Meetings are a gathering of more than one person to discuss a specific topic. Well planned meetings have an agenda. They also have a meeting manager who keeps the meeting on track and sets clear objectives. Poorly planned meetings generally miss out on one or more of those components, and Read more…
A mentor is an experienced, wise counselor. The mentor must be trusted by the student. This often precludes mentors from being in direct supervisory roles. People often feel cautious about sharing too much personal information with bosses. In Lean, because of its Japanese heritage, a mentor is often referred to Read more…
The word “motivation” has two distinct, though related, meanings. In the more generic definition, motivation is simply something that provides an incentive to take action. This meaning also has something of a psychological component to it, as there is a linkage between the incentive and a behavioral response. In a Read more…
What did you have for breakfast last Tuesday? How many eggs are left in your refrigerator? If you had any trouble answering those questions, you will understand why memory is not a reliable tool for processes. People get distracted and skip steps. Requiring people to remember counts can be especially Read more…
Metrics are the measurements that companies use to help a team meet its goals. Metrics are formal. They should be clearly defined and tracked regularly. More importantly, metrics should be acted upon. Tracking information without doing anything with it is demoralizing to teams and consumes resources that would be better Read more…
Machine cycle time is the time a machine actually requires to produce one unit of output. Machine cycle time has three basic components. It has the time to load the machine, the actual machining or machine time, and the unloading time. Machine cycle time seems like a simple concept, but Read more…
Milestones were originally the stone markers along a route that told travelers the mileage. In modern times, milestones serve the same function for projects. Milestones are specific, definable points on a project that are used to indicate progress. If milestones are vague, they are hard to tell when they are Read more…
Morale is simply the attitude you have about work. Good morale means people are satisfied with their jobs and are willing to commit to the success of the company. With poor morale, people feel like the company is an adversary, and are reluctant to engage in much more that the Read more…