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On LeanMag: Be Careful Before Standardizing Your Problem Solving You might be surprised to hear a lean advocate warning against a standardization. To be clear, I’m warning against both over-standardization and overly-rigid application of standardization. Standardization within problem solving is tremendously beneficial. First, it helps us train people on methods.

Empathy is a popular concept these days, for many valid reasons. However, it is often conveyed as a sense of acceptance and sometimes even passiveness. What I mean is that empathy often means that you CAN’T understand someone’s perspective because it is different from yours and so therefore accept the

I recently rediscovered a great quote from President John F. Kennedy. It was during Lehigh University’s commencement, where I was observing my daughter Emma’s graduation. The original quote is from Kennedy’s commencement speech at Yale University on June 11th, 1962, and was echoed by Lehigh’s President Joseph Helble in his

When someone utters the phrase “problem solving”, what is the first image that comes to mind? For most people, those words immediately take you into problem solving tools and templates. This is because many of us have gone through training program after training program to learn various tools. For myself,

OpEx, a common shortening of the term Operational Excellence, has gotten plenty of traction in both program names and job titles. But what does it mean? The quick answer is…it means whatever you want it to mean. Let’s first look at the origins of OpEx. There are two primary driving

Unicorns are companies that reach a $1B valuation while still being privately held. Giants can often be summarized originally as FAANG (Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google) and now MAMAA (Meta, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet). These companies are often referenced as examples to follow. Learn from their success. After

The Administrative Assistant has been often referred to as a perk, rather than a crucial resource to help an organization’s effectiveness. This shift in thinking, and language, really began with the adoption of email, where communication from person to person didn’t have to be managed. This continued to evolve as

A good question is one of the most valuable of my possessions, and I am always looking to add to my collection. I discovered, or rediscovered, a powerful question from commentator and author David Brooks. He was giving a talk at Lehigh University for the Hagerman Lecture from The Center

If you’re just doing your job the best you can, then this article may not be for you. However, if you have multiple things going at once, from side hustles to learning projects, then what follows can be tremendously useful. For me, it is now an annual reflection and planning

On Forbes: 19 Graceful Ways To Ensure Recognition For Professional Contributions Being recognized for one’s professional contributions is not simply a matter of fair acknowledgment; it can also be a key factor in career advancement. However, many professionals find it challenging to strike the delicate balance between ensuring they receive