Lean Enterprise Institute

The team at VIWINCO continually generates improvement ideas, presenting them to management and turning them into tangible enhancements in our final products.

Want to create a continuous improvement culture?
Let's talk, bring LEI to your company:
https://hubs.li/Q02Nfgxw0

Is your product development process bogged down by rework, missed deadlines, and low morale? It's time to turn things around.

Join our Lean Product and Process Development (LPPD) Course to learn a holistic, proven framework that aligns your entire enterprise to:

--> Accelerate time to market
--> Reduce design rework
--> Boost team morale
--> Deliver exactly what your customers want

Don't let frustration hold your team back. Learn how to build a dynamic, continually improving innovation system.

✨ Enroll today and start launching better products with ease!
https://hubs.li/Q02Nd_pG0

Learn how one company addressed a 65 million dollar problem using an A3 approach.

Follow their story and walk each step of the A3 process with them.
https://hubs.li/Q02Nf5Rg0

A true lean manager doesn't just follow tools—they embody a lean state of mind. 🌟

👉 Solve problems where they happen by going to the gemba and digging into root causes.
👉Empower teams to tackle issues at the source, with support and guidance from above.
👉Embrace continuous experimentation through PDCA cycles.
👉Recognize that no solution is final—stay engaged and adapt to new challenges.

Shift your mindset, and watch continuous improvement become second nature.

Read more from Jim Womack: https://hubs.li/Q02N9vrG0

Daily management is built on three essential blocks:

1️⃣ Commitment: Aligns your team’s daily activities with strategic goals, ensuring everyone is on the same page.

2️⃣ Control Variables: Monitors key performance indicators daily to keep processes stable and on track.

3️⃣ Problem-Solving: Identifies and addresses issues promptly to maintain performance and drive continuous improvement.

Master each block with LEI's upcoming book 📙Daily Management to Execute Strategy📙

Want a chance to win a free copy? Like, comment, or repost!

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5S refers to five related terms, beginning with an S sound, describing workplace practices conducive to visual control and lean production.

The true purpose of 5S goes deeper than a one-time housecleaning. The 5S methodology is a way to: create standards that reveal problems, support the basic stability needed to sustain incremental gains, reduce waste in all forms, build a disciplined workplace where teams focus on value-creating work, and nurture the essential sense of shared purpose needed to continuous improve to take root.

Learn more about 5s and how it aids continuous improvement:
https://hubs.li/Q02N8_mZ0

Connecting daily management to your company's strategy isn't just important—it's essential. Align your team's everyday actions with your organization's long-term goals to drive success.

Stay tuned for LEI's upcoming book:📙Daily Management to Execute Strategy📙

Want a chance to win a free copy? Like, comment, or repost!

There are two mutually reinforcing approaches to creating flow in development: Building flow into the process at the start and helping your team synchronize work in real time.

Building flow into the process ensures the development team makes the most of incomplete but stable information and enables concurrency. To build flow into the process, first design the development tasks and their sequence to maximize the utility of vital inputs and outputs.

Learn more: https://hubs.li/Q02MP1f50

“We have to get past this pervasive myth that great products are developed by lone geniuses working in their garage. Or that development is something that engineering or design does,” declares Jim Morgan, LEI senior advisor for lean product and process development (LPPD). “The truth is, the best products are created by diverse teams of experts bringing together their skills and experience focused on a single goal.”

The LPPD team has found that by adhering to the principle that Developing Products is a Team Sport and using the tools and methods associated with it, organizations can bring together people from various disciplines, perspectives, and backgrounds, so they work as a team more effectively.

Read more https://hubs.li/Q02MP2870

Last Chance to Join us on LinkedIn Live for an insightful discussion with Sandrine Olivencia about her new book Build to Sell: The Lean Secret to Crafting Irresistible Products.

📅 Date: August 28, 2024
🕒 Time: 12PM-1PM ET

Sandrine will share practical lean strategies to help you create products that truly connect with your audience and succeed in the market.

👉 Register now to secure your spot! https://hubs.li/Q02MJFQj0

🚀 Unlock the Power of Kata in Your Organization! 🚀

If you’re diving into the Kata methodology, remember it’s more than just hitting KPIs. It’s about developing problem-solving skills, fostering accountability, and building a culture of continuous improvement.

Here are 10 key tips from Drew Locher to help you get the most out of Kata, from setting clear, measurable targets to collaborating with the right coaching partnerships.

Ready to elevate your team's performance? Check out the full list! 🔗⬇️ https://hubs.li/Q02MM-8X0

Reminder! Join us on LinkedIn Live for an insightful discussion with Sandrine Olivencia about her new book Build to Sell: The Lean Secret to Crafting Irresistible Products.

📅 Date: August 28, 2024
🕒 Time: 12PM-1PM ET

Sandrine will share practical lean strategies to help you create products that truly connect with your audience and succeed in the market.

What You’ll Learn:
--> Emotion-Centric Design: How understanding user emotions can elevate your product.
--> Chief Product Engineer Insights: Strategic and technical skills for leading product teams.
--> Performance-Based Products: Viewing your product as a series of customer-centric performances rather than a backlog of requested features.
--> Design to Cost Strategies: Balancing creativity with profitability.

Whether you're a business leader, marketer, or entrepreneur, this event is designed to provide actionable insights you can immediately apply.

👉 Register now to secure your spot! https://hubs.li/Q02MJF920

After executing a plan to incorporate kata into his organization's daily routines, Craig Stritar was surprised to find that nobody had followed through on their learnings. This is the story of his investigation into the problem, plus the countermeasures to what he identified as the root cause.

Read more to learn how you can use it to sustain your kata efforts too.
https://hubs.li/Q02MF31t0

Shifting Focus from Tools to Rigorous Thinking

**Shift from Tools to Collaboration:**

Move away from a prescriptive focus on tools like A3s and 5S, instead emphasize the importance of fostering collaboration and problem-solving between coaches, learners, and peers.

**Problem-Solving Over Tool Implementation""

Successful lean practices start with understanding the specific problem rather than beginning with a predetermined tool. Addressing specific challenges through rigorous thinking and problem-solving can lead to natural and effective solutions.

**Culture of Continuous Improvement**

Creating a culture that values daily improvement and innovative problem-solving is more effective than episodic tool-based events. This approach, exemplified by Toyota’s emphasis on rigorous thinking and problem-solving, leads to resilient and collaborative teams capable of addressing diverse challenges.

Read more from Mark Rosenthal and Craig Stritar https://hubs.li/Q02MwCn60

Takt time represents the beat of the customer, or, the rate of demand, says Art Byrne: "As the primary focus of the lean company is delivering more value to its customers than its competitors can, then conformity to their demands in a quick, efficient way is the main driver. Takt time is therefore what sets the tone for everything else."

Read more from Art Byrne https://hubs.li/Q02MwNTC0

Learn how one company addressed a 65 million dollar problem using an A3 approach.

Follow their story and walk each step of the A3 process with them.
https://hubs.li/Q02Mr8Z50

Understanding the Different Types of Gemba Walks and Their Purposes

1. Traditional Gemba Walk (Value-Stream Walk):
Originally, a gemba walk was intended to engage managers in inspecting the entire value stream from start to finish, across departments and companies. The purpose was to identify opportunities for significant improvements (kaizen or kaikaku) by reducing steps, time, cost, and improving quality.

2. Management System Walk:
This type of gemba walk focuses on assessing the effectiveness of the management system in maintaining stability and supporting continuous improvement. It involves observing how management processes work across different layers of the organization.

3. Genchi Gembutsu Walk:
Often confused with gemba walks, this type refers to going to the place where value is created to see and understand problems firsthand. It's similar to “management by walking around” (MBWA) and is often used by senior managers to address specific issues.

These different gemba walks serve distinct purposes—improving the value stream, assessing management processes, and addressing immediate problems—each critical to sustaining and advancing organizational performance.

Read more from Jim Womack:
https://hubs.li/Q02MqZX80

🔑Prioritize with Purpose

With Hoshin Kanri, it’s not just about saying "no"—it’s about saying "not now." Focus on what truly matters and watch your strategy come to life without the overwhelm.

Learn how Mercer Celgar did it and turned frustration into clarity.
https://hubs.li/Q02MqsNG0

What is takt time? And why is it important to a lean transformation?

In lean, takt time is the rate at which finished product needs to be completed in order to meet customer demand.

This is not a concept that exists in a traditional batch focused manufacturing operation. You won’t see it anywhere because the approach is totally different. Product there is generally made to a forecast in anticipation of customer demand. As a result, when companies think about making the conversion to lean, takt time is probably one of the last things they may think about. They are much more likely to focus on “flow” and “pull” when they think about converting to lean.

Learn more about takt time and how to calculate your own:

https://hubs.li/Q02MnSwr0

Welcome Problems, Find Success provides a deep dive into the way senior leaders develop and execute company strategy while at the same time developing organizational capability.

This book reveals Toyota’s general management systems from the firsthand experience of a Toyota Japanese senior manager and describes, with stories and process examples, the attitude, behaviors, and systems needed to successfully establish and lead in a true Lean business environment.

Grab your copy:
https://hubs.li/Q02MmTmb0

In lean management, kata refers to two linked behaviors: improvement kata and coaching kata.

A kata typically refers to fundamental movements in Japanese martial arts, but can refer to any basic form, routine, or pattern of behavior. Recognizable patterns of behavior and clear expectations make it easy to recognize abnormalities (problems) and also serve as a basis of improvement, setting and attaining higher standards.

The Improvement Kata
This is a repeating four-step routine by which an organization improves and adapts. It makes continuous improvement through the scientific problem-solving method of plan, do, check, act (PDCA) a daily habit.

The Coaching Kata
This is the repeating routine by which lean leaders and managers teach the Improvement Kata to everyone in the organization. It is a framework, a series of questions, used by lean leaders to provoke and reinforce the effective practice of the Improvement Kata.

Learn all about kata https://hubs.li/Q02Mlq4n0

Over time I’ve come to realize that this problem-solving process is actually the highest form of respect, says Jim Womack.

The manager is saying to the employees that the manager can’t solve the problem alone, because the manager isn’t close enough to the problem to know the facts. He or she truly respects the employees’ knowledge and their dedication to finding the best answer. But the employees can’t solve the problem alone either because they are often too close to the problem to see its context and they may refrain from asking tough questions about their own work.

Only by showing mutual respect – each for the other and for each other’s role – is it possible to solve problems, make work more satisfying, and move organizational performance to an ever higher level.

Read more from Jim Womack: https://hubs.ly/Q02Mlg-h0

When faced with a production scheduling issue, a team of problem-solvers was quick to focus on developing new software as the solution. But the real insight came when we took a step back and asked, "Why does the production process struggle with sample orders?" This shift in focus led us to the gemba, where we mapped the process in just 20 minutes using pencil and paper.

The result? A shared understanding of the process, identification of the real bottleneck, and a no-cost solution that resolved the issue and freed up capacity.

The takeaway? Value-stream mapping doesn’t require days, complex tools, or perfect symbols—it requires going to the source, observing, and collaborating to truly understand and solve the problem. Get back to basics: Go see, draw what you see, and align your team on the next steps. That’s where the power of lean thinking lies.

Read more https://hubs.li/Q02LVTjC0

Value Stream Management brings more value to the customer or client by working to transform both process and people. At INTEGRIS, structurally-speaking, value stream management helped them manage multiple streams of patient care delivery and other supporting business systems.

Learn how:
https://hubs.li/Q02LVRyD0

Learn about the 4 Types of Problem Solving framework. It's like having a toolbox with different tools for different issues. Embrace these strategies to tackle challenges effectively!

>> Type 1: Troubleshooting, which involves rapid responses and short-term corrective actions for immediate problems.

>> Type 2: Gap from Standard, which focuses on identifying and addressing root causes using structured processes.

>> Type 3: New Target State, or continuous improvement, which raises standards and creates new challenges to improve an already stable process.

>> Type 4: Innovation, which involves open-ended, future-oriented problem solving for significant changes and breakthroughs.

Learn more https://hubs.li/Q02L-bvG0

Prepare to reflect on the Lean Transformation Framework, scrutinize your management, and begin to construct a transformation roadmap.

Download the free ebook, Understanding Lean Transformation:
https://hubs.li/Q02LVy2T0

Build to Sell: Lean Strategies for Creating Successful Products

Join us for an insightful conversation with Sandrine Olivencia, as she shares her expertise on creating products that resonate with customers and succeed in the market. Drawing from her book, Build to Sell: The Lean Secret to Crafting Irresistible Products, Sandrine will provide practical advice on how to approach product creation with a focus on what really matters—connecting with your audience and delivering value.

What you’ll learn:

➡️Emotion-Centric Design: Discover how understanding user emotions can transform your product from good to irresistible.

➡️Chief Product Engineer Insights: Learn the strategic and technical skills needed to lead successful product teams.

➡️Performance-based product: view your product as a collection of customer-centric performances rather than merely a backlog of requested features.

➡️Design to Cost Strategies: Balance creativity with profitability to ensure your products stand out without breaking the bank.

Why attend?

This webinar isn’t just about theory—it’s packed with actionable strategies and real-world examples that you can apply. Sandrine Olivencia has spent decades helping startups and scale-ups achieve sustainable growth as co-founder of Taktique.

Register for free: https://hubs.li/Q02Lz-280

Hurry, save $400 until August 23 on our Managing to Learn: An Introduction to A3 Leadership and Problem-Solving in-person course starting Oct 2 & 3 at Oakland Oakland University in Rochester, MI!

We’ve transformed the unmatched A3 problem-solving process from Managing to Learn—the award-winning, best-selling workbook by management expert and former CEO John Shook—into a course that teaches you how to apply the powerful A3 methodology. Based on the proven scientific method of Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA), this course will help you address critical business problems within your organization.

Register today: https://hubs.li/Q02LMWV30

Solving

One of the biggest challenges in A3 thinking is deciding exactly what the problem is that we are trying to solve and boiling that problem down to a good problem statement.

Here are some key lessons in Problem Solving with A3

**Define the Problem Clearly**
Avoid broad statements like “we have too many errors in patient records.”
Narrow it down: “10% of patient immunization records are missing the date of birth.”

**Make It Measurable**
Use observable and measurable terms.
Example: Compare the current condition to the target condition.

**Focus on Specifics**
The smaller the scope, the easier it is to find the root cause.
Specific problems lead to effective solutions.

**Collaborate Effectively**
Ensure your problem statement is clear to everyone on your team.
Consistent understanding helps in finding the best solutions

What difficulties do you face when creating problem statements? Share your experiences below! 👇

Read more at https://hubs.li/Q02LMg2S0