Lean Blog Audio

The blog post Digital transformation is about rethinking and reinventing with digital tools. For over 13 years, KaiNexus has moved beyond the outdated suggestion box model. Traditional suggestion boxes, whether paper or digital, often fail (or usually fail!–ideas get locked away, reviewed by a select few, and lead to frustration. We believe in dynamic platforms that foster real-time communication and collaboration. Don't digitize the old, broken way of doing things! Mark Graban:Don't digitize the old broken process. Whether that's a suggestion box or anything else, digital transformation is about rethinking reinventing the way we do things with digital tools. From the beginning, more than 13 years ago, KaiNexus has never been an electronic suggestion box because suggestion boxes don't work, whether it's in paper form or an online digital form. Why is that? Suggestion boxes in the paper model have a locked box. Ideas sit. Some special person with a key opens up box maybe once a month, maybe

Blog post Psychological Safety means everybody gets their say, but it doesn't mean you get your way. Psychological Safety is an individual's belief, feeling, or perception that it's safe for them to speak up in a situation. When people are rewarded for speaking candidly, that leads to rigorous debate and better decisions. Psychological Safety doesn't mean freedom from being challenged or disagreed with. It doesn't turn the workplace into a democracy and it doesn't mean you need 100% agreement to move forward on anything. Psychological Safety means you can disagree with your manager or a peer… and they have the safety to disagree in return. Psychological Safety doesn't mean shutting down a discussion because you feel uncomfortable. What practices and behaviors have you seen in a workplace that cultivate Psychological Safety? What are some examples of rewarding people for speaking up candidly? To me, it comes down to three high-level countermeasures for leaders: Modeling candor, vu

The blog post The LinkedIn event My latest book, The Mistakes That Make Us: Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation, is turning one year old! Join me, along with my co-host Elisabeth Swan, for what we hope will be an engaging, insightful, and fun discussion about learning from mistakes. We'll be joined by special surprise guests who will share their unique perspectives and experiences. This isn't just a one-way broadcast–it's an interactive session where we'll conduct live polls and open the virtual floor to your questions, ensuring a dynamic and participative environment. View this page and click “Attend” to be reminded of this when it starts. A recording will also be available on LinkedIn and my YouTube channel. Mistakes are a universal experience, and what truly matters is how we learn from them. Together, we will explore ways to improve our ability to learn from mistakes, both as individuals and as organizations. My goal is to uncover practical strategies that can be applied in va

The Blog Post I'm excited to share my breakout session at the Michigan Lean Consortium Annual Conference! In this session, I dive into the critical role of Psychological Safety as a Foundation for Continuous Improvement. We explore how fostering an environment where team members feel safe to share ideas, take risks, and learn from mistakes can drive remarkable progress and innovation. Oh, and did I mention that Traverse City is usually gorgeous in August? --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

Blog post link When writing or speaking, I use the words “mistake” and “error” interchangeably. The definitions in some dictionaries are comically circular. Dictionary.com defines an error as: “a deviation from accuracy or correctness; a MISTAKE, as in action or speech.” It also defines a mistake as: “an ERROR in action, calculation, opinion, or judgment caused by poor reasoning, carelessness, insufficient knowledge, etc.” So, a mistake is an error, and an error is a mistake. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

Blog post link I'm excited that the Shingo Institute asked me to present a webinar on June 18th. Click here to register for the webinar They've also published an article that I wrote: Psychological Safety: The Key to Effective Andon Cord Pulls and Continuous Improvement The webinar description: Join us for an engaging webinar as we explore the transformative power of cultivating a culture that learns from mistakes, ultimately driving continuous improvement and innovation, leading to greater success! Renowned author Mark Graban will draw upon examples from a diverse array of companies, including industry titans like Toyota and agile software startups such as KaiNexus. During this session, participants will gain valuable insights into the experiences of CEOs and other leaders, regardless of company size, who have adeptly turned mistakes into opportunities for growth and advancement. While these leaders remain vigilant in error prevention, they recognize the profound value of embracing mistakes as pivota

Blog post link The Big Picture: In the Lean community and beyond, some people mistakenly equate “psychological safety” with being comfortable all the time. This misconception can undermine the true essence of psychological safety in the workplace. Psychological safety is not about constant comfort or shielding managers from discomfort. Synthesizing a few definitions of psychological safety, I say it's a person's belief, feeling, or perception that it's safe enough to speak candidly about things including: Mistakes Problems Ideas Differing views without fearing marginalization or punishment. What Psychological Safety Really Means --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

Blog post I was talking recently with a trusted friend in the Lean community. He told me a story. It's certainly believable, even if it's second or third-hand to me. He had no reason to make up a story like this. A relative of his works in a U.S. factory. Yes, we still have factories here. I'll call this relative of my friend “Guy,” which is pronounced the American way, not the French way. Guy's factory would claim to use Lean methods and might even claim a “Toyota Production System” label as its inspiration. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

The blog post IMAGE: A sign that reads "CAUTION: DON'T OPERATE ON THE WRONG SIDE" It's silly, right? I've never seen a sign like this in an operating room. And I'm not advocating for them. It's not the right approach for quality and patient safety. If warning signs actually prevented mistakes, and given that a vast majority of mistakes are caused by human factors (like fatigue) and systemic factors (like being behind schedule because instruments were delivered late to the O.R.)…1) A sign like this would be posted in every operating room and2) Wrong-site, wrong-side, and wrong-patient surgeries would never occurBut, of course, it's not that simple.What works?Mistake-proofing works. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

The blog post TODAY marks the centennial of one of the most significant innovations in quality management: the control chart.

The blog post Research by Ethan Burris shows that the top two reasons employees choose to keep quiet in the workplace are:1️⃣ Futility2️⃣ FearFear of getting in trouble is a big problem. But there are also many workplaces where people say, quite literally, “I'm not afraid to speak up, it just isn't worth the effort.”That's the Futility Factor.Please answer this poll question via LinkedIn. And I'd love to hear your thoughts in a comment here on the blog post or LinkedIn. Please check out people's comments and stories that they shared on Linkedin. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

Episode page with links and more info I'm very happy to announce the release of my new Mistake-Proofing course, available NOW through Karen Martin and TKMG Academy. You can buy the course individually at TKMGAcademy.com for $129. Volume discounts are available for large teams or your entire workforce (for more information, email info@tkmgacademy.com). The course is also part of the wonderful collection of courses in the all-access annual subscription. The annual price of $529 goes up significantly at 11:59 pm CDT on May 31st, so act now for the best value pricing. Other TKMG Academy instructors in the series include Karen Martin, Elisabeth Swan, Mike Osterling, Tracy O'Rourke, Brent Loescher... and more. And if you subscribe to TKMG Academy, you can participate in Karen's "Community of Practice" meeting with me on Wednesday, June 26th. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

Blog post I love Steve Spear‘s emphasis on a Toyota-based Lean model of: “See, Solve, Share” See problems, solve problems, and share what worked as countermeasures. That's the ideal, and it's powerful where it exists. At Toyota, and companies like it, there's an understanding that speaking up about problems leads to a constructive response from leaders.  That's not always true at other companies that are starting or attempting their “Lean Journey.” The Psychological Safety that might be taken for granted at Toyota must be actively cultivated in a company before continuous improvement can really take root, let alone take off. I think the model could also be stated as: “See, Share, Solve, Share” --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

Blog post Research by Ethan Burris shows that the top two reasons employees choose to keep quiet in the workplace are:1️⃣ Futility2️⃣ FearFear of getting in trouble is a big problem. But there are also many workplaces where people say, quite literally, “I'm not afraid to speak up, it just isn't worth the effort.”That's the Futility Factor.Please answer this poll question via LinkedIn. And I'd love to hear your thoughts in a comment here on the blog post or on LinkedIn. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

The blog post You don't find the root cause of a problem in a conference room. OK, so we've gotten away from the whiteboard. Now what? You might not even KNOW the root cause by thinking and talking out where the work is actually being done. That's one of the most powerful lessons I've learned from former Toyota people I've been able to work with. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

Blog Post Professors Robert H. Hayes and William J. Abernathy have harsh words about a common, if not typical style of American management: “…an overdependence on analytical detachment – what they call ”managerial remote control.” They say it is an approach that exalts financial analysis, not line operations. It rewards executives who see their company primarily as a competing set of rates of return, who manage by numbers and computer printouts. Further, they say, it is a seductive doctrine that promises the bright student a quick path to the top and that piles its rewards on executives who force through impressive short-term performance, at indeterminate cost to long-term health. Fearing any dip in today's profits, American companies keep research and technology on short rations, skimping the investment critically needed to insure competitiveness tomorrow.” These are warnings about: Prioritizing financial analysis over an operations focus Emphasized and rewarding short-term performance over long-term

The blog post It's interesting to observe a hospital process (or lack thereof) when a family member needs surgery. I had the opportunity to do so one day last week. I originally shared this on LinkedIn as a post and real-time updates. Thankfully, the clinical care seemed to be good, and that family member is recovering well from the outpatient procedure. But, the experience could have been better. I'm critiquing the process and the apparent culture, not the individuals involved. They are part of a system, which includes their job role design, training, and supervision. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

Blog post with links The other day, I read about the passing of Donald E. Peterson, who was a key CEO for Ford Motor Company in the 1980s (from 1985 to 1990). From the Detroit Free Press: Former Ford CEO Don Petersen, who spent 41 years with automaker, dies at 97 --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

Read the blog post How often do you hear executives blaming employees, including frontline workers, for different problems or poor performance? I don't think that's a good look when leaders do that. Leaders are responsible for the system, especially senior leaders. Even though they are part of a system, they have more freedom and more ability to change systems that ultimately drive most performance. A blaming leader looks at low productivity numbers and blames “lazy workers.” A blaming leader sees mistakes and blames “careless workers.” A blaming leader sees employees choosing not to speak up about problems and blames “cowardly workers.” --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audio/support

Read the blog post I recently spoke and facilitated at a health system's quarterly leadership forum event on the topic of “Psychological Safety as a Pre-Condition for Continuous Improvement.” It was very well received, and I'm very passionate about the need for leaders to help every team member believe that it's both safe and effective to speak up in the workplace. Psychological Safety plus Problem Solving is a very powerful combination. Let me know if you'd be open to a brief conversation on collaborating for your next leadership forum or another executive event. I'm keen to share insights that can further empower your team and take your improvement journey to the next level. Learn more here and let me know if this would help your healthcare organization (or any organization outside of healthcare): Transforming Healthcare Leadership: Cultivate Psychological Safety for Unprecedented Continuous Improvement --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lean-blog-audi