Tag: Deming
It’s Not the Worker’s Fault – in 1980 or Today (Part...
Recently, I shared the famed 1980 NBC documentary, "If Japan Can, Why Can't We?" that essentially introduced W. Edwards Deming to a mainstream Western...
Famed NBC Video with Dr. Deming from 1980 Now Available: “If...
The W. Edwards Deming Institute and Dr. Deming's grandson Kevin Cahill worked with NBC to make the 1980 program available, giving the institute perpetual rights to it (see their blog post). To the institute's credit, they've made this freely available on YouTube.
Rethinking the Five Whys: Introducing the ‘Many Whys’ Approach in Lean...
There’s no magic about the number five. I’ve seen some people write that five is somehow a “magic number.” No, that’s not really the case. Ask why more than once, probably more than twice…
Automakers & Car Dealers Should Survey Customers Who DON’T Buy and...
The world (especially the world wide web) is full of surveys. Tell us how we're doing! Your satisfaction is important to us! We see...
Trying Too Hard to Force Innovation (or Kaizen) Can Backfire
The W. Edwards Deming Institute posted a video of Kevin Cahill, a grandson of Dr. Deming, welcoming people to the event and talking about innovation, or the desire that people have for it. But, they don't know what to do...
“Learning to be Lean” – An Inside Look at a Rapid...
There's a really good article that was published by Modern Healthcare as a special report, written by Sabriya Rice. Sabriya spent a week observing a rapid improvement event (RIE) at the Sts. Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center in Illinois. It's an in depth article that, I think, very accurately reflects the reality that Lean is helpful, but the process isn't easy for a number of reasons.
Are Lean and Green Really “Two Sides of the Same Coin?”
I used to like the slogan, “Lean and Green are two sides of the same coin.” I even used it as a tagline in presentations in which I was arguing that there is a potential for significant synergy between the Lean and sustainability programs in my company.
“Practicing Lean:” Starting Out with Six Sigma
Today's post is an excerpt from the collaborative ebook project Practicing Lean. I wrote the first two chapters of the book and then asked others to contribute their early stories about mistakes and lessons learned.
Podcast #229 – John Dyer, Reflections on Deming, Six Sigma, and...
My guest for episode #229 is John Dyer, president of his consulting firm, JD&A, Inc., and a contributor for IndustryWeek.com. John started his career...
Another Conversation About L.A.M.E. and Lean in Manufacturing and Healthcare
It's far too common to see somebody with just a little bit of understanding about Lean do things that really shouldn't be described as...
Throwback Thursday: Inc. Writes About Dr. Deming in 1987
I stumbled across an article from the Inc. magazine archives from 1987, so it's today's "Throwback Thursday."
In 1987, I was starting high school and...
I Wish I Could Say I Intentionally Made This Mistake to...
As I mentioned on Monday, I'm working on a 3rd revised edition of my book Lean Hospitals.
Traditional book publishing is a funny (and sometimes frustrating)...