Lean As The Last Resort
10 May 2010
In a story that is nothing short of flabbergasting, GE has discovered kaizen. After meteorically rising and falling as the best managed company in th…
5 Questions - Meet Tim McMahon
8 May 2010
In this edition of our occasional "5 Questions" series we meet fellow lean blogger Tim McMahon. ------- 1. Who are you, what organization…
Rationalizing Mediocrity
6 May 2010
One lesson of many I have learned since I started down the consulting trail years ago is that when the management team of a client company is committe…
The Ripple Impact of the Small Change
5 May 2010
Nearly a month ago I read a fascinating article in The Economist that still has me pondering a bit. The actual topic didn't really interest me, bu…
It's About Time, Not Inventory
4 May 2010
A volcano erupts in Iceland, the European air freight system slams to a halt, stores run out of products and manufacturers run out of parts - and its…
We're Going Linear
30 April 2010
A few years back I had the privilege of providing translation services for Hiroyuki Hirano when he wrote "JIT Is Flow". (Among my talents is…
An Element Of Conflict Is A Good Thing
29 April 2010
Elwood P Dowd (the guy whose friend was a six foot Pukka in Harvey) said, "Well, an element of conflict in any discussion's a very good thing…
Valueless Thinking
28 April 2010
In the Senate hearings yesterday a statement was made by Goldman sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein that, to me, summarized the difference in thinking between…