If you ask 100 people what they think Lean Thinking / Lean Manufacturing is about, you’ll probably get 100 different answers. So, let me share what I think Lean is about. In a nutshell, it’s an over-arching approach to pursuing your goals (usually business goals) in the simplest, most cost effective manner, for the long-term, not just the short term. It embodies a range of practices and principles that interact as a system. At the

There’s someone I’ve mentored in Lean for a while now, let’s call him John, who has recently changed companies, now working for a large international mining company as a Lean Advisor.  They’ve actually got 3 vacant positions of similar roles after having a couple of those positions becoming vacant through personnel transfers. John and I discussed options as to how I might be able to help them on a casual / consulting basis until those positions are

A Process, is a Process, is a Process…regardless of what business environment you’re in! ‘Lean Thinking’, a business excellence philosophy that originated in the manufacturing sector, applies equally well in all other business sectors, though there is very little written about this when it comes to the Retail Industry environment. There are many differences between manufacturers and retailers, and there are a remarkable number of similarities too. Having worked in both, I can perhaps see how

Some people get way too hung up about labels and definitions.  I’m a ‘Lean’ Consultant and Coach, where I’m referring to ‘Lean’ primarily as a business improvement philosophy and way of thinking.  Originally, the term ‘Lean Manufacturing’ was coined, referring to ‘triming the fat’ from manufacturing processes. But the under-lying principles and practices typically apply to all business processes (and many non-business processes as well). Unfortunately, many Lean trainers and practitioners view Lean simply as