2022

How To Do an Effective Personal Work Retreat

by Jamie Flinchbaugh on 09-01-22

No matter what your profession, everyone should consider at some point in time a personal work retreat. For me, it is usually about research and writing. Certainly, almost all of People Solve Problems was written across multiple retreats up to the mountains. Bill Gates would take his “think weeks” away

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Lean Whiskey Episode 34

by Jamie Flinchbaugh on 07-29-22

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

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The Important Gap Between Observation and Perception

by Jamie Flinchbaugh on 07-26-22

Whether in problem-solving, or broad lean behaviors, or seeing the customer as an entrepreneur, there is much articulated about the idea of going to see for yourself. There are many terms for it, such as “direct observation” that we articulated in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Lean, or Gemba commonly used

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Overdesign, Overprocessing, and Overly-Complex

by Jamie Flinchbaugh on 07-19-22

It’s too complicated. I don’t understand. It doesn’t work. It’s not for me.  Whether launching a new product, or a new company initiative, these might be phrases that you’ve heard. It stems from overdesigning the solution. It shows up as the waste of over-processing, doing more than your customer requires

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Creativity, Problem Breakdown, and Problems Such As Eliminating Approvals

by Jamie Flinchbaugh on 06-22-22

There are many problems where we struggle with things such as creativity and breaking down the problem. One such problem that is frequently voiced is the elimination of bureaucracy. You cannot just eliminate bureaucracy. What can you do? You can break down the problem, understand the elements and contributing factors.

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WHO Should Own Change or Transformation?

by Jamie Flinchbaugh on 06-09-22

Who should lead the next change your organization faces? Who should lead a transformation? A lot depends on the nature of the change. On one end, you have deterministic, programmatic, and tool- or technology-centric changes. On the other end of the spectrum, you have leading change into a VUCA world,

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Happy Heuristics Podcast Episode #8

by Jamie Flinchbaugh on 06-07-22

Happy Heuristics is a podcast about using rules of thumb, decision criteria, or heuristics to help leaders operate with speed and effectiveness in a complex and uncertain world. Podcast partners Jamie Flinchbaugh and Jeff Grimshaw explore specific heuristics, one theme at a time, that you can either adopt or use

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Lean Whiskey Episode 33

by Jamie Flinchbaugh on 05-20-22

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

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Select the Third-Best Solution

by Jamie Flinchbaugh on 05-18-22

Problem-solving is ultimately about developing solutions, or better said, implementing solutions that work. This means that what actually works is an important filter on all the potential solutions that we may become enamored with. I cam across this interesting quote, thanks to The Economist’s daily Espresso Briefing, from the inventor

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3 Under-Appreciated Lessons on Entrepreneurship

by Jamie Flinchbaugh on 05-12-22

Recently I was giving a very, very brief speech at Lehigh University at an event with the Baker Institute honoring entrepreneurs and the teaching of entrepreneurship. It wasn’t originally meant to be a topic of any substance, but I can’t pass up the opportunity to speak to some students and

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