Practicing Lean: Learning How to Learn How to Get Better... Better

by Mark Graban (Editor), Cameron Stark, David Haigh

This is a book about practicing, learning, and sharing our experiences with the Lean methodology and the Toyota Production System.

Doctors don't "implement medicine," they practice medicine.

Lawyers don't "implement cases," they practice law.

Shouldn't Lean facilitators, consultants, managers, and the like, also "practice Lean?"

When most of us start with Lean, the practices and principles are new. We might struggle to make change happen. I know I did. Our initial clumsy efforts hopefully turn into proficiency and mastery over time. We shift from "doing Lean" to "being Lean" and teaching others how to be Lean.

This book is a collection of honest and unvarnished first-hand stories about learning, failing, and getting better at leading Lean transformation efforts. What mistakes have been made? What are the lessons learned? How do we "Plan, Do, Study, Adjust" our way to more effective Lean transformation models?

We ended up with a diverse set of 16 contributors - manufacturing, healthcare, software, startups, etc. - from across the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom... a doctor, engineers, business owners, and other great leaders and change agents (although they'd be too humble to call themselves great).

ALL proceeds from the book will be donated to the non-profit Louise H. Batz Patient Safety Foundation. Disclosure: Mark Graban is on the board of the Batz Foundation.

We have a diverse set of contributors from settings like manufacturing, healthcare, software, startups, etc.

Authors include:

Mark Graban
Author of the books Lean Hospitals, Healthcare Kaizen(/em>, and Measures of Success, blogger at LeanBlog.org

Nick Ruhmann
Director of Operational Excellence for Aon National Flood Services, Inc.

Michael Lombard
Chief Executive Officer of Cornerstone Critical Care Specialty Hospital of Southwest Louisiana

Paul Akers
President of FastCap, author of 2-Second Lean and Lean Health

Jamie Parker
15 years' experience in operations management / leadership in retail, service, and manufacturing

Harry Kenworthy
Expert in Lean government after a long career in manufacturing

Bob Rush
Lean Manufacturing Group Leader for Tesla Motors

Samuel Selay
Continuous Improvement Manager for the Marine Corps at Camp Pendleton

David Haigh
David works at Johnson & Johnson Canada, the largest consumer healthcare company in Canada

Joe Swartz
Administrative Director, Business Transformation, Franciscan Alliance, co-author of Healthcare Kaizen

Cameron Stark
Physician and Lean improvement leader in Scotland

Harvey Leach
Principal Consultant with The Consultancy Company based near Oxford, England

Andy Sheppard
Author, The Incredible Transformation of Gregory Todd: a Novel about Leadership and Managing Change

Mike Leigh
President and Founder of OpX Solutions, LLC and former Lean leader at General Electric

Jamie Flinchbaugh
Lean advisor, speaker, and author, who has advised over 300 companies on their Lean journey

Lesa Nichols
Founder, Lesa Nichols Consulting and former Toyota leader

The book

309 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 8, 2016

About the author

Mark Graban is a consultant, author, keynote speaker, and blogger in the world of “Lean Healthcare.” In June 2011, Mark joined the software company KaiNexus as their “Chief Improvement Officer,” to help further their mission of “making improvement easier” in healthcare organizations, while continuing his other consulting and speaking activities.

He is the author of the book Lean Hospitals: Improving Quality, Patient Safety, and Employee Engagement (Productivity Press), which was selected for a 2009 Shingo Research and Professional Publication Award and is being translated into seven languages. A 2nd revised edition was released in November, 2011. Mark has also co-authored a new book, titled “Healthcare Kaizen: Engaging Front-Line Staff in Sustainable Continuous Improvements,” released in June 2012. He is the founder and lead blogger and podcaster at LeanBlog.org, started in January 2005.

Mark earned a BS in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University as well as an MS in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA from the MIT Sloan Leaders for Global Operations Program (previously known as Leaders for Manufacturing). Mark has worked in automotive (General Motors), the PC industry (Dell), and industrial products (Honeywell). At Honeywell, Mark was certified as a “Lean Expert” (Lean Black Belt).

Since August 2005, Mark has worked exclusively in healthcare, where he has coached lean teams at client sites in North America and the United Kingdom, including medical laboratories, hospitals, and primary care clinics. From 2005 to 2009, Mark was a senior consultant with ValuMetrix Services, a division of Johnson & Johnson and he currently consults independently and in conjunction with the firm Lean Pathways.

Mark’s motivation is to apply Lean and Toyota Production System principles to improve quality of care and patient safety, to improve the customer/patient experience, to help the development of medical professionals and employees, and to help build strong organizations for the long term.

From June 2009 to June 2011, Mark was a Senior Fellow with the Lean Enterprise Institute, a not-for-profit educational organization that is a leading voice in the Lean world. Mark served as the LEI’s “Chief Engineer” for healthcare activities, including workshops, web & social media, and other publications. Mark also served as the Director of Communication & Technology for the Healthcare Value Network, a collaboration of healthcare organizations from across North America, a partnership between LEI and the ThedaCare Center for Healthcare Value. Mark continues as an LEI faculty member.

Mark is a popular speaker at conferences and private healthcare meetings. He has guest lectured at schools including MIT and Wharton and has served as a faculty member for the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. He has been quoted and interviewed in many publications, including Health Affairs and the New York Times.

Mark and his wife live in San Antonio, Texas.

See: http://www.markgraban.com/about-mark-...

Reviews

[Bob Wallner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Practicing Lean is an interesting little book with proceeds going to a good cause.

First the interesting part. This book is not written by one author but rather by several lean practitioners who share their individual trials and tribulations on their lean journey. The stories vary from 5S gone wrong to how people have become better leaders using lean methodologies. A common theme throughout most of the stories is respecting people over simply implementing tools. The individual authors highlight their deep reflection, learning and growth through the years. The stories are written by people with some experience in lean and others with decades of experience practicing lean.

The good cause. The editor has generously agreed to donate proceeds from this book to the Louise Batz Foundation for patient safety. https://www.louisebatz.org/about/ I was unaware of this foundation until this book. Be sure to check out the website and read the heart-wrenching story of Louise Batz and the family who is trying to help others to never have to deal with preventable medical errors.

I personally found this book inspirational. It made me reflect on all the mistakes I have made in my 15 years of practicing lean, and they have been many. Some where big, many were small, but all offered me an opportunity to learn. This book may not teach you anything new about the science of lean, but it may get you to think in a new way.