Category Archives: Management Articles

Univ Michigan Hospital Adopts Toyota Methods

Posted on July 22, 2006 by John Hunter

U-M hospital takes page from Toyota [the broken link was removed] by Sharon Terlep. This continues the trend (trend rather than fad because I like that it is happening :-)) of hospitals adopting lean management methods. In health care, the one-at-a-time approach could mean taking a patient’s call, pulling the patient’s records, scheduling a visit and performing the exam that day, rather than creating a backlog of appointments or letting people crowd a waiting room. That way, if something goes … Continue reading →

Posted in Health care, Lean thinking, Management, Management Articles | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Army Lean Six Sigma

Posted on July 21, 2006 by John Hunter

Lean Six Sigma eases fiscal constraint challenges [the broken link was removed] by Beth Reece, Army News Service: During fiscal 2005, the Army Material Command saw $110 million in savings and cost avoidance by implementing Lean Six Sigma practices. By removing waste and better controlling output, for example, Letterkenny Army Depot, Pa., reduced costs by $11.9 million in Patriot air defense missile system recapitalization. And Pine Bluff Arsenal, Ark., reduced repair cycle time by 90 percent and increased its production … Continue reading →

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Lean Management Case Study

Posted on July 20, 2006 by John Hunter

Learning the Rules…Playing to Win [the broken link was removed] (pdf) Lean concepts are taught through discussion and hands-on discovery, not lectures.” A popular part of the experience involves various simulation exercises including the beer game, which teaches that poorly organized systems will defeat the best of people, and the airplane simulation exercise, where student groups work together to build model airplanes. On the first try at this simulation, typically one airplane is completed in the allotted time. At the … Continue reading →

Posted in Lean thinking, Management, Management Articles, Process improvement, Quality tools, Systems thinking | Tagged | 1 Comment

The Birth of the Kaizen Blitz

Posted on July 19, 2006 by John Hunter

The Birth of the Kaizen Blitz [the broken link was removed] What happens when productivity improves to the point where fewer people are needed? Bodek says a layoff is a mistake. He says that Toyota, rather than eliminating the poorest performers, takes the best performers from a cell and gives them something more creative to do. It’s the human side of lean that provides the payoff.

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Evolution of the PDSA Cycle

Posted on July 17, 2006 by John Hunter

Evolution of the PDSA Cycle by Ron Moen and Cliff Norman. Another historical article that explores the growth of management improvement concepts – this time the PDSA improvement cycle. via: Deming Electronic Network [the broken link was removed] See also: Improvement Handbook by Gerald J. Langley, Kevin M. Nolan, Clifford L. Norman, Lloyd P. Provost and Thomas W. Nolan. Deming on Management Variation Through the Ages by Lloyd Provost and Clifford Norman

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New Rules for Management? No!

Posted on July 14, 2006 by John Hunter

Fortune recently published an article talking about the “new rules” for management using Jack Welch (GE six sigma) as the focus of the old rules. It seems to me there is nothing new here (once again). “New” rule: “Agile is best, being big can bite you” Yeah. Does anyone think this is new. Do they really believe Jack Welch thought agile was not a good thing? Yes, Jack Welch wanted to be number 1 or number 2 in the field … Continue reading →

Posted in Deming, Management, Management Articles, Popular, Six sigma | 8 Comments

Customer Focus at the Ritz

Posted on July 13, 2006 by John Hunter

How to Turn Customer Satisfaction into Profits and Growth [the broken link was removed] by Vincent Grimaldi: Against all odds, the company has broken the old vicious circle of low salary and high turnover by wrapping all its processes – including recruiting and training (250 hours for first-year front-line associates) – around its customers, by offering opportunities for professional development, and by encouraging personnel to advance within the organization. Curious Cat Management Improvement Career Center – job opening: Manager – … Continue reading →

Posted in Customer focus, Management, Management Articles | Tagged | 1 Comment

Reducing Waste

Posted on July 12, 2006 by John Hunter

Toyota Motor Manufacturing (UK) Ltd – achieving zero waste to landfill [the broken link was removed] Toyota developed its Environmental Management System to stay on top of its environmental objectives and ensure that all processes are dealt with in an environmentally friendly way and are implemented across all the plants. There are full key performance indicator reporting systems, visual controls and displays throughout the plant. A great improvement strategy. Determine what you are trying to do. Understand the system. Set … Continue reading →

Posted in Data, Innovation, Management, Management Articles, Process improvement, Systems thinking, Toyota Production System (TPS) | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Supplier Development Article

Posted on July 10, 2006 by John Hunter

Supplier development in a lean age [the broken link was removed] by Rich Weissman “We need to keep in mind why we are doing supplier development and relationship management, and profit needs to be the focus of our efforts. Profitable suppliers will tend to be happier suppliers, and happier suppliers will ultimately perform better.” I get the impression from this and many other articles that people are scared to talk about any other aims than profit. Deming didn’t have such … Continue reading →

Posted in Deming, Lean thinking, Management, Management Articles, Toyota Production System (TPS) | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Origins of the Toyota Production System

Posted on July 10, 2006 by John Hunter

Brief Investigation into the Origins of the Toyota Production System [the broken link was removed] by Art Smalley. Another excellent article by Art Smalley. Loaded with great historical information. I find these articles interesting on at least two levels. First there is great management information. Learning more about how the ideas we use now developed adds to my understanding. Second it is interesting historical information – I am not sure if it actually makes any difference in how I would … Continue reading →

Posted in Management, Management Articles, Toyota Production System (TPS) | Tagged , , ,

Lean Manufacturing Dream

Posted on July 6, 2006 by John Hunter

This article is from 2001 and worth reading. It is important to keep up with what is currently happening but there is a great deal of useful information from 5, 10,20, 50… years ago. Achieving the lean dream [the broken link was removed] by Nelson J. Teed: Growth and lean are great partners for another reason. Positive employee reaction to lean is crucial to success, and not automatic. Lean improves productivity and can reduce the number of people needed. Layoffs … Continue reading →

Posted in Lean thinking, Management Articles, Manufacturing | Tagged | 1 Comment

Six Sigma Theory?

Posted on July 2, 2006 by John Hunter

Can we develop theory around Six Sigma? Should we care? [the broken link was removed] by Suzanne de Treville, Norman M. Edelson, Anilkumar N. Kharkar and Benjamin Avanzi. An interesting paper exploring what six sigma means and what it mean that what it means depends on who you ask. The ideas explored provide good information for most management improvement programs as most share common tools and concepts but vary significantly between implementations. Why examine the question of six sigma theory? … Continue reading →

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Lean Furniture Manufacturing

Posted on June 28, 2006 by John Hunter

Pulaski’s passion for lean plumps up dealer service [the broken link was removed] by Jeff Linville Pulaski Furniture says it has cut inventories, improved delivery times and reduced waste as part of a new emphasis on lean manufacturing. … This led to cutting out about 100 feet of conveyor line to reduce inefficiency, and moving machinery and other equipment around in the plant; a few new pieces were added too. Reducing waste didn’t mean cutting any jobs, Oakley said. Instead, … Continue reading →

Posted in Lean thinking, Management, Management Articles, Manufacturing

Dr. Shigeo Shingo

Posted on June 20, 2006 by John Hunter

Norman Bodek responds to, Shigeo Shingo’s Influence on TPS by Art Smalley, with: Dr. Shigeo Shingo – The Greatest Manufacturing Consultant. As the title shows this article focuses on the contributions of Dr. Shingo. I still find the original article interesting and valuable. I don’t think the original article denigrates Dr. Shingo. It is true the emphasis is different in the two articles however it seems to me the difference is not that large in truth. The largest difference is … Continue reading →

Posted in Management, Management Articles, Toyota Production System (TPS) | 1 Comment

Lean National Health System

Posted on June 14, 2006 by John Hunter

A presentation today, Lean Thinking For the NHS, by Dan Jones is getting press coverage in England.NHS should embrace lean times: The improvements came through examining the patient’s whole experience, and removing the sometimes-fatal delays in getting them into the operating theatre, such as creating a faster process for radiology and removing unnecessary paperwork.These changes also lessen staff frustrations by allowing them to spend more time helping patients. Also, by cutting length of stay and complications, costs should also start … Continue reading →

Posted in Health care, Lean thinking, Management, Management Articles, Systems thinking, UK | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Lean Library

Posted on June 12, 2006 by John Hunter

Library becomes a lean machine [the broken link was removed] by Morgan Jarema: “I spent parts of three days looking for that book,” Hoyles recalled. “On the fourth day, I found it. I called the patron and he told me he’d gone out and bought it.” … In November, library employees, who are responsible for checking in from 4,000 to 10,000 returned materials at a time, were asked to help reduce the reshelving time, which could be as long as … Continue reading →

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