My guest for Episode #504 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Katie Anderson, author of the book Learning to Lead, Leading to Learn.

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In this episode, Katie takes the reins along with me, Mark Graban, to discuss the transformative journey of Japan Study Trips. Recognized globally for its rich contributions to modern business practices, Japan has long been a beacon for leadership and continuous improvement. But how can one experience this powerful journey?

Strong leadership is integral to sustaining a culture of improvement. During these trips, participants get to hear from individuals like Katie Anderson, known for her insightful book "Learning to Lead, Leading to Learn." Engaging with thought leaders deepens their understanding of the continuous learning process while expanding their networks. Not only they learn about the principles, they also meet and engage with their pioneers reflecting the deep connection between leadership and continuous learning.

These discussion illuminates the importance of a culture where mistakes are seen as stepping stones to innovation. Personal engagements with companies recognized for their Lean practices reaffirm the significance of 'being over doing,' making these trips a true journey of transformation and discovery.

• Learn more about Katie's November trip that I'm a part of
• Mark's website about Japan Tour
• How can we shift focus from doing to being in order to create a culture where better results and output are achieved?
• What role does continuous learning play in creating and fostering cultures of improvement and growth?
• How do leaders in organizations prioritize being over doing to cultivate a mindset and culture of learning and improvement?
• What are some common production principles and tools observed on shop floors, and how do they align with overall cultural objectives?
• What are the behaviors that need to become standard across an organization to create a culture of kindness, constructive response, and continuous improvement?
• How can leaders in various organizations and industries cultivate a mindset and culture of learning and improvement similar to those seen at Toyota?
• What role does sharing knowledge, stories, and experiences play in enhancing learning and strengthening connections within an organization or across industries?
• How do mistakes and constructive responses to them contribute to shaping a culture focused on learning and growth?

The podcast is brought to you by Stiles Associates, the premier executive search firm specializing in the placement of Lean Transformation executives. With a track record of success spanning over 30 years, it's been the trusted partner for the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare sectors. Learn more.

This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.

My guest for Episode #503 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Sam Morgan of Illuminate Coaching + Consulting. He was previously a guest in Episode #457.

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Today's episode was originally live-streamed on April 9th... Sam's. been doing a livestream series on "Lean Coaching for Lean Coaches." So, in today's episode, you'll hear Sam coaching me... and then we'll have a broader conversation about the work that he's doing. We can all use a coach!

We embark on a deep dive into creating and harnessing a culture of continuous improvement and Lean in various industries, especially within the healthcare sector. The episode unfolds the role of Lean coaching and the evolution of continuous improvement to meet the current business dynamics.

Mark and Sam engage in a discussion on the intersection of psychological safety and effective continuous improvement. They discuss how creating an environment that facilitates incident reporting without fear of reprisal can lead to reduced adverse events, particularly in high-stakes industries like healthcare. This conversation serves as a guide for leaders to understand the importance of building a culture where openness is promoted, and trust leads to real-world enhancements.

• Going full time - leaving The Standard?
• Entrepreneurial experiments?
• People being coached in live format... and people watching?

The podcast is brought to you by Stiles Associates, the premier executive search firm specializing in the placement of Lean Transformation executives. With a track record of success spanning over 30 years, it's been the trusted partner for the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare sectors. Learn more.

This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.

My guest for Episode #502 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is DeWayne Allen, an executive, speaker, and workshop facilitator.

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DeWayne is a results-driven executive with over 20 years of experience, renowned for leveraging a solid engineering and operations background to propel growth for Fortune 500 organizations.

As a visionary leader, DeWayne excels in crafting and executing strategic plans to deliver desired outcomes. With a proven track record in fostering relationships and adeptly managing cross-functional teams, DeWayne ensures seamless alignment of internal operations with overarching business objectives.

He is also a trusted advisor to C-suite executives for strategic decision-making.

DeWayne is dedicated to empowering 1000+ Black leaders to become influential corporate executives through STEM education, fostering diversity, equity, and innovation.

In this episode, we discuss how industrial engineering principles can be harnessed into strategic corporate leadership. Allen, who began his career as an engineer, spotlights his use of Six Sigma, lean methodologies, and continuous improvement tactics to tackle modern business challenges, from corporate turnarounds to driving growth. His success in transitioning into business-oriented roles, executing lean success in dynamic environments, and managing diverse operational aspects as a general manager add to his rich collection of professional experiences.

Moreover, Allen's innovative application of lean methodologies to the hectic process of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) demonstrate his knack for using these principles regardless of context. And his view on incorporating lean management within nonprofits signals a broader utility for these principles outside of just manufacturing or profit-centered entities. In light of Allen's commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), he champions the integration of these ethical and social values with lean principles for greater operational excellence. Join us and delve deeper into the workings of DeWayne Allen's lean philosophy and powerful leadership style.

• What's your Lean origin story?
• As a leader, helping everybody feel like and work like ONE TEAM?
• Becoming a formal leader — steps to work up to being a GM?
• What are some of your favorite stories or examples of using Lean throughout your career?
• You've worked as General Manager — The split of your time and attention?
• What was your view of Lean in that role and what you learned there?
• Tell us about applying Lean in Mergers and Acquisitions work? Can you make that a process?
• Tell us about your work in the Non-profit space – National Society of Black Engineers, applying it there?

The podcast is brought to you by Stiles Associates, the premier executive search firm specializing in the placement of Lean Transformation executives. With a track record of success spanning over 30 years, it's been the trusted partner for the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare sectors. Learn more.

This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.

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My guest for Episode #501 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Marcia Daszko, a speaker, workshop facilitator, and consultant.

For more than 25 years, she has passionately been speaking, consulting, and guiding executive teams in Fortune 500/private corporations; education, the U.S. Navy; and non-profits to achieve exponential success.

Mentored by Dr. W. Edwards Deming, she is nominated for the International Deming Prize; and writes a leadership column for the Silicon Valley Business Journal. She has taught MBA classes at six universities.

Marcia's author of the book Pivot Disrupt Transform: How Leaders Beat the Odds and Survive. She was also co-author of Turning Ideas into Impact: Insights from 16 Silicon Valley Consultants.

• How did you get connected to W. Edwards Deming?
• What was it like spending time with Dr. Deming?
• Not just statistics? Challenging ideas like performance appraisals
• “Change management is another management fad”
• Tell us more about the consulting work that you've done and do?
• “Identify your problems accurately to problem-solve”??
• Helping leaders with “Accelerate efficient, effective data-driven decision-making”??
• Accountability and responsibility — big difference
• Am I blaming executives unfairly???
• 3 Fundamental Business Strategies?
• “Hope is not a business strategy”
• Continual vs. Continuous?

The podcast is brought to you by Stiles Associates, the premier executive search firm specializing in the placement of Lean Transformation executives. With a track record of success spanning over 30 years, it's been the trusted partner for the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare sectors. Learn more.

This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.

Episode page with transcript and more

My guest for Episode #500 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is me, your usual host Mark Graban. Today, I'm mixing up the format with a solo episode that celebrates 500 episodes over almost 18 years.

I'll share some of the origin story and history of the podcast. You'll hear clips from Episode 1 (with Norm Bodek) and Episode 50 (where Jamie Flinchbaugh asked me about getting started). You'll also hear a clip from a recent conversation where Barry McCarthy, of AME Australia, asked me about persisting with podcasting all these years.

Thanks for listening, whether this is your first time, you've listened to them all, or somewhere in between!

The podcast is brought to you by Stiles Associates, the premier executive search firm specializing in the placement of Lean Transformation executives. With a track record of success spanning over 30 years, it's been the trusted partner for the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare sectors. Learn more.

This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.

• More than 500 episodes in 921 weeks, a little more than one every two weeks for 17.75 years
• 3,276,745 total downloads / listens, although I'm not convinced the stats are 100% consistent
• The top 10 most downloaded episodes
• The most frequent guests (#1 is Norman Bodek with 14 episodes)
• One anonymous guest
• Where listeners are from
• The origin story and the intro to Episode #1
• A clip from Episode #50
• My reflections on the clunky podcast name
• A shift over time from “big names” to highlighting new faces and their stories
• The one time I forgot to record!
• In memoriam: guests who have passed away

My guest for Episode #499 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is James P. Womack. Jim really needs no introduction for this audience, he's the founder of the Lean Enterprise Institute (in 1987) and remains a senior advisor to them.

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In the late eighties, he and Dan Jones led MIT's International Motor Vehicle Research Program (IMVP), which introduced the term “lean” to describe Toyota's revolutionary management system.

Based on that research, Womack coauthored The Machine That Changed the World (Macmillan/Rawson Associates, 1990), Lean Thinking (Simon & Schuster, 1996), Lean Solutions (Simon & Schuster, 2005), and Seeing the Whole Value Stream (Lean Enterprise Institute, 2011).

Jim was really gracious and helpful to me in being an early guest on this podcast, going back to Episode 12 in late 2006 when we talked about Lean in China. Today is his 8th appearance on the podcast: 7 times solo and once last September as part of a group that did a post-game show with me after the GE Lean Mindset event.

I've seen and talked with Jim many times over the past decade, so it's totally my fault that I haven't had him on since 2011. When I asked him to come back to help celebrate 500 episodes, he quickly agreed — and I'll have him back again much sooner than this last gap between appearances.

In today's episode, Jim shares reflections and stories on a number of companies, countries, and topics, including:

• China and Vietnam
• GM, Toyota, Boeing, Danaher, Rivian, and Tesa

And he answers some questions that were suggested by LinkedIn commenters.

• I think listeners would love to know what keeps you busy these days in the world of Lean?
• Planet Lean – celebrating 10 years
• A few people asked: How can we influence a union to start embracing Lean, when the union at our company has been actively against it from the start?
• Lean in China – almost 18 years ago episode – Ep 12 — Thoughts on how things have evolved?
• Has Tesla ever invited you to visit their gemba?
• Which companies does he consider to be Lean exemplars in the United States?
• What do you think we, as a Lean community, could/should do better?
• Read Ed Schein's Organizational Culture and Leadership
• Did you ever meet Dr. Deming?

The podcast is brought to you by Stiles Associates, the premier executive search firm specializing in the placement of Lean Transformation executives. With a track record of success spanning over 30 years, it's been the trusted partner for the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare sectors. Learn more.

This episode is also brought to you by “The Optimistic Outlook,” hosted by Barbara Humpton, CEO of Siemens USA. This podcast is a hub for those passionate about transformative concepts that shape both our workplaces and our world. Find it in your favorite podcast app.

This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.

My guest for Episode #498 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Jeffrey K. Liker. Jeff is Professor Emeritus from the University of Michigan, President of Liker Lean Advisors, and author of the great books in the Toyota Way series.

Episode page with video, transcript, and more

He was previously a guest here in Episodes 3, 4, 37, 39, 41, 111, and 400.

Today, we have a discussion centered around learning from mistakes in the context of Toyota and lean methodologies. The episode delves into the significance of recognizing, reacting to, and learning from mistakes within organizations that employ Toyota Production System (TPS) or lean strategies. Jeff shares his insights on how Toyota's culture of continuous improvement and learning from errors fundamentally drives its success. The conversation touches on Toyota's approach to leadership and problem-solving, emphasizing the structured response to mistakes at different levels of the organization, from the factory floor to top management.

The episode further explores the Toyota leadership model, illustrating how leaders at various levels are expected to react when mistakes occur. Liker explains the role of the andon cord system in facilitating immediate problem identification and resolution, showcasing Toyota's commitment to quality and efficiency. He elaborates on the multi-layered leadership response to errors, detailing the responsibilities of team leaders, group leaders, and higher management in fostering a culture of learning and improvement. The discussion underscores the importance of a systemic approach to problem-solving, where the focus is on understanding and addressing the root causes of mistakes rather than attributing blame to individuals. This episode offers valuable insights into the principles of lean leadership and the critical role of acknowledging and learning from mistakes in achieving organizational excellence and innovation.

• How you'd expect Toyota leaders to react to a mistake on the factory floor?
• Less likely to blame an individual? 
• Root cause vs. controllable cause?
• That can be a tough lesson to teach other companies?
• Hardest habit to break is the blame habit?
• Mistakes people make in trying to help change behavior
• What's necessary, in another company's workplace culture, for people to feel safe pulling the andon cord or speaking up?
• Article about the Ford plant and andon cords in 2007
• Jeff insights on that Dearborn plant
• The mention of psychological safety in “Toyota Culture”?
• What do you think of the phrase “psychological safety”? Or just the concept of it?
• Fujio Cho – biggest surprise was that TMMK workers were afraid to pull the andon cord
• New book: Engaging the Team at Zingerman's Mail Order

The podcast is brought to you by Stiles Associates, the premier executive search firm specializing in the placement of Lean Transformation executives. With a track record of success spanning over 30 years, it's been the trusted partner for the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare sectors. Learn more.

This episode is also brought to you by “The Optimistic Outlook,” hosted by Barbara Humpton, CEO of Siemens USA. This podcast is a hub for those passionate about transformative concepts that shape both our workplaces and our world. Find it in your favorite podcast app.

This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network. 

My guest for Episode #497 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Tobias Gilk, the founder of Gilk Radiology Consulting (GRC). He is an architect by training, but has spent 20+ years focusing on MRI safety... initially through the architecture and planning of MRI facilities, but quickly growing into the technology, clinical practice, regulation, and economics of MRI safety.

Episode page with video, transcript, and more

He is recognized by both state and federal courts as an expert in MRI safety issues. Tobias has published dozens of papers and articles on MRI safety. He is also twice a member of the American College of Radiology's MRI Safety Committee (twice named co-author of ACR MRI safety standard guidance).

In this episode, we dive deep into the complexities of MRI technology, acknowledging its transformative role in health care but equally highlighting the overlooked dangers that require meticulous handling. Delving into safety protocols, process failures, and the risks associated with projectiles and thermal injuries, they underscore the need for stricter adherence to safety protocols.

We not only discuss the intrinsic risks associated with MRI but also explore the regulatory landscape, identifying key gaps that permit inconsistency in safety practices. The narrative is a pointed reminder that safety is of paramount importance, and mitigating risks requires thorough screening, careful positioning, and a collective commitment to safety-first processes.

• Give us a quick MRI technology overview... 
• "The safe modality"
• What causes danger to staff and patients??
• Machine malfunctions are very rare -- possible burns?
• A typical safety story?
• Clinically safe but with inherent process-related dangers?
• Why aren't there better access controls and checks about what and who comes near the magnet?
• Couldn't we cheaply brute force this by posting an educated "MRI Guard" outside the danger zone? Is patient safety really the top priority??
• Staffing cost vs. risks of harm or machine damage...
• How common / frequent are incidents that harm or kill?
• "If you've been told that MRI safety only comes at the expense of throughput, you've been lied to."
• "Absolutely, Lean is essential to MRI safety..."

The podcast is brought to you by Stiles Associates, the premier executive search firm specializing in the placement of Lean Transformation executives. With a track record of success spanning over 30 years, it's been the trusted partner for the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare sectors. Learn more.

This episode is also brought to you by "The Optimistic Outlook," hosted by Barbara Humpton, CEO of Siemens USA. This podcast is a hub for those passionate about transformative concepts that shape both our workplaces and our world. Find it in your favorite podcast app.

This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.