Category Archives: quote

Don’t Expect Short Quotes to Tell the Whole Story

When people try to use a short quote as an accurate encapsulation of a management concept they will often be disappointed. It is obvious that Dr. Deming believed that organizations failed to use data effectively to improve. He proposed that … Continue reading

Posted in Data, Management, quote, Statistics, Systems thinking | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Managers Are Not Non-Leaders: Managers Need to Practice Things We Classify as Leadership Traits

Saying “Managers care about efficiency and leaders care about effectiveness” is like saying “Doctors care about theory and nurses care about patients.” Managers that don’t care about effectiveness are lousy managers. Leaders that don’t care about the gemba are lousy … Continue reading

Posted in Lean thinking, Management, Popular, quote | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

What is the Explanation Going to be if This Attempt Fails?

Occasionally during my career I have been surprised by new insights. One of the things I found remarkable was how quickly I thought up a new explanation for what could have caused a problem when the previously expressed explanation was … Continue reading

Posted in Creativity, Innovation, Management, Process improvement, quote, Software Development, Systems thinking | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on What is the Explanation Going to be if This Attempt Fails?

Experience Teaches Nothing Without Theory

Experience teaches nothing. In fact there is no experience to record without theory… Without theory there is no learning… And that is their downfall. People copy examples and then they wonder what is the trouble. They look at examples and … Continue reading

Posted in Deming, Psychology, quote | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments

Leadership and Management

I don’t think the attempts to separate leadership and management are useful. I read plenty of things that are variations on Peter Drucker’s: “Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.” A manager that is not concerned … Continue reading

Posted in Lean thinking, Management, quote, Systems thinking | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

George Box

I would most likely not exist if it were not for George Box. My father took a course from George while my father was a student at Princeton. George agreed to start the Statistics Department at the University of Wisconsin … Continue reading

Posted in Data, Deming, Design of Experiments, Management, Manufacturing, Process improvement, Quality tools, quote, Respect, Six sigma, Statistics, Systems thinking, UK | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Respect for Everyone

TL;DR – The two pillars of the Toyota Way are: respect for people and continuous improvement. One of the big reasons my career followed the path it did (into management improvement) was due to the impact of respect for people. … Continue reading

Posted in Deming, Lean thinking, Management, quote, Respect, Toyota Production System (TPS) | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Special Cause Signal Isn’t Proof A Special Cause Exists

One of my pet peeves is when people say that a point outside the control limits is a special cause. It is not. It is an indication that it likely a special cause exists, and that special cause thinking is … Continue reading

Posted in Data, Deming, Management, Manufacturing, Process improvement, Quality tools, quote, Six sigma, Statistics, Systems thinking | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Special Cause Signal Isn’t Proof A Special Cause Exists

New Deadly Diseases

Management and the economy keep evolving. Many good things happen. In the last decade the best things are probably the increased deep adoption of lean thinking in many organizations and the adoption of lean and Deming methods in software development … Continue reading

Posted in Creativity, Deming, Economics, Innovation, Lean thinking, Management, quote, Systems thinking | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

My New Book: Management Matters

I have a new book in progress: Management Matters. It is now available in “pre-release format” via leanpub. The idea I am experimenting with (supported by leanpub) is pre-publishing the book online. The ebook is available for purchase now, and … Continue reading

Posted in Books, curiouscat.com, Deming, Lean thinking, Management, Process improvement, Psychology, Quality tools, quote, Respect, Systems thinking | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments