by Lee Fried, on 08 Apr 2007 03:22 pm
The Journey
Quote of the Week
We have reach the point in our Lean journey where the pull for Lean support is coming from every corner of the company. A goodproblem to have, but one that can be costly if not managed correctly. We have been cautious up to this point in the way that we have supported Lean efforts in the organization in order to avoid doing a whole lot of Lean poorly. We have also become more ambitious with our Lean efforts taking on more and more complex value streams with a goal of deeper learning. This presents a challenge for the organization, because this more strategic level work requires talented Lean leadership. Thus one of the keys to success will be our ability to align and integrate our Lean efforts with our leadership development and succession planning programs. Here is a quote from Bob Emiliani about this very subject:
“Top managers often say that Lean is critical to the company’s future. If Lean is truly critical, then the leading candidates for advancement should be the people that understand Lean management best. And the talent pool with be among those who regularly participate in kaizen. Promoting the right people will motivate others who don’t understand Lean to learn and improve.”