Yesterday I learned of the passing of Norman Bodek and I have been reflecting on the impact this great man had on my life and career - and the lean and business world in general. A quarter century ago I was a new operations manager trying to … [Read more]
Time to Stop
As we approach the arbitrary end of the year, many organizations are beginning the planning cycle for next year. Part of that process should be identifying what projects and activities should be stopped, for several reasons - performance, alignment … [Read more]
The Stabilizing Foundation of Values
We're living through some crazy times and dealing with issues that were not anticipated during planning sessions. Every day we're confronted with new information, new analyses of facts and opinions, creating new decisions that need to be made that … [Read more]
Leveraging the Solitude of Leadership
I've long relished intentional periods of solitude to reflect and renew. I'll often take advantage of the six mile stretch of beach between Morro Bay's [hopefully] extinct volcano a couple blocks from my house and the next seaside village of … [Read more]
When Customer-Supplier Partnerships… Aren’t
Many years ago I wrote about how many companies were trying to get a one-time boost in working capital by extending their purchasing terms from typical net-30 to net-90 and even net-120. In some cases they were even partnering with banks to offer … [Read more]
Metrics from the Perspective of the Customer
A core concept of lean is that value is defined from the perspective of the customer, and therefore waste is as well. We are familiar with both types of muda, waste that is unnecessary and must be removed and waste that is necessary perhaps due to … [Read more]