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My guest for Episode #535 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Gregg Stocker, a seasoned Lean practitioner, consultant, and author. Over the past 30+ years, Gregg has worked across industries, including oil and gas, energy services, manufacturing, and construction, guiding both independent operators and major corporations on their Lean journeys.

He is the author of Profitable at Any Price: Lean Thinking for Safer, Cheaper, and More Responsible Oil and Gas Production and is revising his earlier book Avoiding the Corporate Death Spiral.

In this conversation, Gregg shares his Lean origin story, which began with exposure to Dr. W. Edwards Deming's teachings in college and later expanded through hands-on work with Toyota. We discuss the importance of daily Kaizen, the influence of Deming's philosophy of profound knowledge, and why psychological safety and systems thinking are essential to effective Lean leadership.

Gregg also reflects on his experiences helping organizations in high-risk industries such as oil and gas. He explains how Lean thinking can simultaneously drive improvements in safety, cost, and reliability -- showing that these are not trade-offs, but outcomes of a stronger system. Listeners will hear stories of transformation, lessons from Toyota, and practical insights on structured problem-solving, leadership behaviors, and building a culture where people feel safe speaking up.

Whether you work in energy, healthcare, manufacturing, or any other sector, Gregg's insights are broadly applicable. This episode is a reminder that Lean isn't just about tools -- it's about leadership, systems thinking, and creating conditions for continuous improvement.

• How did you first get introduced to Lean and Deming?
• What did you learn from Toyota about shifting from TQM to daily Kaizen?
• How did senior leaders in your early company become engaged in Lean?
• What were your experiences attending Dr. Deming's four-day seminars?
• Which of Deming's principles do you wish leaders better understood today?
• How do systems thinking and psychology apply in high-risk industries like oil and gas?
• What are some Lean approaches to improving both safety and performance?
• What's the origin story behind your book Profitable at Any Price?
• How do oil and gas companies typically react to fluctuating prices, and how does Lean help?
• How has Lean adoption in oil and gas evolved over the past 15 years?
• When starting a Lean transformation, what should leaders do -- and avoid?
• How do you define better problem solving, beyond just tools and structure?
• What leadership behaviors help create psychological safety and encourage people to speak up?
• Can you tell us about your upcoming books and where your writing is headed next?

This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.

My guest for Episode #534 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Dale Lucht, co-author of the new book Don't Repeat Our Mistakes: Nine Lessons for Leaders Championing Cultural Transformations.

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Dale has led Lean transformations in manufacturing, healthcare, and financial services, and he brings decades of leadership experience shaped by mentors such as George Koenigsaecker and the Shingijutsu consultants.

In our conversation, Dale reflects on what it takes for a senior leader to go beyond being a "sponsor" of Lean to becoming a true champion. He shares stories of learning by doing, coaching from mentors, and mistakes that became turning points. We talk about leadership habits such as visibility, simplicity, curiosity, and the shift from solving problems yourself to developing others as problem solvers. Dale also discusses how to sustain progress and avoid the common plateau many organizations hit after a few years of Lean practice.

Dale and his co-authors, Peter Barnett and Morgan Jones, wrote Don't Repeat Our Mistakes not just to highlight what works, but also to candidly share lessons learned when things didn't go as planned. With proceeds from the book supporting the Michael J. Fox Foundation, it's both a professional guide and a personal legacy project. Whether you're a senior executive, a Lean coach, or someone working to influence leadership in your organization, this episode o

Early Career & Lean Origins

• What's your Lean origin story, and how did you get started?
• What was it like learning from George Koenigsaecker and Shingijutsu?
• Can you share an example of the "homework" they gave you as a plant GM?
• How did those early lessons shape your leadership approach?

Leadership Lessons & Mistakes

• What mistakes or challenges did you experience that led to learning?
• Why do so many organizations plateau after a few years of Lean?
• What distinguishes improvement from true transformation?
• How can leaders practice self-coaching before coaching others?
• What shifts do leaders need to make--from solving problems themselves to coaching others?
• Why is curiosity such an essential leadership habit?

Cross-Industry Experience

• How did your transition from manufacturing into healthcare come about?
• Did you see the same progression from tools to leadership change in healthcare?
• How did you approach leading change in financial services?

The Book: Don't Repeat Our Mistakes

• What did you and your co-authors hope to capture in Don't Repeat Our Mistakes?
• How did the title and focus on mistakes come about?
• Were the leaders you interviewed open to sharing their own mistakes?

Practical Advice for Leaders

• How can someone move from being a Lean sponsor to being a true champion?
• How should leaders pick which habits or lessons to focus on first?
• What advice do you have for influencing senior leaders when coaching "up" isn't invited?
• How do organizations prevent backsliding when leadership changes?

This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.

In this bonus episode of Lean Blog Interviews, Mark Graban is joined by William Harvey, AME 2025 Workshop Chair (and 2026 Conference Chair), to preview the AME Annual Conference coming up in St. Louis, October 6–9, 2025.

✅ Why AME is for all continuous improvement leaders—not just manufacturing ✅ The 2025 conference theme: Gateway to the Future – AI and Beyond ✅ How AME is blending AI and people integration into learning and networking ✅ Four key workshop tracks, including coaching, TWI, AI, and process excellence ✅ Mark’s own Deming Red Bead Game & Process Behavior Charts workshop

Whether you’re in healthcare, services, or manufacturing, AME offers a unique chance to learn from practitioners, connect with peers, and gain new insights into operational and leadership excellence.

• Conference details

• Workshop registration

• Special discount code for Lean Blog listeners: NP-MARKG25

We hope to see you in St. Louis!