A selection of highlighted blog posts from Lean
bloggers from the month of August 2021. 
You can also view the previous monthly Lean Roundups here.

Piloting Continuous
Improvement – Jon Miller discusses how a pilot can be an effective way
to roll out continuous improvement.

Rather than Blaming
Employees, Managers Must Take Responsibility for Problems – in a Taco Joint, a
Hospital, or a Factory – Mark Graban shares some personal
examples where individuals are blamed for system problems.

Why We Must Talk To
People Not About People – Marci Reynolds shares a story in
the news that is about respect for people principle.

Takt Time: How Slow Can
You Go? – Mark Rosenthal discusses the challenges of managers
focused on output versus takt time.

Leadership Tip 12:
Focus on Effectiveness, Not Efficiency – Johanna Rothman talks about the
importance of focusing on effectiveness first and efficiency second. 

Why Having More
Meetings Is Not The Answer – Dan Markovitz says you can avoid
the conclusion trap, by spending time understanding the problem before you rush
to action, you can find more effective, less expensive, and more durable
solutions.

A Culture of “Fessin’
Up” About Mistakes at Garrison Brothers Distillery – Mark Graban talks
about a culture of “fessin’ up about mistake.

Thinking About
Introducing A3 Problem-Solving? Think Twice if Leadership Isn’t Engaged – David Verble cautions
that it will be very, very hard to succeed for reasons he explains in this
Q&A follow-up to a recent webinar on the A3 process.

Coach’s Corner:
Designing the Entire Value Stream From Concept to Product End Life – Katrina Appell explains
how LPPD can help reduce both your cost and carbon footprint in the value
stream.

How Designing Value
Streams, Not Just Products, Creates Competitive Advantage – Jim Morgan describes
how lean development practices helped them develop better products, create
profitable value streams and strengthen development teams.

What is Lean Leadership
and How Do You Get it? – Jeffrey Liker describes what
organizations need to do to develop their leaders’ lean leadership
capabilities.

Five Practice Patterns
for Succeeding as a New Manager – Jon Miller discusses what organizations
do to set their new managers up for success.

Ask Art: What
Targets Should We Set When Launching a Lean Turnaround? – Art Byrne
discusses why setting results-oriented targets instead of process-oriented
targets will doom your lean improvement efforts.

Why the Most
Important Product Leaders Can Develop is Their Team – Jim Morgan says while
new technology and innovative ideas may seem paramount to achieving development
excellence, it’s really the people within the teams who are preeminent.

Don’t
Change the Culture, Change the Cultural Inputs – Steve Kane shares eight steps
to counter undesirable cultural inputs.