No "Fat" Behavior, Please

Transforming a traditional organization to a lean organization is about creating a cultural change. The only way to create a sustainable cultural change is to change behavior. Many lean initiatives have failed from complications in changing behavior. Bob Emiliani who has studied lean transformations and lean behaviors was the first to use the term “fat” behavior.

In production environments waste is defined as actions that consume resources but do not add value to a product in the eyes of the customer. Many in the lean community are relentlessly and systematically eliminating this waste which limits business performance and threaten prosperity. Why hasn’t the concept of waste been extended to the behaviors of individuals and groups within the workplace? Perhaps it is harder to recognize and much harder to quantify.

The concept of “lean” behaviors is analogous to lean production. Lean behaviors are defined simply as behaviors that add or create value. It is the minimization of waste associated with arbitrary or contradictory thoughts and actions that leads to defensive behavior, ineffective relationships, poor co-operation, and negative attitudes. A person exhibiting lean behaviors is most easily recognizable by their ability to resist the temptation to contribute wasteful verbal or gestural content to conversations. While, fat behaviors are defined as behaviors that add no value and can be eliminated. They include the display of irrational and confusing information that results in delays or work stoppages, or the articulation of unsubstantiable subjective thoughts and opinions. Fat behaviors are recognizable as lots of talk where nothing has actually been said, or indirect words whose meanings are subject to variable interpretations. Fat behavior results in waste while lean behavior promotes flow between people.

It is hard to recognize the tremendous waste that normally exists in intra- and interpersonal relationships. Below is a table that compares common fat behaviors with selected lean behaviors:



Many of the consequences of fat behaviors relate to the loss of employee commitment. Employees, who do not feel they are being heard, will reduce their participation in the business. Over time, they feel more alone, less confident in themselves and their decisions, and become less committed to achieving the goals of the organization. They may become complacent in their work area because of their deteriorated attitude, which in turn reduces their performance and lowers their potential for future opportunities. The economic impact of fat behaviors is felt not only by the employee, but by the company as well since its workers may not have the commitment or energy to meet the demands of competition in a global market.


Fat behavior prevents us from improving and this leads to poor performance due to costly delays, rework, and poor co-operation. Far too often effective employees are those we characterize as “Heroes” and “Firefighters”. Unfortunately it is difficult to reflect, strategize, or engage in root cause analysis of problems since reward systems are well aligned with crisis management. Management and lean leaders have the primary responsibility for being in-tolerant to fat behaviors. Just like the seven wastes within lean operations behaviors also exhibit the same wastes. Below is an example of the behavioral seven wastes.

I think we all know people in our workplace who may exhibit behaviors like the ones below:




We must practice the equally important Toyota principle “Respect for People”.

The “Respect for People” principle consists of two parts: “Respect” and “Teamwork,” and is as follows:
“RESPECT: We respect others, make every effort to understand each other, take responsibility and do our best to build mutual trust.
TEAMWORK: We stimulate personal and professional growth, share the opportunities of development and maximize individual and team performance.”

The lean community must teach others to eliminate “fat” behavior like we do other wastes by advocating and practicing “Respect for People” so that organizations can truly transform to a Lean culture with lean behaviors.

Fat Attitudes Add No Value

My friend and fellow Lean thinker Bob Emiliani coined the term “fat” behavior after those behaviors that aren't consistent with Lean thinking. Our behaviors lead us to create the systems we consciously or unconsciously use at work, and our systems help shape and reinforce the culture that is in place. Our culture is the foundation for our daily behaviors, and in turn, our daily results.

Attitude and behavior are closely related in some sense though they are two different concepts. One of the most important differences between behavior and attitude is that attitude is internal whereas behavior is external in sense. In other words it can be said that behavior can very well be seen by others as it is external whereas attitude is shelled within the mind of the individual and hence cannot be seen by others immediately.

I believe there are “fat” attitudes just like behaviors that are non-value added and wasteful to Lean thinking. It is these self-deflating attitudes that reinforce negative thinking and emotions. Here are some common “fat” attitudes that you may recognize in the workplace:

1. Black and White Thinking

We tend to place people and situations in either/or categories. Either something or someone is all good or all bad. Shades of gray don’t exist, leading us to view ourselves and others as failures if we aren’t 100 percent perfect in every way.

2. Blaming

As victims of blaming, we either constantly chastise ourselves for things that are not our fault, or we transfer all responsibility to other people without objectively considering our own role in the situation.

3. Fairness Fallacy

We have an implicit belief that every situation must be fair and are constantly examining whether we are being dealt with in a just manner. Because other people won’t always agree with us about what is fair, and because sometimes the universe works in mysterious ways, we end up feeling cheated and resentful.

4. Filtering

We take the negative details and magnify them while filtering out all positive aspects of a situation. For instance, a person may pick out a single, unpleasant detail and dwell on it exclusively so that their vision of reality becomes darkened or distorted.

5. Jumping to Conclusions

Without individuals saying so, we know what they are feeling and why they act the way they do. In particular, we are able to determine how people are feeling toward us. For example a person may anticipate that things will turn out badly, and will feel convinced that their prediction is already an established fact.

6. Overgeneralization

We come to a general conclusion based on a single incident or a single piece of evidence. If something bad happens only once, we expect it to happen over and over again. A person may see a single, unpleasant event as part of a never-ending pattern of defeat.

7. Fallacy of Change

We expect that other people will change to suit us if we just pressure or cajole them enough. We need to change people because our hopes for happiness seem to depend entirely on them.

8. Always Being Right

We are continually on trial to prove that our opinions and actions are correct. Being wrong is unthinkable and we will go to any length to demonstrate our rightness. For example, “I don’t care how badly arguing with me makes you feel, I’m going to win this argument no matter what because I’m right.” Being right often is more important than the feelings of others around us.

In order to have meaningful change we have to change both attitude and behavior together. Change in thinking will lead to behavioral change. Alternatively, change in actions will eventually lead to changes in attitude. This combined approach provides the most success by providing positive thinking with the right methodology to implement and sustain change.

Lean Quote of the Day, February 26, 2010

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.

Feel free to share some of your favorites here as well.

All blame is a waste of time. No matter how much fault you find with another, and regardless of how much you blame him, it will not change you. The only thing blame does is to keep the focus off you when you are looking for external reasons to explain your unhappiness or frustration. You may succeed in making another feel guilty about something by blaming him, but you won't succeed in changing whatever it is about you that is making you unhappy."
-- Wayne Dyer

 One of the biggest areas of concern is the Behavioral waste and blaming which some leadership utilize on a daily basis.  Blame is a what I call a "fat" behavior.  Bob Emiliani who has studied lean transformations and lean behaviors was the first to use the term “fat” behavior.  Check out this post called No "Fat" Behavior, Please to learn about the difference between lean behaviors and "fat" behaviors.

5 Lean Leadership Behaviors to Transform Your Culture

The concept of “lean” behaviors is analogous to lean production. Lean behaviors is a term my friend Bob Emiliani coined to define those behaviors that add or create value. This is contrary “fat” behavior which is non-value added and can be eliminated. Our behaviors lead us to create the systems we consciously or unconsciously use at work, and our systems help shape and reinforce the culture that is in place. Our culture is the foundation for our daily behaviors, and in turn, our daily results.

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.

·          Directing Others

·         Is good at establishing clear directions

·         Sets stretching objectives

·         Lays out work in a well-planned and organized manner

·         Maintains two-way dialogue with others on work and results

·         Brings about the best in people

·          Motivating Others

·         Can motivate many kinds of subordinates and team/project members

·         Pushes tasks and decisions down

·         Empowers others

·         Invites input from each person and shares ownership and visibility is someone people like working for and with

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.

·         Creativity

·         Comes up with a lot of new and unique ideas

·         Easily makes connections among previously unrelated notions

·         Tends to be seen as original and good in brainstorming settings

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.
• Problem Solving

·         Solves difficult problems with effective solutions

·         Asks good questions and probes all fruitful sources for answers

·         Can see underlying or hidden problems and patterns

·         Is excellent at honest analysis

·         Looks beyond the obvious and doesn’t stop at the first answers

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.
• Building Effective Teams

·         Creates strong morale and spirit in his/her team

·         Shares wins and successes

·         Fosters open dialogue

·         Lets people finish and be responsible for their work

·         Lets subordinates present to senior management

·         Acts as if real success is the success of the whole team

·         Creates a feeling of belonging in the team

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.
• Drive for Results

·         Can be counted on to exceed goals successfully

·         Is constantly and consistently one of the top performers

·         Very bottom-line oriented

·         Steadfastly pushes self and others for results

• Action Oriented

·         Enjoys working hard

·         Is action oriented and full of energy for the things that he/she sees as challenging

·         Not fearful of acting with a minimum of planning

·         Seizes opportunities when they arise

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.