The KaiZone

Improving the business of life

The 3 Most Powerful Lean Tools: They’re Not What You Think

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Lean Toolkit

One of the real joys of my role as a lean coach is introducing fresh minds to lean thinking through introductory training.  I start every class with a simple question:  Why are you here?”

The response?  Predictable. Irregardless of how experienced the students are or what industry they are from, the top few reasons are always the same:

Top 5 Reasons People Take Lean Training

 Our Obsession with Tools

Lean tools.  Without fail, the number one reason that people cite for enrolling in lean training is to learn “lean tools”.    (And yes, I really did have one individual who signed up for lean training seeking dietary advice.  But that is a topic for another day . . . .)

It doesn’t matter how many times that I hear it.  If you could look inside my head at the very first utterance of the phrase “lean tools” this is what you would see: [Read more…]

 

Is Knowing Less the Secret to Lean Success?

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Quotes from the KaiZone

Ralph Waldo Emerson was quoted as saying, “I hate quotes.”  Luck you.  As I’ve been told by countless college writing professors – not to mention readers of this blog – I’m no Emerson!  There’s nothing I like more than a good quote, which is why every month I am shamelessly stealing and expounding on the wisdom of others to bring you Quotes from @TheKaiZone.  

Deep down inside, I’d like to think of myself as a fairly well-adjusted person (although, those of you who really know me might beg to differ).  But I am definitely not without my share of . . . let’s just call them “quirks”.

For example, I suffer – gloriously, I might add – from a mild case of obsessive-compulsive disorder.  This is my personal hell.

How to Torture Someone with OCD

How bad is it, you ask?   [Read more…]

 

Problem Solving: Why Skill-Based Learning is Harder Than You Think

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This article was originally featured on The Lean Post .  Special thanks to Lex Schroeder for her tireless work in helping to refine this piece.  

What if surgeons learned the skills necessary to operate in the same way we attempt to develop problem solving skills in our people?

“Good morning. My name is Dr. Gross and I will be operating on you today. Don’t worry, you’re in good hands. My day job is in accounting, but I was recently hand-picked by my management to pursue a Green Belt in surgery because I’m told I’ve got ‘potential’. I have completed more than two weeks of classroom training where I learned from some of the most expensive surgical consultants in the world.  Rest assured, I am willing and able to use each and every tool in the surgical toolbox.

Today, I’ll be using the standard, 5-step surgical framework known as DMAIC, which stands for Don’t-Move-And-I’ll-Cut. Unless, of course, something goes wrong in which case I’ll insist that we follow PDCA – Please-Don’t-Call-Attorney! That’s just a little surgical humor.  You look tense. Shall we get started?”

Developing strong problem solving skills throughout the entire organization is critical to building a lean culture. Yet, most organizations never come close to achieving this “everybody, every day” ideal. One reason is that most of us know little about how people develop complex skills like problem solving.  How learning works is a black box in which we find ourselves feeling around in the dark, looking for a way out. 

Thankfully, cognitive development scientists do know something about this.  Research illuminates our core learning mechanisms for processing new information and developing new skills. We can think learning as something we’re already quite comfortable with in the lean community: as a process that can be continually refined and improved over time.

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