Elevate Construction

Jason explains the three M's from the Toyota Production System: Muda (waste), Mura (unevenness), and Muri (overburden). He shows how to use them to analyze a train of trades moving through a project. He walks through the eight wastes, the causes of unevenness like roadblocks, unleveled zones, bottlenecks, and variation, and the signs of overburden like overtime, context switching, and trashed porta-potties. The takeaway is that waste is only one-third of the picture, so teams also need to watch whether work flows evenly and whether it's within their people's capacity.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• What Muda, Mura, and Muri mean, and how they work together as a way to analyze your project
• How overproducing leads to excess inventory, damage, rework, and the rest of the eight wastes
• The common causes of unevenness: stops and restarts, unleveled zones and crews, bottlenecks, and too much variation
• The warning signs of overburden, including overtime, context switching, fatigue, and graffiti or trashed bathrooms
• Why leaders fix the conditions that create flow instead of pushing workers to go faster

When you walk your project today, are you only looking for waste, or are you also looking for unevenness and overburden?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason introduces zone control, a daily rhythm for steering a train of trades through the building at the right speed. It came from a team at PC Construction that renamed its assistant superintendents "zone managers." He walks through the daily routine: superintendents walk each zone with the foreman, punch out yesterday's work on the spot, inspect tomorrow's areas for real readiness, and bring what they find to the afternoon foreman huddle. He lays out five zone control rules and the options for handling a trade that falls behind its Takt time, from swinging to workable backlog to swarming the delay with extra capacity.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• What zone control is and how zone managers keep a train of trades flowing at the same speed and the same distance apart
• The daily routine: punch yesterday's work with the foreman while you're there, then inspect tomorrow's zone for real readiness
• Why superintendents should never walk the job empty-handed, and what to carry (the Takt plan and zone maps)
• The five zone control rules, including no going slower than Takt time and no going faster until the work is 100% finished, inspected, and agreed to by the trades before and after
• Options when a trade is running behind: swing to workable backlog, stop the train and prepare, pull the work onto its own plan, recover within the wagon, or swarm the delay with swing capacity

Could your team walk into any zone today and show exactly where the zone boundaries are and what has to be ready for the next crew?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason uses a simple kitchen analogy to explain why a CPM schedule falls short: it's a list of ingredients, while a Takt plan is the recipe. He shares a story about a 231-page schedule that no one in the field could read, then walks through everything a true production schedule has to account for, including zones, work density, Takt time, work packaging, crew leveling, and Little's Law. He also makes a direct appeal to owners and companies to rethink contract requirements and hiring practices that keep the industry locked into a format that doesn't help the people building the work. This one is passionate, pointed, and aimed at changing the system, not blaming the people inside it.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• The difference between a list of ingredients (a CPM schedule) and a recipe (a Takt plan), and why it matters in the field
• What a real production schedule has to include: zones, leveled work density, Takt time, work packaging, crew sizes, and the right number of zones based on Little's Law
• Why a plan that can't be seen on the wall, and needs a presentation to be understood, isn't working as a plan
• Why owners and company leaders may want to revisit CPM contract requirements and the way scheduling roles are staffed
• Why a recipe is harder to write but far easier for the people in the field to follow

If your team had to build from your schedule today without a presentation or a walkthrough, could they read it and know exactly what to do?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason tackles a sensitive topic: how to encourage good behavior and discourage bad behavior without ever blaming people. People will begin behaviors that are praised and stop behaviors that are shamed, he explains, but the shame belongs on bad cultures, behaviors, systems, and processes, never on people, who are inherently good and simply attach themselves to good or bad behaviors. He shows how praising the right behavior out loud and calling out the wrong behavior in general terms creates a self-correcting culture where no one can hide below the line, all without punishment, accusation, or targeting a person or company. He opens with a great listener win, a Takt schedule with smaller zones that cut two months from each building.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why people begin behaviors that are praised and stop behaviors that are shamed, and who or what the shame should be aimed at
• How to separate people (inherently good) from the cultures, behaviors, systems, and processes that can be good or bad
• How to shape a self-correcting job site culture by shouting out the right behavior and demonizing the wrong behavior without naming names
• Why zero tolerance should always come from respect and never from anger or punishment
• How smaller Takt zones helped one team cut two months from each building without changing production rates

What behavior are you praising on your project today, and what behavior are you accidentally tolerating?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason takes on the insanity of punch lists, walking through the 10 to 20 extra steps required every time a small item goes on a list instead of being fixed on the spot. He explains how daily zone control, with the superintendent and foreman punching work as they go and checking the next areas ahead, can eliminate hundreds or thousands of punch list items.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• When a punch list is the right tool and when it isn't
• The long chain of steps one small punch item triggers, from photo to final sign-off
• How one process flow and finishing as you go prevents punch list items
• What daily zone control looks like between a superintendent and a foreman
• Why 10 to 30 minutes of daily zone control beats weeks of punch list work

How many items on your punch list could have been finished by the crew while they were still there?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason talks about the phrase "if you mess up, fess up," using Southwest Airlines' holiday meltdown as an example of how a veiled response can cost a company its loyal customers. He contrasts it with Bill Oakland's approach at Oakland Construction, where mistakes are owned right away and paired with an action plan, and shows how transparency builds trust with teams, customers, and companies.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why a veiled response hurts customer loyalty more than an honest apology
• How Bill Oakland's team owns mistakes and brings an action plan
• What to say when you mess up: own it, share the plan, ask what would make it right
• Why you never have to manage a trail of lies when you tell the truth
• How open communication builds trust with your team, customer, and company

The next time you mess up, will you fess up with a plan, or hope no one notices?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

div]:bg-bg-000/50 [&_pre>div]:border-0.5 [&_pre>div]:border-border-400 [&_.ignore-pre-bg>div]:bg-transparent [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-[var(--msg-text-inset,0.5rem)] [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8 [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-[var(--msg-text-inset,0.5rem)] [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8 [&_.md-table-scroll]:pl-[var(--msg-block-inset,0.5rem)] [&_.md-table-scroll]:pr-[var(--msg-inset-end,0.5rem)]"> _*]:min-w-0 whitespace-normal break-words print:block standard-markdown" data-perf-reply-text="">

Jason talks about the superintendent's crystal ball, the Takt plan and zone maps that let a superintendent see into the future and let everyone else see it too. He explains why a superintendent should never walk out of the office without them, and how zone control walks feed notes back into the afternoon foreman huddle and the master Takt plan.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why a plan that lives only in one person's head is hidden from everyone else
• How the Takt plan and zone maps work as a shared crystal ball
• Why superintendents should never walk the site empty handed
• How thinking in zones and one piece flow builds mental frames that solve other problems
• How zone control notes flow back to the office and the afternoon foreman huddle

Is your crystal ball in your head, or on a page the whole team can see?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason returns to regular episodes after the Lean Onboarding series with Larry and Earl, an analogy for the survival brain. He explains that the part of the mind built to keep us safe has fewer real threats to deal with in modern life, so it starts producing reports on small things. He shows how to tell real signals from noise, thank Larry and Earl for their effort, and read only the reports that contain an actual bear.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why the brain is built for survival, not for telling the truth
• How Larry and Earl turn small things into mountains out of molehills
• Why believing those thoughts leads to worry, fear, and paranoia
• How to let a thought go or write it down, cross it out, and write the truth
• Why telling signal from noise matters for builders and leaders

Which thoughts in your head are real signals, and which are just Larry and Earl filing reports?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason continues the Lean Onboarding series with the concept of customers, asking workers and foremen to see everyone around them as a customer. That includes neighbors, motorists, pedestrians, end users, and the other crews on the project. He explains how this attitude moves a project from siloed efficiency to optimizing the whole, and why it leads to better coordination and a better result for the person paying for the building.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why neighbors, motorists, and other trades are customers too
• How treating coworkers as customers changes how areas and equipment get left
• What optimizing the whole means compared with optimizing individual crews
• How mutual respect cuts trade damage, deliveries in the way, and broken promises
• Why Lean construction is about how we deliver, guided by the voice of the customer

Which crew on your project would act differently if you treated them like your customer?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason continues the Lean Onboarding series with stop, call, and wait, a principle he learned from Paul Akers. When any worker senses something is wrong, they stop the work, call a team leader or crew member, and wait for help. He explains how this keeps defective work from moving down the line and why fixing it right away costs far less than reworking it later.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• What stop, call, and wait means for every worker on a project
• How using all five senses helps catch defects at the source
• Why asking for help reflects the genius of the team, not a lack of ability
• Why rework can cost two to twelve times more than installing it right the first time
• How a small punch list item adds roughly twenty administrative steps

Does every worker on your project feel free to stop the work when something looks wrong?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw