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Lean Whiskey

By: Mark Graban & Jamie Flinchbaugh
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  • Summary

  • Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh are two guys with a lot in common: Lean, writing books, speaking, consulting… and a love of good whiskey. Like the Car Talk guys, they both went to MIT… but Lean isn’t rocket science. Let’s hope they can hold their liquor because they’re not holding back on sharing their opinions… it’s time for Lean Whiskey… Lean talk with a fun spirit! Mark is certified, with distinction, through the WSET Level 2 Spirits certification. Mark Graban: http://markgraban.com/ Jamie Flinchbaugh: https://jflinch.com/
    Copyright Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh, 2019 - 2023, All rights reserved.
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Episodes
  • Crossover Episode: Just-in-Time Cafe and Lean Whiskey: Flinchbaugh, Graban, Swan, O'Rourke

    Crossover Episode: Just-in-Time Cafe and Lean Whiskey: Flinchbaugh, Graban, Swan, O'Rourke
    Apr 5 2024

    Episode page

    In Episode 45, Jamie Flinchbaugh and Mark Graban join the Just-in-Time Cafe team of Elisabeth Swan and Tracy O’Rourke as a special nod to their 100th Episode, while also having a chance to toast Mark’s accomplishment of 250 episodes of My Favorite Mistake podcast and 500 episodes of the Lean Blog Podcast. This episode blended the two formats a bit, but you can be sure whiskey was one of those elements that we retained.

    We each selected a cocktail to make. Jamie made his original recipe, the Black Forest Kiss. Since you can’t Google it, the recipe is 2 oz bourbon, ½ oz sweet vermouth, 1 oz Cherry Herring, 5 dashes chocolate bitters, and garnished with cherries. Mark made a Perfect Manhattan with walnut bitters. Elisabeth made Remember the Maine. Tracy was stuck with wine, but you’ll have to listen for the story as to why that was. We also checked in about the various books we’ve written, including Mark’s The Mistakes That Make Us, Jamie’s People Solve Problems, Elisabeth’s Picture Yourself a Leader, and the forthcoming 2nd edition from Tracy and Elisabeth of the Problem Solver’s Toolkit.

    We shared our Hot Apps personal choices, which included Trello, Kainexus, Asana, and the combination of Evernote and Scannable. In the episode you’ll hear how we utilize these apps. We then turned our attention to podcasting, sharing our origin stories, what we love about it, and some mistakes that we’ve learned from through the process.

    • Just in Time Cafe podcast
    • My Favorite Mistakes podcast
    • Lean Blog podcast
    • People Solve Problems podcast
    • Picture Yourself a Leader book
    • The Mistakes That Make Us book
    • People Solve Problems book
    • Podcast feed at LeanWhiskey.com or leanblog.org/leanwhiskey or jflinch.com/leanwhiskey

    Please review us and follow!

    Notes for everyone on what’s below. Please add links for preferred website and books for the show notes (going both directions):

    • Jamie
      • https://www.jflinch.com/
      • https://www.jflinch.com/people-solve-problems/
    • Elisabeth
      • https://www.jitcafe.com/
      • https://elisabethswan.com/book/
    • Tracy
      • https://www.jitcafe.com/
      • The new edition of the Problems Solver’s Toolkit will be released soon, but no link yet.
    • Mark
      • http://markgraban.com/

    https://www.mistakesbook.com/

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    55 mins
  • New Year’s Resolutions, But not Dry January; Boeing Makes One

    New Year’s Resolutions, But not Dry January; Boeing Makes One
    Jan 19 2024

    Episode page with video and more

    In Episode 44, Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh get back together for this first episode of 2024. Since we’re not doing Dry January, we go right into the whiskey first by talking about old bottles, including one very old one found at auction. We then did our own comparison tasting, with Jamie trying two different age statements of Knob Creek bourbon and Mark trying two different expressions of Glen Scotia scotch from Campbeltown. 

    Dry January is like a New Year’s Resolution that you don’t intend to keep past a month. We discuss New Year’s Resolutions and their reasons for failure. We relate all this to goals, hoshin kanri, SMART goals, systems, and small steps. So, if you’re still working on clarifying your goals or resolutions for the year, take a listen. 

    Boeing’s recent troubles with an Alaska Airlines 737 MAX-9 door plug falling out mid-flight was also discussed, including Boeing’s resolution / commitment to add more inspectors to the process. Will more inspectors and more inspections make a difference? If not, what will make a difference? We may not know the final answer, but we break it all down for you in this discussion. 

    We wrap things up with a little football talk, both the NFL and College. Cheers! 

    • Vintage bottle sold at auction, from York, PA
    • Jamie’s selection: Knob Creek
    • Mark’s selection: Glen Scotia
    • NPR on abandoned New Year’s resolutions
    • Jamie’s 2010 blogpost on goals
    • Jamie’s 2021 short video on working with goals 
    • Boeing’s own updates on the 737-9
    • On Senator Cantwell’s letter to the FAA
    • Yup, University of Michigan wins the National Championship
    • Podcast feed at LeanWhiskey.com or leanblog.org/leanwhiskey or jflinch.com/leanwhiskey 

    Please review us and follow!

     
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    1 hr and 32 mins
  • Safety at SpaceX Under Elon Musk; 100 Years of Suntory Whiskey

    Safety at SpaceX Under Elon Musk; 100 Years of Suntory Whiskey
    Dec 8 2023
    Episode page with video and more In Episode 43 of the “Lean Whiskey” podcast, Jamie Flinchbaugh and Mark Graban begin by talking about each of our interviews regarding the new book by Steve Spear and Gene Kim, Wiring the Winning Organization. Mark interviewed Steve and Gene for the Lean Blog Interviews podcast, and Jamie interviewed Steve for a forthcoming episode of the People Solve Problems podcast. We then shifted our attention to celebrating 100 years of Suntory Distilling by each pouring different expressions from the Japanese side of the company, Hibiki and Yamazaki. We also discussed the Jim Beam side, its progression and integration into the Suntory ownership.  We eventually jumped into our primary In the News segment discussing a detailed investigative journalism report from Reuters on the objectively poor safety record at SpaceX. The data is compelling, from a fatality to a coma, and eight amputations. But the safety rate is six times the industry average, coming in at 4.8 per 100 workers. Yes, space travel and doing anything breakthrough is inherently dangerous, but there's two arguments with this. First, the injuries are things like falling out of trucks and not related to launching a rocket. Second, there are numerous examples of doing inherently dangerous work with a great safety record. Alcoa, under the leadership of Paul O'Neill, is a great example of this, where not only is the work done safely, but with increasing profits along the way.  We explore the importance of leadership — through policy to system to culture — in the outcomes of safety. Elon Musk, as the leader of SpaceX, has signaled in many ways that safety is secondary. This includes a distaste for safety yellow on aesthetic grounds to statements that workers are responsible for protecting themselves. Both SpaceX and Tesla have a tendency to withhold reporting required data to OSHA, which might not be visible to employees, but it likely is to management. We make clear that safety practice and culture is the responsibility of management.  We wrap up this episode sharing fun facts about our hometowns, wishing everyone a happy holidays, and a final cheers to 2023! Links From the Show: Mark interviewed Steve Spear and Gene Kim in episode 493 of the LeanBlog Podcast, and Jamie interviewed Steve for a forthcoming episode of People Solve Problems Podcast on their new book, Wiring the Winning OrganizationCelebrating 100 years of Suntory Distilling Mark's blog about the culture clash when Suntory acquired Jim BeamJamie's selection: Hibiki Japanese HarmonyMark's selection: Yamazaki Distiller's Reserve NAS Japan Release and the Legent Yamazaki Cask Finish Blend Kaizen & Culture Clash Between Suntory & Jim Beam?Reuters' investigative report on safety at SpaceXCOSH's Dirty Dozen of companies with poor safety records Examples of Paul O'Neill's take on prioritizing safety and being profitable here and here Please review us and follow or subscribe on your favorite podcast platform!
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    1 hr and 18 mins
Management Economics
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