http://www.leanblog.org/audio289

In the huddles, the manager and team talk about problems, issues, or opportunities for improvement.

In some huddles, the team might say, "We can't think of anything that came up yesterday."

But, then, as the huddle progressed, the team was asked if anybody should get recognition or kudos for something they did.

http://www.leanblog.org/audio288

http://www.kainexus.com/webinars

Today, I'll be hosting and moderating the latest in our KaiNexus Continuous Improvement Webinar series.

I'm really excited that the presenter will be Mark Valenti -- he's been a bit of a mentor and coach for me on the topic of "Motivational Interviewing," something I've really found helpful these past few years.

Click here to register for the webinar, which is intended to provide tips for leaders and managers (and a transcript can be found at the end of this post):

The webinar is today at 1 pm ET. If you can't attend live, please register anyway and you'll be sent a link to the recording.

http://www.leanblog.org/audio287

General Jim Mattis has been making the rounds to talk about his new book that is out today: Call Sign Chaos: Learning to Lead.

"Learning to Lead" sounds like it could be the title of a book about Lean management. We're learning how to lead people, to lead improvement, to lead organizations. You might say we're "practicing leadership," myself included.

A few things jumped out from an article and an NPR interview with Mattis that made me think about Lean and the challenges we face in various workplaces. 

http://www.leanblog.org/audio286

This past weekend, an old friend came down from Michigan to spend two days in the Dallas area.

Amongst the activities and catching up, we went bowling -- something I did a lot of as a kid and something my friend and I usually do when we get together.

I ordered a drink -- not a Lean whiskey, perhaps surprisingly -- but this:

http://www.leanblog.org/audio285

This is a radio segment from the KOGO morning news on August 23rd, 2019.

LaDona Harvey: When it comes to your career path, your family’s financial future, or even a weight loss journey, focusing on little setbacks can throw a real wrench in your progress.

Ted Garcia: Joining us on the KOGO news live, the author of, “Measures of Success. React Less, Lead Better, Improve More,” Mark Graban. Good morning, Mark.

Mark Graban: Good morning.

http://www.leanblog.org/audio284

Here is an article that caught my eye recently, from HBR:

"How One Health System Overcame Resistance to a Surgical Checklist"

http://www.leanblog.org/audio283

Anyway, this article caught my eye the other day:

Check out the article for the detail, but here are the five lessons and I think they apply to Lean and other things we practice, with my commentary…

http://www.leanblog.org/audio282

Hat tip to Stan Feingold from StoreSMART (a Lean Blog sponsor) for sending me this article:

http://www.leanblog.org/audio281

When we have really sticky, complicated problems (like the widespread healthcare patient safety and quality problems), I think it's interesting to think about problems in the following terms... for a particular problem, which is true?

When we look at patient safety, there are many examples that show improvement is possible. So, it comes down to a question of "can't, won't, or don't need to?"

http://leanblog.org/audio280

I guess I'm wired for improvement. Or, it's just become a habit. Or, it's both.

I celebrate moments when I can identify an opportunity for improvement in my work. I tend to be pretty transparent about problems and even mistakes (like forgetting my socks). 

The Toyota-ism of "No problems is a problem" resonates with me. Identifying a problem shouldn't bring blame and shame... it's the first step in improving the way work is done.

I'm fortunate that we've built a culture at KaiNexus where problems and opportunities are celebrated. It's safe for people to speak up and problems lead to improvement, not punishment.

Our book Healthcare Kaizen shares stories and examples from organizations that have built a strong and sustained culture of continuous improvement. I almost take it for granted that improvement is a positive thing.