Don’t Let Lean Myths Stand In Your Way

Lean thinking has been around since the early 90’s. Despite this fact true Lean thinking still evades many. There continues to be stories in the news about company’s misfortunes mistakenly attributed to Lean implementations. If we truly want to improve our businesses we must dispel these myths so the real power and benefits of Lean can be known.

Here are 5 big misconceptions about Lean and my rebuttal:

Lean is only about cost reduction.
First and foremost, Lean is about value — a bigger and more inclusive concept than mere cost. That is antithetical to genuine Lean process, the simplest definition of which is the continual pursuit, identification, and removal of waste in product and process. Waste is anything that does not contribute value — anything the customer will not willingly pay for. Traditional cost cutting occurs in silos, without regard to who is affected upstream and downstream. These impacts cannot just negate the initial cost reduction from the unilateral approach, but exceed them. Lean examines each process, internal and external, finding and removing the waste, and reducing cost while maintaining the health of all constituents.

Lean makes employees feel like robots.
People are often concerned that Lean efforts, including standardized work, will turn them into unthinking robots. Many Lean methods are used so that abnormalities are clearly visible and therefore can be reacted to. It is not about mindless conformity. Lean creates a baseline so improvement can occur by freeing up mental capacity from doing the routine in order to think about how the process could work better. A truly Lean culture respects people and engages them in continuous improvement.

Lean is just about applying tools.
This is a myth perpetuated by less than knowledgeable leaders. Most companies miss the point that 90% of Lean is about people and culture change and only 10% is about the tools. They expect Lean to be the “silver bullet”, which, even if it does not solve all their problems, will at least aid in short-term gains. There are thousands of Lean tools, because each problem requires its own unique tool to help solve it. People are needed to solve problems. Tools don’t apply themselves. Basically, leaders have to learn to think differently and see their customers and business differently, that’s people development, not tools development.

Lean is something you do in addition.
Lean is not about the destination but the direction or path you take toward this idealistic place. Lean is not something you check off your "To Do List". It is about the constant, persistent, even relentless pursuit of improving your current situation. Usually, it means doing something you haven’t done before because your old habits will not work in your new system. Lean is not technique you apply to your business system but rather a methodology that replaces your business system.

Lean means no inventory.
Lean doesn’t mean ZERO inventory. It means the right inventory at the right time at the right quantities and in the right place. Every company needs buffers, but they must be well planned and controlled. As anybody who has spent some time in a manufacturing plant will tell you, operating without buffers is a sure recipe for disaster. Low inventories are commonly linked to Lean because many organizations are able to reduce inventory levels due to practicing Lean Thinking. But "true" Lean Thinkers understand lower inventories are a resultant of a process improvement not a solution to a problem.

Unfortunately, there are many more myths regarding Lean thinking and methodology. As a Lean practitioner and voice in the community I feel a sense of importance to dispute these myths so that others can learn what Lean is really all about. Please, help contribute to this mission by sharing yours thoughts on Lean myths below.

Lean Quote: The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate….

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on this journey because without learning we can not improve.

"Still the question recurs “can we do better?” The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the storm present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, we must think anew, and act anew." — President Abraham Lincoln in his Annual Address to Congress (December 1, 1862)

Lean Leaders and Lean Thinkers should rally around this great quote from a great President. Can we do better? The answer was “YES!” which President Lincoln made clear as he exhorted all who would listen to think anew and act anew.

The answer was yes during the Civil War years and it is yes at your work site today. The harder question is “how?” How will you think and act anew? Do you need to think anew about an old issue that has been causing waste at your site? Do you need to think anew about how to make your process even better? Do you need to think anew about your problem solving methodology? Does your organization need to think anew and act anew by embarking on the Lean Journey?

Many organizations have been on the Lean Journey for some time. Many others are just starting or have not yet started. All need to think anew and act anew.



Today's Lean Quote is courtesy of my friend Christian Paulsen. Christian is an Executive Consultant with 20 years of Lean Manufacturing. Chris adds value to organizations by driving process improvement and bottom line savings. Chris intends to help others by sharing the lessons learned after a quarter century of operational leadership, marriage, parenting, and even longer as a Cubs fan. He blogs at Lean Leadership and can be found on Twitter as http://twitter.com/chris_paulsen.

Meet-up: Gregg Stocker

Today I am pleased to be able to introduce blogger Gregg Stocker. Gregg is the author of the blog Building a Fast & Flexible Company. He is a Lean consultant and accomplished book author. Gregg has a practical sense that makes his posts easy to relate to. He is frequently highlighted on the monthly round-up because of this. 



Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Gregg Stocker and I am a lean advisor for an oil and gas producer supporting the lean deployment within the unconventional (shale) oil business. Throughout my career, I have worked in a variety of positions and industries, including serving as Managing Director of a polymers manufacturing and service company based in The Netherlands, Director of European Operations for a U.S. company, and Global Quality Director at an instrument manufacturer. 

I wrote the book, “Avoiding the Corporate Death Spiral: Recognizing & Eliminating the Signs of Decline” (Quality Press) and contributed several sections to the recently released “Lean Handbook” (Quality Press).

How and when did you learn Lean?
I had a class during my senior year at Michigan State University on W. Edwards Deming's system of management (I won’t say how far back it was but well before this stuff was en vogue). I'm from Detroit and saw firsthand how destructive the traditional style of management was, so Deming's message struck a chord with me. It also helped me get a good foundation before I got into the workforce and picked up some of the bad Western management practices.

How and why did you start blogging or writing about Lean?
I want to help organizations improve but more than anything, want to help people get more enjoyment out of their jobs. This led me to write "Avoiding the Corporate Death Spiral," because better leadership creates stronger companies and happier employees. 

After I wrote the book, I continued to learn and had more to say, which led me o blogging and public speaking. I also have learned so much from other bloggers over the years that I feel compelled to give back by continuing to blog, speak, and write books.

What does Lean mean to you?
This is a very difficult question to answer because lean covers so many aspects of a business. I guess if I had to boil it down to a simple answer, I’d have to say that it deals with the journey to absolute perfection. Everything we do as part of a lean journey – improving flow, continually improving, valuing employees, PDCA-thinking, etc. – is related to the drive toward perfection. 

The actions of many organizations on the lean journey demonstrate that they don’t understand that it’s about striving for perfection. Talking in terms of solutions - not celebrating “failed” improvement efforts, looking to competitors for benchmarks or to set objectives – are signs that the process fail to truly transform the organization and any gains made will most likely be short-lived.

What is the biggest myth or misconception of Lean?
There are so many . . . If I had to pick, I could probably narrow it down to two. The first is that lean is common sense. I think of this is an excuse made by people who don't want to do it. For example, common sense will lead most people to think that running large batches of products and creating inventory will improve performance because of long setups and uneven demand, but a lean mindset will tell you just the opposite. 

No matter how far an organization has gone with its transformation, there are natural forces to pull it back to the pack. Lean will never be sustainable on its own. 

The second myth is that lean can be delegated. Transforming an organization absolutely requires commitment and involvement of leaders - not just support. Without a strong level of commitment, there will be too much friction between those who buy into and are involved in the transformation and those who don't or are watching from the sidelines.

What is your current Lean passion, project, or initiative?
I’m writing my next book on organizational transformation. Lean is a complex subject and I’ll continue to look for ways to convey the message in a clearer and more concise manner. 

I’m also continuing my effort to bring a lean mindset to the oil and gas industry. Lean is a new frontier for E&P companies and its exciting to be a part of the transformation.

Daily Lean Tips Edition #37

For my Facebook fans you already know about this great feature. But for those of you that are not connected to A Lean Journey on Facebook or Twitter I post daily a feature I call Lean Tips.  It is meant to be advice, things I learned from experience, and some knowledge tidbits about Lean to help you along your journey.  Another great reason to like A Lean Journey on Facebook.

Click this link for A Lean Journey's Facebook Page Notes Feed.

Here is the next addition of tips from the Facebook page:

Lean Tip #541 – Productivity Tip: Plan your work, then work your plan.

It is important that you always follow through with what you intend to do, otherwise you are making your plan irrelevant and negating the value of the planning time.

Lean Tip #542 – Productivity Tip: Delete whenever possible.

It is important that you frequently revisit your plan and task list. Always cross off the tasks and projects you have completed, and eliminate or delegate those that are no longer important.

Lean Tip #543 – Productivity Tip: Learn to delegate wisely.

When you delegate a task to another person, make sure the person you are delegating it to has clear instructions on how to complete the task, has enough resources for the task, and has the authority to make any decisions that might affect the outcome of the task.

Lean Tip #544 – Productivity Tip: Identify your high-payoff items.

Make sure that you concentrate on the right tasks, which will generate results for you and your company. Stephen Covey suggests first addressing tasks that are both Important and Urgent. Effective time management is not about being busy, but about getting results.

Lean Tip #545 – Productivity Tip: Work from a prioritized action list.

You need to determine what your work priorities are, both short term and long term. I suggest using a standard method like the Formula for Success to prioritize your action list for the greatest success.

Lean Tip #546 - Set aside time each week to actively and openly nurture the lean journey in your organization.

You must understand that one of your most important jobs as a lean manager is to develop and nurture other lean thinkers and to do this you must be engaged with them on a regular basis and be willing to put a high priority on improvement activities for yourself and others.

Lean Tip #547 - Get out of your office and walk the value stream at least once per week.

There is no better way to experience the flow of value (or lack thereof) than taking the same journey that an order, new product, patient or other takes through your processes. Start where the order, product or person enters your value stream and "go see" all the places they go from start to finish. Look for all forms of the 7 wastes and when you see them, think about "why" they exist. Do this often in order to gain a true understanding of your processes. What happens on Monday is not necessarily what happens on Friday. See if you can discover why on your Gemba walks.

Lean Tip #548 - Use your eyes and ears more than your vocal chords when on the shop floor.

Shigeo Shingo noted that improvements come from the "common sense and experience of the people who do the work". You need to look and listen to what the many intelligent, creative people who make your business run have to say about what goes on in their world each day. If you don't do this regularly how will you have a prayer of knowing how to support their improvement efforts or gain their trust and commitment to change for the long haul?

Lean Tip #549 - Ask 5 different people who work for you "what can be improved" at least once a week.

This may sound simple but if you ask, you must also be prepared to offer support and provide time and resources to allow them to make the improvements they suggest. If you do so, you will very likely see your improvement efforts bloom! If they see you are truly interested in their ideas and are willing to allow them the time and materials needed to change the small things that bug them regularly, you will be surprised how much this will mean to them. And your business will benefit at the same time.

Lean Tip #550 - Participate in an improvement project team meeting, training session or kaizen event at least once per month.

Be a visible, active participant in lean training and improvement efforts. If a manager makes time to participate or attend, it sends the message to employees that the activity is important. The opposite is also true.

Lean Tip #551 - Ask to be shown an implemented improvement idea from all areas reporting to you at least once per month.

Recognition is an important component of all good Lean programs. When you take the time to "go see" some of the ideas that people have implemented and, better yet, thank them in person for a job well done, you are recognizing and reinforcing desired behaviors. You'll also get an important opportunity to learn more about both your employees and your processes. And when you ask to see improvements you are also setting the expectation that there will be some!

Lean Tip #552 - Read at least one new lean article or book a month.

Lean managers recognize that learning is a life-long endeavor that needs to become as natural to employees as breathing. The idea behind reading on lean subjects is to become a sponge, soaking up what others who have been on the journey longer than you have learned, and then think hard about how you and your organization can use this knowledge. Don't be surprised if you begin to accumulate your own lean library very quickly once you commit to becoming a reader!

Lean Tip #553 - Attend a conference, plant tour or participate in a webinar or podcast on lean topics once per quarter.

Better yet, take a few people along for the ride when you participate in these activities. Networking, benchmarking, and seeing and hearing about experiences of other companies and people are not only desirable but are expected in the world of lean practitioners. When a team of people from your company participates together you instantly increase the likelihood that the learning will be more widely shared upon your return and you create a unique way to foster team work and stimulate lean dialogue.

Lean Tip #554 - Visit at least one external customer or supplier each quarter.

The value stream does not stop at your four walls. Instead it extends both to your suppliers on the one end of the value chain and to the customers who pay the bills on the other end. The more you know and understand about these key stakeholders, and vice versa, the greater the chances that you can improve your extended value stream.

Lean Tip #555 - Develop your own "Manager's Standardized Work".

How many of you have a written routine that you follow as you go about your daily work? I imagine if I asked you to list what you do, you would be able to list many things that have to get done in the course of the day, week or month. Why not formalize your list and establish your own set of manager's standardized work? It will help you and the people who work for you more than you know. Write down, in the sequence you will follow, indicating how much time will be devoted to each task and when it will be done each day, the repeatable activities you will undertake on a daily basis, a weekly basis and so forth. It is ok to reserve times for the "unknown" things that invariably come up. After a few weeks of practice you will have a pretty good sense of how much time you need to hold aside for these activities.

Lean Transformation Know-How For Business Leaders

Few business leaders in the world have applied Lean strategy as successfully as Art Byrne has - and none has the ability to explain how to do it with succinctness and clarity. Art has successfully implemented Lean strategies in more than 30 companies in 14 different countries. Famous for turning around Wiremold which has been written about by Jim Womack in Lean Thinking and Masaaki Imai in Gemba Kaizen.  Now Art has written his own story in The Lean Turnaround. This book is a business leaders guide to succeeding with a Lean strategy to create value and transform their company.

The beginning of The Lean Turnaround Art describes journey to learning Lean from more traditional management at General Electric to his introduction to Lean at Danaher Corporation to his Lean transformation at Wiremold to his leadership transforming businesses and J.W. Childs. In the last part you will hear a simple method for transforming any organization in any industry. The core of Byrne's method is to configure your company to be responsive to the customers not the other way around.

Art doesn't dwell on the theory rather he shares from his experience what Lean does. He outlines the two main barriers to successfully implementing lean (lack of understand of lean and lean strategy and a lack of leadership to achieve turnaround) for all to learn. Byrne forcefully stresses the importance of the CEOs personal engagement in the daily application of Lean principles and practices. Art explains CEOs must understand three key management principles:

• Lean is a strategy. (Don't just do Lean, be Lean.)
• Lead from the top. (Lead by example with kaizen at the gemba)
• Transform the people. (Get Lean knowledge)

Art even cautions leaders about the changes to your business that converting to Lean causes.  He strongly suggests adopting Lean accounting methods as soon as possible in the transformation.

This book is written for executive leaders of organizations wishing to know how to use Lean to transform their company but anyone interested in continuous improvement will learn valuable lessons. He is very skilled at simplifying Lean thinking so that it can easily be understood. Art shares real world examples of how he learned, applied, and improved work practices at all levels of the organization. You'll be able to feel Art's passion for Lean as you learn from his experiences.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Lean Turnaround and recommend it to anyone wanting to learn a better management system to create lasting value for people and customers.

Lean Quote: Getting People To Do Ordinary Things Extraordinarily Well

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on this journey because without learning we can not improve.

"Good management is about getting people to do ordinary things extraordinarily well." — Shigeo Shingo

Leaders who wish to transform the culture of their organization need to change the behaviors and mindset of their employees. Therefore, I want to present 5 Lean leadership behaviors you need to emulate to make your transformation effective:

1. Lead = Directing Others and Motivating Others
We lead by example, setting the pace by consistently motivating our team members to make the extraordinary happen.

2. Innovate = Creativity
Improving and enhancing the way people experience the world means driving technology with keen innovation. Team members work together to break new ground and open up new initiatives that benefit your customers and your workplace.

3. Solve = Problem Solving
Every day, we innovate ways to solve challenges both in the products we develop and in the business practices that sustain your company. On a local and global scale, we strive for continuous improvement.

4. Collaborate = Building Effective Teams
Your customers and colleagues are partners and measure your success by how well you help each other perform. From working on design challenges at customer sites to sharing ideas with teammates, collaborating is how you and your customers consistently win.

5. Win = Drive for Results and Action Oriented
Your focus on customer success drives you to look beyond the horizon and find solutions that get the job done.

If you are committed to becoming Lean then these behaviors will guide you to value. Lead, innovate, solve, collaborate, and win are behaviors that can shape the culture in your organization. Not only leaders but everybody can benefit from these Lean behaviors.