In this episode, Keith Norris sits down with Spencer Maybee—Vice President at Western Pipe Fabrication and second-generation small business leader—to explore what Lean looks like when you’re just getting started.

🔻 Why Lean clicked the first time Spencer heard it explained through welding

🔻 What it takes to push change inside a multi-generational family business

🔻 How small changes like shared spreadsheets made a big impact

🔻 What respect for people looks like

🔻 The real-life tension between tradition, growth, and new ideas

Whether you're building something from scratch or helping a small team get better every day, this episode is proof that Lean starts wherever you are—with the problems right in front of you.

🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/

🔗 Connect with Spencer Maybee on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/spencer-maybee/

🔗 Explore Western Pipe Fabrication: https://www.wpfiut.com/

🔗 Hosted by Keith Norris – https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

In this episode, Keith Norris sits down with Andreas Mader—CEO of Aperia Corporation and longtime Lean transformation leader—to explore how real improvement happens: not through perfection, but through progress.

From global manufacturing to executive coaching, Andreas shares stories and insights on building CI cultures that sustain, developing leaders who stay curious, and creating systems that don’t just improve processes—but people.

🔻 Why sustainment is the missing piece in most CI programs

🔻 The one mindset shift that makes improvement stick

🔻 How to create simplicity in the face of complexity

🔻 What it really means to lead through service

🔻 Why being better every day beats being perfect someday

🔻 The difference between solving a problem and owning it

Whether you're on the shop floor or in the C-suite, this episode is a reminder that real change starts with a single question: how can we be better tomorrow than today?

🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/

🔗 Connect with Andreas Mader on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/akmader/

🔗 Explore Aperia Corporation: https://aperia.com/

🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris – https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

In this episode, Keith Norris sits down with Jesse Rendon, CI leader and Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, to unpack what it really takes to turn frontline employees into empowered agents of change.

Jesse shares how he went from loading trucks to building enterprise-wide CI systems, and why believing in people’s potential is more powerful than any tool or certification.

🔻 How to turn operators into problem solvers

🔻 Why coaching beats training every time

🔻 What happens when leaders truly listen to their teams

🔻 The role of “Lean Squads” in scaling improvement

🔻 Why your frontline knows the solutions—but only if they’re invited

🔻 How to build belief, not just compliance

Whether you’re leading from the boardroom or the shop floor, this episode is a blueprint for building cultures that improve from the inside out.

🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/

🔗 Connect with Jesse Rendon on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesse-rendon-lssbb/

🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris – https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

In this episode, Keith Norris sits down with Catherine McDonald—leadership coach, lean consultant, and expert in organizational behavior—to explore why curiosity and reflection are the true building blocks of continuous improvement and effective leadership.

Drawing from her experience coaching leaders across industries—from hospitality to healthcare—Catherine breaks down how small habits, intentional space, and respectful conversations drive real, lasting change.

🔻 Why most leaders misunderstand "respect"—and how to lead with the real thing

🔻 How to create space for improvement (without losing productivity)

🔻 The problem with performative leadership—and how to go deeper

🔻 Why one-on-ones are the most underused tool in leadership

🔻 What it means to be proactive, not just reactive, as a leader

🔻 How to lead people, not just manage results

Whether you’re leading a team or developing yourself as a leader, this episode offers actionable insight on how to lead better by thinking differently.

🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/

🔗 Connect with Catherine McDonald on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/catherine-mcdonald-b6157210a/

🔗 Learn more about MCD Consulting: https://mcdconsulting.ie/

🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris – https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

In this episode, Keith Norris sits down with Ted Iverson, veteran transformation leader, Shingo Prize examiner, and former McKinsey expert, to unpack what it really takes to sustain results through leadership—not just tools or tactics.

🔻 Why cutting costs is the lowest form of consulting (and what to do instead)

🔻 How to build self-funding CI systems that actually last

🔻 The leadership behaviors that turn stars into star builders

🔻 How Leader Standard Work drives cultural change (not just compliance)

🔻 What horseback riding and leadership have in common

🔻 How to set goals so ambitious they force people to work differently—not harder

Whether you're just starting your CI journey or leading transformation at scale, this episode is packed with practical insights on how to lead better.

🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/

🔗 Connect with Ted Iverson on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ted-iverson-47580311/

🔗 Explore Iverson Consulting Group: https://www.iversonconsultinggroup.com/

🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris – https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

In this episode, Keith Norris sits down with Matt Kroll, Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt and founder of Chalmers Street Consulting, to explore how structured problem solving can be scaled across teams, industries, and maturity levels—without overcomplicating it.

🔻 DMAIC vs. PDCA — and how to know which one fits

🔻 How to make Gemba walks work beyond the factory floor

🔻 Why waste walks are still one of the most underused CI tools

🔻 The real reason metrics fail (and how to make them stick)

🔻 What makes CI work in the mid-market—where resources are tight

🔻 How to lead improvement efforts without freaking people out

Whether you're new to Lean or deep into your CI journey, this episode offers practical, real-world strategies to build momentum—and results—without burning out your team.

🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/

🔗 Connect with Matt Kroll on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewrkroll/

🔗 Explore Chalmers Street Consulting: https://www.chalmersst.com/

🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris – https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

In this episode, Keith Norris sits down with Dr. Will Miller, Associate VP for Continuous Improvement and Institutional Performance at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, to explore what it really takes to lead meaningful change inside complex, high-stakes environments.

🔻 Why people don’t resist change—they resist being changed

🔻 How to lead innovation in a bureaucracy-heavy environment

🔻 What higher ed can teach us about tailoring CI to your audience

🔻 Why culture clashes derail change—and how to avoid them

🔻 Metrics that matter (and how to stop tracking the wrong stuff)

🔻 The secret to making compliance feel empowering, not draining

Whether you’re coaching faculty, managing a team, or trying to modernize a legacy system, this episode will help you lead smarter and change better—without losing the people you need most.

🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/

🔗 Connect with Will Miller, PhD on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/willmillerphd/

🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris – https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

In this episode, Keith Norris is joined by Dr. Gwendolyn Galsworth—visual workplace pioneer, Shingo Institute faculty fellow, and author of Visual Workplace and Work That Makes Sense. Together, they dive deep into the world of “visuality,” the often misunderstood backbone of operational excellence that enables clarity, flow, and empowerment at every level of the organization.

🔻 Why visuality is not just a tool—but a strategic intervention

🔻 The real difference between visual management and visual performance

🔻 How organizations unintentionally rob people of purpose (and how to give it back)

🔻 The “I-driven” workplace and the two core questions behind meaningful work

🔻 How flow, critical thinking, and “teaching without answers” transform teams

🔻 Why metrics without leadership are just decoration—and what real leaders must do

Dr. Galsworth shares practical wisdom and field-tested insights to help leaders, coaches, and operators unlock the power of visual thinking—and transform their workplaces into environments that communicate clearly and drive continuous improvement.

🔗 Learn more about the Visual Workplace: https://visualworkplace.com/

🔗 Connect with Dr. Gwendolyn Galsworth on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gwendolyngalsworth/

🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris – https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

In this episode, Keith Norris sits down with Dr. Alan Barnard—decision scientist, CEO of Goldratt Research Labs, and one of the world’s leading experts on the Theory of Constraints—to explore how organizations can solve the right problems, not just the most obvious ones. Drawing on decades of research, consulting, and direct work with Dr. Eli Goldratt, Alan shares practical insights into how TOC helps companies focus their improvement efforts where it matters most.

🔻 Why most systems fail by solving the wrong problems first

🔻 How the Theory of Constraints reveals the real bottleneck blocking progress

🔻 The five types of constraints every system must manage

🔻 Why “focus” beats “fix everything” in continuous improvement

🔻 How to apply TOC principles to flow, decision-making, and strategy

🔻 Why finding the constraint is the first step to making better, faster decisions

Whether you're leading improvement initiatives, scaling a business, or simply trying to move faster without chaos, this episode delivers a practical, thought-provoking framework for solving the right problems—and unlocking exponential impact.

🔗 Learn more about Dr. Barnard: https://goldrattresearchlabs.com/

🔗 Connect with Dr. Barnard on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dralanbarnard/

🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris – https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

In this episode, Keith Norris is joined by Randy Kesterson, executive coach, transformation leader, and author of The Basics of Hoshin Kanri, to explore how companies can finally make their strategy stick—by linking it to execution, culture, and change management that works.

🔻 Why most strategic plans fail (and how to focus on what really matters)

🔻 The power of Hoshin Kanri to align teams and cut through initiative overload

🔻 What leaders miss when they treat Lean as a tool—not a business enabler

🔻 How to overcome resistance to change with ADKAR and real buy-in

🔻 Why cultural change needs structure, not slogans

🔻 How to deploy strategy across teams without another binder on the shelf

Randy shares lessons from decades leading operations across aerospace, defense, and manufacturing—plus how change management and Hoshin Kanri helped him bridge the gap between strategy and execution in both corporate and consulting roles.

🔗 Learn more about Randy: https://www.kestersongroup.com

🔗 Connect with Randy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/randykesterson/

🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris – https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.