Continuous improvement focuses on cost reduction—the actual dollar savings that increase profit. The term “savings”, though, has many nuances to it. Hard savings vs. soft savings. Hard savings are the ones with a specific invoice, credit card statement, or payroll expense associated with it. Soft savings are the ones that Read more…
Profit is the pile of money that is left over after all the bills are paid and the costs are tallied. There are many different types of profit for accounting purposes (net profit, gross profit, EBITDA). The ultimate goal of any company is to make a profit. It is not Read more…
On the job emotions are rarely talked about. But let’s begin with emotion in general. Emotion is something that we are all familiar with. It is the internal reaction we have to things- the shriek when you win the lottery, the gasp at bad news, and the anger when someone Read more…
Discussions about continuous improvement frequently mention the term ‘waste’ which is anything that doesn’t add value. But how often are the seven wastes in Lean discussed with respect to managing teams? Leadership, like operations or any other process, uses resources. Doesn’t it make sense to figure out ways to lead Read more…
Continuous improvement often requires us to step outside what we believe to be true and look at the world in a new, different way. Children do this on a regular basis. Why is the sky blue? How do birds fly? What would happen if you were driving at the speed Read more…
The people actually doing a process a new way are at the frontline of change. They are the ones who must enforce new processes with internal customers, manage changes with suppliers, or work with customers to educate them about the new and improved methods. Working at the frontline of change Read more…
Growth is the driver of stock appreciation. The basic way investors determine what to pay for a stock is to look at the value of its assets, minus its liabilities, and then factor in expected future earnings. With growth, those expected earnings get bigger, and the company’s stock prices go Read more…
Confusion is a lack of certainty. This uncertainty translates to waste. This waste is cause by two main things: Delays: Confusion creates delays in processes when operators try to figure out what to do. This leads to variation in cycle time. With enough of these delays, lead times also become Read more…
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…
Practice is repeating a task in order to improve your skills. This doesn’t mean that it has to just be an exercise. You can practice doing good Pareto charts by finding opportunities to use them in real situations. Practice is characterized by purpose. That means identifying a gap in a 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…
In short, leadership is the act of one person uniting and motivating others toward a common goal. Leadership is part natural (as in “natural-born”), but is greatly refined through training, practice, and constant learning. Confidence in oneself is a key component of leadership. While leadership is generally considered a positive Read more…