Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations in Healthcare and Beyond

By Mark GrabanBusiness Management

Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations in Healthcare and Beyond episodes

May 31, 2023Ken Pilone on Transferring TPS & Lean to Areas Outside of Manufacturing, Including Policing and Healthcare
Episode page with transcript and more
Joining us for Episode #476 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Ken Pilone, who has more than 30 years experience in Organization Development in Government, Retail, Automotive, Distribution, and Aerospace.
He recently retired from Providence Health & Services, working most recently as the Senior Manager of Business Process Engineering at Providence Health & Services — a role that encompassed internal Lean consulting, including executive coaching, lean training, leadership development, and all functions typical of a lean promotion or PI/CI function.
He's now working as an independent coach.
He spent nearly 20 years with Toyota as Lean consultant within the company as well as with suppliers, vendors, partners, and community groups. He a co-creator of the University of Toyota at the company HQ. He led the work to adapt the Toyota Production System to non-production environments (warehousing, supply chain, HQ administration depts., sales, product distribution, dealer operations, etc. In addition, he led the Center for Lean Thinking.
Ken has a Masters's in Industrial Psychology and Organizational Development with his Toyota experience, Ken has developed specialties in Lean consulting in non-production environments, curriculum development and delivery, leadership, and management development coaching, Toyota problem-solving method training, and public speaking.
He's the author of Lean Leadership on a Napkin: An Executive's Guide to Lean Transformation in Three Proven Steps.
In today's episode, we discuss the application of Lean in healthcare and Ken's experience there… and more!
Questions, Notes, and Highlights:
Police work? LAPD
Viewing work as a process…
Helping people see that in healthcare? How to go about that?
Not using the term “value streams”
Fixing defects vs. fixing the system?
Defects in policing paperwork in the field
Correcting the paperwork vs. why it occurred
Process is broken — Band-Aids
No time… why? How can we create time?
Microexperiments vs. implementing? How to help people look at improvements as experiments?
Psychological safety – removing the danger?
“Never Events”? Zero Harm?
JPL – process gremlins and being proactive…
“Breaking the system on purpose”
Adapting to healthcare… Tell us about your later transition into working in healthcare? Pulled or pushed?
The importance of leading with humility? How to build that?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in its 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
41 min
May 17, 2023Joshua Kerievsky on the Joy of Agility -- It’s Not Just for Software Companies
CEO of Industrial Logic, author of Joy of Agility
Episode page with video, links, transcript and more
Joining us for Episode #475 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Joshua Kerievsky, the founder and CEO of Industrial Logic, one of the oldest and most well-respected agile consultancies on the planet.
Since 1996, Joshua and his global network of colleagues have helped people in teams across many industries leverage the wisdom and power of modern product development methods. An early pioneer and practitioner of Extreme Programming, Lean Software Development and Lean Startup, Joshua most recently crafted “Modern Agile” to help people and organizations benefit from a principle-based approach to agility.
Joshua is passionate about helping people produce awesome outcomes via genuine agility. He is an international speaker and author of books including most recently, Joy of Agility: How to Solve Problems and Succeed Sooner.
In today's episode, we discuss how “agility” doesn't strictly mean “Agile” in software. How was Joshua inspired by leaders including former Alcoa CEO Paul O'Neill? What can all kinds of organizations learn about the art of evaluating experiments in ways that lead to more improvement and greater innovation?
Questions, Notes, and Highlights:
What's your “origin story” when it comes to these methods?
Agile is an adjective… “ready ability to move with quick, easy, grace” — resourceful and adaptable
It's not just about speed, but also quality?
Do you recall when you were first introduced to “Lean” — was it via “Lean Startup” early days?
The Industrial Logic name?
“Process” sounds bad? Why is that?
Toyota – enabling bureaucracy vs. limiting bureaucracy
SAFE experiments
Paul O'Neill admiration – safety
2012 The Power of Habit book
What does safety mean in software?
The risk of mistakes — expensive $$ decision… small tests of change???
The art of evaluating experiments? Keep going? Pivot or persevere?
For those who don't know, what's “agile” vs. what you describe as “agility”?
This is NOT a book about software development
Driving out fear like Deming?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in its 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
53 min
May 03, 2023Norbert Majerus on Lean-Driven Innovation; From a Farm in Luxembourg to Factories and a Shingo Award
Episode page with video, transcript, and more
Joining us for Episode #474 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Norbert Majerus. He has his own firm now but previously worked for Goodyear, joining the company in 1978 in his home country of Luxembourg. He moved to Akron in 1983 and worked disciplines in the Goodyear innovation centers in both locations, retiring in 2018.
His first book (2016) Lean-Driven Innovation: Powering Product Development at The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company was a Shingo Award recipient. His latest book is Winning Innovation: How Innovation Excellence Propels an Industry Icon Toward Sustained Prosperity.
In today's episode, we discuss Lean and innovation — how they co-exist, how Lean Product Development drives innovation, and how to truly engage people by leading with humility and respecting people.
Questions, Notes, and Highlights:
What's your Lean origin story?
Goodyear had tried Lean a few times in MFG – didn't work well — WHY?
This was before Billy Taylor – they worked together 5 years
Growing up on a farm — Toyota is said to be a company of farmers… how did Lean resonate with you?
Lean is Lean? – doing this in unusual places, it's all the same
Definitions? Innovation vs. improvement?
Make sure we don't stifle creativity (we can all be creative, as Norm Bodek always said)
Toyota and The Innovator's Dilemma
Akio Toyoda stepping aside as CEO — a new push for EVs there?
Can combine lean and innovation
How best to connect “Respect for people” and “rapid problem solving and experimentation” for product development and innovation? Humility…
Can you be innovative enough for long enough withOUT those lean culture concepts?
Your new book is in a Business novel format – why write it this way?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in its 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
52 min
April 24, 2023 IN MEMORIAM - Ritsuo Shingo, Former Toyota Executive and Lean Teacher
Blog post about Mr. Shingo's passing
Today, we mourn and remember Ritsuo Shingo, who recently passed away at age 75. I am re-releasing episode 409 with him from two years ago this month, in April 2021.
My deepest condolences to his family, friends, and everybody who worked with him, including my friends at the Shingo Institute.

1 hr 2 min
April 12, 2023’Picture Yourself a Leader’ - Interview with Elisabeth Swan on Her New Book
Author, podcaster, and consultant
Episode page
Joining us for Episode #473 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Elisabeth Swan, author of the new book Picture Yourself a Leader: Illustrated Micro-Lessons for Navigating Change. It's currently the #1 new release in the Amazon TQM category…
Elisabeth has consulted in the business process performance industry for over 30 years. Her experience spans from helping local non-profits expand their reach to guiding Fortune 100 companies through Lean Transformations. She has trained and mentored thousands of people in improvement projects generating millions in savings. She has deep experience coaching problem solvers and facilitating leadership retreats, strategic planning sessions, process walks, and kaizen events.
Elisabeth is the Co-Designer and Lead Instructor for the Lean Six Sigma Leadership Course at University of California, San Diego (UCSD). She is a co-founder, with Tracy ORourke, of the Just-in-Time Café and co-host of the Just-in-Time Café podcast. She co-authored, also with Tracy, The Problem Solver's Toolkit: A Surprisingly Simple Guide to Your Lean Six Sigma Journey.
In today's episode, we discuss her new book and the process for getting there, including the role of feedback, editing, and an editorial board as inputs to iteration and improvement.
Questions, Notes, and Highlights:
Tell us the story behind the book? Why this book? Why this format?
Sketching and drawing during the pandemic?
Why illustrate each chapter?
Asking people — “What have you figured out?” (PDSA) vs. “what do you know?”
Who is the book written for? Lean leadership or just good “leadership” influenced by C.I.??
Do some people have trouble picturing themselves a leader?
“The word leader can mean many things” — tell us more about that – how can everybody be a leader?
Author talk: Writing and Editing process – PDSA cycles? (Plan, Do, Study, Adjust)
Iterating, asking for honest feedback?
“The curse of knowledge?”
Iterating on the cover design?
“Heading off the head scratchers” — acronyms
“Perfecting Rework” — you invited me to contribute a “wisdom of the crowd” story here…
W. Edwards Deming's – American way of making toast… you burn it, I'll scrape it
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in its 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
1 hr 2 min
March 29, 2023Mit Vyas: Insights on Learning from Toyota, Entrepreneurial Success, and Mindfulness Practices
Managing Director of Gemba Automation
Episode page with video, transcript and more
Joining us for Episode #472 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Mit Vyas, managing director for Gemba Automation. He started his career at Toyota and worked for other large corporations. He founded Gemba Automation, a company that has helped customers in software, medical devices, fashion, and construction develop profitable and sustainable businesses.
Mit holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
In today's episode, we discuss what Mit learned working at Toyota, how that's been applied through Lean Startup thinking, and why the practice of meditation has been so important to him.
Questions, Notes, and highlights:
I already gave part of the answer by mentioning Toyota… but tell us more about your Lean origin story?
First job at Toyota – Process Engineer at Toyota was my first “real” job. The experience there was the springboard to the rest of my career.
Inputs & outputs? — not telling you the answer?
“What the actual facts” are out in the factory floor
“Making your thinking visible?” – Problem Solving A3
A3 coaching and questions?
What do you know and how do you know it?
Foundations? How can you learn problem solving if you don't know what the standard work or Takt are?
What does the word “Kaizen” mean to you, to Toyota?
What does “Challenge” mean at Toyota? What does it mean to you?
Leading with humility?
How do you apply PDCA thinking in your company? To starting a company?
What's the problem statement that led to the company as a countermeasure?
Lean Startup concepts?
Minimum Viable Product? Minimum Viable Service?
Have you found good product / market fit?
Check and Adjust — pivot or persevere?
Calming your nervous mind?
Power of meditation – You've been meditating… what have you learned from that practice?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in its 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
1 hr 8 min
March 14, 2023 Discovering the Benefits of Data-Driven DEI: An Interview with Dr. Randal Pinkett on his New Book
Co-founder, chairman and CEO of BCT Partners
Episode page with links and more
Joining us for Episode #471 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Dr. Randal Pinkett. He was a guest in Episode 380 in 2020, with Prof. Jeffrey Robinson, his co-author for the book Black Faces in White Places.
Today, I'm honored to be joined by Randal again to talk about his new book, his fifth book — Data-Driven DEI: The Tools and Metrics You Need to Measure, Analyze, and Improve Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, released yesterday, March 14th.
Randal is an entrepreneur, innovator, speaker, author, media personality and DEI expert who is leading the way in business, technology and equity for all. He is the co-founder, chairman and CEO of BCT Partners, a global, multimillion-dollar research, training, consulting, technology, and data analytics firm whose mission is to provide insights about diverse people that lead to equity.
He's a graduate of the MIT Leaders for Global Operations Program. He's a Rhodes Scholar with a PhD also from MIT. As we talked about a little bit last time, Randal was the winner of Season 4 of The Apprentice.
58 min
March 01, 2023CEO Gary Michel on Lean for the Enterprise and the Need to Decomplify Work
Episode page with video, transcript and more
Joining us for Episode #470 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Gary Michel.
He was Chairman and CEO of JELD-WEN, Inc. until August 2022 and, just after that, I saw him give an outstanding keynote talk at the AME annual conference in Dallas.
Gary was previously President and CEO of Honeywell Home and Building Technologies (HBT) and President and CEO of ClubCar. He also led the Trane HVAC business, among other executive roles.
He has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Virginia Tech and an MBA from the University of Phoenix.
His book, Decomplify: How Simplicity Drives Stability, Innovation, and Transformation, will be available later this year.
In this episode, Gary discusses his Lean origin story and how he views and drives Lean as a CEO. He reflects on the importance of strategy deployment and Lean as an enterprise approach, and shares his approach to Lean problem solving as a CEO. Gary emphasizes the impact of taking a “fresh eyes” approach to Gemba walks, and talks about the importance of being inquisitive and taking responsibility for simplifying processes (or “decomplifying” them).
Questions, Notes, and highlights:
What's your Lean origin story?
Lower volume business – how to make it flow? We're not Toyota?
Strategy deployment… lean as an enterprise
How to be focused on most pressing needs?
Reaction to the John Toussaint quote – “you've seen one lean transformation….”
“I teach problem solving a lot”
Who were your teachers, guides and coaches?
Shedding Old habits and old philosophies
How did you drive Lean problem solving from the CEO seat?
How to coach others away from bad habits?
Culture impact of coaching leaders vs. selecting the right ones for promotion?
Having a rallying cry to set direction
Working to reduce fear of speaking up
Get out there… those closest to the work
How to get other leaders out to the Gemba?
The impact of taking leaders out on a Gemba walk??
Some are afraid of that, making mistakes?
The importance of taking a “Fresh Eyes” approach??
Why should leaders be inquisitive when things don't look the way they're supposed to look?
What's your definition of a “great company”?
Problem Solving AND communication as much as anything else
Influencing other CEOs to take interest in Lean yet alone drive it?
Gets asked – What if my CEO isn't driving this?
Decomplifying annual planning and strategy cycles?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in its 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
57 min
February 22, 2023 My Many Mistakes Related to Today’s Lean Podcast Episodes – Yup, Plural
I'm sorry for mistakenly releasing two episodes on the same day... now three.
Blog post related to this bonus episode
8 min
February 22, 2023What a Unicorn Knows: Authors Matt May & Pablo Dominguez Discuss Their New Book on Entrepreneurship
New book, available now!
For links, video, transcript, and more visit the episode page
Joining us for Episode #469 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast are Matt May and Pablo Dominguez, the authors of the new book What a Unicorn Knows: How Leading Entrepreneurs Use Lean Principles to Drive Sustainable Growth. It's available now!
Matt has been before, in episodes 67 and 103… and he was my guest for episode 39 of My Favorite Mistake.
Pablo Dominguez is an Operating Partner at Insight Partners, a leading global venture capital and private equity firm investing in high-growth technology and software ScaleUp companies that drive transformative change in their industries.
Pablo has spent his entire career as a go-to-market and sales-focused operator, working in consulting, public companies, startups, and, most recently, ScaleUps. The application of lean principles has figured centrally in driving sustainable growth in each of these ventures.
Matthew E. May leads the Lean ScaleUp program at Insight Partners, with Pablo. His mastery of lean principles and methodologies comes from spending nearly a decade inside the Toyota organization, where he played an integral part in launching the University of Toyota, a corporate university dedicated to teaching, preserving, and expanding the Toyota Way. Previously the author of many great books, including The Elegant Solution and, most recently, Winning the Brain Game.
In this episode, we discuss their new book and how they are both influenced by Toyota and broader Lean thinking, including the Lean Startup methodology — and we discuss the questions and topics listed below:
Questions, Notes, and highlights:
Pablo, since this is your first time here, it would be great to hear your “Lean origin story”
Helping people cope with the discovery of waste and opportunities to improve? Feeling bad about it before moving forward?
Congratulations on the release of the book… in startup circles, what's meant by the term “Unicorn”?
What's a ScaleUp compared to a startup?
What is product-market fit? An example?
Risk of trying to scale prematurely?
One of the core themes in your model is “Constant experimentation”
Investors – do they want to hear about “constant experimentation”? Do they want certainty?
How to prevent Big Company Syndrome (a.k.a., Big Company Disease)?
What is meant by “Lean ScaleUp”?
How do you react when you hear this aversion to “process” in agile or startup circles, as if process means being inflexible?
What's a “lean kaizen sprint”?
Applying this to the sales process?
Lessons Toyota about “building team spirit”?
Building teamwork across silos?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in its 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
1 hr 2 min

About Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations in Healthcare and Beyond

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Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations features thoughtful, in-depth discussions with leaders, authors, executives, and practitioners who are applying Lean thinking in the real world.