Episode #17

In Episode 17, after not doing an episode of Lean Whiskey in almost two months, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh try all sorts of firsts. We had three people, with Jim Huntzinger of Lean Frontiers joining us. We all drank the same whiskey. We used two different whiskeys. We talked

Lean Whiskey Episode #16

In Episode 16, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh take a little longer than usual to get to the lean talk. Our whiskey topic was cocktails, which takes longer to make (and apparently talk about) than pouring neat whiskey into a tumbler. Mark made a Boulevardier and Jamie made an Old

Lean Whiskey Episode #15

In a special live-to-YouTube Episode 15 of Lean Whiskey, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh begin their week by catching up, drinking whiskey, and talking shop. This episode was an experiment both in video recording the episode and in streaming it live to get viewer participation and questions. We didn’t have

Lean Whiskey Episode #14

Coronavirus, Supply Chains, and JIT In Episode 14 of Lean Whiskey, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh finish off another weekend by catching up, drinking whiskey, and talking shop. In whiskey, we explore the idea of adding water to your whiskey. Rather than take the tradition as fact, the lean thinker

Lean Whiskey Episode #13

In Episode 13 of Lean Whiskey, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh reconnect in their first joint episode this year, after a couple of weeks of guest hosts. Our last episode together was filled with Grinches, gremlins, and glitches, so it was nice to both be in a proper recording location

Lean Whiskey Episode #11

In Episode 11 of Lean Whiskey, Mark Graban gets a rest, and Jamie Flinchbaugh co-hosts along with long-time friend and colleague Susan Pleasant, who was first a client and later a partner. Susan brings 30 years of operations experience, and has consulted for 12 years, first at the Lean Learning

Lean Whiskey Episode #10

In Episode 10 of Lean Whiskey, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh do their best to work through technology issues, as the Grinch clearly didn’t want us to record. We apologize if this affected the final product, but the show must go on. The two whiskey enthusiasts select some whiskey they

Lean Whiskey Episode #9

In Episode 9 of Lean Whiskey, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh link up on Halloween night to share a drink and ideas about lean. We discuss air travel, which we both experience in volume, and taste affordable whiskeys under $35.  We both agree handing out whiskey for Halloween would be

Lean Whiskey Episode #7

In Episode 7 of Lean Whiskey, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh share whiskey samples from each other’s collection and talk about some recent projects. They explore whether you should bring lean home, and apply it with (or to???) your spouse or family. Is lean about efficiency when it comes to

Lean Whiskey Episode #6

In Episode 6 of Lean Whiskey, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh explore two icons as leaders and the impact they’ve had. Lee Iacocca and Ross Perot passed away recently, and we explore their impact on their companies and most importantly, on people. We also enjoy a couple of Speyside single

Lean Whiskey Episode #4

In Episode 4 of Lean Whiskey, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh (and a cameo from his cat Rocco), longtime friends, lean thinkers, and whiskey enthusiasts, join forces to enjoy a casual conversation — mostly about lean and a little bit about whiskey. We recap Mark’s recent trip to Louisville, including

Lean Whiskey Episode #2

In Episode 2 of Lean Whiskey, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh, longtime friends, lean thinkers, and whiskey enthusiasts, join forces to enjoy a casual conversation — mostly about lean and a little bit about whiskey. We start by thanking the listeners of Episode 1 who shared their response to hearing

Our Lean Whiskey Debut Episode #1

In the very first episode of Lean Whiskey, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh, longtime friends, lean thinkers, and whiskey enthusiasts, join forces to enjoy a casual conversation — mostly about lean and a little bit about whiskey. In Episode 1, which we labeled as a “wet run” instead of a